Viktor Frankl: Finding Meaning in a World of Suffering

The great Viktor Frankl once wrote that despair is suffering without meaning. Those words are as true today as they were when he survived the horrors of the concentration camps.

We all suffer. That’s not the question. The real question is: how much meaning will you find in your living?

Too often, we get stuck in one of two traps:

• Talking endlessly about our despair. The more we focus on how empty the cup feels, the emptier it becomes.

• Obsessing over avoiding suffering. We spend our energy trying to stay young, comfortable, and untouched by pain.

But both paths actually increase our despair. Why? Because in trying to avoid suffering, we also avoid responsibility, connection, and people. We isolate ourselves—and that only deepens our suffering.

Where Meaning Is Found

Meaning is never found in isolation. It’s discovered in connection: with family, with friends, with faith, with the people you encounter every day. Those connections aren’t always neat, clean, or easy. People are complicated. But it’s in those very complications that life becomes meaningful.

When I discipline myself to focus on meaning—reading Scripture in the morning, being quiet with my wife, watching my kids without distraction—I find joy no matter what chaos is swirling around me. That’s a joy no one can take away.

Everyday Opportunities

Meaning doesn’t just come in big, dramatic ways. It often appears in small, ordinary moments:

• Smiling at your children and being fully present.

• Taking your spouse on a simple walk without screens or distractions.

• Saying hello to the kid at school who gets picked on.

• Offering kindness to the irritated cashier who’s had a rough day.

Those small choices, repeated daily, can change a life—maybe even yours.

The Challenge

Stop wallowing in despair. Stop doing everything possible to avoid suffering—it’s a futile chase. Instead, focus on meaning. Look for those little moments where you can connect, serve, and love.

Be the one who says thank you.
Be the one who notices.
Be the one who chooses meaning.

And what you will find is joy, peace, and a life worth living.