059 | Transcending the Struggle
April 26, 2021
Minute of Transparency: It's not looking good for Wile E. Coyote
Today's Topic: Transcending the Struggle
In this episode:
The Struggle is Real
Tunnel Vision
Transcending the Tunnel
// 1. THE STRUGGLE IS REAL
I'm sure we've all heard the phrase, "The struggle is real."
But do you know where it came from?
According to KnowYourMeme.com:
There is no known origin. However, it is likely that as a few people started using it, the Internet eventually perpetuated its use. As with most fads these days right?
On September 27th, 2011, the hip hop group DTMD released the album Makin' Dollas, which featured a track titled "The Struggle is Real."
On October 11th, Urban Dictionary user nobranknerms[1] submitted an entry for "the struggle is real," defining it as an "ironic saying often used in place of the saying 'first world problems'".
Sounds about right - doesn't it?
The struggle is real typically refers to the small problems we view as big problems - even though if we were honest with ourselves, we would admit they are pretty small.
I did a quick Google search for first world problem memes and here are a few:
My house is too big for my wifi signal...
I have three monitors attached to my laptop and I can't find my cursor...
Someone on the Internet disagrees with me...
My remote stopped working so I had to open my car with a key...
My bed is too big - my phone cord doesn't reach to me...
Everyone in the picture was tagged - except for the attractive person I wanted to stalk...
I downloaded a song illegally and it didn't come with album art...
I ordered pizza, now I have to put pants on...
I want to make a first world problems meme but I have no problems...
We laugh - but at the same time a meme only works if there is some truth to it - right?
And we can all see ourselves in these memes because we've been there - far too often.
But these aren't the struggles I want to focus on in this episode. Or at least not the only ones.
Because struggles are real. And they aren't always small things like these.
For the purpose of this episode I would say there are at least five categories of struggles:
First World Problems: The "struggle is real" sorta problems we just touched on
Common Struggles: Things that are bad, and do happen to a lot of us. And are difficult because they impact your life and productivity. Things like your car breaking down, pipes leaking in your house, finding you have termites, etc.
Relational Struggles: Problems with other people. Some that mean very little - like arguing with the neighbor what side of the property line a tree is on. Or serious relational issues in a marriage to the point where divorce is being discussed
Spiritual Struggles: Dealing with your spiritual or religious beliefs. Guilt. Fear. Anxiety. Embarrassment over past behavior
Significant Struggles: Long term illness, Coronavirus fallout like kids missing out on necessary instruction and people losing jobs or businesses
Life & Death Struggles: Living in a 3rd World Country where social justice is lacking. Getting cancer. Having a severe mental health issue that impacts basic functioning
Again, these were just off the top of my head. I'm sure you could add to this list.
The point behind making a list is that it shows the struggle continuum - the fact that we all have struggles, that there are many different types of struggles and that there are many levels of severity when it comes to struggles.
This concept was reinforced on one of my runs this week.
I was listening to Jennie Allen on the Made For This podcast. The episode was called, The Underground Church in the Middle East.
In the episode, Jennie interviewed a pastor whose name was changed and voice was altered for his protection. They discussed how fast the Christian church is growing in Muslim counties - even though the threat of persecution and death is around every corner.
I'll put a link to this episode in the show notes if you're interested in hearing the entire thing.
Not only does it put what we consider "struggles" into perspective. But it is also a scathing rebuke of the church in the Unites States - and our version of what it means to truly walk in faith - living out the beliefs you have.
If you listen to the episode she also talks about there being a full length interview on a platform called RightNow Media. And she also references a movie available on YouTube called Sheep Among Wolves - a film that inspired her to reach out and continue conversations in this area.
Sheep Among Wolves (Volume II): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9SAPOLKF59U
// 2. TUNNEL VISION
Now that we've talked about the many struggles that exist - the next question should be obvious:
Where do they come from?
Well I guess that depends on your world view.
If you are Hindu, you may look at struggles as driven by Karma. So if you live your life doing bad things - at some point bad things will come back to you.
If you lean more toward a scientific explanation - you may vibe with Murphy's Law: "Anything that can go wrong will go wrong." A very rational, reality-based view of things. That if you have optional outcomes, different eventualities, and some of them are bad - then at some point - just based on statistics - a bad thing must happen.
Or, if you're a Christian (like me) you will have this explanation:
God created a perfect world, and placed perfect Beings on it - there was no pain, no suffering, and no struggles
But the Sin Virus was found in one of God's angels, who rebelled and convinced other angels to join him
So the Angel, and his followers were banished from Heaven, and sent to the new, perfect world
The Angel convinced the humans living on the perfect world to join him in his rebellion
And when we accepted, the Sin Virus was released into the perfect world - changing it forever
The perfect world was no longer perfect - and along with this new reality came struggles, and eventually death
But it isn't over - this isn't the end - even though it feels hopeless at times
The truth is this: The Sin Virus may be running rampant on our planet - causing all sorts of pain, suffering and struggles
But there is a cure, an antidote to the Sin Virus
A fix that God engineered - so that we can be restored to the pre-sin version of ourselves and once again live in the perfect world He made for us
Now we've been over this multiple times on the podcast - right?:
It's one of the fundamental teachings of Transcend Human
It's the core element in Controversy Theory - I'll put a link in the show notes to the CT Series we did last year if you are interested
It will be one of the main elements in Conscience Driven Therapy - once I get that written
And it is core to the Human Condition we each find ourselves part of
We simply refer to it as The Controversy - the battle that exists between God and Satan for the allegiance of every human being past, present and future
And it is within this controversy, this battle, that we experience struggles.
