Kasperian Moving Parts

kinda like Batman, but with a wife and 3 kids

A Tale of a Flat Tire and God’s Goodness

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I pray a lot for my kids. I always have. I ask God to protect them, shield them, guide them, and watch over them when I cannot. Watching your oldest child reach 18 years of age, start college, start driving, and be out of your line of sight and protection for large parts of the day make you pray even more. And so it is that I missed God’s blessing entirely and went straight to angry, pissed off, frustrated, groaning, belly-aching, and in general no fun to be around this morning when my darling bride and I drove both cars down the driveway to get the annual vehicle inspections done.

Thankfully, I noticed the flat tire about 30 yards down the road from our driveway, so I pulled over, checked it, (went straight into pissed-off-mode), and turned around and went back home. It’s snowy, slushy, icey, and cold right now in Douglas, MA, so it was all that I could do to barely get the car into the bottom of the driveway. I’ve never had to drive on a flat tire before, but this time I had no choice. I’ve heard all kinds of bad things can happen as a result, and I was most worried about ruining the wheel or axle or something. So I pull into the driveway, open the trunk, and discover that the trunk has been leaking water again (or allowing it in through the bottom… I don’t know which), and now that it’s winter in MA, it has frozen solid inside the trunk. The trunk wheel well was about half full of frozen water, surrounding, enclosing, and including the spare tire. An hour and a half later, after failed attempts with a heat gun and a steam cleaner, I used a 20-pound steel pry bar to pry the spare tire loose from the trunk. I now have a Flinstone-car-looking ice block that looks like a tire. Another 15 minutes with the steam cleaner to get spare tire free of the ice, and I put the spare on and inflated it.

Now we’re on our way to the inspection station. Turns out that (I think) the reason the tire was flat is because it was so under-inflated that the bead seal just failed and all the air leaked out. However, being that I drove on it for a couple of minutes while it was flat, the tire is now unusable (steel belts destroyed and air bubbles are now in the sidewall). $70 later for a replacement tire, and a Russian immigrant mechanic to tell me “your tire no good”, and we’re on our way again.

And then it hit me. This was what I asked God for. This is what I’ve been praying for. Not necessarily to have a flat tire, ruin an whole day of work, not be able to get the spare tire out because the entire trunk is a big ice cube, and to waste $70 on a replacement tire. No, I distinctly do not remember asking God for that. But I’ve been praying for my kids’ safety for their whole lives, and that is exactly what God did for me. If this would not have happened to me today, it would have happened to my eldest daughter tomorrow, who likely would not have known to check the tire because it felt smushy, and who very well may have gotten into a really bad car accident, or been stranded, or worse, as a result. Thank God that this happened to me today instead of her, tomorrow. And as I was moaning, griping, cursing under my breath, freezing, frustrated, and angry, it occurred to me that God was being extremely gracious to me and my family once again. Who am I to question how God answers my prayers and keeps my family safe?

Thank you, God. And I’m sorry for going straight to anger, frustration, and pissiness and missing your blessings.

Oh, and you cannot tell me that God does not have a sense of humor, after a day like this. =:P

[Update] Wow, people can be incredibly rude, insensitive, and insulting. I’ve deleted the idiotic vitriole that found its way to this posts’s comments, and have turned further comments off. Thanks, idiots!

[Update2] I’ve decided to turn comments back on here. Unfortunately, I deleted the previous hateful, rude, insensitive, insulting comments instead of moderating them, so I am unable to bring them back for your enjoyment.

Author: Jason 'vanRijn' Kasper

My name is Jason 'vanRijn' Kasper. I am the ring leader of the amazing Kasper family. I am unashamedly a Christian Nerd. These are our stories....

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