We all travel down different roads in life. Sometimes the road is smooth and sometimes the road is rocky and rough. Some are an uphill climb while others seem like a long, steep downhill slide. Some roads we encounter are littered with never-ending potholes we continually have to swerve around. No matter what road we are experiencing on our individual journeys through life, one thing we do know is that navigating the easy, smooth roads can be just as fleeting and temporary as the rocky-strewn, rough roads. It can be a delicate balance in this life and may even feel like a balancing act, even on the best of days.
I personally hit a “literal” pothole while driving that I truly thought severely damaged my car. I had visions of having a blown tire before I got to my destination or needing a costly realignment. You know, the kind we all have experienced at one time or another that makes you question every inch of your sanity and the wellness of your car. The kind of pothole that you feel like it could have swallowed up your car completely if you weren’t going fast enough. I did not see it in time to swerve away, and when my tire hit the “sweet spot” of that dreaded pothole, it jolted not only my car, but it also flung me around like a bobble-head doll (quite the sight, I must say)! It instilled a sense of fear and dread about what it just did to my car and if I would be able to handle what could become an expensive fix. We can all agree that potholes are no fun whatsoever.
In thinking about that experience and applying it to my daily life, I think through all the “spiritual potholes” I have gone through and will continue to go through. Those potholes jolt us in just the same way. Perhaps not from a physical standpoint, but from a mental and emotional perspective. Those moments in life that awaken you at the core and you have to decide how much of that “pothole” will affect you in the long run. It can affect our lives in devastating ways, and some we just cannot swerve around and miss. What if I told you there were spiritual potholes that we are meant to miss, just as there are spiritual potholes we are meant to hit? That may be easy news to hear or hard to imagine. “God doesn’t want bad for us. He loves us, so why on earth would He intend for us to HIT a pothole?” The answer is as simple as the question…. BECAUSE GOD LOVES US! Because God loves us, He gives us lessons along our path that may include potholes He intends us to learn from. Not to bring us harm, but to help us learn from the good that comes out of it.
God gives us many potholes that at times seem deeply unpleasant. Some of these potholes are … the passing of dear loved ones, illness, loss of jobs, loss of finances and homes, doubts, fears, lack of faith and trust. The list we could compile could be infinite. But life happens and not always in the most pleasant of ways. Potholes can be much easier to navigate when we recognize that we are NEVER alone and that God is ALWAYS with us every step of the way … through every uphill climb or downhill slide, every twist and turn, every unmarked path, every off-road terrain, EVERY emotional pothole we encounter along the way. We also are at a disadvantage. We don’t get to see the whole picture, but what reassurance it brings us when the one who walks beside us every step of the way is the One who sees the whole picture, knows the whole picture, knows what will happen before we take our first step! Isn’t that the kind of person you want walking beside you? I know it is for me!
Our trust in God helps us through the potholes we encounter in life, all the way through each and every moment of each and every, single day. We always seem to see our way through these, and our faith and trust makes our travels less stressful knowing God walks our pothole-strewn path with us. Sometimes God will carry us, if needed, to get us through, and isn’t it great knowing we do not have to travel it alone?
One thing that has always helped me to learn to trust God in the midst of so many potholes (and boy do I really need that this year!) and even in life in general, is that it is always difficult for me to navigate any facet of my life if I continue to look at it through the knothole of my pain. My experience of any situation I’m working through is but a 20-second blip of the BIG PICTURE of our lives and our eternity. I can’t always rely on my experience of hitting that pothole when I can’t see it through God’s eyes, and since I know that will never be an option, I must trust in Him, rely on Him, put all my faith in the One who knows.
Life is so short. Think of how old you are now and how much you have gone through … everyone’s experiences are different. Everyone has a range of different spiritual potholes we have to work around or hit head on to learn from. Regardless of any of that, let’s not spend our lives worrying about the potholes, but rather always place our trust and faith in Him as we travel the narrow path that is traveled by few. Just remember in those hard times that seem difficult and you have nowhere to turn, take a moment, breathe in that deep breath, and just say “Thank you, Jesus, for being with me.” Remember that He understands every pothole known to mankind, will always walk beside you, and will never ever forsake you!
Background Photo by Matt Hoffman from Unsplash.
