How many of you have heard my dear friend Dr. Willie Jolley speak? He always includes this saying: “A setback is a setup for a comeback.” In fact, he even wrote a book with that title! As it relates to setbacks, each of us are usually in one of these three conditions during our entire lives — either we are heading into a storm, we’re in the middle of a storm, or we are just beginning to come out of a storm.
Think about it for a minute. Personal experience testifies that this is true for all of us. Yet the Bible also makes it clear that with every setback, God is setting things up for our comeback — amen! On that, you can depend. Just never allow your setback to break you.
In His glorious “I have overcome the world” promise, Jesus also gives us a divine pearl of wisdom. He also says “Take heart!” — and then He explains why we should. Jesus has overcome all things, and that includes every setback we face in life. We are just coming out of Lent, Palm Sunday, Good Friday and Resurrection Sunday. Those of us who are Christians have taken this time to realize how our Lord and Savior went through all of this on our behalf. We are truly sinners, born into iniquity and saved by His Grace!
As a speaker, during my travels, one of the testimonies that I’ve heard repeated most often from the people is how much they profited from the seeming setback they encountered in their walk with Christ. Not only were they aware that God sent the setback into their lives, they knew God was in it with them! And in the middle of the setback, He was setting them up for a comeback.
So regardless of where this finds you today, whether riding the crest of the wave in a season of great success or buried under the waves of challenge, know that Jesus is with you.
Perhaps one of the best verses we can commit to memory comes from the inspired pen of Job. There was a man in the land of Uz whose name was Job, and that man was perfect and upright, and one that feared God, and he definitely had a strong evil. Because Job was the most shining example for God in the earth, Satan wanted him taken out.
You need to understand how the enemy attacks you. He comes rapidly, repeatedly. Satan hits you once. He hits you twice. He hits you three times. He comes at you again and again. John 10:10 reminds us how it is in this context that Jesus explains, “The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that you may have life, and have it more abundantly.”
Let’s look at another person in Scripture who suffered a setback. God first sent Joshua to conquer Jericho, a huge walled city, the most impregnable fortress in the world at the time. The expectation was that his army was going to have a quick and easy victory. Instead, the Israelites experienced a huge military setback right after a great military victory. They were beaten so badly that their hearts “melted, and became like water.” In other words, they lost all of their courage.
Joshua responded to this setback by getting on his face, putting dust on top of himself, and staying there all night. Joshua is known for his courage. Thanks be unto God, regardless of your strengths or weaknesses, God will work with you individually to help you get to your Promised Land!
The Book of Judges says that Gideon was trying to hide the grain from the Midianites because they would come and steal it. I don’t know if there is anybody that ever feels like their harvest keeps getting stolen, but I tell you, your setback is God’s setup for your comeback.
Lyndia Grant is a speaker/writer living in the D.C. area. Her radio show, “Think on These Things,” airs Fridays at 6 p.m. on 1340 AM (WYCB), a Radio One station. To reach Grant, visit her website, www.lyndiagrant.com, email lyndiagrantshowdc@gmail.com or call 240-602-6295. Follow her on Twitter @LyndiaGrant and on Facebook.