No Bypassing the Sour

“Count it all joy, my brothers, when you fall into various temptations, knowing that the testing of your faith produces endurance.” James 1:2-3

Real MOMent

“Try this,” my daughter told me as she held up what appeared to be a piece of candy in front of my face. “No,” I say as I reminded/instructed her that  she should never eat something without knowing what she is eating. As it turned out, it was candy, but not just any candy, a Warhead. If you’re not familiar with Warheads, they are a candy known for its varying levels of sour. I shared with her that Warheads were once one of my favorite types of candy (especially the blue and green), but you have to get past the sour in order to get to the good part of the candy. 

Fast forward about 30 minutes and my daughter returned with her iPad in hand. “Watch this,” she said.  The video captured her entire reaction to eating the Warhead.  It was hilarious to watch her face twist with each new level of sour! “You were right,” smacking on the candy, “after the sour is the good part, but next time I will  just put it under water first and then eat it.”  She laughed and I told her that rinsing it off would be “cheating,” but at that moment I thought to myself, if it was only that easy…

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MOMent of Clarity

Before I mentioned to my daughter that the “good part” was on the other side of the sour, she didn’t know to expect a change in flavor. Some of the funniest parts of her video were when she would literally drop the candy from her mouth because the sour was too intense, and then she would pick it up and try it again. What she didn’t realize was that each time she tried again, the sour became less of a factor and more bearable–until it was no longer an issue. When I mentioned the good part of the candy was just beyond the sour, she had something to look forward to, a reason to endure the sour. Based on what she thought she knew, the Warhead would have the same level of sourness from the start to finish, but it was temporary. 

There have been moments and entire seasons where enduring was tough, but I am not entirely sure that it is designed to be easy or that it is doable without the help of our Heavenly Father. Like a child (even in my adult years), I haven’t always been obedient when it comes to enduring seasons or circumstances.“ Why me?” I would ask myself, until, one day, I asked a different question, “why not me?” Who else would I wish a circumstance on that was tough? How might the Lord be using this to build an enduring faith in Him for my life?  Sometimes we can anticipate the good to come and sometimes we can’t, but we can trust that even when difficult times feel like an eternity, they are for a season and as we continue to have faith, each day has the potential to be more bearable. 

If only we could bypass the sour and hard times in life by running water over them, but we can’t. My great-aunt’s wisdom speaks to my heart, in these moments, even though her voice has left this world. 

It’s not what you’re going through, it’s where you’re going to. 

Life is a series of seasons defined by what we are  “going through,” but God’s plan for our lives is good, and we can take comfort in knowing He is there to help in the difficult (sour) and good (sweet) times.