Resilience and Spirituality
Jessica Polster
Liberty University

Abstract
Resilience or bouncing back after trauma, happens to all people at some time in their life. Whether that be after the death of a family member, seeing combat, watching a friend die, being abused, there are many forms of trauma that people deal with on a day-to-day basis. “The term resilience is used across a variety of domains” (Dees, 2011). How someone bounces back after the trauma plays a big role in how they will live out the rest of their lives. Some people after a trauma occurs make sure they guard their current relationships of the people who had helped them out. They also might rethink their future, maybe they need a job change, maybe it’s that person’s turn to comfort someone else who is hurting. The most important piece in bouncing back is God and where He falls in the picture. One’s spiritual influence can help aid them in the healing process by choosing forgiveness and gratitude. Spirituality and resilience can ultimately go hand in hand when talking about trauma and healing.

Resilience and Spiritualty
Resilience is a normal part of life. Everyone who experiences trauma at some point gets to the bouncing back stage. How someone ultimately gets to the point where they are able bounce back is major. Spirituality plays a major role in being able to accomplish the Resilience Life Cycle.

Resilience
“Resilience is the ability for individuals, leaders and organizations to take a hard hit and continue to pursue their mission” (Dees, 2011). Resilience is so that people can get better and return to their full functioning, normal self. It possesses highly tangible parts like physical and mental and then again it possesses less tangible parts such as emotional, spiritual and relational. “Resilience is sustained competence or positive adjustment in the face of adversity. Resilience allows people to recover successfully from trauma, or maintain appropriate or healthy functioning even when they are under considerable stress” (Easterbrooks, 2013). It is something that can change depending on the person that experienced the trauma. It can also change if the person is able to bounce back from whatever is affecting them. Resilience plays a major part in the way someone heals and recovers fully from different trauma. The way a person heals depends on the person and what environment they are living in. If a person does not want to help him/herself then they will not attempt to get better. “Resilience is built on a life long process by the person and their environment” (Monroe, Oliviere, & Vanistendael, 2007). When a person takes the step to bounce back after trauma or attempts to build their resilience, they are taking the first steps to healing. After someone experiences trauma, they sometimes get into a funk where they are unable to build their resilience, but if they plan for trauma and understand who they can count on when trauma strikes, they may be less likely to experience any sort of depressive symptoms. “Individuals with a strong sense of personal mastery and control are less likely to experience increases in depressive symptoms as a result of economic strain, and were likely to cope more effectively” (MacDermid, Samper, Schwarz, Nishida & Nyaronga, 2008).

Pain and suffering are huge parts of life, no one can avoid feeling that way no matter how hard they try or plan for trauma. “Pain and suffering are consequences of this evil, and none of us are immune to them” (Dees, 2011). When someone experiences a trauma the first emotions that they may feel are usually pain and/or suffering. Going through the Resilience Life Cycle one can get a better understanding of exactly what is needed for recognizing when resilience is needed. The Resilience Life Cycle plays a large role in recognizing resilience. When resilience is recognized it might be easier for someone to figure out exactly what they may need to heal or grieve in a healthy way. Although, it is much more than just knowing the resilience life cycle and knowing how to recognize when help is needed in order to tell if a person will be resilient in their time of need. “No single or specific factor will determine resilience or poor functioning. It is the interaction between numerous factors that ultimately determines whether an individual or family will be resilient in the face of adversity” (MacDermid, Samper, Schwarz, Nishida & Nyaronga, 2008). In order to fully recognize how to build resilience one needs to completely understand the resilience life cycle.

