"You don't have a problem. You have an opportunity!" That sounds so positive until you see it in the context of a person in a boat sinking in shark infested waters. Yet the truth of the matter is many of the problems we confront each day do offer us an opportunity to show our best, move ahead toward our goals, or be strengthened to face whatever lies in the future.
These thoughts have been prompted by the recent post by Michael Hyatt, someone who has become one of my favorite bloggers. On August 20 he discussed how our problems can be assets waiting to be used in positive ways to move us forward in life. Sure, many times we feel like we're drowning, but a lot of that is because of the attitude and perspective we bring with us into the problematic situation. If we look for the opportunities for growth rather than the possibilities for failure, our chances for positive outcomes increase dramatically.
The problem you face may well be the precursor to more challenges. Moving through the grades of school is a good example. Most of us couldn't have tackled the requirements of the third grade without having gone through the first grade. How many times did you have to wait to take a preferred course in high school or college because there was that inevitable prerequisite class? The accumulation of knowledge is measured in steps. The same can be said for wisdom.
Frustrations can arrive fast and furious in the process of dealing with people. A local business recently closed due to the inability to get and keep quality employees. A long time friend from college days confesses that the most difficult part of his business is finding and keeping competent help. Such frustrations can lead to closing a business or the option of seeking innovative ways to develop the personnel that are essential. Therein lies the possibility for growth.
Jesus did not recruit his disciples by telling them, "The kingdom of heaven is at hand. Go tell everybody and I'll check back with you after I have been resurrected from the dead." His preparation with them was a bit more extensive. They were a challenge and a source of real frustration at times. Jesus, however, saw what they could be and knew what preparation was needed to turn them into people who could fish for people even better than they could catch fish.
Seeing possibilities rather than problems allows for the use of such skills as improved listening, seeing hidden potential, and being able to deal with situations with greater flexibility. Seeing possibilities offers people a second chance, the benefit of the doubt, and a way to move beyond mistakes. Seeing possibilities instead of problems gives others a chance to reevaluate their own worth in the bigger context and come out better than they were before.
As churches depend more upon the Holy Spirit in their midst, problems become opportunities for the power of God to be revealed. It was not just for the Apostle Paul's benefit that God said, "My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness." (II Corinthians 12:9). Challenging times are opportunities for God's power to be revealed and his glory to shine through the fog. Challenging times are opportunities for congregations to step back and say, "It is not up to us. It has always been in the hands of God."
Problems are the opportunities for faith to rise to the top and lead people to grow in wisdom, in understanding, and in the skill of depending upon God to work through them in providing the necessary leadership and resources. Seeing problems as opportunities is the first step in moving from focusing on man's limitations toward the power of God-focused faithfulness. As one respondent to Hyatt's blog wrote, she had come to realize that she was "swamped with opportunities!"
