Secret Code

Have you ever tried to decode one of those secret messages? Let's have a go:

ij! ipx bsf zpv upebz?

I know, you're probably thinking I'm just talking gibberish and the reality is that's what it appears to be. Yet, on closer inspection, you may find that you can start to see a pattern and if I give you the even bigger clue that each letter is one forward from it's original, that might help.

Let me show you:

i goes backward and becomes h; j goes backward and becomes i. "ij" therefore means 'hi'!!

I'll save you a little bit of time and tell you that the whole message says "hi! how are you?". Easy when you know how!

The reality is that at one point, reading was very much like that for each of us. It was a bunch of letters that we were trying to decode and took time to figure out. We forget that struggle because now it is so automatic.

And that's the point. When we're in the midst of things, it can feel like one big struggle and just a big mess. AND, if we persevere and keep trudging through, we WILL get to the other side. God promises to walk that path with us and not leave us to figure it out by ourselves, our job is to ask for His guidance so we can solve the mystery code!

So today I challenge you to think about something you're struggling with in a new way. Think of it as a puzzle that you're trying to solve and I DARE you to ask the Big Guy for help in decoding whatever is going on. He may not give you the answer straight away but it'll come if you're patient and before long you'll wonder how it was every a problem at all.

As for me, I'm off to make up some more secret codes - it's kinda fun!!