My Setback was a Setup

Maybe our "setbacks" are actually God setting us up for something better.

"The biggest setbacks lead to the greatest comebacks" is a saying that I hear a lot. And it's been really encouraging to me over the last few months with all the physical therapy and training I'm going through to try and get back on the court for next season. It's nice to hear that no matter how set back and behind I feel in my sport, I have the platform to make a major comeback.

This is so true in every aspect of life--not just athletic setbacks. Whatever it is that is setting you back, might actually be giving you opportunities you would've never had before.

But the focus shouldn't be on the setback. It shouldn't even be on the comeback. The focus should be on the work that God is doing in your life- through the setback and the comeback... The focus should be on the setup.

Because maybe setbacks after all are actually just setups as part of God's plan.

 “And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose.”

Romans 8:28 ESV

God orchestrates all things for our good. The setbacks we go through are placing us on the road to something better. Maybe this sounds really mundane or repetitive to you... But if we don't believe that our setbacks are ultimately leading us to where God needs us, then what other hope do we have through those setbacks??

Maybe your setbacks aren't taking you to where you want to go, but they're taking you exactly to where God needs you.

Take it from Paul. He did not have an easy life. He even wrote about all the trials, difficulties, and setbacks he went through. But despite those setbacks he could still write and believe that "all things work together for good."

And they did for Paul, even if it wasn't how he planned or what he wanted. Things worked out how God needed them to. If Paul hadn't gone through the many setbacks in his life, I wonder if he still would have made such a huge impact on early Christianity and the church. His setbacks set him up for something greater.

Rather than looking at the things I've gone through this year and seeing them as major setbacks, the simple shift in mindset towards viewing these things as a setup changes everything. It changes my fear... I don't have to be afraid about the things I go through, because I know God is setting me up for something greater. It changes my confidence...I don't have to be discouraged and defeated, because I know God is going to work with me on the comeback. It changes my hopelessness...Because I know this wasn't a setback. It was a setup with purpose and reason, and God is going to get me to where I need to be. 

So no matter how ugly things seem now, don't forget the big picture. Cling to the hope that this is a setup for something so much bigger than just you. My setback wasn't really a setback after all, and you might just find the same to be true in your life.