Last week, my wife and I were in Oklahoma City visiting our daughter, son-in-law, and granddaughter. We decided to bring our dog Panko along for the trip. And so, each morning and evening, we would take Panko out for a walk around the neighborhood.
While we were out enjoying one of our walks, I noticed a small, rusty object sitting out in the road. I ran over and picked it up to see what it was. It turned out to be a screw that had somehow made its way onto the roadway.
Looking at it, I thought about how much trouble this little screw could cause somebody if it stayed there. It could get lodged in someone’s tire and give them a flat, and we all know how that can just completely mess up your day. I didn’t want that to happen to someone driving through the neighborhood, so I removed the screw from the street and brought it with me.
On another walk, I came across an old, rusted out piece of metal that looked like a washer in the road. Again, I picked it up and took it with me because I didn’t want to leave it there to cause a problem for someone else. These objects did not belong in the street.
In thinking about the screw and the washer that I found, I was reminded of the way God takes care of us. He reaches down when we’re having problems and removes them for us. He helps us when things get in our way.
The truth is that we’re all going to have problems from time to time. Some we’ll be able to see coming; others will surprise us. The question is, what do we do when these problems inevitably come?
I’ll tell you what my initial reaction usually is. I tend to get frustrated, aggravated, or upset. I don’t like dealing with problems when they come my way, and they usually come at the most inconvenient times. I don’t enjoy being in trouble. Have you been there? It’s a natural reaction, but it probably isn’t that helpful.
To be quite honest, I wish all of life’s problems were as simple as a flat tire. If that was the worst of my worries, I’d say I’m pretty lucky. But some things are major. There are a lot worse things out there than a rusty screw or a bolt.
So again I ask the question: What do we do when problems arise? The answer is—or at least it should be—that we entrust our problems to God.
James 1:12 says, “Blessed is the man who remains steadfast under trial, for when he has stood the test he will receive the crown of life, which God has promised to those who love him.”
It might seem strange to say that we’re blessed when we go through hard times, but the truth is that we are. Because even then, we can trust that God is with us. And we can trust that He will see us through it.
Often, the problems we face in life are opportunities for us to grow or to learn something we didn’t know before. A lot of people are good at learning their lessons the first time, but it usually takes me two or three tries to get it right. Either way, God doesn’t want us to complain about our trials; He wants us to us grow from them, and to use them to grow closer to Him.
The best way to learn from our problems is to trust God. When we trust Him and allow Him to see us through, we can learn so many new things and become stronger in our faith. That’s the secret blessing of these problems we face.
The Bible goes so far as to say in James 1:2, “Count it all joy, my brothers, when you meet trials of various kinds…”
What? We’re supposed to have joy when we get into trouble? We’re supposed to say, “Thank you, God, for this problem I’m facing?”
The answer is yes! That may not make a lot of sense to you, but it does to me. Those of you who know my story know that I’ve battled with cancer. And I can honestly say that I’m glad I did. It taught me a lot of stuff.
I could have died from that trial that came my way; instead, here I am four years later, healthy as can be!
God did that. He saw me through. And along the way, He taught me how to put my faith in Him through every trial I face.
That’s a lesson we all need to learn. When it comes to the troubles we face in our lives, we need a different mindset. Really, we need a different heartset. We need to remind ourselves that God’s got us. He loves us so much. He won’t abandon us, and He’ll take care of whatever obstacle we run into if we’ll just trust Him with it.
So let me ask you: How well are you trusting Him? Are you giving the problems that you’re facing today over to God? Are you trying to learn from them and grow in your faith through trusting in Him?
I pray that you are. And I pray that we each continue to develop in this area of our spiritual fitness. Trusting God with our problems is the only way we’re going to solve them, and it’s the best way to navigate everything life throws our way.
Thanks for reading this week. See you again soon.
To your fitness!