Walk This Way

Walk This Way

John Madden, Super Bowl–winning head coach and legendary football broadcaster, once said, “The road to Easy Street goes through the sewer.” I’ve been in a few sewers, but they still haven’t led me to Easy Street. Instead, I have often found myself on Adversity Street.

When adversity comes, how can you know which road to take?

When I am facing adversity, I pray. I pray often. Sometimes it is just saying, “Oh, Lord, I need you” because that simple prayer is all I know to pray.

Often I will add to my simple prayers. First, I ask the Lord for wisdom: “Oh, Lord, I need your wisdom. Show me your way, O Lord. Make your will clear to me, I pray.” In those prayers, I’m following the advice of James 1:5-8, which states, “If you need wisdom, ask our generous God, and he will give it to you. He will not rebuke you for asking. But when you ask him, be sure that your faith is in God alone. Do not waver, for a person with divided loyalty is as unsettled as a wave of the sea that is blown and tossed by the wind. Such people should not expect to receive anything from the Lord. Their loyalty is divided between God and the world, and they are unstable in everything they do.”

Second, I pray for strength to endure. I say, “Father, strengthen me according to your word.” Psalm 119:28 states, “I weep with sorrow; encourage me by your word.” The word encourage means “to make strong.”

Third, I ask for deliverance and safety to preserve my name, because it is all I’ve got. Proverbs 18:10 states, “The name of the LORD is a strong fortress; the godly run to him and are safe.”

There is no Easy Street. But when you find yourself on Adversity Street, you can know how to walk down that road.

The name of the LORD is a strong fortress; the godly run to him and are safe.

Proverbs 18:10