A little boy was leading his sister up a mountain path, and the way was pretty rough. It wasn't an easy climb.

The little girl said to her brother, "This isn't a path at all! It's all rocky and bumpy."

And her brother said, "But, Sister, the bumps are what you climb on."

As we follow the plans that God has for us, sometimes the road we travel is not what we desire it to be. You may say, "I've had a lot of bumps along my road."

But do you remember Joseph? At one time, Joseph traveled a bumpy path too! He was sold into slavery, taken to Egypt, and even sent to prison for 10 years. It was what we might call a dry season—a silent season—in his life.

Have you ever encountered a silent season in your life, a season when no matter how much you prayed or how much you read the Bible, it just seemed like your prayers were getting nowhere? And it seemed that God was nowhere near?

What do you do during those silent seasons?

David knew what it was like to be in a silent season.

PSALM 13:1–4 (NIV)

1 How long, O Lord? Will you forget me for ever? How long will you hide your face from me?

2 How long must I wrestle with my thoughts and every day have sorrow in my heart? How long will my enemy triumph over me?

3 Look on me and answer, O Lord my God. Give light to my eyes, or I will sleep in death;

4 my enemy will say, "I have overcome him," and my foes will rejoice when I fall.

David was in a dry season, and he needed a breakthrough. But how did he get a breakthrough? Here's what he did:

PSALM 13:5–6 (NIV)

5 But I trust in your unfailing love; my heart rejoices in your salvation.

6 I will sing to the Lord, for he has been good to me.

During our silent seasons, we need to do just as David did. We don't need to question God. We need to praise Him! If you'll cry out to God, He will answer you. And He will give you a good report—hope for your future!

Don't be distracted by other people's successes or failures.

Hold fast to your dreams in the silent years. And don't become jealous when the dreams of others come to pass before yours manifest. It's easy to get focused on what God is doing in other people's lives and what He seems not to be doing in your life. It's tempting to question God, to ask Him why things are going well for others, while for you, nothing seems to be going right.

That's exactly where the enemy wants you. So don't be jealous. Don't question why. Hold fast to the dreams God has placed in your heart, because those dreams will come to pass if you won't give up.

Enjoy the scenery as you travel.

Proverbs 3:5 and 6 says, "Trust in the Lord with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding. In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths."

We want to rush through life. We want to get to the good parts—the exciting parts. Sometimes we forget that God has a chosen path for us to follow. Let me say this to you: Enjoy the scenery that He's taking you by rather than complaining about the ride. Allow Him to direct you.

We always want the shortest paths, but we may miss the opportunity to fulfill our dreams by trying to take a shortcut. God may not take you down the short road. He may take you down the long road. So enjoy the scenery. Follow God's chosen path, and He will bring you into victory every time.

The most important thing you can do in the silent seasons of your life is to stay in love with your Heavenly Father. He has great plans for you. In the natural, it may not seem that you should go a certain way. But if you will listen to God's voice, He will lead you down the right path. And you will not be disappointed, for there is joy waiting for you on the other side!