I hope you have been frustrated over the last few weeks.

I hope you have had moments where you got angry for no apparent or good reason.

I hope you found yourself inexplicably tired a night or two… or three.

I hope you got irritated because the cereal companies have conspired to make their plastic bags only open when you apply the force of a jaws of life.

I hope you found yourself staring silently at your kid trying to find the words to explain new math, which makes absolutely no sense at all.

I hope these things, because they are a reminder that we are still a work in progress. That the transformation project that Jesus tackled in our heart is still in full swing. These moments of failure should be roadsigns that we see as proof that God is indeed not finished with us.

These failures are like breaking down on the side of the road. It is inevitable. Cars break. Tires go flat. Batteries die. These things happen. That in and of itself is not a surprise. What is often a big surprise is our reaction to the event.

Do we sit on the side of the road and scream profusely at the inconvenience of it all? Do we curse the day we were born? Do we find someone to blame for this tragedy that has befallen us? Do we panic and wallow in the shame and guilt of not up keeping the car the way we should have?

I have experienced all of those things, and what is astonishing is that after all of that emotional energy is expended, the car still isn’t fixed.

Sometimes the fix is obvious, a flat tire or a dead battery. It is something that, with a little help from some friends, can be fixed in straight order. And life continues. It’s an opportunity to teach a kid how to change a tire or get a battery and alternator test at an auto parts store. It costs some time and relatively little amount of money.

Other times, it requires a tow truck and someone with more experience and knowledge than I. So we call for help.

Either way, an action must be taken. A decision to quit rolling around in self-pity and actually do something that could help the situation.

This is true in our transformation journey with Jesus as well. There are going to be failures. A sharp retort. A quick response. A lustful eye. A careless attitude. Some failures are going to be more catastrophic in their consequences than others. Some failures will require more than an apology and humility. Others will require a more extensive visit to the repair shop.

The point is, the true failure in a failure is when the failure itself gets the last word.

The only thing worse than falling down is not getting back up.

So I hope you see this list differently now – as opportunities to experience the grace of God in a deeper way.

And I hope after you experience these things, you get back up and grab His hand. Again. And again.