We live in a “fix it” society. I was reminded just how oriented we are to that the other day when our dryer decided to start screaming like a banshee. It was broken. What did we do? Call a phone number for the repair person.
Have a scratch on your car? Here’s some touch-up paint.
Come down with a sinus infection? Here’s some antibiotics.
Need a new field goal kicker? Here’s Dan Bailey. (Those of you who know me will get this.)
If something’s broken, just fix it. But life isn’t that simple all the time is it? Do you ever recall a time when a situation couldn’t or wouldn’t resolve itself? Maybe it was a relationship. Maybe it was a job situation. Perhaps a financial one. It just seemed to trudge on and on. Why is that? Why can’t situations get fixed quickly all the time?
Perhaps God is up to something. He looks at our problems differently than we do. After all, his ways and thoughts are higher than ours (Isaiah 55:9). One thing we do know: he’s after our holiness (1 Pet. 1:15-16).
So here’s a thought. Maybe God doesn’t fix our situations until our situations have fixed us.
“Endure hardship as discipline; God is treating you as his children…No discipline seems pleasant at the time, but painful. Later on, however, it produces a harvest of righteousness and peace for those who have been trained by it.” – Hebrews 12:7, 11
