We all make plans for the day, for the week, some of us make plans for the month and even the year. When something comes up unexpectantly and messes with those plans, especially big ones and important ones, we get frustrated and sometimes even angry or in more serious set backs depressed. Learning to cope with those nasty little inconveniences, to possibly solve the problem so that they go away, or make a mid-flight adjustment, so we continue with the plans with some differences, is a significant part of growing in character and wisdom. Thinking back on those events in our life, especially the recent ones is a very good way to practice self-evaluation on our character level and growth. Doing that self-evaluation with paper and pencil is much more accurate than wondering around in our memory trying to figure it out.

My grandson and I are restoring a 1969 mustang, and when we finish it, it will be his car. I have had an enjoyable time working on it with him. We rebuilt the engine in it, which is a 250 ci inline six-cylinder engine. I built an engine stand, and we put it on it with a radiator and working gauges. We let it run for quite a few hours with break-in oil. I had a stainless steel corrugated hose that fits onto the exhaust pipe; I ran the end of the flexible pipe outside so we wouldn’t die from an overdose of carbon monoxide. The engine ran great and sounded super good. About six months ago we put it into the car. I have been working on the electrical in the car and was down to just needing to finish the gauges on the dash. I got everything to work good except the oil pressure gauge. I changed gauges, I wired it different, I called the company that I bought the gauges from to make sure I wired it right. Nothing seemed to work and I was getting super frustrated. I assumed the oil pump in the engine was pumping oil because it had been before. But I thought, maybe, for some reason, that oil pump isn’t working. I put a fitting in the hole in the side of the engine block where the sending unit was screwed in and fastened a four-foot length of clear, plastic hose on the fitting. I started the engine and no oil was coming out the hose, zero. I shut the engine off quick and was grateful that in all my starting of the engine to test the oil pressure gauge that I had never let it run more than a couple of seconds.

So, my oil pump is not working. So now the main question is why? I am assuming that while putting the engine into the car something happened. I don’t what or what exactly is broken. Thursday I will have time and I will figure it out. I have worked out my plan of attack in my head and I know what I am going to do and how I will figure out the problem. I even have a new oil pump that I bought for the car by accident because I had forgotten that I had already bought one.

So, how did I do with this set back. These kinds of situations are the hardest to deal with because it is usually because of some stupid, idiotic decision that I made, and that is tough to take with all the heckling that I will get from guys in the church.

So, I want to grow in this situation. How do I do that? I will Write out in detail what I did and what I am going to do about it. I will write about my reactions at the most difficult times and evaluate my level of maturity and make a commitment to do better next time