Problems are Opportunities

I’m a cup half empty kind of person.

It’s true. I see the problems in every situation. There will be traffic on the Kennedy. My flight will get delayed because of weather. I will owe taxes to the IRS. And the housing market will not improve in the next decade.

I suspect I’ve inherited this negative gene from my dad’s side of the family, but years of experience have honed my problem radar.

I’m not a lot different than the disciples in the days of Jesus. Check these two snapshots into their negative mindset:

1. Luke 8:22-25. The disciples get into the boat with Jesus. He falls asleep minutes before the perfect storm. They lose it. I mean, they seriously lose it. They panic and freak like nobody’s business, while Jesus is slowly rubbing sleep from his eyes.

2. Luke 9:10-17. The disciples are tired. They’ve just come back from an exhausting mission trip of giving to others. They’ve been looking forward to just hanging out with Jesus and regrouping. All of a sudden thousands of people show up. Ministering to them is the last thing on the disciples mind. Even worse is the realization that these folks are starving. The disciples try to send them away for dinner. But Jesus has other plans. He’s tying his apron on to feed them.

The disciples didn’t get it and most of the time neither do we.

Where we see obstacles God sees opportunities.

You’d think we’d learn it by now. It’s a lesson that’s been proven over and over again in my life. And maybe it’s a lesson you’re being taught right now.

If you’re facing some overwhelming circumstances in your life right now, here are some principles to keep in mind.

1. The greater the need the greater the provision. Think about it. It was the strength of the storm that showed the disciples the deity of Christ and His awesome power over, well, everything.  And it was the magnitude of the need of the 5000 that would highlight God’s provision. Don’t let the size of your problems bring you down. God may just be getting ready to blow your mind away.

2. Just because God seems to be asleep doesn’t mean He’s not in control. Even though Jesus was in the boat with the disciples, they still panicked. They thought the storm was stronger than their Savior. They were wrong. Jesus asked the disciples the same question you need to ask yourself: where is your faith? God has not forgotten you.

3. Just because you can’t doesn’t mean God can’t. The disciples couldn’t feed the people. The disciples couldn’t stop the storm. And you may be facing circumstances that you can do absolutely nothing about. But God can. Start trusting Him now. Furthermore, just because you don’t know how it can be done doesn’t mean that it won’t be done. You don’t even have to come up with the solution. Simply present the problem then watch Him work. It will blow your mind.

4. Just because you fail doesn’t mean you’re out. If anyone screwed up big time, it was the disciples. At the feeding of the 5000 they were so annoyed by the crowd they kicked them out. They almost missed the most amazing miracle of the gospels. And in the boat, the disciples had written their own funeral. How could they forget that Jesus was in the boat with them? But their failure did not keep the Savior from working mightily in their midst. You and I fail all the time. Like the disciples we don’t deserve to see God at work in our lives. Thankfully He doesn’t judge us by our performance. He works because of His goodness and grace. How amazing is He!

Where we see obstacles God sees opportunities.

How does that change your outlook today? Leave a comment with your thoughts.

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