“Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds…” James 1:2

I know better. I shouldn’t be doing this. I wouldn’t advise it for anyone. But I’m doing it anyway! Since sometime in October, I have been driving around with a nail in my tire! I noticed it, AFTER a brief vacation when I saw the tire low on air in the airport parking lot. I drove it home anyway. After filling it with air, it stayed blown up for almost a week! As of 12/1, that nail is still there!

Along with the possession of a tire with a nail in it, I own a compressor, which is connected to an automatic rewinding hose, which hangs just inside my garage door. When my tires need air, I push a button on the compressor, pull the hose to my vehicle, then fill the tire and rewind the hose. Easy! I found I need to fill that tire about once a week! Tho I really should remove the nail and plug the tire!

To be honest, I have the tools to plug the tire myself. I’ve done it many times before. I’ve been using the excuse that I just don’t have the time… but that’s not really true. The TRUTH is… I’m having fun with this thing… just the way it is! I look at it everyday wondering when, or if, tire inflation needs to increase, or if outright failure has landed in my tire world! So far… there’s no change… so no change!

It may sound nuts, but ‘trials’ are kind of like that nail in my tire. They’re irritating, usually unwelcome and require extra effort in both patience and wonder. You know… like… ‘I wonder when this is going to be over cuz, I don’t really like this?’ But this nail is teaching me something! I have developed a kind of ‘hopeful faith and expectation’ that parallels my faith in God!

Nothing bad can really happen in my ‘nail’ trial. The worst that could go wrong is a flat tire on the way to go somewhere. But I have friends and family close by AND I know how to change a tire. I’m just interested in finding out how long I can go before the tire trial is over and my faith is no longer needed! But for now… this is kind of fun. Go ahead and call me nuts. My Auto Mechanic does!

I think I may be on to something, and today’s verse proves it. It says God wants me to have that same kind of attitude with ALL my trials… HERE? I believe God will cover me no matter what the trial or how it turns out. But God literally commands me to HAVE JOY DURING my trials! No matter who you are… that sounds NUTS! But JESUS WORKS! Could you use some ‘Joy Nuts’ right now? They’re free!