“Blessed be thy mercy that laid help on one that is mighty and willing, one that is able to save to that uttermost. Make us deeply sensible of our need of his saving grace, of the blood that cleanses, of the rest he has promised, And impute to us that righteousness which justifies the guilty, gives them a title to eternal life, and posession of the Spirit.”

This morning, one of my tires gave up the ghost in spectacular fashion, blowing into shreds on Nolensville Pike a block or two before the Wal-Mart parking lot. Thankfully, I was able to limp into the parking lot and assess the damage.

Said tire is definitely in Michelin heaven and I am sporting a new tire. I am also on the far side of that stressful situation, which is by far my preference. I don’t want to go through that ordeal for a very, very long time (if ever).

I probably should have paid more attention to my tires. I probably should have noticed something was off sooner. I could go on and on and beat myself up for days and it won’t resurrect my late lamented tire. And it won’t help me much.

Or I could remember that while my tire is deceased, I am not. I am still sans toe tag. For that, I am thankful.

Everything good in my life is due to grace and mercy. Anything that I have or that I do that is remotely decent is because of God’s goodness. Even my next breath is God’s gift to me that I don’t deserve.

My stomach still hasn’t quite recovered from being in knots the whole day due to worrying about my old Jeep. I thought I had really screwed up this time. Thankfully, it was only the tire and some minor cosmetic damage to my car that can be easily fixed.

Even when I choose worry over faith, God is still faithful. It’s probably a small miracle that I didn’t damage the wheel rim. It could have been on the interstate, which would have most likely been way worse to both me and my car.

I can learn my lesson about being more diligent with taking car of things like checking my tire pressure more often. Better yet, I can breathe a deep sigh of relief for another reminder of God’s never-ending lovingkindness toward me.