There’s a line in Evan Almighty when Morgan Freeman says something like, “when you pray for patience, do you think God will give you patience or give you the opportunity to be patient; when you pray for courage, do you think God gives you courage or the opportunity to be courageous?” 

I try to limit the theology that I glean from movies, but this is something that’s proven true in my life.  Every time I pray for some quality/trait/characteristic (and a lot of times when I don’t), it seems that God places me in a situation that stretches me and requires just that thing I’ve been praying for.

Sunday I mentioned in passing while I was teaching that I shave my head because I have a good looking head and don’t mind showing it off…  About 2 minutes after the service ended and I was heading for the cafe a teenager came up to me (his first time attending) and said, “You know how you said what you did about your head? It’s really not that good-looking.  In fact, it reminds me of an egg.”  And he walked away.

Thank you God for answering another prayer for humility.  And also thank you Hank for making me self-conscious about my “egg-shaped” head every time I look in the mirror.  At least I’m more aerodynamic than all of you….