As I get older, I would like to think I get wiser. After all, the longer I live, the more of life I have experienced. But, becoming wiser is more than just experiencing more of life. To become wiser, I have to actually pay attention to what is happening, both to me, and in the world around me, and in addition, I have to actually learn from my observations.

That is the hard part, because learning actually requires effort. We have probably all known people that seem to go through life like it was an obstacle course. They climb up, and they climb down, they go around, under, or over. The door might be unlocked, but they still have to go through it like a battering ram. Life is difficult and painful when you have to fight it the whole way.

Some of you probably feel this way about life, but I hope that for most of us the obstacles are not stacked one right after the other. And while obstacles may happen daily, or even hourly, they don’t usually happen every minute of every day.

I know my life often has obstacles stacked next to each other, and when that happens I tend to get depressed and frustrated. Fortunately, I have a limited amount of energy for problem solving, and eventually I get tired and realize I need a break. When that happens, I often think of God, and I realize how foolish I have just been, trying to get through life on my own.

Fortunately, God provides a better way. He doesn’t promise to eliminate all the obstacles, but He does promise to provide the strength and wisdom to get through them.

Psalm 46:1-3 God is our refuge and strength, an ever-present help in trouble. Therefore we will not fear, though the earth give way and the mountains fall into the heart of the sea, though its waters roar and foam and the mountains quake with their surging.

Philippians 4:6 Do not worry about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.

Psalm 9:9-10 The Lord is a refuge for the oppressed, a stronghold in times of trouble.

And, these few verses are just a tiny sample of the promises that God will provide for and sustain us in our time of need. So, if you are tired of fighting the obstacles that life has placed in your path, pause for a moment and realize that there is a better way, and His name is Jesus.

Like you, I am still learning a day at a time how to deal with life, but my hope is in the One who has the power to part the seas and flatten the mountains, how about you?