Sunday, April 10, 2016

Obstacles

Obstacles
April 11, 2016
Jeremiah 6:21  "Therefore this is what the Lord says: 'I will put obstacles before this people. Parents and children alike will stumble over them; neighbors and friends will perish.'"

Obstacles are rather frustrating in your walkway; they cause you to have to find a way around them.  If you are hiking and there is an obstacle in your way, the only way to finish the hike would be to go another direction or figure a way around it.  Like hiking, life is full of obstacles.  The more obstacles in your path, the more adept to giving up or overcoming them you become.  Hopefully, you don't give up very easily, but obstacles have a way of being frustrating.  I know you may be dealing with an obstacle right now and you'd like to find a way around it.  Sometimes, though, the obstacle isn't meant for an alternate path; it is meant to get your attention, refocus your intent.

Some obstacles are placed in your path by the Lord.  In Jeremiah, the Lord's people were not always living for Him the way they should.  The Lord was so frustrated that He wanted to get their attention.  He immediately warned of an impending destruction and put obstacles in their paths.  The obstacles weren't meant to stop them, frustrate them, or even stall them.  The obstacles were meant to get their attention, so they could evaluate their standard of living.  The warning of the impending destruction was meant to be just that, a warning.  Technically the Lord didn't owe them a warning; they knew the rules.  The warning of the impending destruction came as a means to convince them to do a personal check.  He didn't want to destroy them; He wanted them to behave.  And THEN the obstacles.  Which, again, weren't meant to be anything other than a way to get their attention of the impending destruction should their behavior not change.

The Lord was giving them opportunity after opportunity to figure it out and get their lives straight, to get their act together.  This is the same for you and me.  The Lord is more than willing to make it abundantly clear of soon coming discipline.  His desire is that you submit to His guidelines.  Should you and I choose not to live according to His guidelines then He will gently give you a warning.  Should that warning not work, He often puts an obstacle in your way to get your attention.  When you face an obstacle in your life, as a Christian, you should first always ask if that obstacle is a warning to you or a means to get your attention.  Do not simply assume the obstacle is meant to challenge you.  Do not simply assume the obstacle is from the enemy.  Do not simply assume the obstacle means turn completely around.  The obstacle is meant to get your attention, to be a time for reflection and correct alignment.

Your obstacle right now is first meant for you to seek the Lord in examining it and your life.  Your job is to prayerfully consider the obstacle and ask the Lord to reveal His wisdom in your life and how you should view the obstacle.  Satan's goal is to obscure your path and stop you from doing the Lord's will.  The Lord's goal is to obscure your path and stop you from doing anything on your own accord or against His plan.  Either way, the obstacle is an opportunity for discovery.  Instead of viewing the obstacle from a negative point of view, evaluate it as a blessing to keep your life in alignment with the Lord and His plan for your life.  Rejoice in what the obstacle means, as it represents your life's importance to the Lord.  If you have an obstacle right now, I'd like to pray with you about it, that the Lord would give you wisdom and insight about it.  Reply to this e-mail, describe your obstacle, and I'll gladly pray with you that He would help you see how you should proceed.  Only His wisdom will provide the right way to view and deal with this obstacle you are facing right now.

Don't take my word for it; look it up: Jer 6, Phil 1:6, 2 Peter 3:8-10, 1 Thes 5:24

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