By Tonya S. Swindell

As I completed a maze from a brain games puzzle book, I felt hopeful knowing my challenge had a start and a definite end. The maze resembled life, and potential roadblocks caused me to reassess my plans. My pathway to success seemed long and frustrating; but I felt satisfied when I reached my expected destination.

The inclusion of a maze in a brain games puzzle book suggested I was capable of completing it. And willingness to make adjustments along the way allowed me to achieve it.

At challenging times, I learned to “do my best and let God do the rest.” When I experienced anxiety about making a wrong move, Jeremiah 29:11 brought me comfort: “For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, saith the Lord, thoughts of peace and not of evil, to give you an expected end.”

Commentary from The New Living Translation explained: “We’re all encouraged by a leader who stirs us to move ahead, someone who believes we can do the task he has given and who will be with us all the way. God is that kind of leader. He knows the future, and his plans for us are good and full of hope. As long as God, who knows the future, provides our agenda and goes with us as we fulfill his mission, we can have boundless hope. This does not mean that we will be spared pain, suffering, or hardship, but that God will see us through to a glorious conclusion.”

“The Road Not Taken” by Robert Frost and “Don’t You Quit” by an unknown author highlight benefits of adopting a different plan and not quitting. Taking an unexpected path and avoiding temptation to quit can have positive results such as appreciation for setbacks, development of frustration tolerance and delayed gratification.

In light of these truths, I wrote the following poem:

The Amazing Maze of Life

Life is like a maze. A maze is much like life.

Each pathway holds our gaze, as we try to make things right.

It may be helpful to listen, to a few suggestions, about how to solve a puzzle, requiring such decisions:

Use pencil with an eraser to complete such worthy tasks. Our pencil helps us progress and cover mistakes from our past. God cleanses erroneous marks and gives us a brand new start. So we can begin again and receive an expected end.

If at first you don’t succeed, it’s been said to try again. Our first choice may hit a roadblock, but our next might make us win.

It helps to make a change and try a different path, not letting anxiety keep us from making change that lasts.

Each maze has built-in difficulty and challenges from the beginning; but they won’t last forever. They clearly have an ending.

It may also help to remember, as we navigate through each day;

God desires to help us prosper and move successfully through each maze.

 

Tonya Swindell writes a blog for www.inspirenewlife.org and is a teacher for Kingdom Building Equipping School (KBES.com). She can be reached at 1brightot@gmail.com.