You see it coming. You already know what it is. There is no time to avoid it. Your head and your heart prepare for yet another jolting impact of an intrusive event in your life. In a moment, your teeth rattle and your head spins. The gasps from those around you reveal they didn’t see it coming either. Then it’s over….

Many of us can visualize what happened. Are you the one who saw this metaphor as a literal, physical chunk of concrete in the road that couldn’t be missed? Are you the one who saw this as a conversation with a person at work who is always disrupting lives with rumors, have truths, confidential information, or outright lies? Are you the one who saw this as being the recipient of hurtful and often destructive and pointless comments in your home? Many of us have roads in our relationships that have bumps and roadblocks. Issues between spouses, toxic parental experiences or children who have broken our hearts, supervisors at work or coaches is sports who have little regard for team building or positive growth can make our travels through life very burdensome.

“Being a leader is making the people you love, hate you a little more each day.” ― Patrick Ness

“He is a self-made man and worships his creator.” John Bright

Divers weights are an abomination unto the Lord; and a false balance is not good. – Proverbs 20:23

A continual dropping in a very rainy day and a contentious woman are alike. – Proverbs 27:15

An evil man seeks only rebellion: therefore, a cruel messenger shall be sent against him. – Proverbs 17:11

So how often do we focus on the calamity, instead of the wonder around us? Why do so many of us limp along and sputter as if there is no God? I have been guilty of misunderstanding the reason(s) why our Holy God sends or allows circumstances into our lives. Sometimes, I just missed the real reason! How big is our God, really? Think about that. Is He bigger than the troublesome-minded people in our lives? Remember, He made all of us, including the ones that make us grapple for answers. So how do we fix the road ahead? How do we make it smoother? Be aware that the Lord sees all, and knows intimately what we need. Maybe we needed a particular event to bring about changes that He needed to be made for a higher purpose the next time.

“Be a leader with a ladder, not a boss with an order.”  ― Debasish Mridha

The Lord also says, “Ye have heard that it hath been said, Thou shalt love thy neighbor, and hate thine enemy. But I say unto you, Love your enemies; bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you, and persecute you; That ye may be the children of your Father which is in heaven: for he makes his sun to rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the just and on the unjust. – Matthew 5:43-48

So what are we to do?  Wherever we are in this life, bloom where we’re planted. Let us reach into our Biblical resource backpacks, pick out some Scriptural bricks that we have for this purpose, and place Christ’s principles one-by-one onto that rough stretch to build trust, dependability, authenticity, sincerity, accountability, and faith at home and in the workplace. When people see you are purposefully replacing evil or cruelty with good, this will have an amazing effect on both those who are here now, and also on the ones who follow.

“Lord, so many of us get caught up trying to recovering instead of discovering. Let us rejoice in all things. Help us re-build the road ahead one Biblical brick at a time. In Christ’s Name. Amen.”