As I look back on my week, I think I can describe it best with the word…”interesting.” I think it started with me making the bold Biblical statement about James 1 where it says to consider it joy when you face trials, or something like that. I was telling my local club that these trials are not meant to make you happy, but to strengthen your faith through adversity. This works with all character traits by the way. All virtues and character traits need challenged and tested, and that is how they grow. It isn’t hard, but it is worth it. And it didn’t take long for God to start up the tests for me. In fact, during a break for that club meeting, I got an email from a friend that was quite upsetting at the time. I won’t get into the details at all, but suffice it to say that I didn’t sleep well for several nights.
I consulted with my wife as well as some of the other leadership in my club concerning this, and it was suggested that this needed to be taken care of face-to-face rather than try to clear things up via email back and forth. We set up a meeting for this past Saturday. I had plans to go visit my siblings for breakfast in Colorado Springs that morning, so my wife and I planned to have this meeting with my friend after that.
While I was with my siblings, I got a call from my World Schools team manager. She doesn’t call out of the blue unless it is urgent, which it was. She informed me that the tournament in Stuttgart Germany had just contacted her and said that our team was put on a waitlist because the tournament had filled up. She had registered a couple weeks ago, and all looked good then, so we all purchased flights to Germany. And most of us, in order to save money, got the non-refundable tickets as we were certain we were going.
And then last evening, my youngest daughter came to me saying her throat didn’t feel right. I looked and saw some white patches on her tonsils which can indicate strep.
I think I may have had enough opportunities for joy at this point. My mind kept going back to how emphatically I told my students that trials, while not pleasant, are ultimately good things. And I thought maybe, just maybe, I should listen to my own preaching.
So, my wife and I had our meeting with our friend, and things went way better than I had ever anticipated. The email was interpreted by me in a worse possible light than it actually was. It is still something important and something that needs attention, but it was not what we expected.
My daughter was just at the doctor and he said that this was not strep, so no worries there.
Now we just need to hear from Germany. Oh, and I just read an article about the airport in Frankfurt where I would be flying in to. They recently found mosquitoes that are infected with malaria, and a couple people have died associated with that. So, maybe this too was an answer from God.
I just finished Proverbs this morning. There is so much in there about how we plan our steps but how everything turns out is from God. We are to trust in Him with all our hearts and lean not on our own understanding. He is who makes our paths straight. We are also not to jump to conclusions about anything, but test things and seek wisdom. And we know that in the end, God will work all things out for His glory, and for our good. This doesn’t make it enjoyable to go through trials and testing, but once we are through them, we can have increased joy, as well as increased faith. And when all is said and done, that is a good thing.
Thanks again for all your prayers. I am honored and blessed by you all. And if God calls me to your mind, please pray for my upcoming tournament in January (Mile High Conquest), as well as for our World Schools team that we would get into the tournament in Stuttgart.
In the end, I pray for us all to be a light to the Gentiles, and that we walk worthy of our calling, and that we are ready to give an answer for our hope, and that we would also be prepared as warriors in the Army of Our Lord.
Amen
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