Ron Aulbach

 

Recently I went for a ride and found the wind so strong that I just about turned around.  The harder I peddled, the worse it seemed to get. I was only a few miles into what I hoped would be an hour out and back ride and my legs were jello.  I was toast.  I gave myself every pep talk I knew. None of them worked.  I was embarrassed to even look at my watch to see how slow I was going.  The wind was swatting me in the face, resistance was futile.

I ended up making it to my turn around and headed back for home.  Now the wind was behind me.  It was all I could do to keep the bike straight and on the road.  I had the bike in the hardest gear and peddling was effortless.  It was scary how fast I was going.  I was passing cars.  But the wind was still strong in my face as I pushed against it.  Resistance again was futile.

If you’re moving forward, you will always have the wind of resistance in your face.  What can we learn from the resistance we all face?

“Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself.  Each day has enough trouble of its own.” Matthew 6:34

Isn’t that true.  Daily trouble.  Daily resistance.

Jesus often couples his commands with promises.  This one is a hard promise.  Yes, there is the command to “not worry” and we could spend hours encouraging each other to worry less.  Instead, I want to look at this promise that each day will have plenty of trouble.  Some promise.  But, you already knew that.  You might be facing a relational trouble that’s been a gale force wind.  You have a boss that is a tempest.  You’ve blown the budget and the credit cards are floating into the stratosphere. So, how do you handle the troubles and problems that each day is guaranteed to blow your way?

After my ride I made some observations on how to make it through those windy stretches of life.

1. The wind is ALWAYS in your face.  Following Jesus does not make your troubles go away.  So embrace it.  Jesus promises you will face trouble everyday so don’t try to escape it.  Stop praying for a trouble free day, it isn’t possible.  Instead, ask God to keep moving you forward with perseverance and strength to go on.  Might mean cutting up those credit cards and the strength to resist the temptation of more.
2. SOMETIMES the wind is to your back. Rejoice, and be very glad that you are moving at such a speed that the resistance caused by critics, naysayers and doubters is barely noticeable.  This is usually short lived, but when the wind is at your back and life, give thanks and praise to God for all He is doing.
3. The direction OFTEN changes with little warning.  Each day, sometimes several times throughout the day, the wind will change.  Don’t let it surprise you.  Remember the command that each day is going to have enough trouble of it’s own.  When the wind changes, relax.  Ask, “Is there anything I can do about this change?”  If you can change it, then change it.  If not, then relax and let God work through you.
4. It’s MOST dangerous wind is sideways, a crosswind.  I’d rather have the wind in my face, where I can see it, judge the intensity.  If your greatest resistance is a person close to you, the opportunity is always in front of you to work though the issue.  But a crosswind is a surprise attack.  Slander, gossip, and half truths are the ways of a crosswind.  It wants to destroy you by taking you off course.  Off mission.  The only way to battle a crosswind is to lean into it.  Determine where it is coming from and turn your face into it and deal with it.  Don’t change direction, don’t ignore it, instead face it while maintaing your desired direction.  Don’t let another person determine your desired destination, set the direction and hammer down.
5. It’s MUCH easier to ride in a pack.  There is much less resistance and drag when you ride in a group.  A group of riders can draft off one another.  To do this they get really close in a line and ‘work’ together by taking turns as to who is in the wind and who is getting a break by drafting close behind.  The analogy is simple, you were never meant to face the problems of life alone.  Each day has enough trouble, but each person can ride in a pack and help each other.  Stop seeing others as  competitors or even the cause of resistance and work together.

Whatever you do, don’t stop.  Don’t give up.  The ride I described at the beginning was one of the hardest, but also the most thrilling and memorable rides I’ve made this Spring.  The memorable rides are where you gain experience to trust God and grow spiritually.  The resistance isn’t really all that futile and pointless after all.