Bad Day!

Yesterday was one of those days it would be rather easy to doubt God’s existence or make the assumption that He’s out to get me or ruin my day. I have a large Urban Project this coming Saturday that requires the use of at least three large vans to transport 50 out of town helpers to our worksites. I had connected with a couple of other organizations to get 2 extra vans. I e-mail back out the plan for the different key leaders for the event. I get a text back from a good friend saying that his church van wasn’t free. I was a little ticked but God raised up someone else to also help.

As I am driving to my Starbucks to do some work I got a text from a dad asking me to call him. My assumption is there is something that either I messed up or one of our teens did something crazy. Instead, it was his confession that one of his kids accidently dropped the Ipad he had borrowed. The screen cracked and I know he was a little paranoid that it was going to cost him an arm and a leg.

Later in the morning I get texts from a couple of my key helpers for yesterday’s events saying either they couldn’t come or probably would be late. This puts me in a position that I don’t want to do an event where I don’t have enough helpers. Yet, after the morning rolled on everything worked out just right.

I had just been blessed with around 40 gallons of free paint. I had unloaded the paint in my garage because my friend, who owns a small painting supply place, was out of town on vacation. He had given me the impression that he would return on Tuesday. So I load everything up and go to us store. I see a sign as I pull up which I know is bad news. We are gone until Wednesday. So I sucked it up and unloaded the paint, which is mostly quarts, gallons and not my usual 5-gallon buckets. I figure it’s not a big deal I’ll just go on Wednesday morning and it will be done. Yesterday, I pull into his parking lot, which is empty and I see that the sign has been updated and they don’t return until today.

Today I will drive to my painting friend’s store and if he has another sign saying they are gone till tomorrow I might scream and attack someone. I need to empty my truck in order to pick up ladders a good friend had borrowed to finish painting his new coffee shop and church site. I really don’t want to unload for the third time all of those little quart containers.

As the Urban Plunge Project approaches I know from experience that everything will fall into place. The day will be awesome with lots of volunteers that will impact my neighborhood. Yet, I know that lots of people end up hurting someone because their day starts totally wrong. Yeah, maybe I did get up on the wrong side of the bed or maybe I did ‘kick’ the dog and God is getting back at me.

I know that James says we should count it all joy when we face various trials or bad days. I know that many around me would say you’re crazy to take pleasure in a bad day. Yet, yesterday finished well with a great Job Life Skill Group. We talked about how to become savers and not spenders and how to become givers and instead of takers. Looking back I discover that a bad day can become a great day!