Moving Through The Fog

Moving through the Fog

A FEW YEARS AGO, Steve and I took a road trip to Santa Fe, New Mexico. We spent five glorious days just reconnecting. We shopped for art, ate great food, and cozied up by the fireplace at night. October in the Southwest—the weather was picture perfect.

But on our way out of town, as we journeyed through the mountains toward home, we were hit by a wall of fog. Not just a smattering of fog; this was an extreme weather condition we met without warning, and when I say it was dense—well, think of trying to look through a cotton ball.

Steve continued to slow down until we found ourselves moving about 2 to 3 mph. Unable to see more than a few inches in front of the car, we had no idea whether there were automobiles in front of us or coming at us. To complicate the situation, we had no idea where we were because we couldn’t see any landmarks; we were all but paralyzed. We certainly couldn’t turn back. We could only creep forward.

Disappointments can be like a fog. They come on when we least expect them, and even though we have a life plan—we know where we want to go—the setback often causes us to stop dead in our tracks.

When you have invested significant time and emotion in a dream that goes sideways, it’s easy to become cynical and hardened. But is that the way you want to spend your life? Like moving through the fog, you choose whether to stay in your bitterness or to move forward, if only at 2 to 3 mph.

As different as we may be from one another, this is one area in our lives that we all have in common. Every person you know has had a serious setback. That means every person you know could have an attitude of defeat—but they don’t, do they? No, many people have elected not to be defined by their trials.

For I can do everything through Christ, who gives me strength. (Philippians 4:13)

Perhaps today is the day to choose to move through the fog. Let God guide you safely to the other side.