There are a few different parts to the Resilience Life Cycle, before, during and after which is also known as “Building resilience, weathering the storm, and bouncing back” (Dees, 2011). Building resilience has six sub parts, these parts all play a different role in making sure people understand who they know and trust, what their mission in life is and getting ready for trauma. The first subpart of building resilience is knowing your calling which “implies a deep sense of conviction to pursue noble goals” (pg. 86). Knowing the mission or purpose in life is extremely important when things start to get rough. Understanding that our calling in God and our calling to serve others is a critical source of resilience because it is an important anchor for our soul. Knowing your enemy is relevant in all aspects of life. The enemy can be yourself, your friends, other people, Satan, it really depends on the situation, but the enemy depends on who betrayed who in that specific time that caused you to question your enemy. Knowing your friends is the next subpart of building resilience. By having a select genuine friends who can “speak truth, encouragement, and life into you” (Dees, 2011) allows for better life long friendship. It is necessary that every person knows who they can count on when trauma strikes, so that bonds can be formed through shared hardships. The next subpart, knowing your equipment, is important because it is God’s armor that protects us. A lot of people forget that God is always listening to our prayers or just when we want to talk. “God’s word is the most effective leadership manual ever written, pointing the way for resilient warriors, leaders and organizations”(Dees, 2011). Deploying with the right mindset is so important in the resilient life cycle because it allows for an ongoing positive outlook on the issue. It might not be easy to remember to stay positive all the time, but by trying to have an optimistic outlook on the issue at hand, it will help to keep the right mindset. The final subpart of building resilience is to develop and rehearse actions on contact. This is so important to remember not only because it is the final step of building resilience but also because it calls for us to rehearse or write down things we would do if certain trauma occurred.
The second part to the Resilience Life Cycle is weathering the storm. Weathering the storm has five ways to weather the storm spiritually. The first is call 911, or in other words, talk to God or someone close like friends or family about the problem. The second is starting the IV, which is used for people who need rapid intervention for stabilization. “When we are weathering the storm, the rapid and concentrated IV intake of God’s Word is critical” (Dees, 2011). The third is to remember to just keep breathing. Remembering to follow what you know is not always easy when faced with trauma, but by following everything you know it will allow for easier transition out of trauma. The fourth is to draw from your well of courage, which means to never forget the courage, endurance, confidence and faith that will always be a guide through tough times. The final subpart of weathering the storm is to remember your calling. This portion is important since during times of trauma many people question if the route they took was the right one, but by remembering your mission in life and never forgetting the noble purposes that many people spend their entire life living up to, remembering your calling can be a simple task. The final part of the Resilience Life Cycle is bouncing back. “Bouncing back is the most dangerous phase of the resilience journey” (Dees, 2011).
Bouncing back has six subparts; Guarding your primary relationships, choosing forgiveness and gratitude, grieving well, sing a new song, discern and chart the future and lastly comfort others. Guarding primary relationships deals with friends or family that we consider our lifelong friends, and also remembering that God is our most important relationship of all. Choosing forgiveness and gratitude so important, God always says to forgive those who do us wrong, just like he forgave Adam and Eve for disobeying his order. According to Dees, p. 153, forgiveness is absolutely critical to getting unstuck and moving on to a joyful future. Grieving is another part of life that happens to almost everyone during their life. It is normal for people to grieve but doing it the right way is very important. Knowing the steps of grieving and allowing others to help you grieve helps to pass the feelings of grief and mourning in a healthier way. “The process of grieving is not about forgetting” (Dees, 2011). When people let go of their grief, they are able to live life in joy, even though they may not ever forget what happened caused the grief in the first place. Singing a new song might not actually involve singing like implied, but instead it deals with new beginnings, new meaning and purpose of life. “Develop the mental and spiritual reflex to look up, not down and forward, not back” (Dees, 2011). Revalidating your calling or discern and chart the future is so important in the resilience life cycle. This is where people start life off with a clean slate and figure out life’s top priorities. Lastly, comforting others is the last category in bouncing back. This is where a person would make sure that they are comforting those who helped them during their struggle when they themselves get into a spot in their life that they too feel trauma. The Resilience Life Cycle has many parts that are so important in everyday life, by remembering that God is always going to help through times of suffering and pain, the resilience life cycle can help to heal.

Bouncing back is important because it allows for a person to grow. It shows a person just how strong they can be. Bouncing back is important because it can make someone see who was there for him or her and who was not. “In the aftermath of a disturbance, ordinary people can accomplish heroic acts” (Svendson, 2014). When someone goes through a traumatic event and actually gets through it and is healed from the pain, they are able to help others who might be having the same problems. Bouncing back and knowing that God helped to get a person to that stage in the cycle helps to remember all the things God has done for us. It allows us to remember how He is always there when needed, even if at some points people feel that it does not seem that way. Helping to heal others and comfort them is what God wants of everyone, for us to feel rewarded when we help someone grow in their life after trauma is exactly how God wanted us to heal. Bouncing back is the most important but yet most dangerous part to the resilience life cycle because if it is not done correctly, one cannot fully bounce back in order to heal themself from trauma.
God can heal all wounds if people let him. “The spiritual arena of resilience is probably the least understood and accepted in a culturally complex environment” (Dees, 2011). If we seek God in our time of need He will help get us through it. “But seek first His kingdom and His righteousness, and all these things will be added to you” (Matthew 6:33). “I can do all things through Him who strengthens me” (Philippians 4:13). Every day God allows His people to wake up and live on in His beautiful world. “His mercies are new every morning” (Lamentations 3: 22-23). Jesus Christ is the most resilient warrior known to man. He has endured so many trials and tribulations but “He never grew weary and lost heart” (Dees, 2011). Having faith is so important in all aspects of life, but when one has faith during tough times, they are able to grow in the Glory of God. The most important thing for every person to remember is that no matter what happens in life or wherever life might take him or her, God is always there number one supporter. He created and established us and will always be with us no matter what. “Through faith and a relationship with Christ we are not destroyed and we are not broken beyond repair. Through Christ we become resilient” (Dees, 2011).
The Resilience Life Cycle plays an important part of every single person’s life at some point. Pain, suffering and grief are all such a natural part life. The author of Resilient Warriors wrote many wonderful stories about how resilience affects so many different people every day. “While it is important to understand the reality and nature of evil and suffering in our world, it is far more important to understand the true character of God which trumps these realities” (Dees, 2011). When terrible trauma, failure or destruction occurs, it leaves us in pain with doubt and we are ultimately in crisis. Trauma is not something that just goes away, it takes much hard work and trials in order to help heal trauma. “Every person in the world is afflicted, perplexed, persecuted, and struck down often and in many ways” (Dees, 2011). That being said when a person works their way through the Resilient Life Cycle, they are better able to move on to a joyous life once again. After a person masters the cycle, or goes through multiple traumas, they are better able to use it without having to stop and think about who their friends are or what their purpose is in life. God is definitely the most important factor to all steps in the Resilience Life Cycle.

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