Bad Things Turned Around for Good

I've been reading 90 Minutes in Heaven, which is about Don Piper, who was in an accident, died, went to heaven for 90 minutes, then came back to life.  After a long recovery from his injuries, he has a lot of pain, but he's been an encouragement to many people.  Here is one example from his book:
"Two years after the accident, when I still wore leg braces and walked with crutches, I took a group of our young people to a conference at Houston's First Baptist Church....."
"As happens when you work with teens, we were late in leaving South Park Church.  I didn't say anything, but I felt extremely irritated with the delay.  I had wanted to arrive early because I knew the best seats would be taken if we didn't get there at least an hour before starting time."
"I tried not to let it show, but I was still upset by the time we reached First Baptist Church in Houston.  Once we went inside the huge building, we realized--as I had expected--that all the seats on the lower floor were filled.  We'd have to climb the stairs."
"I groaned at the thought of having to do more walking.  Even though I was mobile, wearing those braces and the pressure of the crutches under my armpits tired me out.  To make it worse, the elevator wasn't working.  If that person hadn't been late, I kept thinking, I wouldn't have to hobble up all those stairs."
"It wasn't just clumping up the stairs, but the auditorium was so full that the only places left to sit were in the top rows.  Our young people, naturally, raced ahead to claim those seats.  They promised to save one for me on the end.  I counted 150 steps as I painfully made my way up."
"By the time I finally reached the top, exhaustion had overcome me.  I could hardly walk the last flight and across the back of the auditorium to the seat the kids had saved for me.  Before I sat down--which also demanded a lot of effort--I rested by leaning against the wall.  As I tried to catch my breath, I asked myself, What am I doing here?"
....."At that moment self-pity took over.  As I continued to lean against the wall, my gaze swept over the auditorium.  Two sections over I spotted a teenage boy in a wheelchair.  He was sitting with his head in his hands, his back to me.  As I stared at him, I knew I had to go over and talk to him.  Suddenly I didn't question my actions and I forgot about being tired."
"I leaned my crutches against the wall and then slowly, painfully made my way across to his section and down the steps.  He was a large, good-looking kid, maybe sixteen years old.  When I got closer, I realized why I needed to talk to him.  He was wearing an Ilizarov frame--which I hadn't been able to see from where I had stood.  My tiredness vanished, along with my anger and self-pity.  It was as if I saw myself in that wheelchair and reexperienced all the pain of those days."
"He was looking away from me when I laid my hand on his shoulder.  His head spun around and he glared at me."
"'That really hurts, doesn't it?' I asked.
"He looked at me as if to say, What kind of fool are you?  Instead he said, 'Yeah.  It hurts very much.'"
"'I know.' I patted his shoulder.  'Believe me, I know.'"
"His eyes widened.  'You do?'"
"'I do.  I had one too.'"
"'It's horrible.'"
"'I know that.  It's just horrible.  I wore one on my left leg for eleven months.'"
"'Nobody ever understands,' he said plaintively."
"'They can't.  It's not something you can talk about and have anyone understand your pain.'"
"For the first time I saw something in his eyes.  Maybe it was hope, or maybe just a sense of peace because at long last he had found someone who knew what he was going through.  We had connected, and I felt privileged to be standing next to him."
"'My name is Don,' I said, 'and you've just met somebody who understands the pain and the discouragement you're going through.'"
"He stared at me, and then his eyes moistened.  'I don't know if I'm going to make it.'"
"'You're going to make it.  Trust me, you'll make it.'"
"'Maybe,' he said."
"' What happened?' By then I'd realized it hadn't been a voluntary surgery."
"'I had a ski accident.'"
"I noticed that he was wearing a letter jacket.  I asked,'You a football player?'"
"'Yes, sir.'"
"Briefly I told him about my accident, and he told me more about what had happened to him.  'I'm going to tell you something,' I said.  'One day you will walk again.'"
"His face registered skepticism."
"'You might not play football again, but you'll walk.'  I handed him my business card.  'My number is on the card, and you can call me anytime, day or night, twenty-four hours a day.'"
"He took the card and stared at it."
"'I'm going to walk back up there to my kids.' I pointed to where they sat. 'I want you to know that one day you will walk too.'  I laughed. 'And I'll bet you'll walk better than I do.'"
"He reached up, grabbed me, and hugged me.  He held me tight for a long time.  I could feel his constricted breathing as he fought back tears.  Finally he released me and mumbled his thanks."....
"That boy needed somebody who understood.  I don't know that I had much to offer, but I had my experience and I could talk to him about pain.  Had I not gone through it myself, I'd just be telling him, 'I hope you feel better.  You're going to be okay'--well-meaning words that most people used."
"When I reached the top row, perspiration drenched my body from all the effort, but I didn't care.  I turned around.  He still stared at me.  I smiled and waved, and he waved back.  The dejection and despair had left his face."
"Over the next six months, I received three calls from him, two just to talk and one late at night when he was really discouraged.  They were phone calls I will always cherish, one struggling pilgrim to another."
I found this very encouraging.  Our hard times are not wasted.