The Dream Centered LifeSample

Pit Stops

Humorist Erma Bombeck once said, “If life is a bowl of cherries then what am I doing in the pits.”

Life is not always a bowl of cherries, sometimes it’s the pits.

Jesus said in John 16:33 “In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world." You’re going to encounter a few pit stops on the journey to your dream, and what you do when you are in the pit can determine whether it is just a pit stop or a pit stay. Jesus said, “In this world you will have trouble,” but with God’s help, your pit stop doesn’t have to be a pit stay!

Back in 1978 a young man ran into a pit. He was working at a local hardware store and he got fired from his job. Getting fired is the pits, but instead of turning it into a pit stay, he turned it into a pit stop. He decided that he would use the situation as an opportunity to start his own business. He found a business partner and together they dreamed of opening a hardware store. They opened their first store in 1979, and today they have over 2000 stores worldwide. The name of that young man was Bernard Marcus and the name of the store that opened was the Home Depot.

What you do in the pit can make you bitter or make you better, it all depends on your attitude.

Why don’t you decide to turn your pit into a classroom and learn some pit lessons.

In one peanuts comic, Linus says, “You know Charlie Brown, they say we learn more from losing than from winning.” Charlie Brown responds, “Then that must make me the smartest person in the world.”

Losing is the pits, and yet, some of the most important lessons that we need to learn in life can only be learned from the pits.

The Bible says in Hebrews 5:8, that Jesus himself, “learned obedience through the things that He suffered.” This amazing verse tells us that some things can only be learned through suffering. It’s not that you want to suffer, or seek to suffer, but there are some things that you can only learn in the pit. So, turn your pit into a classroom and learn the pit lessons.

What are some lessons that you have learned in the pit?