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WHEN THINGS AREN'T GOING YOUR WAY "Enter not into the path of the wicked, and go not in the way of evil men. Avoid it, pass not by it, turn from it, and pass away. For they sleep not, except they have done mischief; and their sleep is taken away, unless they cause some to fall. For they eat the bread of wickedness, and drink the wine of violence. But the path of the just is as the shining light, that shineth more and more unto the perfect day. The way of the wicked is as darkness: they know not at what they stumble." (Pro. 4:14-19)I'd like to briefly address the subject WHEN THINGS AREN'T GOING YOUR WAY. I think that most of us have figured out by now that life is not always smooth sailing. As we grow older, we learn that most of life doesn't pan-out the way we expected, and there can be various reasons for that. Really, about all we can do is clear ourselves by making sure that we aren't personally responsible for the things that go wrong. That's kind of what I want to do today. Just from personal experience, I want to pass three Bible principles along to you that have helped me a great deal through the years. It's a simple message, but maybe it can be helpful. WHEN THINGS AREN'T GOING YOUR WAY . . . I. MAKE SURE YOU'RE GOING GOD'S WAY There are many things about life's ups and downs that you have no control over. The stock market might be up tomorrow, or it might be down, and there's nothing you can do about it. Your employer might have to cut hours or even lay you off, and there's nothing you can do about it. The Democrats might steal another election or stir up another China virus, and there's nothing you can do about it. A hurricane or a tornado might blow through your area and cause billions of dollars in damage, and there's nothing you can do about it. If any or even all of those things happen, you can take comfort in the fact that none of it was your fault and there was nothing you could have done to prevent it. Life didn't go your way, but you're totally unaccountable and innocent. But that's not the case, if you are on the wrong path and going against the will of God and the word of God. According to our text, we're all on a path, and it's either the path of the wicked, or it's the path of the just. The path of the just becomes more clear and understandable as we grow and learn, but, as Proverbs 13:15 says, "the way of transgressors is hard." One of the wisest and most comforting things you can do is just stay on the right path. Lay your head down each night knowing that you have kept yourself between the lines on the path of righteousness, the path of God's will.That can happen in life as well. You can meet all sorts of trouble and adversity just because you're going the wrong way. It might seem that others are to blame, when in reality things would be a lot smoother, if you'd just turn around and move in the right direction. You know, part of God's way is having faith and trusting God instead of complicating matters by leaning to your own understanding and trying to figure out everything and control it. TRUST isn't always easy, but it's always comforting and rewarding, if we can just get there. Look at Joshua 11:15: "As the LORD commanded Moses his servant, so did Moses command Joshua, and so did Joshua; he left nothing undone of all that the LORD commanded Moses." That can help you, if you'll apply it. You can't do everything, but you can do that. You can check yourself and make sure that you're going the right way and doing all that God has commanded. You can't always please people, but you can please God and give yourself the personal assurance that you're going the right way.II. LET OTHERS GO THEIR WAYI Corinthians 14:38 says, "But if any man be ignorant, let him be ignorant." That's a tough one, because it doesn't say to let the heretics and criminals be ignorant. It says ANY MAN. That might be your husband, your wife, your mother, your brother, or your best friend. God says there comes a point where you just have to let them be ignorant, let them go the wrong way. Sound a warning or two, and then drop it and stop trying to change them. You can keep praying for them, but stop fighting it and find peace in the fact that YOU are still on the right path, SHOWING them the right way, even if they wouldn't listen when you told them the right way. Let others go their way. Wash your hands and let them go. If you don't, you'll live in constant frustration over the fact that things aren't going your way, and you'll only make matters worse by trying to change people who don't want to change. Let them go. Letting them go might be the only way that they'll ever learn. Wise people learn from the wisdom and mistakes of others, but some people insist on learning the hard way, the way of transgressors; so, let them learn. "Experience keeps a dear school," Let them be ignorant, and pray that the "school of hard knocks" will knock them around enough to teach them what others could not teach them. Just look at their way as a "back to school" period in their life and pray that they'll learn and grow. They're not hopeless; they're back in school. Pray for them and stop frustrating your life by trying to control or change them.III. DON'T FORGET THE DEVIL'S WAYThere is no way that righteous people will ever enjoy trouble-free lives in this present evil world. We must remember that Satan is still the "god of this world" (II Cor. 4:4), and he will see to it that things do not always go our way. If you're living for God, then Satan knows it and is fighting you. The evil spirit in Acts 19:15 said, "Jesus I know, and Paul I know . . ." He knows you, if you are effective for God, a soldier in the Lord's army. Satan is called the "accuser of our brethren" in Revelation 12:10, and Paul assures us in II Timothy 3:12 that "all that will live godly in Christ Jesus shall suffer persecution." Job 5:7 says that man is "born unto trouble." This is a troubled world that Paul said is travailing in pain (Rom. 8:22), so trouble comes naturally for everyone, and it often comes special delivery for believers, thanks to the devil. We can't change that, and we'll only frustrate our lives if we try to change it. We must accept it as the reality of the righteous, trusting that God's grace is sufficient for anything that comes our way while looking for the blessed hope of our Lord's return when all trouble passes away.We can't escape trouble, and we can't always have things go our way, but we can strengthen ourselves and be better prepared to face life's ups and downs by staying on the right path with the right attitude. Many others have travelled this road and have gone home to their reward with honor (Heb. 11), so we can do the same. We can Make Sure that We're Going God's Way, we can Let Others Go Their Way, and we can be realistic by Remembering The Devil's Way in this sin-cursed world. May God help us to apply these simple truths and grow.