As I checked the news on Monday Morning, I discovered Six Forks Road had been closed due to a water break. A second news alert came when a log truck overturned on I-440 in Cary.
The commute of thousands of people is hampered in such mishaps. The normal route to work is blocked. Many will be caught up in traffic jams because they did not get the word. Such is life.
Many times in life we have our plans all made up. We know what we want to do and we set a time schedule to get it done. Then, all of a sudden everything changes. Our plans are interrupted, our normal routine is blocked and our whole day is changed.
Interruptions happen. When they do, we can face them with anxiety or wrath which at worse raises our blood pressure or gives us a heart attack or accomplishes nothing constructive. On the other hand we can accept the change, adjust to the situation and do the best we can under the circumstances.
When interruptions came to Jesus he usually turned them into an opportunity to minister to a need. One of our great problems is that we are always in a hurry. The old saying that “haste makes waste” is a bitter lesson. We can learn from Jesus who never got in a hurry, not even when Lazarus, his dear friend died.
Learning to be flexible, learning to adjust and adapt to changes is a challenge to most of us. But we would do well to learn flexibility.
The next time your route is blocked or your plan meets an obstacle, pause and ask God to show you what he wants you to learn and do. Interruptions can be great teachers. Interruptions have saved lives. Interruptions can also give us an opportunity to minister to someone in need. Interruptions might even give us a moment to catch our breath, say a prayer or find a better way.
In His Love,
Charles
