When the road seems rough and long

Many times in life, we have often wondered why sometimes it seems so difficult to achieve our life goals. There are times when the obstacles to achieving our goals become so unbearable. Sometimes we even cry and dwell in pain wandering where we went wrong.
What do we do when the road to success seems so rough and long? Paul gives the answer in 2 Corinthians 5:7… “LIVE BY FAITH AND NOT BY SIGHT”. This is a very vital and practical principle. We usually have many things we wish to achieve in life but sometimes, we don’t achieve them because immediately obstacles show up, we give up. Other times, we really know what we want but we are so scared to fail that we give-up before even starting.

Paul tells us to live by Faith and not by sight. Faith is simply what we hope for which we do not necessarily see or have at present. As Christians, our ultimate hope is eternal life so no matter the trials, we keep striving in faith for what we hope for. Let’s Look at Jesus Christ as our example. His goal was to die on the cross for salvation of humanity. He went through many obstacles. The road seemed long and tough. In Luke 22:42, Jesus prayed “Father, if you are willing, take this cup from me; yet not my will, but yours be done.” This shows that Jesus felt the same way we feel today. It was not also easy for him to achieve His task. But he was steadfast and strengthened by God (Luke 22:43). Jesus lived by Faith and not by sight because He believed he could achieve His goal despite the hardship which showed up and He accomplished His mission. In Exodus, Moses faced many obstacles on achieving his goal of leading the Israelites out of Egypt but he did not give up because he overlooked the present obstacles and focused on his hope of leading the Israelites out of Egypt. Our Christian journey will surely face trials and temptation, but we live by faith and our hope of eternity is made Glorious through Jesus Christ.

Now, what is it you believe you have to do in life? Is it being a heart surgeon, being the CEO of your own company? Does the road to achieving this seem too long? Do you feel afraid to even start or are you afraid to fail? Did you start working towards achieving these goals and the way seems to have too many obstacles? Today learn to live by FAITH AND NOT BY SIGHT. Overlook the fear or obstacles you see now and focus on your hope of a glorious achievement. It took Thomas Edison who invented the light bulb 10,000 attempts to finally finish his invention. Meaning he apparently failed 9,999 times but interesting he was quoted to have given the following answer when questioned about his failure “I have not failed. I have just found 9,999 ways that do not work”. Today, the whole world is using the light bulb which is a product of 9,999 times of failure. This was an act of Faith. Edison saw his failure as a means to a better invention. If we live by hope and not by sight, our obstacles and fears will just be the path leading to a glorious end. Obstacles are a stepping stone to those who live by faith.

Vanessa