Setbacks are set ups.

Think of those moments in your life where you’ve had “setbacks.” You think to yourself, “Man, when it rains…it pours.” You have one thing after another - bam, bam, bam - that all comes crashing in when you least expect it.

We’ve all been there, and - right now - I’m kind of in that boat, too.

Last Tuesday was a normal Tuesday, like any other day for me these days. I was on my way home from an evening of ultimate frisbee and then, suddenly, things shifted. I was rear ended at a red light and, what I thought was a fender bender for my little blue Yaris, ended up totaling my car. And within the day after the accident, my wrist started hurting pretty badly. Thankfully, no bones were fractured, but I didn’t leave the accident completely unscathed.

I mention all of this to say that setbacks aren’t that - if you don’t choose to see them that way, that is. They can be seen from an entirely different vantage point, actually. What threatens to destroy us can actually be used to strengthen us.

And when I think about what’s attempting to set me back, well, it’s way more encouraging and empowering to see things, rather, as set ups.

I’m set up for greater things now. I have a delightful inheritance, even still. I have a sound mind, a strong spirit, and - even with a sprained wrist - I have a strong body, a healthy heart, and the ability to still give thanks amidst this circumstance.

I see this as a test. I don’t see this as an interruption to my life; this is my life. My life has ups, and my life has downs. It would be foolish of me to assume that life is always going to be amazing; suffering and trials aren’t on my terms, or when I want them to happen. They actually aren’t even inconveniences or interruptions to my life. They come and go, just like the good moments. If I don’t see them as interruptions to my life, but as a part of life as it were, then they’re way less unsettling and earth-shattering.

Life is a mixed bag. That’s just how it is. It’s not all perfect. However, even if my circumstances were perfectly good all of the time, that still wouldn’t negate how I may still have sour moments inside. Circumstances always being good, honestly, has very little to do with how “good” I am, feel, act, think, and exist.

I heard recently that freedom is an inner job. Regardless of the circumstances, I can choose joy. I can choose freedom. I can choose to see my trials as tests, not as setbacks. They’re meant to happen to chisel me, to keep me humble, and remind me that suffering isn’t an interruption. “Bad” things come right on time, right when they’re meant to.

And believing in a good God amidst my “bad” moments is actually quite comforting. He gives me the stamina and strength (and faith) to keep going. He reminds me that, like everything else good and bad in life, “this too shall pass.” If I think for a moment that I’m guaranteed an easy life, or a life devoid from hardship, then I’m honestly missing the mark for what it means to really live. I’m missing the whole reason why this world is the way that it is.

It’s a broken world we live in, and - even though this is never as it was supposed to be - the Christian narrative for the way the world was, is, and will be gives me immense hope. Real, genuine hope.

I believe that this world is broken. It’s been tainted and demolished by sin. But it’s also in submission to a sovereign, perfectly good and loving Creator, who has always had a rescue mission in mind: His Son, Jesus.

And Jesus, along with His Holy Spirit and all of believers now in the world, have the mission of redeeming this place we call home. Earth isn’t as it’s supposed to be, but now - because of having experienced all of the bad and broken the world has to offer - the idea of a perfect world sounds way more appealing. And is something that we all, as believers, can point towards and say, “Yes, I want that. I long for that. I’m going to do all that I can to be ready for that true Home, that destiny, that end to my story.” What hope!

And this isn’t as it’s always going to be. I believe in a happy ending for the world. I believe in an eternal hope. I believe in good winning in the end. God is victorious.

And so, in light of the Christian worldview, I can sit here now and write these words: Setbacks can actually be seen as set ups. I’m set up, now, for new opportunities. I know my breakthrough is coming, because why else would these “negative” things be happening to me, but as to remind me that life is a mixed bag of good and bad, and that there’s something good that can come from all this. Life continues to happen, whether or not I like it.

It honestly doesn’t even really matter if I “like” what’s happening to me and/or around me. What matters is that I’m alert, sober-minded, strong, humble, and ready for whatever comes. I’m not a victim to my circumstances; I’m separate from them. I’m in submission to a good God who loves me, who died for me, who constantly chooses me, and who wants my best. And He has all things “in the bag.”

I find that “when it rains, it pours” only really happens when there’s a rainbow that’s coming. That’s at least how it works in the natural world, anyhow. I’m encouraging myself now, even while writing this, because I know that I now have a mindset choice: am I going to complain about this situation? Or, am I going to see this whole “inconvenient” situation as something to learn from? To see as an opportunity for gratitude and praise? To see the setback as something setting me up for greater things.

I’m really struggling to see the end of this tunnel at the moment. But I believe in a really, really good God who is a great Father and Provider, and who wants only abundance for me in all things and in every way.

A totaled car and a sprained wrist later, I’m still here, I’m still thriving, and I’m still able to count my innumerable blessings. One prominent one being: I’m still here.

Life is fickle, friends. It comes and goes. There is a thin veil to mortality. Don’t take your life for granted, as best you can.

No wonder this too has now come my way; it’s proving to test my faith, test my trust in my good Creator, and launch me into the blessings that are coming for me.

I’m so excited to see what’s in store.