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“Adversity is always the partner of progress.”


A thought by John C. Maxwell from his book, Beyond Talent (p. 159). HarperCollins Leadership. Kindle Edition. (Click on the book title to go to Amazon.com to buy the book.)

I know, I know, that thought will not draw many to it, but if I want to really make a difference, I need to come to grips with the reality of it.

John says, “Advice columnist Ann Landers wrote, ‘If I were asked to give what I consider the single most useful bit of advice for all humanity, it would be this: Expect trouble as an inevitable part of life and when it comes, hold your head high, look it squarely in the eye and say, ‘“I will be bigger than you. You cannot defeat me.’”

“Adversity is always the partner of progress. Anytime we want to move forward, obstacles, difficulties, problems, and predicaments are going to get in the way. We should expect nothing less. And we should even welcome such things. Novelist H. G. Wells asked, ‘What on earth would a man do with himself if something didn’t stand in his way?’ Why would he make such a comment? Because he recognized that adversity is our friend, even though it doesn’t feel that way. Every obstacle we overcome teaches us about ourselves, about our strengths and weaknesses. Every obstacle shapes us. When we succeed in the midst of difficulty, we become stronger, wiser, and more confident. The greatest people in history are those who faced the most difficult challenges with courage and rose to the occasion. That was certainly true of Winston Churchill.”

John goes on, “Pat Williams, in his book American Scandal, writes about Churchill’s last months. He says in 1964, former president and World War II general Dwight D. Eisenhower went to visit the former prime minister. Eisenhower sat by the bold-spirited leader’s bed for a long period of time, neither speaking. After about ten minutes, Churchill slowly raised his hand and painstakingly made the ‘V’ for victory sign, which he had so often flashed to the British public during the war. Eisenhower, fighting back tears, pulled his chair back, stood up, saluted him, and left the room. To his aide out in the hallway, Eisenhower said, ‘I just said goodbye to Winston, but you never say farewell to courage.’”

John then says, “It’s tempting to learn about the life of someone like Churchill or Eisenhower and believe that certain people are born with courage and are destined for greatness while others must sit on the sidelines and simply admire them. But I don’t think that is true. I believe that anyone can develop courage.”

So, let’s not run from adversity but use it to develop the person we can be and the courage that we will need.  Will you do that?

Yes, yes!
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