We all face adversities in life. No one is exempt. As Christians, we know we will have trials and tribulations. We are called to be more powerful than opposing forces. We are called to be victorious.
Adversity can be helpful. We grow strong as a result. The key in prevailing in the face of adversity is the power to choose. God gave us the power to choose the way we feel, the way we think, and our daily habits. I recall hearing someone say that you can’t find success by doing the things that make you fail.
My family and I lived in the segregated South. Dad served during WWII. After receiving an honorable discharge, he was denied G.I. Benefits. He was living in Mississippi and had a wife and young son. President Roosevelt signed the Serviceman’s Readjustment Act into law on June 22, 1944. This Act included benefits for college, low cost home loans, and unemployment insurance. When lawmakers began drafting the G.I. Bill in 1944, some segregationists feared that Black veterans would use public sympathy for veterans to advocate against Jim Crow laws. They wanted to make sure the G.I. Bill benefited white people. A racist Mississippi Representative was the house sponsor of the G.I. Bill. Instead of the federal government, he made sure states were responsible for distributing benefits. Segregationists denied benefits to Black veterans. As a result, Dad did not have access to any benefits. We lived in poverty.
Some veterans could not access benefits because they didn’t have an honorable discharge. A larger number of Black veterans were discharge dishonorably than their white counterparts. If they qualified, they could not find schools to accept them.
In spite of racism and poverty, God gave us the ability to prevail. Dad was a Christian and taught us how to be Christians. He taught us to respond to adversity with courage and stamina. We had faith, dreams, and determination. We became better and stronger.
According to the book, The Power To Prevail, by David Foster, he compared how climbers prevail in life. In his analogy, he said climbers cannot control what happens to them, but they can control “what happens” to what happens to them. They take control of their lives by taking control of their choices. Climbers climb because they never lose heart. They refuse to relent, retreat or resign themselves. Developing their heart muscle gives them to respond to the changing conditions of the climb. If they face a steep mountain, they acknowledge the reality and climb on.
Dad encouraged us to climb on in life. He had faith that we would succeed. Faith is acting on what you believe. We had a role to play in changing situations for the better. We were determined to get out of poverty and live a victorious life. We had long and short term goals that we adhered to. Failure was not an option. We prevailed!
Francie Mae. July 9, 2022
References
Blakemore, Erin. “How the G.I. Bill’s Promise Was Denied to a Million Black WWII Veterans. The sweeping bill promised prosperity to veterans. So what didn’t Black Americans Benefit? ”Updated: April 20, 2021. Original: June 21, 2019. Accessed July 9, 2022.
Foster, David. August 2003. The Power to Prevail. New York, N.Y. Warner Books.
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