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Date: May 16, 2005

This word is submitted by Teresa Seputis (ts@godspeak.org)

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                         Bumps In The Path

My child, I have given you a goal and I expect you to run your race and
strive towards accomplishing the goal that I have set for you.  But know 
that that there will be bumps and obstacles and hindrances along the way.
That is simply a part of the race and is to be expected. You are to stay 
on the path that I have chosen for you and continue to run as best as you 
can no matter what minor obstacles you find.  And on those times a boulder 
or debris completely blocks your path, then look to Me for what direction 
you should take to detour around it.  Child, I will show you clearly what
to do.  Yes, there will be obstacles, for the enemy of your soul does not
want you to complete your race. But if you look to Me for direction, they
shall not deter you.

Too many of My children think that if I have called them to a path, I 
will go before them and smooth the way for them, and that there will 
never be a serious challenge or hindrance or obstacle. That thinking does 
not come from Me, nor does it come from My word.  For My word is full of
stories of how I worked with My own to help them overcome the obstacles
that the devil threw in their path, so that they could possess the victory 
I had ordained for them.  So when you run your race and you encounter 
obstacles in the way, never take that as an indication to stop running. 
Never turn back or give up.  Do not choose the easier-looking path that 
you cross along the way, for it will not lead you in the direction of the 
prize that I have prepared for you.

Look at the life of My dear Son Jesus.  He understood well the goal that
I had set before Him and He always moved purposefuly and determinedly
towards that goal, letting nothing hinder Him.  But even for Him, the
enemy was allowed to place hindrances in His path and He had to overcome
obstacles along the way.  One Passover, when I would send Him to speak for 
Me in Jerusalem, the enemy stirred up the people against Him.  And even 
though it was not yet His time to die, the people wanted to kill Him.  
His own half-brothers egged Him on, telling Him to go openly to Jerusalem 
if He really was Who He claimed to be.  But My Son understood the trap 
that had been set before Him, the blockage the enemy put on His path.  He 
knew that if He went openly, the mob would try to kill Him and it was not 
yet His time to lay down His life. So he had to go "secretly" to Jerusalem, 
to bypass the mobs the enemy had set in place against Him.  But once He 
arrived and was past that obstacle, then He did teach openly and proclaim 
My word.

If even My Son had to face difficulties and go around obstacles, what 
makes you think that I won't require the same of you?  Many of My children
have been taught that I always lead through circumstances.  They have been 
taught that if things do not work out for them, then the thing they were 
pursuing is not My will.  And yes, there are times when I do lead through 
circumstances and close doors to indicate My will.  But there are also many 
times that the devil sets hindrances and obstacles in your path to oppose 
you, hoping you will stop doing what I have called you to do. Child, you 
must not let the presence of obstacles deter you from what I have put in 
your heart to do.

So how do you tell the difference? How do you know when I am closing a 
door as opposed to when the devil is placing an obstacle before you?  The 
answer is so simple, My child. Come to Me and ask Me.  Allow Me to show 
you My will for you.  I am capable of making this clear to you when you 
sincerely seek Me for My will.  Have I not said in My word, "If any of 
you lack wisdom, ask God?"  Then do not make assumptions based on 
circumstances.  Do not give up on what I have called you to do in those 
times when you must war for it.  Do not allow dificult circumstances to 
turn you from the path that I have set you on.  Instead seek Me for 
guidance and trust Me to show you clearly what My will is for you.

Child, I will show you, I will lead you and I will guide you.  So trust
Me in that.  Do not give up on the race that I have called you to run, 
and do not turn from the path that I have set you upon.  Look to Me, watch 
Me, follow Me and allow Me to guide you past every obstacle or hindrance 
and lead you on to the prize that I have set before you.  Child, I have 
called you to run your race, so run it and do not be deterred by the bumps 
that you find in your path.  Look to Me and keep running your race no 
matter what obstacles you encounter, that you might possess the prize 
that I have set before you.