Did You Break the Rock?

My three year old granddaughter fell face first at the park recently and hit her forehead on a large rock.  Her parents did all the right things and had her checked for a concussion   Other than a large swollen place on her forehead, she seems to not have been seriously injured.  When I saw her, I asked her if she broke the rock.  She smiled and nodded "Yes."  She was back up and going strong.


When Christians hit a rock, how do we respond?  Do we lay on the ground and moan or do we get back up and "go strong?"  Do we do it under our own power, by our willpower?  That is a glorification of self.  As Christians, we are to glorify God.


A very detailed discussion of the Christian response to adversity can be found here. 

When we face difficulties, we can try to overcome them in our own power, and often, we will fail.  Or we can remember what Paul said,  “I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me.” Philippians 4:13

We may not have "success" from a human standpoint, but "success" from God's viewpoint is obedience to and dependence on Him.

“Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword?  As it is written, For thy sake we are killed all the day long; we are accounted as sheep for the slaughter. Nay, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him that loved us.  For I am persuaded, that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come,   Nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.” Romans 8:35-39

We can do this because we do not have to rely on our own fallible willpower.  As Christians indwelled by the Holy Spirit, we have the Mind of Christ (1 Corinthians 2:16).

“For who hath known the mind of the Lord, that he may instruct him? But we have the mind of Christ.” 1 Corinthians 2:16