The Hidden Purpose of Life’s Challenges: When Struggles Are a Sign of Divine Love

It’s no secret that we all face hardships in life. One person changed their phone number hoping the bank clerk won’t reach them, another has formed a friendship with the pharmacist due to constant prescriptions, and a third takes a deep breath before stepping into their home. Everyone carries their own burden.

G-d has no limitations and can do anything in an instant. He could change our situation completely without any effort. Beyond that, He loves us deeply. The Torah is filled with verses expressing this intense love: “G-d desired to love them” (Deuteronomy 11:13), “because the Lord your G-d loves you” (Deut. 23:6), “You are children to the Lord your G-d” (Deut. 14:1), “Not because you are more numerous did G-d desire you” (Deut. 7:7), “I have loved you, says the Lord” (Malachi 1:2), and “From afar the Lord appeared to me: with eternal love I have loved you” (Jeremiah 31:2). The Zohar adds: “If people knew the depth of G-d’s love for Israel, they would roar like lions to chase after Him.”

This combination of unlimited power plus limitless love should equal a perfect life, of paradise on Earth. And yet, that's not how reality plays out. Why doesn’t this seemingly perfect equation deliver what it promises? If G-d loves us, why do we face suffering?

Following are four main reasons (among others) why G-d allows difficulties in our lives:

1. To Prompt Us to Improve
Suffering is often a spiritual wake-up call. Just as a child who repeatedly acts in a harmful way may eventually receive discipline from their parents—not out of anger, but out of love—so too G-d uses hardship to gently push us to improve, grow, and return to our spiritual path. The Torah says: “Just as a father disciplines his son, so does the Lord your G-d discipline you” (Deut. 8:5).

2. Heavenly Prosecution and Spiritual Testing
At times, G-d wants to bestow blessings, but a heavenly prosecution challenges: “They don’t deserve it.” To remove this claim, the person is given a test of faith. If they pass by enduring suffering while maintaining trust in G-d, they become worthy of the blessing that was initially held back.

3. To Draw Us Closer to G-d
King Hezekiah hid the Book of Remedies so that people wouldn’t rely solely on medicine. He understood that illness, like all suffering, exists to bring people closer to G-d. When things go wrong, we turn to Him, pray, cling to Him, and build a deeper bond. That bond leads to eternal goodness, as the Torah says: “To love the Lord your G-d... to cling to Him, for He is your life” (Deut. 30:20). According to our sages, this connection leads to eternal life and spiritual delight beyond comprehension.

4. To Elevate Us to a Higher Spiritual Level
This world isn’t intended to be all comfort and coffee on the balcony. The purpose of life is to grow spiritually and form a meaningful relationship with G-d. The harder the test, the higher the level G-d wants to raise you to. Challenges are His way of saying: “I want a special closeness with you.” It's like an elite army unit—only those who undergo the toughest training achieve the highest rank.

When you remain loyal to G-d through pain and hardship, your soul reaches new spiritual heights. The test isn’t there to break you, but to show you who you can become. It's the way to build the strongest possible relationship with G-d.

Just like a personal trainer pushes a client to exhaustion for their own benefit, G-d challenges us to help us become the best version of ourselves. We must shift our mindset and see difficulties as spiritual growth opportunities. Even if something seems bad on the surface, it may actually be the deepest good, sent from a loving Father to guide us toward our ultimate purpose.