I’ve heard the word in the past but today I heard it in a song called Never Give Up by Yolanda Adams.
Part of the lyrics:
“Sometimes life can put a stumbling-block in your way
But you gotta keep the faith
Bring what’s deep inside your heart, to the light
And never give up, don’t ever give up on you.”
Life is so unpredictable. Just when things are going as you think they should, bam!
Stumbling-blocks, i.e. obstacles or hindrances to progress.
They can be people or things. And they don’t usually announce themselves, i.e. “Hi, I’m a stumbling-block and I’m going to mess with your life today.”
No, they come unexpectedly, unannounced and usually unwanted.
Do you go over, under, around or through stumbling-blocks?
I guess it would depend on what type it is.
If the stumbling-block is a person, you can choose not to deal with them. De-friend them as one can on Facebook. Block them from chatting with you as on Gmail chat. Use Google Voice when they call and have them automatically go into a recording that says “we’re sorry, the number you have called has been disconnected.” Or, simply ignore them as if they don’t exist.
Ouch! We humans are afraid of confrontation.
If I had a choice, I think I’d rather go through them. That means telling them the truth about what they mean to me in my life. Why they are hindering my progress. That’s not always easy.
What if the stumbling-block is a thing as in a television, a computer, a job.
One would think (and hope) that dealing with a “thing” would be easier than dealing with a person.
It’s easier to ignore a television so you can spend quality time with your family or someone you love. You don’t have to “discuss” things with a TV.
Unfortunately, most of the time, the stumbling-block is a person.
So, I need to learn not to confront but to engage the stumbling-block.
Hey, maybe I should just do a quarterback sneak and go around them?
Naw … not my nature.
