This
coming weekend is our church's big, 125th Anniversary celebration. We have
been planning for this event for almost a year. Yesterday, the city blocked off
Balcerzak Rd., the main way of getting to our church. It is possible that it
could be reopened by this weekend, but I doubt it.
Life
is full of roadblocks and detours. Just about the time you begin to make some
significant forward progress, something happens to slow you down and force you
to change course. Several years ago, I was driving with my parents around
Chicago. My Dad was following me in their van, so we decided to leave the
freeway and take a secondary road, hoping to face less traffic. We were wrong.
The traffic was pretty much bumper to bumper and every time we were able to get
up to the posted speed, we hit a red light. It was a very frustrating couple of
hours.
Satan
loves to throw roadblocks and detours in our way. He often uses the roadblocks
of frustration, anxiety, disappointment, and fear to slow us down and get us
off course. He wants us to get our eyes off of Christ and onto our
circumstances. How we respond to these obstacles can either stop us in our
tracks or become an opportunity to grow in our faith. God can use these to draw
us closer to Himself. When we are faced by some unexpected roadblock, we can
find relief by taking it to Christ. Do not be anxious about anything, but in
everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to
God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your
hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. Philip. 4:6-7
But
not all of the roadblocks and detours in our lives come from Satan. Sometimes
God is the source of these course corrections in our lives. At the time, it
might be hard for us to recognize God’s hand in our circumstances, but when we
look back, we can see it clearly. The Apostle Paul gives us two prime examples
of God’s roadblocks and detours.
God
placed a physical roadblock in Paul’s life to help smooth off some of his rough
edges. It is recorded for us in 2 Corinthians 12:7-10. To keep me from becoming conceited because
of these surpassingly great revelations, there was given me a thorn in my
flesh, a messenger of Satan, to torment me. Three times I pleaded with the Lord
to take it away from me. But he said to me, "My grace is sufficient for
you, for my power is made perfect in weakness." Therefore I will boast all
the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ's power may rest on me. That
is why, for Christ's sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships,
in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong.
Paul’s first response to this
roadblock was exactly like ours. He assumed that this was a bad thing and
prayed that God would quickly remove it from his life. But God had another
plan. God wanted to use this roadblock to refine Paul. Paul was a highly driven
man. Once he got the bit between his teeth, there was no stopping him. So God
placed a significant roadblock in his way. Paul needed to recognize that he had
begun to depend more on himself than on God. Once Paul saw his situation from God’s
perspective, he was able to embrace the lesson and move forward. It is
important to note that God did not remove the roadblock, but left it in place
as a constant reminder of Paul’s dependence on God.
The
second incident was more of a detour than a roadblock. This detour is outlined
in Acts 16:6-10. Paul and his companions traveled throughout the region of Phrygia and
Galatia, having been kept by the Holy Spirit from preaching the word in the
province of Asia. When they came to the border of Mysia, they tried to enter
Bithynia, but the Spirit of Jesus would not allow them to. So they passed by
Mysia and went down to Troas. During the night Paul had a vision of a man of Macedonia
standing and begging him, "Come over to Macedonia and help us." After
Paul had seen the vision, we got ready at once to leave for Macedonia,
concluding that God had called us to preach the gospel to them.
God
had a reason for putting a detour sign in Paul’s life. Paul was having a
significant impact on the towns and villages of Asia Minor. His success was
actually limiting what God wanted to do with Paul. So the Holy Spirit stepped
in and closed doors, which had previously been wide open. I’m sure that at
first, Paul was frustrated and confused. Why was God keeping him from
continuing his fruitful ministry? The reason was that God had something better
for him. Because of God’s detour, an entire new field of ministry was opened.
I
have faced my share of roadblocks and detours. My journey into pastoral
ministry would have never happened, if God had not thrown a few roadblocks and detours
in my way. At the time, I was confused and often frustrated. I did my best to
work around them, but often that only led me to another detour, until God had
me on the path He wanted me to be on.
What
are the roadblocks and detours God has placed in your life? How has God used
them to direct you into His path?
Romans 8:28
And
we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who
have been called according to his purpose.
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