Trapped in an Elevator
-An exclusive excerpt from Allen’s new book-
We love it when things progress without a hitch. Or a glitch. We love smooth sailing in calm water with the wind at our back.
And we hate when things bog down—whether in a dead-end job, a broken-down car, or staring at the spinning color wheel on a frozen computer screen.
Or like when I found myself stuck in the hotel elevator from hell.
I’m not normally claustrophobic, but I could sense my body tighten when the compact elevator jerked to a stop. After waiting a few minutes for it to start moving, I pushed the red help button. No response. Maybe the lone staff person was cooking eggs for the free breakfast. Heck, I felt like I was cooking in the steel box. I pried the door open a few inches and saw that the elevator was between floors. It brought to mind the scene from my allegory, The Story of With, where the protagonist, Mia, is stuck in an elevator. In her case, the floor eventually falls out and, well, that wasn’t a helpful memory.
After an hour of sweating and praying, the elevator suddenly began moving. A ding signaled the opening door. There was no rescue team. Just the front desk person who let me know the free breakfast buffet was closing in five minutes. Getting stuck stinks—whether in an elevator or waiting for a project to come together. When things stall, our resources, patience, and hope can run out. It’s hard to hope for something we don’t yet have.
If we already have something, we don’t need to hope for it. But if we look forward to something we don’t yet have, we must wait patiently and confidently. (Romans 8:24-25 NLT)
Yet God invites us to hope before we know how things will turn out... even if it looks like the bottom is about to fall out. So let us proceed with hope as we explore what our unique sticking points are–and what they reveal about us. It’s the only way to overcome them.
That is our goal. Not to learn how to work around or cover up our glitches…but to know, name, and fix what’s gone wrong.
(From The Creativity Glitch: How to Stop Being Stuck, Find Your Groove, & Create with God.Copyright © 2026 Allen Arnold.)
This reading was crafted to encourage your pursuit of story and creativity with God. Your donation makes this crowd-funded initiative possible. You can support it via PAYPAL (or by check to Allen Arnold at PO Box 62841, Colorado Springs, CO 80962).
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