Finding God at Rock Bottom: Suffering to Transformation

When life begins to weigh and feel like a total mess, letting go and finding God at rock bottom can be a powerful force to propel yourself upwards. However, surrendering control to anyone other than yourself—even to God—can be a challenge. It’s not even a matter of having enough faith or trusting Him enough. The reason why people find it hard to seek God during their direst times is simply because they, themselves, are hindering the process.

When people hit rock bottom, it becomes easy to distort perceptions of themselves.

Things like: “What if I don’t bounce back?” or “Maybe this is all there is to me” fester in their minds that, often, it almost becomes a reality. Finding God at rock bottom becomes less feasible to others because even before seeking him, they’ve already doubted themselves, likewise hesitating the process.

But who is there to blame? After all, it’s far easier to question the existence of light when people are surrounded by darkness. This notion is straightforward, something people can easily picture and understand. Yet, despite semantics, this perception isn’t only a matter of optics or physics. It transcends beyond technicalities and into the realm of religion.

“Sometimes God lets you hit rock bottom so that you will discover that He is the rock at the bottom.”

– Tony Evans

Why Does God Make You Hit Rock Bottom?

Before stating the importance of finding God at rock bottom, let us first paint an image of this ground. Arriving at a singular image is impossible, as how it presents differs from one person to another. But, at its core, rock bottom can be defined as the exact opposite of one’s ideals.

Everyone has things they’ve ambitioned about—situations they’ve physically and mentally strived to achieve, exerting their all to make them a reality. This can be success, wealth, or even trivial situations, yet ideal circumstances they imagine themselves in.

Now flip that 180, and that easily becomes people’s rock bottoms or situations that push them near cracking and disappointments that leave them in doubt about hope.

During these times, people find themselves completely covered in darkness, heavy and debilitating. They’re at their most frightened, insecure, and weakest points. They question if they’re enough to overcome these obstacles. And just as in the situation above, during these instances, people quickly question God’s existence, His mercy, and His plans. Hence, it’s no wonder that when people hit rock bottom, they easily succumb to hopelessness.

However, finding God at rock bottom isn’t just a matter of finding hope that’s lost. Instead, it should be preceded primarily by a renewed sense of self-trust and a conscious shift of perspective.

Escaping the Landscape of Despair and Discovering God

Pain is a paradoxical experience, both having its upsides and downsides. It’s a hurt that causes people suffering, inflicting often self-doubt and melancholy. Yet, simultaneously, it can also be an experience that serves as a doorway for improvement and divine connection. It awakens people to new facets of themselves, new perspectives to look at life, and thus new steps to self-enhancement.

Author Ben Hinton has had an experience that perfectly captures this.

His story is one of those Christian athlete stories that inspire others by presenting a vulnerability that resonates with most. Whenever he speaks of his experience, he highlights the shift in his perspective and how this was a stepping stone to his transformation.

Self-Empowerment—this is one of the advocacies behind his book Let Faith Grow: Running Through Adversity. Championing resilience and faith, he details an event in his life that left him wrestling with not only his faith but also his self-belief, a moment when he lost sight of himself. However, in narrating his story, he also emphasizes how finding God at rock bottom prompted his transformation.

How Finding God at Rock Bottom Led to Transformation

In one of the podcasts he joined, Ben Hinton shared when his journey of transformation happened. Labeling it as a “story of darkness to light,” one can already sense how this captures the power of finding God at rock bottom and how, often, the worst days propel people to their best.

Ben’s story happened at 26, on January 9, 2013, when he sustained a traumatic brain injury after falling down a flight of stairs at home while he was alone. Standing back up was physically, mentally, and spiritually exhausting for Ben. As with anybody else, he lost sight of where his life was going, what his purpose was, or even who he was after such a debilitating situation. However, God worked His way into Ben’s life in such interesting means.

It’s daunting falling in life.

Fortunately, Ben managed to bounce back, not only at his usual pace but also with bigger strides. After what he had experienced, he found himself running through life with a renewed sense of vigor.

Ben would have given up to the weight pressing him down. If not for a marathon he unknowingly submitted himself to before everything that happened, he would have allowed life to crush him.

The Beauty Beyond the Brokenness

In Ben’s words, “Life’s in the details and the details in God.”

In 2012, he had signed up for a half-marathon that was bound to happen only days after his incident, the same period of his desperation to find an identity and purpose. After his incident, Ben was aware he wasn’t in the right mental state. He was broken. He lost his way and had a hard time finding his footing.

But he felt a nudge to run.

Ben claimed that if not for the marathon, he wouldn’t have had the opportunity to overcome. If not for the timely succession of events—his injury, then the marathon—he wouldn’t have realized how strong he was despite limitations and restrictions. In hindsight, it’s ironic how Ben found his most powerful self after he had fallen down what had been a bottomless pit.

However, in finding God at rock bottom, Ben found himself.

If Ben Hinton’s story teaches people one thing, beyond the power of finding God at rock bottom, it teaches them that things work in favor of those who believe. Finding God at rock bottom isn’t something people embrace the thought of—for the reason that the bottom isn’t somewhere they want to be. However, in shifting this perspective, people embrace the thought that once down, there’s no other way to go than up.

If you’re interested in reading more about how Ben Hinton overcame his struggles and found God to strengthen him, grab a copy of his book Let Faith Grow now!