Paulo Coelho

From, Like the Flowing River by Paulo Coelho

A warrior of light often finds that certain moments repeat themselves; he is often faced by the same problems and situations, and seeing these difficult situations return, he grows  depressed, thinking that he is incapable of making any progress in life.

"I've been through all this before," he says to his heart.

"Yes, you have been through all this before," replies his heart. "But you have never been beyond it."

Then the warrior realizes that these repeated experiences have but one aim: to teach him what he has not yet learned. He always finds a different solution for each repeated battle, and he does not consider his failures to be mistakes, but, rather, as steps along the path to a meeting with himself.