You are living your life as normal, then all of a sudden, the bottom falls out. You are devastated! Life could not have been going any better, and out of nowhere, a drastic turn for the worse happens? What are you to do?
One good thing to consider, is to take a step back and survey the situation. Try to take a good, long look at where you are, when the smoke clears from the turn of events. Look to see if there is some positive message, that God is trying to teach you through this dilemma.
The obstacle can be temporary, or it can very well be permanent. Advice columnist Abigail Van Buren illustrated man’s ability to overcome obstacles when she wrote: “Cripple him, and you have a Sir Walter Scott. Lock him in a prison cell, and you have a John Bunyan. Bury him in the snows of Valley Forge, and you have a George Washington. Afflict him with asthma as a child, and you have a Theodore Roosevelt. Make him play second fiddle in an obscure South American orchestra, and you have a Toscanini. Deny her the ability to see, hear, and speak, and you have a Helen Keller.” When obstacles strike, avoid a pity party for yourself. Realize, God may be molding you for greater things.
David often sought the Lord God to give him direction on what he needed to do. One case is when David and all his men leave for battle and upon returning everyone has been taken captive and is gone. Every man’s wives and children, even livestock, are gone. David is greatly distressed, so he turns to his God for guidance: “So David inquired of the Lord, saying, ‘Shall I pursue this troop? Shall I overtake them?’ And He answered, ‘Pursue, for you shall surely overtake them and without fail recover all’” (1 Samuel 20;8, NKJV).
To overcome obstacles, seek God’s direction!
