Do you find yourself at a dead end at times? Do you find that your efforts have been wasted and your forward progress is completely blocked? If so, the wisdom in this post will be helpful.

We all want to keep on “moving forward”, yet we come up against dead-ends, road blocks and so on. You will find Trevor’s experience helpful in showing you what to do when that happens.

Trevor’s Tale

My newest brother-in-law, Trevor, shared with me recently about his own journey, in search of God’s will for his life. He used a cute description which has prompted me to share his situation with you, since I am sure that many end up where he found himself.

In summary, Trevor felt that God wanted him to do some significant things, but he couldn’t work out what they were. Prompted by his sense of destiny he began to investigate various things that captured his interest, wondering if this or that might be the thing that God was leading him to.

Of the many different things he studied, read up on, checked out or tinkered with, nothing seemed to become an open door for him. They ended up at dead ends.

Then he found himself interested in tinkering with Gematria – the study of words and numbers. He researched and explored and dedicated a lot of time in developing some new computer-based tools for exploring the whole thing.

Yet he still came to a dead end. All that he had done ended up at a stalemate, seemingly going nowhere.

Looking in the Right Place

In Victoria’s Grampian Mountains there are many pleasant bushland walks, of varying degrees of difficulty. A popular walk is the one to The Pinnacle, from which a lovely view across Halls Gap township and the large reservoir can be enjoyed. On the way the path leads up a narrow gully called “Grand Canyon“. At the end of that section you come to a place were you can go no further. The miniature canyon comes to an end with rock walls on three sides, and only the path you came up behind you.

But all is not lost, because there is a ladder leading up from there, out of the gully and onto the rock level above where you have been walking. If you are stuck at the end of the gully and do not see the ladder, there is no way to go. You have to look in the right place.

Now, that’s what Trevor had to do when he came to his dead end.

Things are Looking Up

Trevor’s situation, heading down a exploratory path, researching, tinkering and learning all about Gematria, brought him to a place where his work was done and his progress spent. There was no where else to go with his work. He had reached a dead end.

And that’s where he stayed and was stuck, until he looked in the right place. And the right place to look was “up”. Trevor puts it this way: “It was a dead end, until I looked up!”

When Trevor took his eyes off his work, and stropped struggling to find destiny in all the groundwork he had put in, he was able to look to the Lord. Instead of staring at the brick walls in front of him, struggling to see where he should go next, he simply looked up to the Lord, for the next set of instructions.

And that’s when God began to prompt him with unexpected topics to explore, using the very tools which he had developed. And that has led him on an exciting path of digging in the Word of God for lovely hidden things which bless his soul and confirm the wonder of the Bible to him over and over again.

What’s Your Dead End?

Are you at a dead end with your career? Do you feel like your marriage or family have come to a stalemate? Do you feel like you have invested years in study, ministry, people, preparation or the like, only to leave you empty? What is your dead end?

How would it be if you could find a ladder at the very spot where you are stuck, that leads you up to a completely higher plane? How would you like to be lifted out of your dead end and set on a whole new path of productivity and significance?

“Beam Me Up Scottie”

If you are feeling stuck in a dead end situation, don’t bail out, but seek to get beamed up. Look to the Lord to find His solution and His new work in your situation. If you jump ship and change career, or if you ditch your marriage or family or your faith, you will be starting all over, and have to carry failure and brokenness with you along the way.

If you look to the Lord for His will and purpose you will most likely find that He will redeem the current dead end situation and give you a harvest out of all that has gone before. He is big enough and creative enough to do that.

So, if you have come to the end, and it’s a dead end, stop staring at the brick walls. Stop kicking against them. Stop looking around you, and start looking up to the one who is above you. Look to Him and let Him lift you out of your dead end into glorious new horizons of possibility.