Roadblocks or Opportunities?

“And it will be said: ‘Build up, build up, prepare the road! Remove the obstacles out of the way of my people’” (Isaiah 57:14).
You lose your job or your hours are cut. Your relationship takes a turn for the worse. Illness strikes. The house you are renting is being sold and you have to find a new place to live. Your new neighbor’s baby screams all night. Your car breaks down and you don’t have the money to fix it. Feeling the anxiety yet? I did just by writing that list!
All of these issues, problems, obstacles seem like massive roadblocks in our lives when they happen.
And they usually happen when we are least prepared to deal with them. But how we deal with them is what really matters.
Some of the roadblocks we face seem like they will knock us to our knees. And they should. We get so caught up in solving our own problems that we forget they aren’t just ours. Everything we have, everything we are belongs to God. Including our problems! In fact, some roadblocks are gifts from God. No, really!
There are times in life when we are heading in the wrong direction. It feels right for us in that moment, but God sees all of our moments and He knows when we need to be doing something other than what we are so we can fulfill the mission He’s given us. In those situations, we sometimes encounter a roadblock that leads us to an amazing opportunity.
That opportunity might be for personal or spiritual growth, or it might be an opportunity that changes not only our lives, but the lives of those around us and those who come after us. Remember, our time is short, and God’s lasts for an eternity. He sees far into our futures, and He knows what we need long before we do!
Perhaps the biggest opportunity that comes from any obstacle is the opportunity to truly depend on God.
“Surely God is my salvation; I will trust and not be afraid. The Lord, the Lord himself, is my strength and my defense; he has become my salvation” (Isaiah 12:2). Our natural instinct is to spend time trying to overcome obstacles in our own strength. Certain obstacles, however, can only be overcome with God’s intervention.
We must depend on our great God for the strength and wisdom to overcome.
“You intended to harm me, but God intended it for good to accomplish what is now being done, the saving of many lives” (Genesis 50:20). Have you ever encountered an obstacle that reminded you that by yourself you are weak, but at the same time you felt strong and secure in the knowledge that God is in control? I have.
Time and time again in my life I’ve encountered obstacles I was powerless against. But I moved forward in faith and prayer, knowing God had the situation under control. That process of living in faith becomes our testimony and encourages others to press forward in the Lord!
In God’s Word we read many stories of great men and women of God who faced insurmountable obstacles. In almost every case, God turned that obstacle into an opportunity.
Their faith in God was the hammer that could bring down any mountain. Are you ready to turn your obstacles into opportunities?