"Eat your vegetables." I can distinctly remember that directive coming from my mother's lips what seems like a thousand times when I was a young lad. I wasn't all that much interested in broccoli or carrots back then as the advent of cheeseburgers and pepperoni pizza were fast becoming my palette's best friend. As I grew older and a tad bit wiser, I realized that my mom's constant reminders about eating those items on my plate that I really didn't want to eat was another example of her love and care for my health as my body and mind developed. She knew that I didn't like the look, texture, and possibly even the taste, but she also knew that my body would develop healthier and stronger if I would follow her advice and guidance. (Side note: I love broccoli and carrots and pretty much any other vegetable you place in front of me today, Yum!) But, isn't that way life is? Those things that are good for us that we don't like at the time we receive them, shots, discipline, a speeding ticket, or even a swift kick in the derriere, are the very things that we need to turn us into the man or woman that God designed us and purposed our lives to be.
So, today's Flat Tire Thought isn't about eating your vegetables for their health implications, but in just the same way that things we don't necessarily like to eat have tremendous positive health attributes for us, many things we go through in life aren't pleasant and pain-free either, but at the end of the day they are what allow us to grow and mature into the person God wants us to be. Tests, Trials, and Troubles are, for the most part, painful to the point that we strive to avoid them if at all possible. I've yet to see any lining up for a health complication, nor have I witnessed folks signing up for their business to fail or for their livelihood to dry up and fade away. Divorce, disease, drug addictions, or a death in a family are also part of the Triple T's we are looking at today. That is not an all-inclusive list, but I believe you get the idea. Our faith, or lack there of, gets tested regularly. At times the test is a one time deal, other times it is an ongoing struggle that lasts longer and at times never goes away. Those are tests of our will and can help us build our hope in Jesus. The daily grind builds our stamina, but those hardships and trials that linger on and on and don't seem to ever go away, well those are the tests, trials, or troubles we are talking about today.
The Apostle Paul endured much in his life. Blinded during his conversion, stranded at sea, beaten numerous times, and imprisoned for his faith, Paul kept right on serving God. As I have studied Paul's life, there are not many instances where Paul asked God to remove the hardships he was enduring instead he embraced them, but there is one instance where Paul provides an example of how we should respond in the face of adversity. In Paul's second letter to the church in Corinth, Paul shares that he had been tormented by an intense pain in his side and that the pain was so severe that he asked God to take the source of the pain away on three different occasions. Removal of the source was not God's reply, instead the answer to Paul's prayer request went more like this, “My grace is all you need. My power works best in weakness.” II Corinthians 12:9. At that point Paul came to a realization that is so critically important to our message today. Paul realized that the pain he was enduring was meant to take the focus off of himself and to place his faith and trust in the God who doesn't do things by coincidence. God has a plan and that plan may very well traverse through the pain you are enduring. At that point Paul changed his mindset, he went from Poor Pitiful Paul to an overcomer through the strength that can only come from our Maker. Note Paul's change of mindset in the following scripture, "So now I am glad to boast about my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ can work through me. That’s why I take pleasure in my weaknesses, and in the insults, hardships, persecutions, and troubles that I suffer for Christ. For when I am weak, then I am strong." II Corinthians 12:9-10. Growing through adversity is our key to success.
If the key to growing is enduring tests, trials, and troubles then Paul gave us the recipe on how to turn those Triple T's into Triple C's. So, what are the C's? Capabilities, Closeness, and Character are all key attributes to enduring trials and tribulations in our life. Capabilities, as we begin to turn adversity into opportunity we learn to look within our skills and abilities and turn those into tools to support us in our growth. I have referred to it as the "What's in your pocket?" mindset. God gave each of us a set of skills and talents, but too often we overlook those as the very tools which can help us endure and overcome our tribulations. The second "C" Closeness is referring to our personal relationship with God our Father. I'm not saying that we should be waiting on trials and tests to happen before we get closer to our Lord and Savior, but during those times it is often the comfort of being close to God that sees us through. "I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me. Philippians 4:13. Lastly, our Character is refined through our adversity. "Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance. Let perseverance finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything." James 1:2-4. It is through the fire that glass is made. It is through adversity that the seed sprouts from the ground, and it is through hard times that our character is shaped and defined. The good news is God is right there with us, drawing us closer and opening our minds to the capabilities of what talents and skills God placed in us at our creation that will assist us in shaping our character for what God has planned for us to do to glorify Him and expand His Kingdom.
Are you facing a trial today? What challenge are you facing that seems too insurmountable to overcome? Would you say you are in trouble and you don't know where to turn or what to do? My prayer today is for anyone who in their mind answered "yes" to any of the three preceding questions. Personally, I don't have the words or ability to get you over or through your "T", but I do know the One that can and will turn your tribulation or trial into an opportunity to learn more about yourself, grow you closer to the One that made you for just such a time as this, and through it all He will turn you into the man or woman of God that you were created to be!
Coach Carter
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