Sometimes things happen that are unfortunate and inconvenient.  The impact of these things may be big or small, but what is often overlooked is what the Lord may be showing us through them or as a result of them.  I experienced two notable examples of this during this past week.

The first example occurred last Friday night when I stumbled and fell walking down the street (nothing serious and would probably have been quite funny to see if you happened to be walking by) and destroyed my IPhone.  This was unfortunate.  This was inconvenient. 

I used that phone for Face Time, e-mail, texting, calendars, reminders, notes, taking pictures, etc.  It was how I communicated and how I managed my daily life . . . and it was gone.  Due to the generosity of a friend and the timing of travel plans, I was provided with another IPhone within a week, but the Lord used the experience to show me something.  I was putting too much effort into managing my life instead of experiencing the fullness of what God has for my life.  I have been seeking control from myself instead of fully surrendering control to God. 

The destruction of the Iphone was unfortunate and inconvenient, but what the Lord revealed to me through the experience was invaluable.

The second example occurred today as we were traveling out in Pantanal (barrio where we serve) to pick up a group of girls to attend an event that we were hosting for them.  On our way back after picking up the girls, the van got stuck in a muddy hole in the road (no better way to describe it).  The roads aren’t that great out there and it is rainy season so there you have it.  This was unfortunate.  This was inconvenient.

The driver got out immediately, with Jenn, and began to assess the situation.  It wasn’t good.  We weren’t sure what we were going to do.  However, only minutes after getting stuck I looked out the window and saw several men coming out of their homes to help.  They brought cement blocks and one man climbed right down in the muddy hole previously mentioned and got to doing what needed to be done to help.  These men did not know us but they helped without hesitation.  The problem was resolved quickly, but the Lord used the experience to show me something.  There is such a blessing to be received through simple acts of kindness and service and I should be looking for opportunities to serve others in this way on a daily basis.

The van getting stuck was unfortunate and inconvenient, but again what the Lord revealed to me through the experience was invaluable.

The Lord is often showing us things through the inconvenient happenings in our daily lives  . . . we just need to be open to seeing them.