Its interesting when you live your life for a greater purpose and rather than roses and daisies raining from the sky you get ass*oles selling you down the river and blocking forward motion. But as the sage Nichiren Daishonin once wrote….
“There is definitely something extraordinary in the ebb and flow of the tide, the rising and setting of the moon, and the way in which summer, autumn, winter, and spring give way to each other. Something uncommon also occurs when an ordinary person attains Buddhahood. At such a time, the three obstacles and four devils will invariably appear, and the wise will rejoice while the foolish will retreat.”
(The Three Obstacles and Four Devils – The Writings of Nichiren Daishonin, page 637)
Selection source: Teachings of Buddhism, Jan 18th, 2012
So when you’re doing the right thing, if obstacles and jokers don’t appear, think again, they are either right around the corner (prepare yourself) or you might not be living to lofty an ideal after all and its time to step up.