Just One Of Those Days

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ames 1:2-4 reads, “Consider it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance. Perseverance must finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything.”  This definitely was not the verse of scripture I wanted to be reminded of one particular Monday.  I was having one of those days where nothing, and I mean nothing, went according to plan.  Oh, I had a plan, but it was absolutely worthless.  Please allow me to recap the day for you.  It’s good therapy!

The whole ball of wax actually started the evening before when I decided to download a quick and easy little program for my computer.  The download went well.  I encountered no glitches, bumps, or electronic hiccups.  The installation process was also smooth and in just a few minutes the program was living happily on my hard drive, ready to obey my every command. 

I restarted the computer, selected the newly installed program, and asked it to perform a quick scan of my computer to see if everything was all right.  That’s when it all started.  The little program located some files that to its mind posed a threat to my system. It asked if I wanted to repair or delete the programs.  I first elected to repair the files but when that wasn’t possible, I deleted them.  That was my mistake!  I deleted several files from my operating system and the computer wouldn’t work.

I tried at least three attempts to coax the computer back to life but it just wouldn’t budge. Instead, it just sat there with a beautiful sunset on the screen, refusing to go any further.  All my programs were there; I just couldn’t get to them.  Several calls to a good friend in Pennsylvania, confirmed what I already knew.  The computer was busted and would have to be rebuilt; not exactly what I wanted to hear.

During the day, my situation got better (that’s a little joke, not too funny).  On my way to the airport, everybody in the free world decided to drive below the speed limit and box me into one lane of traffic.  I couldn’t get around the car ahead of me and the cars to my right and to my left wouldn’t budge.  I thought it was some kind of conspiracy with the whole world, including the animals, decidedly against me. I wondered if Noah ever had a day like this.

A good friend called to see how I was doing.  What a loaded question that was!  I told him I didn’t feel very Christian and proceeded to share my terrible day. I called my mom and she got the full onslaught as well.  I was miserable and I determined that everyone I knew would just be miserable as well.  Ever been there?  None of this solved my computer problem, but grinding that axe seemed to make me feel better; I mean I actually enjoyed it. If what James said in the opening verse above applied to me, I had to be the happiest man alive!

It was only after I had spent the day frustrated, angry, confused, bitter, hostile, and just a little cranky, that I realized what a wasted day this had been. Replaying my thoughts and conversations from the day indicated every sentence or thought began with the word “I” or had the word “me” in it at least three or four times.  I looked at myself as the victim.  Nothing went my way, everything was against me, I didn’t understand why I was going through this, you get the picture don’t you?

James certainly hit me right between the eyes when I calmed down and remembered this little admonition.  James says that we will face trials of many kinds.  He never says they are fun but he does say they have their purpose and that purpose is the perfecting of our faith, the increasing of our patience.

I wasn’t very faithful or patient on that particular Monday; I was anything but.  And that is why I missed the blessing of verse 4, “Perseverance must finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything.”  Because of my attitude, I was lacking in several areas, not the least of which was my relationship with God.  But God’s design is to grow me to maturity so I want lack anything.  That Monday reminded me just how much growing up I still have left to do.

The next time you have one of those days, and it may be today, be thankful for it.  I know this is not something you want to hear, especially if today’s your day, but God is with us in the small trials as well as in the big ones and I think that when we have just one of those days he is reminding us of just how difficult it is to live the Christian life without him!

In A Holding Pattern

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nyone who has ever flown is familiar with the concept of the holding pattern.  This is always the fun part of the flight.  You are sitting on the tarmac waiting to take off, or you are in the air circling waiting to land.  Either way, you are making no progress toward your destination; you are merely waiting.  And, if you’re like most people, you hate waiting.

The worst case of “holding patternitis” I ever had was in June of 1984.  After spending 10 months living in France, the day had finally arrived for my return to the United States.  The flight left Brussels on time and was very uneventful as we made our way over the Atlantic Ocean.  The day was spectacularly gorgeous and there were practically no pockets of turbulence anywhere along our flight path.  Everything went smoothly until we got to Atlanta.

As we approached the airport, the captain informed us the control tower had placed us into a holding pattern. It seemed that a large number of planes were waiting to take off, ferrying people away from Atlanta in record numbers.  Why everyone wanted to exodus Atlanta in such mass numbers was beyond me. There hadn’t been an evacuation like this since General Sherman visited the city during the civil war!

We were in the holding pattern for over 30 minutes.  It was the most disheartening and cruel thing I’ve every experienced.  I mean home was a few hundred feet below us.  We could see cars, houses, trees, McDonald’s signs, everything we had missed.  It was right below us and we couldn’t get there.  My friend, Roland, was having conniptions.  He couldn’t believe that after surviving Europe for almost a year, he couldn’t even get back home!

But the holding pattern did have its purpose.  Although we didn’t like it, circling the Atlanta area was far better than risking a head-on collision with an airplane that was taking off while we tried to land.  The people in the control tower made the appropriate call but none of us in the airplane liked it at the time. 

The Bible is filled with stories of men and women who experienced holding patterns in their lives.  Abraham was promised a son.  He was 75 years old when he received the promise and 100 years old when Isaac was born.  You want to talk about a holding pattern! But the holding pattern we want to consider today is found in Luke’s gospel.

Just before his ascension, Jesus speaks with his disciples.  In the course of his final instructions he makes this statement found in Luke 24:49, “I am going to send you what my Father has promised; but stay in the city until you have been clothed with power from on high."  This statement comes after Jesus has already told his disciples to go into the whole world and share the good news.  You know they were excited about sharing the good news of Jesus with those around them, yet Jesus’ command was clear, “.,,,but stay in the city…” 

What could he mean?  There was so much to do, so much to say, so many people to reach.  How could they do that by staying put?  It just didn’t make any sense.  But they did what they were told.  I can imagine they returned home, becoming jittery and perhaps somewhat impatient.  Someone probably drew a calendar on the wall and counted down the days until they could leave, marking each day off as the sun was setting.

But the holding pattern did have its purpose.  They weren’t yet ready and the Holy Spirit had not yet come to them.  So as they waited, they gathered together and prayed.  What seemed to be no progress was in fact time for preparation.  Trying to accomplish the work Jesus gave them without the Spirit, would have been disastrous and they would have failed.  They could not go forward in their own strength because they would never have been strong enough.  But when the time was right, the Holy Spirit came, they were filled with his presence and 3000 people were added to the church the first day.

Let us draw great encouragement from this passage today.  If you are in a holding pattern, take heart.  God knows exactly where you are.  He has not forgotten you and He has not forsaken you. He is preparing you for the road ahead, the road which He always sees but which you cannot.  Use this time to rest and gather your strength because the day is coming when the holding pattern is over and the work begins.  Will you be ready for that day?