On the one side of the battle field you have God:
He created us
He loves us
He wants nothing but the best for us
He provided a way for us to make it home
He provides a level of safety so that Satan can't just do whatever his heart desires
But at the same time, He gives us freedom of choice, so we can decide what we want to do
Return to the perfect world He created for us, or continue to check out what Satan offers
On the other side of the battle field is Satan:
He's angry at God for removing him from Heaven
He hates God - and therefore hates us - because we're God's kids
He wants nothing more than to wipe all of us off the face of the planet
So whatever leeway God provides him, he takes and uses against us
Everything from first world problems to life and death struggles - he uses them all to his advantage
The more of us he can take with him, the sweeter the revenge against God
But unfortunately - this is NOT the story most people tell. It's not the explanation they give for the pain, suffering and struggles they face. Even Christians who have heard the story!
And why is this? It's because our tendency is to live in a tunnel - and we've developed Tunnel Vision.
Now we don't really need to define Tunnel Vision - because it's one of those concepts that has the definition right in the words themselves.
But for the fun of it - Wikipedia explains it like this:
Tunnel vision is the loss of peripheral vision with retention of central vision, resulting in a constricted circular tunnel-like field of vision.
So in a tunnel - you're unable to see anything but what's right in front of you.
And this is the perfect description of the way many of us view our struggles.
We get hyper-focused on them and make them at the expense of everything else.
It's like we're driving in a tunnel - and our struggles make up the walls of the tunnel. So they are all we see while driving through the tunnel.
Then - there is the proverbial "light at the end of the tunnel" which can be different things to different people:
For optimists it might be a positive thing - a belief that things will get better
For pessimists, or people who have really been beat down by the struggles - it's more likely a negative thing - a belief that things will never get better
But regardless:
“The problem isn’t the light at the end of the tunnel - it’s the fact that you’re in the tunnel to begin with.”
It's living with our struggles at the forefront, and the inability to look up and see our surroundings.
The inability to pick our heads up and see the bigger picture.
I find it interesting that I'm using the phrase "pick your head up" figuratively. And yet in this day and age - with our constant use of devices - we may need to actually pick our heads up as they are in a downward position most of the time.
// 3. TRANSCENDING THE TUNNEL
Another piece I didn't touch on is that Tunnel Vision isn't just us behaving badly. Or us failing to do something better.
Tunnel Vision is another tool Satan uses to keep us distracted!
He absolutely loves it when he can get us to put our heads down and focus on things that are bad or negative. And even better than that are the things we have no control over - things we can't change if we tried.
He knows it takes us out of the game.
Just like a dog chasing its own tail. Or a honey bee buzzing against a window - thinking it can get to the flower on the other side.
If he can keep us trapped in the tunnel - he can keep us from seeing the truth about the controversy. He can keep us from asking bigger questions. He can keep us stuck.
So what can we do? How can we transcend tunnel vision?
Here is a "Tunnel Busting" process I find helpful:
STEP 1: Understand the origin of your struggles:
Pain, suffering and struggles are all part of the Human Condition
They exist because of the Sin Virus
And they continue to exist because Satan is actively working to increase pain, suffering and struggles
STEP 2: Understand Tunnel Vision:
We have a tendency to hyper-focus on our problems
This is what Satan wants
Tunnel Vision is a weapon being used against us
STEP 3: Understand the Big Picture:
There is a controversy - a battle going on for each of us
God wants to save us from ourselves - and return us to a perfect world
Satan wants revenge - and we're the target
STEP 4: Refocus and Reframe
Refocus, by beginning to view your struggles through the lens/filter of the controversy
They will make more sense this way. A struggle that seems super random may not seem so random anymore
As you refocus, you will start to respond to your struggles differently
You will begin to reframe the way you experience the struggles and it will be easier to find positive ways of working through them
STEP 5: Be the Change
As you begin to see things in this new light, you will become an agent of change
People will see how you handle your struggles and ask, "How are you able to do that?"
Not only can you model this transcendent behavior to those around you
But you can also come alongside them and help them out of the tunnel
Let’s Land the Plane:
I'm just going to leave it there for this week. I had a couple other concepts I wanted to walk through:
To really drive home the dark, insidious nature of Satan, and how badly he wants to destroy us
I wanted to touch on the way mental health disorders like anxiety and depression are tunnels we find ourselves stuck in
And I thought about introducing Bible verses like Ephesians 6:12 (NKJV)
"For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places."
But I think you get it. I think the high-level overview of struggles, tunnel vision and how Satan wants to keep us there was enough.
I do want to do an entire mental health series in the near future though. I've already thought through content for episodes like:
Transcending Anger
Transcending Depression
Transcending Anxiety
But we'll get there when we get there.
That reminds me - if you jump on the TH Podcast on a regular basis hoping that I will be addressing something specific - but aren't finding it - let me know!
I'd love to start adding in episodes on topics submitted by listeners in the future. Simply email us at info@transcendhuman.com with your topics.
This week, ask yourself these questions:
What are my struggles right now?
And what categories do they fall into?
Do I have tunnel vision?
Do I get stuck staring at my struggles?
Do I forget that I'm part of something much bigger than myself and my struggles?
Do I have a game plan?
Do I know how to get out of my tunnel?
And what can I do this week to do some "tunnel busting"?
And finally, if I've busted out of my tunnel - have I helped someone else bust out of theirs?
Thank you again for joining us! My prayer for you this week is that you will be able to carve out some time to put this into practice - that you'll be able to identify the tunnel you're stuck in and start to refocus and reframe it moving forward.
Until next time, have a great week, bust some tunnels, and keep Transcending Human!
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