When I was a kid, one of the things I used to look forward to was going to one of the local playgrounds.
It was a playground that had a huge metal slide that in summer would burn your legs going down and wooden seesaws that would give you splinters using them.
Then came the huge swings, swings so high you could go into orbit if you let go.
What do we have now in terms of playground equipment? Everything made from durable plastic and nothing more then three feet off the ground.
It is almost like a lawyer had designed the equipment so no-one could get sued. We now live in a cotton-coated world so no-one can get hurt.
So what happened to me when I fell off the monkey bars or fell over and grazed a leg?
I got back up and learned to navigate the dangers around me.
I was being prepared for the road (life), which meant going through tough times.
Our passage today from Romans talks about this, that going through hardship produces endurance, it makes us stronger. But it does more than this, as it also produces character.
Character is what makes you, well, you, and it includes the values that you have and live by.
Our passage says hardships makes our character grow and also it gives us hope.
Hope is the belief in things unseen; things set in the future so when tough times come again, and they will, we are better equipped.
We know when we fall and scrape our knee or get gravel rash from falling off our bike we apply a topical antiseptic.
We roll with the punches because we have lived with them before and are better equipped.
If you are a Christian, you also have the added hope that when going through tough times, God is with you in them, offering support and encouragement.
How about giving God a go and asking for his help.
Major Greg Turnbull
Campaspe Shire Salvos
22°C