We may be seeing indications that “The Great Recession” is turning around. We can’t know for sure yet but what we can be certain of is that all of us have been impacted one way or another. Unemployment reached 10.9% and underemployment reached 20.4% (per Gallup Daily tracking). And the reach of the recession was worldwide. In Gallup's Personal Economy Index (measuring the outlook people have on the local job market and local economy, as well as their outlook on and satisfaction with their own standard of living) 61 of 96 countries dropped significantly. Then you have the oil spill exasperating the situation in the states surrounding the Gulf of Mexico. And what about the tragedies and catastrophes that happen on a personal level even when the economy is humming?
The truth is life is filled with times of pain and pressure just as it is filled with times of jubilation and joy. The only difference now is that many more of us are in a season of challenge. So what will you make of this season? What will you let this season make of you?
These crucible times test our character. They test the platitudes learned in Sunday School that we often cite to others when they’re going through difficulties. If there’s enough heat and pressure, crucible times will test what we believe about ourselves and even what we believe about God. I have learned that is a good thing – a very good thing. I am convinced God wants a deep relationship with us and he will use the difficult times to move us deeper. I think he wants us to wrestle with him until the principles we profess get anchored in our very being, until we say (as Job did), “I had heard of you, now I know you intimately.” We just need the guts to face the facts.
In his book, Integrity, Dr. Henry Cloud defines character as “the ability to meet the demands of reality.” You see it doesn’t matter if you observe the glass half empty or half full. Those are just statements of fact. What matters is:
What are you going to do with that knowledge?
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