Meeting the Challenge of Obstacles

Have you noticed that in just about every task, obstacles must be overcome to be successful? God told Adam and Eve that upon being expelled from the Garden, life would change for them to having to struggle to achieve their main goal of staying alive. These words meant there would be serious obstacles to overcome. 

To Adam and Eve these words surely created anxiety, but God did not leave them to survive in their own strength. In meeting the challenges of those obstacles, they were given opportunities that would bring both happiness and sorrow. They became parents and experienced the joys and sorrows of parenting. 

When Jacob left the place where he dreamed of meeting God, he knew he possessed a chance for a new beginning. He was now being redeemed from a life of grabbing to satisfy his greed to a lifestyle pleasing to God. God saw beyond Jacob’s character flaws to a man who would fulfill his purposes. Can God see his purposes being fulfilled in you?   

Overcoming Obstacles

On his way to getting everything he wanted, Jacob encountered obstacles that brought his life to a dead end. It's important to realize God is not against your getting what you want if it doesn’t conflict with His moral and spiritual values. Jacob had consistently violated God’s principals and guidelines for living.

Although Jacob failed to get away with lying and cheating, the crisis it produced became an opportunity to change his life. This was his chance to turn an obstacle into an opportunity for a wonderful future. Jacob dreamed God would bless and protect him and give him the land that would become Israel as it’s defined today.

Another obstacle Jacob faced was separating from his mother, for he was his mother’s favorite son. God proposed a plan for Jacob to live under His protection rather than his mother’s care until Jacob was responsible and mature enough to act like a man. Can you see yourself living under God’s protection? It can be yours by committing your life to him.  

Performance = Integrity

An ancient proverb declared, “The nod of an honest man is enough.” Actress Mae West professed, “An ounce of performance is worth pounds of promises.” One of my high school teachers reminded us that “What you are speaks so loud, I can’t hear a word you’re saying.” This admonition encourages character building.

Another wise saying gives clear guidelines for promise making: “The righteous promise little and perform much; the wicked promise much and perform very little.” How do you perform on the promises you make? It’s appropriate to make promises. Just be sure to keep your promises; they define your character.

 

James 5:12 offers good advice. “Do not swear, either by heaven or by any other oath. Let your 'Yes' be yes and your 'No' be no, so you never fall under condemnation.” It’s time for a new beginning to go forward with hope for a bright future, so commit all you are to Christ Jesus right now. God keeps his promises and honors yours.   

Sagging Confidence & Broken Promises

Promises are made to encourage confidence in a select area of relationships. An engagement ring implies a promise is given to exclude all other possible suitors. It’s an indication the relationship is sealed and can move forward toward greater commitments. Someone wisely noted that vows made in a storm are forgotten when it’s calm again.

 

Breaking a promise that you never intended to keep is being deceptive and will ultimately rain down crises simply because it’s dishonest. It’s also being unfaithful to a higher standard of conduct and brings far more negative consequences than just being straightforward and honest. You cannot escape a broken promise in and of your own power.

 

So, what is the appropriate response to broken promises? Do all that’s within your power to clean up the mess by seeking forgiveness. Then make amends, which means doing everything possible to restore faith and confidence. Acknowledge your character weakness that allows breaking a promise to exist. Confess your sins to God and seek his forgiveness. God will honor each of these commitments.  

Promises and Character Strengths

The promises you make are important because they reveal your character. Your commitment to keep promises echoes your sincerity, integrity and faithfulness. A promise resembles a covenant, a pledge to maintain certain terms of an agreement. In a positive sense its gives assurance to actively do specific things for the good of another or oneself.

Guilt can become a troublesome problem when we promise what we can’t deliver. It invites criticism from others and opens the door for self-condemnation because trust has been violated between oneself and others. A good standard to live by is to promise only what you know for certain you will complete.

God will not help you sweep broken promises under the rug but will give you the means for fulfilling what you’ve promised, although it may seem impossible or inappropriate to do so. God acknowledges your determination to be responsible and will open doors for you to succeed. “I can do all things through Christ Jesus who gives me strength.”  

Expectations: Change for Success

We have experiences in life designed to encourage change. A crisis or a simple warning sign could elicit a promise from us to take immediate action to change. There are times when a specific course adjustment in life is required if we’re to remain spiritually healthy. For Jacob, that time came as he was running for his life.

Are your expectations in accordance with God’s expectations? Hear God’s word: “The Lord has declared that you are his people, his treasured possession, so honor all his commands. He will set you up for praise and honor high above all he has made. You will be a people holy to the Lord your God as he promised.”

What is required of us to persevere in our pledge to God? We must fight every distraction to remain focused on the object of our promise, which is the Lord Jesus Christ. Then there must be dedication and commitment of our time and energy to keep us from forgetting our promises to God. Believe that God empowers you to love him completely. 

Promises Require Commitment

Promises and commitments naturally go together, for what good is a promise if there’s not a commitment to keep it? Does a promise made to someone or yourself reflect who you are as a person? Promises made to whomever - and kept - strengthen your character and self-worth even when they require divine intervention to fulfill or sustain.

          More than the greatest of intentions are required to dismiss or overcome something that’s become a way of life, even though that something has proven to be detrimental to your well-being. That’s why God does not leave needed change completely to our own ingenuity or devices, or else failure certainly would be imminent. He desires to help us.

          Psalm 119 courageously states: “I have promised to obey your words, O Lord. I have sought your face with all my heart, so be gracious to me according to your promise. I have considered my ways and will hasten and not delay in obeying your commands.” These words bring joy to God as we make them our promise and commitment.

Promises vs. Intentions

What promises to do you consider God has made to you personally? The undeserving Jacob was a recipient of a personal promise so bountiful he could not comprehend the full extent of what it included. In response Jacob offered a declaration that the Lord would be his God all the days of his life. He also promised to give God a tenth of all he acquired.

