Facing Trials Head-on

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Facing Trials Head-on From "The Healing Power of Prayer," by Chester Tolson, Ph.D. and Harold G. Koenig, M.D.:Life

offers many challenges, the ultimate being death itself. We are

sometimes called upon to face pain, suffering, loss, and grief that may

seem impossible to handle. Prayer gives us hope and keeps us moving.

Here is a formula you may use to help overcome. When confronted with a

trial of any kind: 1. Face it. 2. Life it.3. Commit it.4. Release it. Let's look at each of these in more detail: 1.

Face it. One thing that adds enormous pressure to an already tense

situation is our inability to face realistically what may be happening

to us. We may be: Fearful of the outcomeUnwilling to believe the factsEmbarrassed by the conditionsProtective of ourselves or others Denying

or avoiding a problem that requires action on our part is never

helpful. Research has shown that people who do this regularly end up

not coping as well. Studies of both college students and sick older

adults demonstrate that those who approach their problems by avoidance

and denial experience less well-being overall, compared to those who

face their problems. 2. Lift it. After facing up to the real

facts of what is happening in your life or someone else's, or in the

conditions around you, and having done everything you know or can do

with the help of theirs, you must then lift these facts above yourself

to God in prayer. At that point you make a full and complete disclosure

of your needs. It is helpful to name them one by one. God does not need

this recitation, but doing so strengthens us. We admit to ourselves

that we cannot do it alone and we are asking God for help. 3.

Commit it. Having faced it and lifted it to God, we commit it. We take

it out of our hands and hand it over to God. The solution to the

problem will be through us from God's divine will for our lives. This

commitment should be without any reserves. It is handed over in faith

that God will handle it. 4. Release it. Having faced it, lifted

it, and committed it, we must release it. We may not be able to forget

it, but we should release it and no longer worry about it.