Life is Hard.......so what?

Life is hard….so what?
Scott Trammell, May 16, 2006

I finished college in 1995 with a degree in Civil Engineering. Normally, after graduating, many engineers will go to work for a few years and then start preparing for their PE exam. Once they pass this exam (which in California, is actually 4 separate exams, where most all other states only have one), they will have the honor and prestige of being referred to as a Professional Engineer. There’s a certain amount of status that goes along with that. All of a sudden, you have credibility. Even other engineers, PE’s especially, speak to you differently and treat you differently (respectfully).

I’d never had the desire to get my PE. Others thought it would be a good thing for me to have, but I saw no use for it at the time. In my career, yes it would have been good to have but I didn’t think it would help my career, so I put it off. Besides, hearing the horror stories from other engineers about how grueling the exam can be (mostly from those who didn’t pass it), didn’t help me in wanting to subject myself to that kind of punishment and potential for disappointment. I already had enough disappointment in my life, I certainly didn’t want to add another failure to an already growing list.

Over time, my career path took a slight change and I found myself in a position where having that PE would have come in handy. It wasn’t necessary, but it sure would have helped, so I began considering it. I still didn’t want to subject myself to such a difficult test, so again, I put it off. Later, I found myself working on a construction job as the Project Engineer. I was pretty much responsible for everything. I shared an office with another engineer who, although he was a nice fellow, wasn’t altogether too bright when it came to civil engineering or construction. Then one day I found out that this guy had his PE! This fellow had actually passed the California PE exams. Then I began thinking that if this guy can do it, it can’t be all that hard!

So I filled out the application, and was accepted to be allowed to sit for the exam. I signed up for study courses and review courses (it had been a long time since school, over 8 years) and I did all I could to prepare for that test. And you know something? I passed. First time. It really wasn’t all that hard, and parts of it were embarrassingly easy. I remember wondering “what was I so worried about?” It wasn’t nearly as bad as I was told it would be. But I also know why it wasn’t so hard for me. I was prepared for it. I studied hard and carefully organized my reference materials and sought advice on test taking techniques from others who had done this before me. Sure, there were others who complained about the exam and how hard it was (since they didn’t pass it the first time), but that’s because they weren’t prepared for it. They didn’t listen to the advice of others who had already been there and done that.

Life is hard. That’s a fact. You need to be prepared for it. Jesus never said that following Him would suddenly make life easy or better for you. Jesus said that He came to give us life. But not just life, but life more abundantly! That means the lows will be lower and the highs will be higher. And we know through God’s Word that there is a great reward waiting for us at the end. So many people want to know what God’s will is for their life. We read the books and study “The Purpose Driven Life”, and still we ask what God’s will is for us. (“If it isn’t about me, then what is it about?”)

I can answer that for you. You don’t have to look any further, the answer has been there all along. Would you like to know what it is?

Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, in everything give thanks; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.

1st Thessalonians 5:16-18

Rejoice, Pray, and Give Thanks (be Thankful). Sounds easy, doesn’t it? Sorry to say that it doesn’t always work out that way. Three simple things that, at times, seem so very hard to do. It doesn’t have to be so hard, but we make it that way when we choose to follow our own selfish desires rather than trust God and follow Him.

Life is hard. So what? Jesus took care of all the heavy stuff on the cross so that we wouldn’t have to. Just look at what Christ did for us, and all that He went through, and our petty little problems don’t seem so bad. Maybe then we’ll realize that life isn’t so hard after all. My wife taught me that with Jesus in you, life isn’t hard, life is JOY!
(My wife is such a blessing, but that’s another story altogether).

So to be prepared for this life, we need to study. I am so thankful that God provided us with a study manual so we can be prepared for the things we will encounter in this life. And the best part? It is all open-book! (Keep your Bible nearby).

Rejoice, Pray, and Give Thanks. I think it’s worth a try, don’t you?
After all, it is God’s Will for you.

Stampede Days Rodeo Princess

Meet my little girl.

Stampede Days Rodeo Princess

May 2006.

Absolutely Beautiful.