 

Which promises does God expects you to honor? The answer might be all of them because it reflects your person-hood and character. Some individuals make promises in the heat of a crisis and recant them when the heat of the moment dissipates. Have you made promises just to appease God or others with no intention of keeping them?

God is faithful to keep his promises, and he will never be slow in doing what he promises to do. God loves you and wants you to have trust and confidence in him and his word. When you make a promise to God, he will provide what is needed for you to remain true to your promise. Isn’t that good news! 

Hope for the Future

Jacob, a grabber and a deceiver, will grab every opportunity to get what he wants. He’s mentally quick to strike a bargain with anybody, including God when it’s suits his purpose. Yet Jacob is convinced he needs redemption and deliverance from impulsive, shameful behavior, so he promises to honor and serve God and give Him a tenth of his earnings.

 

Why would God take a person of such low character and promise him hope for a bright future? God’s grace is greater than our sins, so He sees far beyond the moment to what a person who has been redeemed will do to fulfill His purposes. Consider Peter, who in anger denied even knowing Jesus. 

  

It is our privilege to seize the day and realize that whatever our past has been, by God’s grace there can be a bright future for us. When to the best of our ability we commit our lives to the Lord Jesus Christ for redemption, we are no longer condemned but saved for eternity. Jacob could now go on his journey knowing God had touched him in a way he would never forget.

Striking a Bargain with God

Making a complete directional change in life is not an easy task. That was the case with Jacob, the man who stole from his brother and deceived his father. Even after the Lord appeared to him in a dream and laid out in vivid language a promise of blessings, Jacob still had to make sure God understood his own terms of acceptance.

God could have dished out severe punishment to Jacob but chose to bless him. Listen to Jacob’s response. “If God will be with me and give me food to eat and clothes to wear so I can return safely to my father’s house, then the Lord will be my God and I will set a marker here to be God’s house. What he gives me I will give back a tenth.”

 

Have you made similar bargains with God in moments of crises? God did not insist on conditions for the beginning of Jacob’s redemption. His desire was to give Jacob a new beginning, free of conditions and sin. God’s word: “As far as the East is from the West, I will remember your sins no more.” Christ Jesus will to do the same for you. 

A Clear Path to a New Beginning

Jacob was not a man who made bad mistakes, but deliberately chose behaviors that set a course for his life. We’re aware of those who choose unethical, sinful and criminal activities and claim they were bad mistakes. The murderer of an elderly woman claimed that he never meant to cause pain and suffering, but the jury did not buy his “mistake” plea. 

          While Jacob was not a murderer, he did commit cold-hearted sins against his brother and father. The old cliché of “payday someday” caught up with him, causing him to flee for his life because Esau threatened to kill him. He was running to a safe place to hide, but in a strange, lonely place he had a dream that changed his life.

          In this dream God outlined a plan for Jacob that reflects God’s grace and mercy. God did not mention conditions for his willingness to bless Jacob. Have you been a recipient of such grace and mercy, including a clear pathway for a new beginning you never could have imagined? The impossible is possible with God.  

Rethinking Your Plans vs. God's Plan

Have you ever awakened from a dream that was so vivid you could never forget it? Jacob awakened from such a dream and realized God had spoken to him directly. Listen to his response. “Surely the Lord is in this place and I was not aware of it. How awesome is this place! This is the house of God, the gateway to heaven.”

 

This dream made him rethink his life. At some level Jacob knew what he deserved, but God’s mercy and patience gave him hope for a new identity that he could never obtain on his own. God offered redemption rather than punishment, hope rather than despair. This is certainly what Jacob needed to replace his grabbing, greedy attitude.

Jacob’s dream was from God. The message was profound, never to be forgotten. He took the stone where he had slept and placed it as a marker, poured oil on it and named it Bethel, “House of God”. Jacob’s redemption took a significant step, never to be reversed. He at last was becoming God’s man.  

Hope for Undeserving People

Explaining why God promises new beginnings to undeserving people is grounded completely in the fact that God loves us, otherwise Jacob would have been unlikely to receive God’s help. Jacob lied, stole, cheated and was totally self-absorbed. Yet God appeared to him in a dream when he was desperate enough to hear a voice other than his own.

          Listen to what God communicated to Jacob: “I will give you and your descendants the land where you are sleeping. The people of the earth will be blessed through you and your offspring. I’ll be with you and will watch over you wherever you go and will bring you back to this land. I will not leave you until I have done what I have promised,” meaning within Jacob’s lifetime.   

          God reminds us, “My thoughts are not your thoughts; my ways are not your ways.” God assures each of us that he can use a person who has wasted their life, and He nevertheless stands ready to give us a new beginning. What matters is what you’re willing to do now. God is ready to help you turn your life around and make a new start that honors Him. 

Crisis! A Wake-up Call to Change

Trouble comes our way often by our own invitation. It’s not that we intend to behave in ways that invite trouble, but we passively or directly engage in behaviors that invite negative consequences. Those consequences are wake-up calls to make changes in our attitudes and actions. Jacob got a wake-up call on the road to Haran.

In dreams he saw a ladder or stairway extending from earth to heaven with angels ascending and descending on it. Can you visualize this picture? It gets better. Above the stairway stood the Lord God speaking to him directly. He told Jacob, “I am the Lord, the God of Abraham your grandfather and Isaac your father."

Prior to this life-changing dream, Jacob’s life was defined as self-directed and self-centered; he was a cheater and a fraud. In his dream God promised him a new beginning, not because he deserved it but because God saw potential where no one else could. He promised Jacob a future with hope. Is this what you need? God will give it to you.