The Hard Way Now is the Easier Way in the Long Run

The blessing of facing our pain, our hardships, our truth that can’t be denied, is freedom.

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It’s a truth that fits into so many realms of life: doing things the hard way — the proper way — the painful way, initially, is the easy way in the long run, because it’s the way it’s supposed to be done.

There’s no wisdom in delaying the inevitable.

There’s no wisdom in denying the undeniable.

There’s no point in pretending things are as they aren’t or aren’t as they are.

Facing the pain of ‘what is’ seems inordinately hard, but it’s actually a lot easier than the alternative — to pretend things are different than they are.

FACING can seem impossibly hard.  It isn’t.  Please believe me.  I’ve seen it in so many who have learned to face their hard truths.

When you face your hard truths with the right kinds of support, you can endure the undoing of guilt and shame as you bear the fleeting pain of it — though at the time that pain will feel anything but fleeting.  But, BEARING.  Yes, these are burdens that grow us in the confidence of courage — truth to tell in a million different ways!

What beckons is freedom.

The blessing of facing our pain, our hardships, our truth that can’t be denied, is freedom — the only true and genuine freedom any of us can and will ever know.

Freedom is a possession for facing truth and holding ourselves amid the realities of our lives.

Verily, as Jesus says, “The truth will set you free.”

But to continue the façade is to continue in a bondage we’re never relieved of.  That kind of sowing brings just more pain.

Going the hard way — the diligent way, the way of integrity — is the easier way in the long run.

Going what seems the easy way is always the harder and more impossible way in the long run.

But the truth is, few ultimately decide to go the hard way which is easier in the longer run.  Again, Jesus calls this the narrow way.  He calls us to enter the narrow gate.

And if we do this, the truth — facing our truths — will set us free.

 

 

 

This is an updated edition of a post originally published on Tribework

Featured Image by Ugne Vasyliute on Unsplash

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About the Author

Steve Wickham is a Kingdom Winds Contributor. He holds several roles, including husband, father, peacemaker championing peacemaking for children and adults, conflict coach and mediator, church pastor, counselor, funeral celebrant, chaplain, mentor, and Board Secretary. He holds degrees in Science, Divinity (2), and Counselling. Steve is also a Christian minister serving CyberSpace i.e. here.