I am absolutely convinced that God is all about solutions.

He sees the problem before we do.

He knows the obstacle we’re facing.

He understands the fall out, consequences, pain, and challenges.

And most importantly, He has a way for us to move through it, over it, around it, and arrive on the other side.

How can I be so sure?

 God’s solution-minded ways are painted in vibrant colors throughout the canvas of Scripture.

Creation…God saw what was needed and He created it.

The Fall…God gave free will to Adam and Eve, while they botched up the perfection of His creation, He had a plan for redemption already worked out.

The Cross…God gave us His one and only son, Jesus, to die on the cross for the forgiveness of our sins, so that we could be in a right relationship with Him and receive the promise of eternity. If that’s not a solutions-minded plan, I don’t know what is.

It’s not only in the broad strokes of Scripture that we discover God is all about solutions. It’s inherent in every character, every challenge, every opposition, every act of Jesus Christ and the disciples and manifestation of the Holy Spirit. Whether I’m in Genesis, Isaiah, the Psalms, Matthew, or Acts, I see one common-thread:

God has a plan for getting us unstuck.

Let’s just take Matthew 15 and the story about the faith of the Gentile woman. She’s a mama who is stuck. Her daughter is possessed by a demon and not one thing has worked to set her free. (Oh my, does that hit too close to home? Not necessarily the possessed part, but being a mama who feels stuck with a heavy burden for her daughter…or maybe son?) So she turns to Jesus, pleading for him to do something. Do you know what happens next?

The Scriptures say, “But Jesus gave her no reply, not even a word.” (Matthew 15:23) Not only did Jesus give this woman the silent treatment, the disciples urged him to send her away because she was bothering them with her begging. For real? Yes, it makes me mad too.

It must have been awful to be this mama, burdened and at her wits ends. Honestly, if I were her, I would probably have punched the disciples (and dare I say, maybe even Jesus!) and ran away sobbing before collapsing into a deeper heap of shame and guilt and heaviness all over.

Our flesh response mixed with our emotional issues is all it takes to become a hot mess.

So what does Jesus do after the silent treatment? He explains that He was sent to help God’s lost sheep…the people of Israel. As a Gentile, this woman doesn’t fit into that category, but that doesn’t matter to her. She won’t take no for answer. Maybe that’s because she’s strong and fierce, and that’s how God made her.

If you are ready to go deep with God, the Infuse Course will give you the encouragement and structure for a journey that leads to a fresh encounter with God.

Read Why It’s Okay to Pursue God for Solutions {Part 2} here.

Elisa Pulliam is a life coach, coach trainer, author of Meet the New You, speaker, and life-long mentor passionate about seeing women experience authentic life transformation for the sake of impacting the next generation. Her mission as owner of the Kaleo Agency, a life coaching and leadership development company, and as founder of moretobe.com, a ministry passionate about training and equipping women to mentor, is fueled by God’s redeeming work in her life and twenty-plus years in youth and women’s ministry. She counts it a privilege to connect with other women online and in real life, and strives toward savoring each moment with her husband of 20 years, Stephen, and with their four tween and teenage children.