As I prepared to speak to you this morning I was reminded of a fable that I had come across many years ago. It basically talked about how God had given a man the task of pushing a stone up a mountain. This has nothing to do with the Greek mythological tale of King Sisyphus who was given the onerous task of pushing a stone up a mountain for eternity by the gods because he had tricked them and cheated death. In this story, God had told a man to push a stone up a mountain. He tried it, kept at it day in and day out; he would reach the top of the mountain and just when he tried to push it over the top, it would slip back and fall down. He would then come back and try all over again with no success. One day he threw up his hands and said, "God, this is not happening. You want me to push this stone over the mountain and I cannot do it." God replied, "I never asked you to push the stone over the mountain. All I asked you to do was to push the stone up the mountain. That was the whole idea. Look at yourself now. You've got wonderful muscles on your legs, hands and body; you've become a persistent person; you've managed to build up stamina and resources that you never had before. That was the whole purpose in asking you to do it."
That's an interesting story and it makes an interesting point. Sometimes we look at obstacles as times to throw in the towel and say, "This is not happening. It is not what I ought to be doing. Maybe it's a sign from God that I've got to make a change." But maybe it's also a time when you and I are being strengthened in the process for something down the road. Maybe we're being taught perseverance; maybe we're being taught how to not give in to failures that often come through our lives and are par for the course.
When we look at our own lives, maybe you didn't get an expected increment or promotion or even a good appraisal. You see that as an obstacle in your path and you think, "Is this a sigh? Is it time to leave? Is it time to make a change?" I thought to myself that maybe it might be a good time to put this thought in you that obstacles and reverses may not be signposts to quit. They could be motivators to press on. We tend to see obstacles and reverses as signposts to quit, thinking that the circumstances are all stacked against me and maybe it's time I quit and moved on to something else that is less difficult.
I was looking at the book 'HOW: Why HOW We Do Anything Means Everything…in Business (and in Life)' by Dov Seidman. As an aside, if anyone would like a copy of this book, let me know. Dov Seidman says, "You have to push on. The words 'in spite of' are very important in leadership. We need to look at things that happen and say, 'In spite of this, I will move on.'"
He gives an example of Madam C.J. Walker who, in 1905, started selling a scalp conditioning and healing formula. 'Madam Walker's Wonderful Hair Grower' was what she called it and she went door to door to African-American women throughout the South and Southeast United States. She was the daughter of former slaves and she had been orphaned at age 7. She was married at 14 and widowed with a child at 19. She worked doing laundry to put her daughter through school before she even thought of a new life for herself. But she says, "I got my start by giving myself a start."
Seidman goes on to say, "In spite of obstacles far greater than any most could imagine, Walker grew her enterprise into a company that employed over 3000 people. She became the first known African American woman to become a millionaire. Walker was fond of saying, 'I'm a woman who came from the cotton fields of the South. From there I was promoted to the washtub, from there to the cook kitchen and from there, I promoted myself into the business of manufacturing hair goods and preparations. I have built my own factory on my own ground.'" She never gave up. She never looked at obstacles in her life as things that needed to be accepted as fate and circumstances that determined her own path.
Seidman goes on to say, "When you look at the Mexican wave that happens at stadiums, it's always started by one person who thinks, 'Let's do a wave.' Oftentimes when he gets up to begin the wave, people around him don't really respond. If they sat down at that point, the wave would never take off. But they persist. The people around them may be obstacles, but they overcome those obstacles and finally the wave gets going. Finally those people too, join that wave.
"What matters is not the obstacles, but how you think about obstacles, how you approach them, and how you behave in the face of them," says Dov Seidman, "and the key is, if you don't start with the 'in spite of' disposition, you will seldom win. Our own Yuvraj Singh is such an inspiration. Diagnosed with cancer a couple of years ago, taken out of an active cricketing career, he overcame it, went through the treatment, came back for training and it's great to see him turn out for Pune Warriors. Watching a match the other day and seeing him run for a catch, I thought, "This was a man who had cancer and look at him. He's come back right to the point where he was before." He never let his circumstances determine what he was going to do.
George Bernard Shaw wrote, "People are always blaming their circumstances for what they are. I don't believe in circumstances. The people who get on in this world are the people who get up and look for the circumstances they want, and if they can't find them, make them."
Anita Bruzzess who writes many articles in different newspapers and magazines says, "There are some skills that you can learn about how to overcome obstacles:
1. Outline the worst-case scenario – write it down, verbalize them. Face your fear about that obstacle.
2. Be willing to fight. Don't just accept what happens. What else can you do to overcome the problem?
3. Envision success. Keep your eye on the prize. Unless you can see what you want to get, you'll never get there.
4. Shake it off. Remember that people are watching you; your boss is watching you. How are you going to face this adversity?
5. Be realistic. If you need to back down a little bit and change your track, do it. But don't let the obstacles stop you from doing what you need to do.
6. Get input. Clarify your problem, get ideas from other people.
7. Invest in confidence. Read inspirational books; find out how others have faced adversity.
But whatever you do, don't let the obstacle stop you from being who you are and what you are meant to be doing.
I thought that it was so true. Sometimes the obstacles are sent to make us better people, to show us how we can find resources within ourselves and rise to meet the occasion. And yet sometimes we choose to look at obstacles as signposts that say – Quit! This is not going to work. When I think of obstacles in my life, I think that the Almighty God says to us in our Holy Book (Hebrews 13:5) "I will never leave you." That's a tremendous promise to have, that God Himself would say to us, "As you face this obstacle, know that I haven't left you. I'm with you. You are not alone."
Our Holy Book puts it another way. (Isaiah 40:27-30) "Don't ever say, God has lost track of me. He doesn't care what happens to me. Don't you know anything? Haven't you been listening? God doesn't come and go. God lasts. The creator of all you can see or imagine. He doesn't get tired out, doesn't pause to catch His breath, and He knows everything, inside and out. He energizes those who get tired and gives fresh strength to dropouts."
Beautiful words! Maybe this morning you need to hear these words. Maybe you've taken a beating this last month, you're just seeing obstacles in your path and you're wondering – Is it time to just give up and drop out? This morning I would say to you, "God is right there next to you. He energizes those who get tired and are thinking of dropping out. Don't give up. Press on and find out what it is over that mountain."
Let me pray with you. Almighty God, on each one of these precious ones on this call, come alongside and inspire and invigorate each one of us. Take away tiredness, energize us, give us fresh strength. If there are any on this call who are close to giving up or dropping out, strengthen them. Help them to see that You have a purpose for them even over this mountain and that You are with them and will take them over it. I pray Your strength and Your wisdom upon each one. In the name of Jesus, we pray. Amen.
