Life brings challenges that can either break us or build us. How we face difficulties determines if we remain defeated or rise to victory. Benjamin’s birth offers a helpful lesson for Christians seeking to turn problems into breakthroughs.
Ben-Oni to Benjamin
Benjamin’s birth was marked by sorrow. In Genesis 35, Rachel, Jacob’s beloved wife, dies, giving birth to her second son. In her last moments, she names him Ben-Oni, meaning “son of my sorrow.” Jacob, however, renames him Benjamin, meaning “son of my right hand” or “son of strength.” This renaming demonstrates a shift from grief to hope and teaches an important lesson.
Life often hands us “Ben-Oni” moments, times of hardship. Yet, how we respond can transform them into “Benjamin” moments, times of strength. The Christian journey involves acknowledging pain and choosing to transform these experiences through faith.
The Apostle Paul reminds us in Romans 5:3-4 that “suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope.” Facing hardships properly builds character and fuels growth.
Transformation
In the Christian life, challenges are more than obstacles; they can be transforming opportunities for growth and progress. Professor Nassim Nicholas Taleb coined the concept of “anti-fragility,” meaning some things in life require stress to thrive. As Christians, we grow through challenges and become stronger.
How we face difficulties determines whether we remain defeated or rise to victory.
The Apostle Paul embodies this in his statement, “When I am weak, then I am strong” (2 Cor. 12:10). This attitude helps us see problems as refining tools, shaping us into something greater. Ellen White further develops this thought, “God permits trials to come to His children to purify them, to elevate them, and to develop a character after the divine model. By receiving His grace and trusting Him through hardship, we become partakers of His holiness.”[1]
Transform Pain into Power
Moving from victim to victor involves four steps, referred to as the “Four A’s”:
1. Acknowledgment: Honestly acknowledge your pain. Just as Rachel named her son Ben-Oni, we must confront our suffering, not avoid it. Acknowledging pain is the foundation of transformation.
2. Attitude: Once we recognize our pain, our attitude becomes key. Like Jacob renaming his son Benjamin, we must choose to view struggles through faith and as an opportunity for growth. Romans 12:2 encourages us to “be transformed by the renewing of your mind.”
3. Action: Our hopeful attitude should be linked with action. The resilient Christian takes steps to overcome challenges, deepening prayer, Bible study, discerning God’s providence, seeking counsel, or serving others. Faith requires action to be transformative.
4. Accountability: Accountability is essential for lasting transformation. Surrounding ourselves with wise confidants and a supportive community helps to keep us on course. James 5:16 says, “Confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so you may be healed.”
Victim to Victor
The Benjamin Transformation teaches us to move from victims to victors. By acknowledging pain, choosing the right attitude, acting, and embracing accountability, we turn hardships into steppingstones toward deeper faith and character building. Like Jacob, we can rename our experiences, seeing them as part of God’s plan to strengthen us. Through Christ, we rise, not despite challenges, but because of them.
[1] Ellen G. White, The Ministry of Healing (Mountain View, Calif.: Pacific Press Pub. Assn., 1905), 471.
