Doe Zantamata, a Canadian author, artist and photographer once remarked: “It is only in our darkest hours that we may discover the true strength of the brilliant light within ourselves that can never, ever, be dimmed.” Psalm 9:9-10 confirms: “The Lord is a stronghold for the oppressed, a stronghold in times of trouble. And those who know your name put their trust in you, for you, O Lord, have not forsaken those who seek you.”
Difficulties and bad times plague us all from time to time. They can commonly be referred to as "The Trials of Life." They can take many forms, and often appear as significant setbacks in life which occur when we least expect them. Possible causes can include underhanded or deceptive tactics used by another, our personal failings or perhaps an incorrect understanding of a situation. Sometimes the blow delivered can hit home hard. It may shake our confidence or make us feel inadequate. One of the answers to these problems is to remain steadfast in the face of adversity. 2 Peter 1:5-8 reminds us: “For this very reason, make every effort to supplement your faith with virtue, and virtue with knowledge, and knowledge with self-control, and self-control with steadfastness, and steadfastness with godliness, and godliness with brotherly affection, and brotherly affection with love. For if these qualities are yours and are increasing, they keep you from being ineffective or unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ.”
The trials of life sometimes arrive in waves on which we have no control, but how we cope with them and our response can make the difference between success or failure in adversity. Paulo Coelho, the Brazilian lyricist, relates the dark clouds in life as: "Life has many ways of testing a person's will, either by having nothing happen at all or by having everything happen all at once." Romans 8:18 states: “For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worth comparing with the glory that is to be revealed to us.”
Many years ago, back in the late 1970s, there was a young man who had recently passed his driving test and was searching for a cheap car to travel to and from work. At his office, there was an elderly colleague who owned a vintage Hillman Minx Saloon car which was identical to the model that his father had owned throughout his childhood. He had always adored this car as it brought back many happy memories of annual holidays to Littlehampton in West Sussex for several years. He would have loved to buy his father's car, but unfortunately, it had been sold before he attained the legal driving age.
His colleague decided that after having owned his car for several years, he wished to buy a brand-new modern car and was offering the Minx for sale at a reasonable price. It was an ideal car for the young man, and even though he had to wait a few months until a new car had been purchased, it was considered well worth the wait. His colleague informed him that the obligatory annual roadworthy test certificate was about to expire and so he would happily have it retested before parting with the vehicle. On the day that the young man took possession of his pride and joy, he was informed by the owner that he had discovered that there were still three weeks left to run on the existing test certificate and he felt that there was little point in having the test performed needlessly. He assured the young man, however, that he considered that there would be little problem in the car passing the test when the renewal time arrived. The young man was so overjoyed at the prospect of owning the car of his dreams that he happily accepted the terms and drove the car home. It was his sheer delight and joy and he was so proud of his new possession. Three weeks later the time came for the annual safety test on the vehicle to be performed and he made the necessary arrangements at a local garage for the checks to be carried out. Much to his dismay, the vehicle failed the test on several points which included problems with the steering and brakes.
His father who had owned the identical car offered to help with some of the work and spent many hours working through several of the required repairs in order to obtain a pass. On completion, the young man took his vehicle to another garage which offered immediate tests without prior booking. The test was conducted and the young man was informed by the mechanic that, although it had failed, it was only a simple matter of replacing a brake hose and then he would happily pass the vehicle. The young man was overjoyed at the prospect and left the vehicle at the garage for the job to be completed.
Later that day, he returned to collect his vehicle, but was informed by the mechanic that unhappily they had found a major rust problem in the car chassis which rendered the vehicle dangerous to drive. It was considered so dangerous, in fact, that the car was likely to break into two parts at any moment. He was strongly advised not to drive it again. They stated that the cost of repair would be prohibitive and that the only solution was to send the vehicle for destruction at a local breakers yard. He was also told that although they were unable to offer any money for the vehicle, they were prepared to have the car demolished at no further cost. The young man's heart sank and he was full of dismay but was forced to accept the situation. He provided the registration document to the garage at their request in order to officially destroy the car. He had lost his pride and joy within a few weeks of acquiring it, but reluctantly accepted it as a trial of life.
Several months later, at his place of work, much to his astonishment, he noticed his beloved car with the identical registration plate parked in the staff car park. He immediately returned to the garage to complain and pursue compensation but was informed that an employed mechanic had undertaken the repair work as a personal project in his own time and expense to bring the car up to the required standard to pass the test and had then subsequently sold it on. The young man was informed that he had no redress on the garage, as the work that had been performed was solely on a private basis which was independent of any dealings by the garage.
The young man located the registered keeper of his lovely car and informed him of the situation. The new owner was unhappy and concerned about the facts and informed the local testing authority, who undertook an independent examination and found that the new test certificate should not have been issued as there were still serious defects with the vehicle which had been overlooked. They, in turn, did a spot check on the garage in question with a faulty vehicle of their own, who once again passed it as safe. As a result, the Department immediately revoked the trading licence of the garage to perform these legal tests, which in turn, caused such a loss in custom that they were forced to close their trading doors and went out of business. James 1:2-3 reminds us: “Count it all joy, my brothers, when you meet trials of various kinds, for you know that the testing of your faith produces steadfastness.”
Amen.
