The Power in the Pit: Finding Purpose Through Adversity

Marcus D. Taylor, MBA
May 6
3 min read

Updated: May 10

Adversity doesn’t send a warning. It shows up in our lives like a storm—unexpected, unforgiving, and often unwanted. Whether you’ve done time behind bars, lost your job, fallen out with friends, or watched opportunity after opportunity slip through your fingers, you may wonder: Is there still a path forward?

Yes. But that path starts in the mind.

Adversity Isn’t the End—It’s the Introduction

Too often, people let failure write their full story. But failure, disappointment, and even consequences are not your final chapter. They are simply scenes in a greater narrative. You may not have arrived where you wanted, but that doesn’t mean you’ve arrived nowhere.

“Though he fall, he shall not be utterly cast down: for the Lord upholdeth him with his hand.”— Psalm 37:24 (KJV)

Everyone falls. But the difference between those who stay down and those who rise is what they focus on next.

Resilience Is Built in the Fire

Your strength doesn’t come from avoiding adversity. It’s forged in it. That pain you’re feeling? That’s a signal. Not of weakness—but of growth trying to break through.

“And not only so, but we glory in tribulations also: knowing that tribulation worketh patience; and patience, experience; and experience, hope.”— Romans 5:3-4 (KJV)

We live in a world where people chase applause, but real growth happens when nobody’s watching—when you’re rebuilding quietly, faithfully, and intentionally.

Silence the Noise: Focus on What Matters

The past will scream at you if you let it. Guilt, shame, regrets—they’ll create stories in your head: They want me to fail. They’re against me. Nobody believes in me.

Sometimes that noise isn’t from outside—it’s inside.

“Casting down imaginations, and every high thing that exalteth itself against the knowledge of God, and bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ.”— 2 Corinthians 10:5 (KJV)

People aren’t thinking about you as much as you think. Many times, it’s not the enemy—it’s inner me. You don’t need to fight shadows. You need to fight doubt.

Distractions Are Designed to Derail Destiny

Distraction is subtle. It doesn’t always look like sin—it often looks like comfort, familiarity, or attention. But it leads you away from your path. Friends, lovers, conversations, environments—some are assigned by God, others by confusion.

“Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour.”— 1 Peter 5:8 (KJV)

Discernment is knowing which is which. If it clouds your clarity, steals your focus, or tempts your lower self, it’s not for you.

Ask God for Discernment, Not Just Deliverance

Sometimes we ask God to get us out, when we should be asking Him what we need to learn while we’re in it.

“If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God, that giveth to all men liberally, and upbraideth not; and it shall be given him.”— James 1:5 (KJV)

Discernment helps you see past the moment. It trains you to walk by faith, not just by feeling. Feelings change. But purpose? Purpose remains. And God’s purpose always prevails.

What You Feed Will Grow

If you feed bitterness, fear, and comparison, they’ll grow. If you feed your faith, discipline, and focus, they will grow. You choose which version of yourself shows up tomorrow—based on what you feed today.

“Finally, brethren, whatsoever things are true... honest... just... pure... lovely... of good report; if there be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these things.”— Philippians 4:8 (KJV)

Adversity might be your circumstance. But victory is your choice.

Conclusion: From the Pit to the Purpose

Adversity doesn’t mean God left you. It may be the very place He sent you to find clarity, strength, and calling.

Stop rehearsing the pain. Start rehearsing your purpose. Write it down. Pray over it. Plan for it. And protect it from every distraction.

“For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, saith the Lord, thoughts of peace, and not of evil, to give you an expected end.”— Jeremiah 29:11 (KJV)

You didn’t lose everything. You may have just lost what was standing in the way.

Now it’s time to build.

Let this be your reminder: You were not created to quit. You were not built to break. You were designed by purpose, for purpose. Keep going.

Reflection Questions: