BLOWOUT!!

I mentioned Sunday that my oldest son was taking a group of teens to Montana on a youth mission trip. I thought it strange that he was calling me Saturday afternoon because I knew the group couldn't be too far down the road. I answered the phone and he said, "Dad, I need your help. I need the number to Triple A". Sure enough, vehicle problems - just an hour into Colorado. A tire that had just been purchased the previous week had blown. That's bad enough but as you can see, it blew to pieces and one of those pieces caught a radiator hose which meant the van was overheating and could not be driven any further. Unfortunately they were not covered by AAA and ended up calling ahead to Flagler and the van was towed to town and repaired there. He did call later and say they were back on the road but I've not heard from him since so I assume no news is good news.

Life is full of blowouts isn't it? At times they are not too consequential - just a matter of a simple fix ( putting on the spare) and you're back at it. At other times it seems overwhelming - a flat tire, a torn radiator hose, a stranded van full of kids, 100 degree heat, no AAA coverage - one thing after another. One thing for sure, life is always going to have its share of blowouts! The question is, how will we handle them?

If we're honest, there are times when we become overwhelmed and "behave badly". "Why me?" Anger, bitterness, complaining, grumble, grumble, grumble. But what good does that do? How does that fix the tire, repair the hose, encourage the kids, or expedite the process? Or in life, how does being fussy and grouchy build trust with others, repair a relationship, encourage our children, reveal a Christian witness? Sometimes "life" (blowouts) just happens. It's how one responds to the blowouts of life that reveal who we really are in Christ, not to mention how others observe us as those who proclaim to be followers of Jesus.

I am reminded in John 16:33 where Jesus reminds his followers that "In this world you will have trouble (blowouts), but take courage, I have overcome the world". Therefore, knowing that none of us are exempt from "life" happening to us, let us not allow the blowouts of life cause us to "blow up". Look to the One who offers us spiritual roadside service, the One who has overcome the troubles and enables us to overcome as well. Happy traveling!!