overcoming obstacles
Blessed are those who have not seen and have believed. John 20:29
“The world we live in sucks. People die. How can there be a God?”
“My grandparents died from cancer. Why would a loving God allow this?”
“It’s really hard to believe in something that you can’t see, so why bother?”
Hey y’all. Welcome back. this week’s blog is going to be about overcoming obstacles.
has anyone ever asked you why you believe in Christ? People have asked me. Usually their comments are like the ones up above. Sometimes these arguments seem logical. All of these people have a point.
All of these people have experienced an obstacle that they couldn’t overcome.
Like most, I’ve experienced suffering. I’ve seen cruelty, and I’ve watched people push God far away without thinking twice. Sometimes I argue and try to show people God’s way, sometimes I don’t bother. That’s my obstacle.
Everyone has an obstacle. sometimes it’s small, sometimes it’s huge. sometimes people have 1, sometimes people have 10.
I’ve learned about a few types of obstacles in lives of others. They usually revolve around these things: Disbelief, Doubt, and Lack of Knowing.
disbelief
This one is easy to discuss. People who struggle with disbelief have likely known God at one time or another, but were hurt so badly by something that they chose to turn away.
It’s easy to drop God. Why bother with something that you can’t see or hear? it’s a waste of time, right?
Not really. You see, you can “drop” Christ, but he will never “drop” you. God loves so abundantly, and He isn’t capable of letting you go just so you can prove a point.
disbelief is tough. But God knows how tough it is, and he’s willing to guide and provide for whatever you need to bring yourself back to him. Each of us needs to lay a foundation through scripture and prayer so we can begin to grow in the faith.
doubt
Y’all, this is a hard one. I’ve struggled with doubt, as I’m sure many of y’all have. God’s love can seem blurry and distant. Sure, you believe in God and you believe that He can do things for you, but will he?
the answer is always yes. If God has a way to help you grow in His love, he will do it.
we always need to be aware of God’s work in our lives and the lives of others. If we keep our mind on that, doubt will seem silly.
God isn’t cruel, believing that is ignorant. that leads us to the next obstacle.
lack of knowing
This last obstacle is also called ignorance. But ignorance seems like such an ugly word, so I’ll use the phrase: lack of knowing.
People with this obstacle might know God exists, but don’t know God well enough to see him in their lives. They haven’t seen enough love, joy, or happiness to recognize him in it.
It’s so hard to help people who don’t know God, because their arguments seem so logical.
the best thing to do when this roadblock pops up is to learn about God.
I like the phrase “faith grows when it is fed.” It’s true. Once someone reads the bible and learns about Jesus, it’s almost impossible to say God doesn’t love us. He gave up his ONLY SON to save us and to help us get to Heaven so we can be with him.
No matter how big or how many obstacles there are in your life, you can overcome them. each obstacle in our way is an opportunity to make our faith stronger.
And when looking at every one of these obstacles, there is a verse that we can keep in the back of our minds.
Blessed are those who have not seen and have believed. John 20:29
once we have seen God at work, all that’s left to do is believe. So go for it y’all!!