There are graces the Lord longs to bestow on those who pray, but He will only grant them when a soul perseveres in its devotional commitments. A deep inner strength, a certain resoluteness in the face of adversity, and the ability to hang on beyond one's own strength are great gifts of the Holy Spirit. Greater than all of these is the gifts of wisdom and understanding. A soul that finds the truth to stand on has found all it needs for a meaningful life even when everything would seem meaningless around it. Souls with these gifts are a source of courage, strength and peace for others.
Notice that each of these gifts is never given to souls that do not struggle or suffer hardship. They are gifts that are granted in the midst of terrible trials and insurmountable challenges. Yet, it is not the hardship or circumstance itself that is the source of the grace. The hardship provides only the environment and atmosphere that disposes a prayerful soul to the gift. The more powerless and hopeless a soul feels, the greater the gift the Lord intends to give. Yet to recieve, one must choose to believe in such moments, and this even when faith seems impossible. This impossible place, when filled with faith, becomes the inexhaustible wellspring of divine possibilities.
Perhaps this is why the Lord sometimes permits us to be abandoned by those we most count on. Perhaps it is why we sometimes suffer denial and betrayal by those we thought would be most loyal. Perhaps the embarrassments and humiliations, even those self-inflicted injuries, are the threshold into the shadow of the Cross - that still point that uveils the truth of humanity before the truth of God, the power of God within human frailty, and the wisdom of God in the foolishness of men.
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