Obstacles

One of the hardest lessons we have to learn is to depend on God for our strength. When we confront obstacles in life, we often think of all of the things we can do to overcome them on our own, and only turn to God when that doesn’t work. In many ways, God becomes our “back-up plan.”

The prophet Isaiah wrote, “Behold, God is my salvation; I will trust, and will not be afraid; for the Lord God is my strength and my song, and He has become my salvation” (Isa. 12:2, ESV). If we look back over our lives, we can testify that our futile attempts to deal with obstacles in our strength render us powerless. We have to depend on God to give us the strength and wisdom to overcome trials. We also have to understand that God is never caught off guard or overwhelmed by the things that so easily engulf us. If He were, He wouldn’t be God!

As much as obstacles remind us of how weak we are, they should also remind us how strong God is. We can rest assured that He is in control—even in those situations. We must strive to grow through obstacles, preparing to face what He has in store for us in the future.

God says, “Behold, I am the Lord, the God of all flesh. Is there anything too hard for Me?” (Jer. 32:27, ESV). Praise God that He is Lord—even over our obstacles.