Blessings in Disguise

When we are going through a hard time we can get carried away and lose hope very easily and it becomes very difficult for us to recognize the blessings hidden in it. During the times of hardship and ease alike, we must bear one thing in mind:

Without difficulties and pain our growth is impossible

Let’s consider a very common example. Suppose your dream is to become an artist or a psychologist or an IT expert or whatever you like. In order to educate yourself in your field of interest and to become skillful in it you get admission in a college or school or any other educational institution. There if you are taught only the easiest lessons as a part of your curriculum then would you expect yourself to become an expert in that field after qualifying from that institution? Of course not, because without challenges and difficulties it’s impossible to learn and grow. Similarly, when we are faced with hardships in our lives, dealing with those helps in our emotional and mental growth. It’s bound to make us stronger and smarter.

Let’s consider another example, when a product is manufactured it is tested and the more difficult tests it passes the more worthy it becomes. For instance, when a car is manufactured, it is made to undergo really harsh conditions. It is driven on bumpy and un-even roads, through water and is made to perform under many similar tough conditions. As a result, the more obstacles it’s able to cross and still perform the more worthy it becomes. Moreover, the more severe the conditions were the more tolerant the car is declared and eventually becomes even more worthy. In the same way, we are tested under tough conditions so that when we bear them with patience and don’t break down, the more worthy we become in the eyes of Allah. After all, He gives the hardest battles to His strongest soldiers. That’s the reason why prophets were the people who were faced with the most difficult situations and hardships in the history. If Allah knew you were not capable of dealing with the hardships you are being put through, He wouldn’t have given those to you in the first place. How can He put you in a situation under which you are bound to break down when He loves you more than seventy mothers altogether. The only reason you are faced with the kind of difficulty you are going through is because you are capable of dealing with it and the one who created you knows it well.

‘لا يكلف الله نفسا الا وسعها'
(Translation: Allah does not burden a soul except [with that within] its capacity) 
~Al-Quran [2:286]