We all wish life could be a little easier sometimes: peaceful, tranquil, smooth.  I know - I've felt that way.

But the last time I found myself in the middle of a turbulent, disruptive, high-pressure life challenge, an image popped unexpectedly into my head.  Now, I'm not a surfer - and I don't live near an ocean, so you may think this is a little strange... but this is what I saw:

Here is a surfer zooming through a wave tube.  The shot was taken from the point of view of the surfer.

The surfer is traveling at high speeds and is on his or her way out of the tunnel and into the sunshine.

When this image showed up in my head, it was instantly clear to me that my business momentum (and even some rapid personal growth) was happening because of the destructive forces that were around me, coupled with my determination to get out from under them.

Do you have destructive forces around you?

Are you determined to get out from under them?

I had been doing my best to keep my eyes on where I was going, without giving heed to the difficulties that threatened to destroy everything, but it was not an easy thing to do.  I believe this image popping into my head was God's way of telling me that the challenges I faced were good for me, and that if I didn't give up, I'd come through just fine.

It amazed me to realize how the destructive forces and my determined focus on the goal were literally working together to help me utilize the power of those destructive forces to propel me forward.

Can you see how hunkering down and keeping my eye on the end of the tunnel was the best thing I could do, rather than looking around and putting my energy into trying to stop the waves from crashing onto me?  Picture that!  Imagine me zooming down a wave tube on a surfboard, and then turning toward the wave, holding my arms out to block the water from pushing me over.  It would be ridiculous, really, and I suspect I'd come away pretty beat up.

Yes, trying to stop the waves is futile - it's true in surfing, and it's true in life.

Remember this! Waves of opposition are part of life, and you can destroy yourself trying to push them away.

By letting the waves of opposition just be what they are, you can focus on where you're going and they become the force that takes you there.

Whether the force propels you or destroys you depends on where you put your focus, energy, and attention.

Surfers understand this principle; and the best in the field are even happiest when the waves coming at them are the most forceful. They've learned to make the most of the very thing that threatens to pull them under (or knock them unconscious), and they use it to travel at breakneck speeds out of the dark tunnel and into the light.

Have you heard about the Law of Polarity that says, the worse things are, the better?  Perhaps now you can see why.

The stronger the wave, the faster you can travel.

By contrast, here's a picture that symbolizes the life we think we want.

I call this picture "shark bait".

Things are peaceful, but he's going nowhere.

So be grateful for your challenges... they're taking you places.  Don't be overcome by the appearances of impending doom - let them be what they are, and focus on where you're going.  It's an exercise of faith to think this way, but one day you'll look back and understand what all the disappointments, setbacks, and trials were for.

Feeling gratitude now will put your thinking on a frequency that tunes you into the solutions - genius solutions - to your problems that you haven't even thought of yet.

The raging turbulence in life can propel you toward your goals if you keep your eyes on the horizon.

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