Obstacles have a reason

The years that followed the death of my husband back in 2002 were mainly dark, lonely, sad, miserable and full of obstacles to happiness in all areas of my life.
My life philosophy is "everything happens for a reason" . . . even obstacles have a reason.
Sometimes in life we get stuck in present time and forget where we came from.  This morning I had a time of reflection and went back to old journal entries, those dark, lonely and mainly sad days of contemplating where my life was going.  The obstacles often overwhelmed me.
I knew that somewhere in this big world there was someone out there who was looking for me.  Somewhere a perfect man for me.
Faith is one of those things that I felt with childlike anticipation.   
Where would I be without my faith in God?  
Where would I be without the obstacles  I had to go through to feel the miracle  of faith and love?

All I know is that faith kept me going through those times of feeling the waves of overwhelm that swept over me, constantly knocking me down.  Each time I picked myself back up, I was astonishingly stronger . . . and ready for the next obstacle.
Obstacles of the past have made it easier to jump the hurdles of life's obstacles in present times.  They have a reason and a place in our life history.   
Life lessons and those obstacles . . .  they constantly prepare us for what is to come  . . . good and bad.