Life doesn’t always turn out the way we planned. Things we expect to happen, don’t occur. People we thought would always be there, let us down. Plans that seem certain, fall through. We have a vision for the way things should be and we cling to those ideas.

One of the biggest lessons I have learned is that what we may think is best for us, doesn’t always turn out to be. Some of the greatest blessings we can receive come from unexpected opportunities. The problem is we get so stuck waiting for what we thought would happen, we miss what is given to us.

The story of The Drowning Man illustrates the way so many of us behave.

A fellow was stuck on his rooftop in a flood. He was praying to God for help.

Soon a man in a rowboat came by and the fellow shouted to the man on the roof, "Jump in, I can save you."

The stranded fellow shouted back, "No, it's OK, I'm praying to God and he is going to save me."

So the rowboat went on.

Then a motorboat came by. "The fellow in the motorboat shouted, "Jump in, I can save you."

To this the stranded man said, "No thanks, I'm praying to God and he is going to save me. I have faith."

So the motorboat went on.

Then a helicopter came by and the pilot shouted down, "Grab this rope and I will lift you to safety."

To this the stranded man again replied, "No thanks, I'm praying to God and he is going to save me. I have faith."

So the helicopter reluctantly flew away.

Soon the water rose above the rooftop and the man drowned. He went to Heaven. He finally got his chance to discuss this whole situation with God, at which point he exclaimed, "I had faith in you but you didn't save me, you let me drown. I don't understand why!"

To this God replied, "I sent you a rowboat and a motorboat and a helicopter, what more did you expect?"

Does this sound familiar? Do you wait for what you want to receive being blind to what may be given?

When we venture into the unknown and fall into a hole, we search for the ladder. We have a notion of what the plan should be and we don’t pay attention to any other options. But in doing so we may miss the rope that is offered.

The moral is: Don’t block the good by trying to control how things will unfold or come. Don’t reject what appears in a different form. Keep an open mind and always expect the unexpected. It may not be what you want, but it might be what you need!