Face the challenges

To The Editor:

Life is not always a pleasant trip. Some days it seems that the road of life is all uphill. Some days it seems that everything is under construction. Paul said it right when he said, “We are troubled on every side, we are perplexed, persecuted, and cast down. But in all this we are not defeated. We can rise above all the difficulties we face in life. We have the ability to trust God and we have the assurance that our God knows what we face and He has made a way of escape. The easiest things in life to do is “give up”. It takes no effort to give up. You just quit. And when you give up Satan has won. So, there is no need to give up when you experience defeat. This defeat is only one small step in the battle of life. The road of life has lots of potholes and we are going to hit some of them. Paul said it right “we are troubled on every side”, but the trouble is not the end. Think about how you can overcome and see victory in your life.

Why is it often difficult to face the challenges of life? Too often we are paralyzed by the obstacles that come our way. Where would we be if Abraham had never had the nerve to leave home and go where God told him to go? I’m sure that Abraham wondered what would he face and how would he get to where he was going. Abraham did not look at the obstacles but he saw the opportunity. The opportunities God gives you are greater than the obstacles. When you are willing to trust God and follow Him, you have met and overcome the challenge of life.

Do not allow past setbacks and failures to keep you from moving forward. Even if you take two steps forward and one step back you are making progress. Do not allow a failure to define your future. Robert Kennedy said, “Only those who dare to fail greatly can ever achieve greatly”. Many of our failures prepare us for the greater that is coming our way. Learn to look beyond where you are and see where you can be. As a Child of God you have the courage to bounce back and take the risk despite the adversity. Begin looking forward because your past is behind you.

Learn to focus life on the things you can control. God gives to each of us the responsibility to care of certain things. Learn to follow the plan that God has and do what He wants. When we move into areas we do not understand to quickly we will face problems. Learn to take life one step at a time. You do not eat an elephant in one bite but you take it one bite at a time. Do what you know you can do before you move to that which is more difficult. Lou Holtz said, “Show me someone who has done something worthwhile, and I’ll show you someone who has overcome adversity”.

With God you are powerful force and you are not defeated or cast down but you are an over comer because Greater is He who is in you than he who is in the world.

Tom Doty,

Horseshoe Bend

Former Pastor of Eastside Baptist in Osceola