One of those days

"My brothers and sisters, think of the various tests you encounter as occasions for joy. After all, you know that the testing of your faith produces endurance. Let this endurance complete its work so that you may be fully mature, complete, and lacking in nothing."

James 1:2-4 (Common English Bible)

I was reminded of this passage today as I reflected on the past year or so in our lives as a family. We have had our shares of trials and tribulations as some translations put it. Some of them have been severe, and some of them have merely been uncomfortable but I have been reminded through them that God is doing a work in our lives - in MY life. Sometimes that's hard to see and sometimes it's plain as day - but when the plan comes to fruition and you see God's fingerprints all the way through guiding and shaping circumstances to bring us to a conclusion that reflects HIS highest glory it all becomes worthwhile. I'm not sharing this today because I've had some sort of epiphany on the subject or that I have amassed enough wisdom to be an authority on hardships (although in the very next verse James encourages us to ask for wisdom) but rather I share this today because God has a way of reminding me that I am very much a man in process.

Without getting into any details (trust me they would bore you) today has been one of those days. Had it not been for the commitment I made to blog through this season of Lent I would not be cramming this post in at the end of the night - I would have simply called it quits and hoped for a fresh start in the morning. But I did promise however many of you out there are reading this that I would be faithful and my parents always taught me to keep my word (please forgive me if this comes across as half-hearted - I'm trying my best here) so here it is. And I know that my momentary troubles pale in comparison to what some of you - and some of the people in my congregation are suffering with right now - they're not even in the same postal code; but one thing I have learned in life is that everyone's worst problem is everyone's worst problem. While I may dismiss my tribulations as trivial compared to some of the issues that have gone down the church prayer chain in the past seven days God does not dismiss them so readily.

While I hate the process, I know that God is using these circumstances that grate on me so much as sandpaper - smoothing out my rough edges and polishing me into a work of art - that's what James is talking about. I'm not sure if I'm able to find the joy in the situation yet, but I'm trying.

Onto today's Transformer: I present to you 2007 Movie Deluxe Bumblebee (Concept Camero Version). This figure for most people was the first chance to get their hands on any sort of replica of the 2010 Chevy Camero. This concept car (as it was at the time) was so popular that this figure sold out EVERYWHERE it was stocked. It was released alongside the Deluxe Classic Camero Version (which you may remember that Bumblebee transformed into in the first 3rd of the movie) but it massively outsold it's slightly more yellow casemate. All of this created the perfect storm to make Concept Camero Bumblebee a hard to find and highly sought-after toy. I remember buying this online from a scalper (someone who ran to the toy store and bought out the entire display to sell on ebay at a huge markup) an paying more than double retail for this toy. Little did I know at the time that Hasbro would release more than a dozen repaints and variations on this mold in the next 3 years - none of which were hard to find. Oh well. Sometimes you win, sometimes you lose.

Until tomorrow,
Chris