Have you ever been in the middle of a seemingly frustrating situation, only to later realize that God was using it for something much greater? Sometimes, it takes a shift in perspective to see His hand at work. I recently had an experience that reminded me of this truth.
One Sunday morning, I hopped into my car, ready to head to church. It was an ordinary Sunday—my daughter had to be at church early, so my family had left before me. As I started the car, I was greeted with an unexpected notification on the dashboard: low tire pressure. Thank God for the technology in modern vehicles because I would not have known my tire was underinflated – unless I was like a pilot performing the pre-flight inspection before departure.
Upon inspection, I discovered that I had a screw lodged in the back driver’s side tire. Although I could have added air to the tire temporarily, I wasn’t sure how quickly the air was leaking, and I didn’t want to take any chances driving on it. So, I decided to pivot—I would drive my son’s car instead. It wasn’t what I had planned, but I was determined not to let this situation ruin my Sunday!
And you know what? I’m glad I didn’t miss church that day. We had visitors joining us in Sunday school and our pastor started a new sermon series. I don’t believe it was coincidence that the screw had appeared in my tire. No, there was something bigger at play!
Now, I’m sure you can imagine how frustrating it would be to deal with a flat tire on a Sunday—right before church, no less—when it’s almost impossible to find a repair shop that’s open and with availability. It would have been easy to let the situation get to me. But as I sat there thinking that Sunday, I realized this was a reminder from God to not be overwhelmed by things that seem out of my control and simply rest in Him.
I decided to wait until Monday to take my car to our trusted tire shop for a free repair. However, the shop informed me that the tread depth on my tires were in the “yellow,” meaning it was time to consider replacing them. Since we weren’t planning on replacing the tires, I decided to move forward with the repair – hoping it would get me by for a little while longer.
But about 30 minutes into the wait, the technician came back with some unfortunate news: the repair wasn’t going to hold! So my only option was replacing my tires, which is no small expense. A tire repair that I thought would be free resulted in a $1,500 unplanned expense.
In that moment, I paused to reflect on the bigger picture. You see, I had purchased those tires at 64,000 miles, and now, with over 155,000 miles on the car, I realized those tires had lasted me far longer than warrantied or expected. Those tires touched over 91,000 miles of road – many miles worth of adventures, quiet moments and prayers on those tires. Sure, I had done regular maintenance and tire rotations, which certainly helped the longevity, but what a blessing.
What if this screw in my tire wasn’t just an inconvenience? What if God used that small, seemingly insignificant screw to get my attention? After all, neither my husband nor I had been thinking about replacing the tires. What if this screw was God’s way of protecting me from something far worse? What if the flat tire was actually a blessing in disguise?
I was reminded of a similar situation the year before. My daughter and I were about to embark on a 4-hour round trip. The day before we were scheduled to leave, I had just dropped off my daughter at school and my tire pressure dropped almost instantly. I had never seen my tire pressure count down so quickly! It was later determined I had a roofing nail in my tire (we had our roof replaced months earlier) and the head eventually fell off. Talk about timing! I couldn’t help but think about how different that situation could have been if it had occurred the following day on the congested turnpike (areas under construction with no shoulder – which is typical for our Oklahoma roads). That flat tire…it too turned out to be a blessing.
Both of these experiences were reminders that God works in unexpected ways. Sometimes, the inconveniences and frustrations we face are actually His way of protecting us, teaching us patience, or getting our attention. And the beautiful thing is, He can use even the smallest things, like a screw, to work in our lives.
So, I ask you, is there a situation in your life where you’ve looked back and seen God’s goodness? Have you ever experienced something frustrating or discouraging, only to realize that it was part of a bigger plan? I would love to hear your story.
Because if God can use a screw, He can certainly use you too.
