He had beaten cancer for the fourth time. His red blood cell count, perfect. His white blood cell count, perfect. The doctor's didn't know what to think. A 30 year old man had just conquered the impossible.

As she stared at his blood results, one of the nurses uttered, “Some people”. A surgeon looked at the multiple monitors, the numbers didn't lie. Good grief, I don't think this man can die! I've seen very few beat cancer three times, but this is extraordinary.” His physician looked over at the now frail 135 pound man with a grin, shaking his head in disbelief.

He was being discharged from the hospital today. Bald from the chemotherapy, and a fraction of what he use to be, he stood alone in the dark room and said to himself, … “I beat you 4 times … and I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.”

PUSH

The man had a cabin in Northern Minnesota. He packed two months worth of groceries in the back of his truck and set off. That, is where he would start his recovery. He spent hours contemplating how he would approach his recovery. He needed a plan. He drove up the long driveway, and there was the cabin, in the same exact condition he had left it two years ago.

The man unpacked his many groceries and settled in. He prayed each night for God to restore his health to how it once was. He had lost 55 pounds battling his illness, and an obsession with getting back to normal now took center stage. He stepped onto his bathroom scale and couldn't believe the numbers staring back at him.

After the first 2 weeks, he started to fight depression as he only managed to gain another two pounds and felt no different than the day he was discharged from the hospital. Nonetheless, the man went up to his loft, and said a quick prayer before he went to sleep. Shortly after he had fallen asleep, he was awakened by three very loud thuds coming from outside. Suddenly, light started to fill the loft. The man looked over at his nightstand, but it was only 1:15 AM.

A voice rang out in his head, “You have gone through a lot, but I have work for you to do.” The man frantically sat up in bed, assuming it was the voice of God. At the same time, he felt as though he was dreaming. Fully awake or not, he knew it was God.

The voice said, “There are 3 rocks I have placed in your driveway in front of your cabin. I want you to push on the middle one. Whatever it takes, however long it takes, I want you to push with all your might.”

The man fell back asleep just as fast as he woke. In the morning, he remembered the dream, or what he thought was a dream, and every word that God had spoke. He came down from the loft and looked out his kitchen window towards his driveway. It was just as God had said. He couldn't believe his eyes, three huge rocks just sitting there. “That's insane...that's ridiculous!” the man said to himself. “The middle rock must weight 6,000 pounds.” So the man went back inside, ate breakfast, then went back outside to push on the middle rock.

For two hours each day he did this, he toiled from 10 AM until noon every day, with his shoulders set squarely against the cold massive surface of the rock, pushing with all of his might.

Each afternoon, the man would return to his cabin sore and worn out, feeling that his whole day had been spent in vain. Since the man was showing discouragement, bad thoughts started to enter his weary mind: “You have been pushing against that rock for a long time, and it hasn't moved.” He began to think that the task was impossible and that he was a failure. These thoughts discouraged and disheartened the man. “Why should I kill myself over this?”, he thought. “I beat cancer four times and I'm surely not going to let an unmovable rock be the end of me, I'll just put in my time, giving minimum effort, and that will be good enough.” And that is what he planned to do. However, he also decided to make it a matter of prayer and take his troubled thoughts to the Lord.

The Lord had seen him through cancer four times, and there was zero chance he was not going to do what the Lord had told him to do. His dedication to the Lord was on a level completely foreign to most people. He retreated up to his loft to sleep. “Lord,” he said, “I have labored long and hard in your service, putting all my strength to do that which you have asked, yet after all this time, I have not even budged that rock by half an inch. What is wrong? Why am I failing?

“Push!” the Lord replied. “But I have been doing this for two years Lord and getting nowhere.”, the man replied. The Lord said again, “Push!” The man went to sleep, with the intent on resuming his daily exercise of pushing the rock the next day. The following morning, the man stared out his kitchen window at the three rocks. “Maybe God is wanting me to push from another side or angle”, the man convinced himself. As he walked down his gravel driveway, the man did notice that he felt quite good. His energy levels were high.

Three more weeks had passed, and the man had not moved the rock. Not even an inch. Fully depressed, the man started to eat more to cope with his depression. He was now walking into town weekly to get more groceries as the three rocks were blocking his truck. He carried four bags of groceries back to his cabin each week. It was 3 miles to the store and the same distance back, and slightly uphill. Upon returning each week from the store, he found he wasn't even tired.

He was right back at it the next day, determined to move the rock, even by the slightest bit. He pushed from every angle, to the point of exhaustion. Some days for two hours and others for three. Another week went by, and the man had reached his breaking point. “It's pointless Lord!!”, the man shouted in disgust. He quit, then returned to his cabin, ate a large dinner and went up to his loft to go to bed.

He got into bed and said a short prayer. “Thank your Lord that I'm still alive, but I am done pushing the rock! I have done what you asked for over 2 years, and haven't budged it by even half an inch!” The man heard nothing back. Then minutes later, just as the man was about to fall asleep, “MY FRIEND!”, God said. The man shot up out of bed. “When I asked you to serve Me and you accepted, I told you that your task was to push against the rock with all of our strength, which you have done. Never once did I mention to you that I expected you to move the rock. You simply assumed that. Your task was to push. And now, you come to Me frustrated, with your strength spent, thinking that you have failed. Is that really so?”, God asked. “Look at yourself. Look in the mirror! Your arms and chest are massive and muscled, your back is sinewy and brown, your hands are calloused from constant pressure, and your legs have become massive as well. Your stamina is unparalleled. Through opposition you have grown much, and your abilities now surpass that which you used to have before you were even sick. By your obedience to Me, I have made you new. Though you have not moved the rock, your calling was to be obedient and push, and to exercise your faith and trust in My wisdom. This you have done.”

At times, when we hear a word from God, we tend to use our own intellect to decipher what he wants, when actually what God wants is just simple obedience and faith in Him. By all means, exercise the faith that moves mountains, but know that it is still God who moves them.

So when you find something in your life too difficult, let go and let God. All He wants is your faith, trust and obedience. Then He can move those things in your life … all by Himself.