Flat tires, The Office, and Romans 5

So it seems like a lot of people are having "one of those weeks" this week. I am included in this...if you're wondering why I'm not at church tonight, it's because my tire blew out last night at like 11, and I'm stuck at home sitting around in sweatpants and watching The Office reruns...yay. So I thought I'd blog! (does this count as working from home Randy? hmmm...)

If you're like me it's really easy to complain about it when things aren't going great.
But the more Pastor Kempson preaches about it on Sundays, the more I'm trying to think about what it means to pray for God's glory instead of my own (John 17, in case you've missed it lately). I always want to pray for what I want, but it always seems like that just never..ever..EVER works out (hence why I am still driving my car and not my dream car: a beautiful Jeep Wrangler). But one verse God tends to slap me in the face with whenever I get whiny is Romans 5:3-5:

"…We also rejoice in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope. And hope does not disappoint us, because God has poured out his love into our hearts by the Holy Spirit, whom he has given us.”

Rejoicing in our suffering isn’t exactly easy to do. I wasn’t rejoicing when my car rumbled to a stop, and you probably don’t rejoice when your boyfriend or girlfriend breaks your heart, there’s drama with your friends, you don’t look the way you want to and your family is driving you nuts. It's a lot easier to complain about how tough your life is and all the bad things happening in it than it is to praise and thank God during those times. But it helps to remember that GOD IS ON YOUR SIDE and always working everything together for His glory and our good(Romans 8:28). That's pretty awesome to realize! So if you're just trying to get through the week, remember that God is there with you helping you get through it, and try to replace some of your complaints with praise. After all, it’s easy to thank God when things are going well. That's what I'm shooting for, and I wanted to throw it out there in case anyone else is having “one of those weeks“ . Oops, another episode of The Office is coming on...gotta go…wish I could be there at church tonight with you guys!

Shell