Love, y'all

We must grow in love and in order to do this we must go on loving and loving and giving and giving until it hurts -- the way Jesus did. Do ordinary things with extraordinary love.
-Mother Teresa

Love has nothing to do with what you are expected to get. It's what you are expected to give.This is love: not that we loved God but that he loved us and sent his son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins... And so we know and rely on the love God has for us. God is love. Whoever lives in love lives in God, and God in him.
- 1 John 4:10, 16

Love the lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength. The second is this: Love your neighbor as yourself. There is no commandment greater than these.
-Mark 12:30-31

If you remain in me and my words remain in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be given you. This is to my Father's glory, that you bear much fruit, showing yourselves to be my disciples.
-John 15:7-8

Love is Patient, love is kind, it does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It is not rude, it is not self seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. Love never fails.
-1 Corinthians 13

For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith - and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God - not by works, so that no one can boast.
- Ephesians 2:8-9

Now, that's Love.

Prayer

Mind how you pray. Make real business of it. Let it never be a dead formality.
- Charles Spurgeon

Prayer doesn't change God, but it changes him who prays.
- Soren Kierkegaard

The less I pray the harder it gets, the more I pray the better it goes.
- Martin Luther

When you pray, do not keep on babbling like pagans, for they think they will be heard because of their many words.- Matthew 6:7

The Light in the Window

The Light in the Window
By Scott Trammell
April 5, 2006

Before going to bed last night, I turned out the lights just before heading upstairs. It was then that I noticed something different. There was a light shining in our living room that hadn’t been there before. As I stood in front of our living room’s big picture window, I discovered there was a street light in front of our house.

We’d always known that street light was there, we just hadn’t given it much thought until now. You see, the previous night, we experienced one of those severe Central Indiana storms and our giant evergreen, shaped like an oversized Christmas Tree, had been blown over during the storm. The high winds snapped the one foot diameter trunk about six feet above the ground. By the grace of God, no one was hurt and the tree landed on our neighbor’s driveway, so there was no damage to anyone’s home or property. We had the tree and stump removed and now all that’s left is the large blank area where that massive tree once stood. That tree had been somewhat of a landmark on our street. It was easy to find our home, “just look for the giant Christmas Tree”.

But now, with the tree gone, there’s a light shining through our front window. Strange how something so big and prominent, and even beautiful, in our lives can block so much light. How often do we let seemingly big things get in the way of God’s light in our lives? Oh, that “thing” may be big and beautiful and seem like such an important part of our life, but once it is removed (perhaps by an “Act of God”) we can finally see the light. God’s light.

Jesus said “I am the light of the world”, and the Bible tells us that we are to be beacons of light. It is up to us to show God’s “light” to a dying world. So, what is standing in your way? What is it that is keeping God’s light from shining through you? After all, there is nothing more important than shining God’s love on everyone we know.

Let your light shine!

Daddy's Little Girl.....

This is my little girl.

She's only 10 years old and she trains horses for barrel racing and pole-bending competions. She's very good at what she does, and she's sweet and nice and ton of fun to be around. She's also practically a straight "A" student. So, she's pretty, sweet, nice, fun and very smart. We're so very proud of her!

Is That YOU?

Is That YOU?
By Scott Trammell
January 6, 2006

While walking through a hallway at work today, I found myself a few steps behind a co-worker I’ve known for quite some time now. Sensing someone was following (and possibly knowing it was me), without looking back this co-worker asked “Is that you?”

I thought about it for a few seconds and realized that, regardless of who was behind them, the correct response would always be “Yes, it’s me!”

Being the smart-aleck that I am, I responded with “Yes, it’s me. But more importantly, is it YOU?”

This got me to thinking about this same type of exchange in the spiritual realm. God doesn’t ask if it’s us or not. He already knows. The important thing to ask ourselves is “Is it God?”

Whenever an opportunity comes our way, and it looks real good to us, we should stop and ask ourselves if it is from God, or is it the devil trying to trick us into something that could hurt us later on? According to Henry Blackaby, the way to find out is to test it against scripture. Is there anything in scripture that addresses this? Does God’s Word say not to do this? Read the Bible and find out. Another way is to seek the guidance of the Holy Spirit. Pray about it and seek God’s direction. Then – Listen! The third way is to seek counsel from fellow Christians. What is the Holy Spirit telling them about it? Just make sure you don’t ask people you know will always agree with you no-matter-what. Talk to people who know Christ and will give it to you straight. (These are your REAL friends, not those so-called “Yes Men”).

Remember, the next time you hear that “still, small voice”, the Bible encourages us to ask
“God, is that You?”