“When John heard in prison what Christ was doing, he sent his disciples to ask him, ‘Are you the one who was to come, or should we expect someone else?’” (Matthew 11:2).
Obduracy is stubbornness with a dash of meanness added to achieve just the right flavor; it is obstinacy with a malicious edge. I have struggled with an obdurate problem in my business for well over a year and yesterday more grim news came with respect to our situation; achieving a measure of balance during the day was difficult—I do not think I ever really regained my footing. As the day wore on, so did my feelings of grimness and grief.
Not that there weren’t moments of really good news—for example, our sales last week were higher than I had hoped and I am close to resolution on one (not the obdurate one) sticky problem; personally, my three years old daughter said some really cute and precious things and my eight years old daughter with Down Syndrome earned an A+ on her reading test. But the obdurate problem hovered around me the entire day.
A person armed with an umbrella and a raincoat still hopes to get out of the rain sometime.
Luke 18:1-8 reminds us to keep on praying. 2 Corinthians 12:8-11 informs us that though we struggle with obdurate problems, and even though our hoped for solution is not forthcoming, yet we receive God’s grace. I sometimes wonder, hearing Paul’s response, where he learned that God’s grace truly was sufficient?
I’d like to be in Paul’s camp when it comes to living within an obdurate problem because his words reveal peace and victory in spite of circumstances. That’s why they are in the Bible—right? Paul reminds us that God’s grace is sufficient. Jesus reminds us that God is good and hears every single one of our prayers and petitions and does not ignore them but responds to them in His Goodness.
Intellectually I agree with Paul. In my heart, I agree with Jesus. In my humanness, I hurt and am frustrated. I would like to be able to occasionally take off this stinking raincoat and lay down this stupid umbrella. I look out my window at today’s forecast: rain.
What to do? Gene Kelly sang in the rain—he went skipping and jumping in the rain because of love.
Steven Covey taught we should begin with the end in mind. 2 Corinthians, the book where in chapter 12 Paul described his thrice-prayed over problem, begins with these words: “Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our troubles, so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves have received from God” (1:3-4).
Truth be told, I don’t feel like singing. However, I can endure. Today, I will pay attention to my obdurate problem because I must face its ugly nature and work to solve it. But I will also make it a point—an urgent task—to take stock of the good things coming my way today.
Is the cup half empty or half full? It is both, but I can live with that.