We recently bought Ethan an Air Hog remote flying jet for his birthday. The one you see in the picture above is actually the second version we bought after the first one took an unexpected turn into the water. Which ironically made the $7 insurance purchase completely worth it, especially since I was at the controls when it took the dive!

After getting the replacement, I realized this Toys R Us series of the Air Hogs were not really mechanically up to snuff. It took about 15 minutes to reduce the second one into what you see in the picture with Ethan.

This poor Air Hog couldn’t fly or keep propellers on at this point the picture was taken. So, like any other 8 year old innovative play mind, Ethan made it a really bad hovercraft boat. At this point it really just kind of made a bunch of noise and moved sluggishly across the floor.

I think this often happens to us in life. We settle, then try to make the situation, the environment, the project, you fill-in the blank, into something it simply was not designed for. It takes patience to stop and evaluate. It takes work to assess what needs to happen to make things right. It’s usually not comfortable…and it’s never convenient.

For us on this day, it took a long conversation explaining why it wasn’t designed to be a bad hovercraft. It was even longer explaining why we needed to put it up until we could take it back to Toys R Us. A sad face, and some crushed 8th birthday excitement later we reappeared at the toy store. A couple of Lego sets turned out to be exactly what Ethan needed. Now it seems to be what he really wanted.

This morning marks a day like this bad Air Hog story. Today I will be back in our home church for the first time playing with the worship band. I can’t begin to tell you how excited I am to be back in music ministry with people I love!!

The last 10 months have been a lot like an air hog flying device regulated to a bad hovercraft boating device. I knew there was something missing. I knew I was designed for more than just church attending. I knew my heart was in music ministry, but I wasn’t plugged in anywhere. Today that all changes as I get to worship with my home church family at COTES!

Don’t let life situations or environments dictate who you are. You were designed for more. Take the time to stop, evaluate, and make choices to be who you are designed to be.

Breathe In & Smile Out,
Chris