Roadblocks (by Cathe Laurie)

“Trust in the Lord with all your heart, And lean not on your own understanding; In all your ways acknowledge Him, And He shall direct your paths” (Proverbs 3:5–6 NKJV).

Last week, I mentioned how God sets dead ends in our way to stop us from our own destruction, to keep us away from paths and roads that will hurt us or lead us in directions we were never meant to go.

And that is true! But there’s a difference between those guardrails/dead ends that are meant to stop us and the delays, rejections, or questions that are meant to be pushed through. . . let’s call them roadblocks. They’re seasons and stumbles that are meant to train and strengthen our faith, helping us reach better places than we ever thought possible.

Roadblocks in the Bible 

Scripture is full of examples of people who faced roadblocks and pushed through.

Joseph was betrayed by his brothers, sold into slavery, falsely accused by Potiphar’s wife, and left to rot in prison. If ever a man had a reason to give up, it was Joseph. But he chased his God-given dream through each obstacle and saw it realized in the end (see Genesis 37–50).

Moses endured rejection after rejection from Pharaoh and then spent 40 years wandering in the wilderness with the Israelites. But he knew his calling to lead God’s people to freedom wasn’t optional, so he kept going (see Exodus 3–40).

Nehemiah faced mockery, threats, and sabotage as he painstakingly rebuilt the walls of Jerusalem. No matter what he faced, he stayed focused and kept building (see Nehemiah 4–5).

Paul pressed on through suffering—he was imprisoned, beaten, shipwrecked, and ridiculed. His life was a litany of trials. And yet, he pressed on, driven by a vision of glory and the call to share the gospel (see 2 Corinthians 11:23–28).

Each of these people had every reason to quit. The rejections and trials they faced could have easily broken them. But their faith was larger than their circumstances, and they knew they had to persevere!

“Failing Forward” 

Thomas Edison, when in the trenches of invention, famously said, “I have not failed. I’ve just found 10,000 ways that won’t work.” Guess what? His relentless determination led to the invention of the light bulb! Greg likes to call this “failing forward”—in failing, you gain more wisdom and understanding than if you succeed right away. Likewise, God uses each roadblock and delay to strengthen our faith, build our persistence, grow our character, and draw us closer to Him.

Dead End or Roadblock?

So how do we know whether a rejection or delay is a dead end or a roadblock? Good, old-fashioned prayerful discernment separates the faithful from the foolhardy. Seek godly counsel for outside, trustworthy perspectives. Examine your heart and ask the Lord to show you whether you’re following His path or your own timeline and goals and to show you whether this is a dead end meant to guard you or a roadblock meant to strengthen you.

The key is to remain close to Him, seek Him continually, trust His plans, and submit to His wisdom. “Trust in the Lord with all your heart, And lean not on your own understanding; In all your ways acknowledge Him, And He shall direct your paths” (Proverbs 3:5–6 NKJV).

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Cathe Laurie is the founder and director of the Virtue women’s ministry. She is also a featured speaker on The Virtue Podcast, at Harvest events, and the author of As I See It. You can find her weekly articles here on harvest.org.