The Obstacle Is the Way by Sandi Somers

If we are in submission to God, it may be that obstacles are God’s perfect plan for us.

“I will make all my mountains a way.”

~Isaiah 49:11 (KJV)

Once while travelling from Alberta to British Columbia, my friend and I drove towards a huge mountain. Our highway looked as though it was the Pied Piper leading us into the mountain where we would be lost forever. Yet as we got closer, our road turned to the right, and we drove up and over the pass, leaving the mountain behind.

Shortly after this trip, my health and life collapsed. It took time to heal, time to rebuild my life. During that time God brought back that mountain image as a metaphor for His way through obstacles, encouraging me through a little book called God at Eventide.

 Go forward unafraid.

Face each difficulty, however great and seemingly unconquerable, as you go forward towards it.

The strength you will require from Me for that adventure into danger, as it may seem to you, will fortify you for its overcoming.

“Fear thou not, for I am with thee” (Isaiah 41:10).

Go steadily forward in calm trust along the path of quiet obedience.

That is your work. Mine to cause the doors to swing open, as you come to them, not before.

So trust, so hope, so love. ^[i]

In addition, I realized that we go through difficulties for another purpose. 2 Corinthians 1:3-5 says in part: "Praise be to God...who comforts us in all our troubles, so that we can comfort those in any trouble..." Overcoming my obstacles was meant to help and encourage others. 

But God brought light and beauty too. One summer I had part-time work, and each weekend when visiting my parents, I brought flowers from Mom's lavish garden. They filled our apartment with joy, fragrance and comfort. 

* * *

Beyond my own story, I’m encouraged by a “great cloud of witnesses,” (Hebrews 12:1), those who have discovered how "mountains" have become the way.

·        Milton wrote Paradise Lost and Paradise Regained when he was blind. His daughters transcribed his poetry for him.

·        Beethoven composed some of his most beautiful music when he was deaf, hearing the orchestra only in his trained mind.

·        Edison invented the light bulb after 1,000 unsuccessful attempts. When a reporter asked, "How did it feel to fail 1,000 times?" Edison replied, "I didn't fail 1,000 times. The light bulb was an invention with 1,000 steps."

·        Solzhenitsyn in his literary memoir, The Oak and the Calf, quoted the old saying, “If Trouble comes, make use of it." He added, “Misfortune can open the door to freedom, if we have the wit to read it aright”

·        “In the middle of difficulty lies opportunity” Albert Einstein once said.

Now over to you. What obstacles have you encountered in your life and/or writing? What has God taught you, and what have you learned from them?

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[i] Russell, A.J., Ed. God at Eventide. Old Tappan, NJ: Fleming H. Revell. 1950. Pp 88-89.