By Dianne McKim, C.A.C.L.C.
I read this story a long time ago and it has always stuck with me.
A man was sleeping at night in his cabin when suddenly his room filled with light and the savior appeared. The Lord told the man he had work for him to do and showed him a large rock in front of the cabin. The Lord explained that the man was to push against the rock with all his might.
This is demanded, day after day. For many years he toiled from sun up to sundown, shoulders set squarely against the cold, massive surface of the unmoving rock, pushing with all his might. Each night the man returned to his cabin, sore and worn-out, feeling that his whole day had been spent in vain.
Seeing that the man was showing signs of discouragement, Satan decided to enter the picture by placing thoughts into the man's mind: “You have been pushing against that rock for a long time, and it hasn't budged. Why kill yourself over this? You are never going to move it.”
Giving the man the impression that the task was impossible and that he was a failure, these thoughts discouraged and disheartened the man even more. “Why kill myself over this?” he thought. “I'll just put in my time, giving just the minimum effort, and that will be good enough.”
And that he planned to do until, one day, he decided to make it a matter of prayer and take his troubled thoughts to the Lord. “Lord,” he said, “I have labored long and hard in your service, putting all my strength to do that which you have asked. Yet, after all this time, I have not even budged that rock by half a millimeter. What is wrong? Why am I failing?”
The Lord responded compassionately, “My friend, when I ask you to serve me and you accepted, I told you that your task was to push against the rock with all your strength, which you have done. Never once did I mention to you that I expected you to move it. Your task was to push. And now you come to me, with your strength spent, thinking that you have failed. But, is that really so?
“Look at yourself. Your arms are strong and muscled, your back sinewed and brown, your hands are calloused from constant pressure, and your legs have become massive and hard. Through opposition you have grown much and your abilities now surpassed that which you used to have. Yet you haven't moved the rock. You're calling was to be obedient, to push, to exercise your faith, and to trust in My wisdom. This you have done.
“I, my friend, will now move the rock.”
Seek the Lord for the wisdom and direction in your life. But keep in mind, when we hear a word from God, at times, we tend to use our own intellect to decipher what He wants, when actually what God wants is just simple obedience and faith in Him. By all means, exercise the faith that moves mountains, but know, it is still God who moves the mountain.
Remember, that often, what we think of as failure is not necessarily truth. There are so many things we can learn from our experiences. Take away what you learned, apply new lessons to future actions, Remember, You are Not a failure just because something didn't turn out the way you hoped. You have life experience, not failure!
So here I am trusting Him to move the mountain when and if it needs to be moved. Taking in all the life experiences and adjusting and growing along the way.
What mountain of yours needs to be moved? What life experiences do you have that will help you as you move forward? Do you need help adjusting your perspective about failures and struggles or in trusting God? If so, drop me a comment or reach out to me at www.PreciousStonesLifeCoach.com/connect.
