Many times in life God's plan for our success often requires going through a process. "The process" is one of my least favorite places to ever be stuck in. I've often looked to people I admire and strive to be like and wish, "man, why can't I just be where they are now", but I never want to go through everything they have experienced to get there.
Over the past couple of years, I've come to accept the processes I have to go through (as if I have a choice in the matter), but many times I get discouraged. I feel as if it's all for nothing. I feel as if I am going through this process and nothing is changing. I'm suffering for absolutely no reason. Then, last night, Allen and I went to see Avengers: Endgame with a handful of friends who are also in ministry. Little did I know that this movie was going to change my entire perspective on the process.
WARNING!!!!! Anything you read from here on out WILL have spoilers. If you have not seen the movie yet and don't want anything ruined for you, don't read any further until you see it!
I mean it, the spoilers are about to begin now.
Here we go...
Long story short, five years after Thanos wipes out half of the universe and the avengers are trying to deal with this new reality, Ant Man shows up with the idea of time traveling. After a bit of convincing and working to bring the team back together, they realize they have to go back to get all the infinity stones before Thanos does.
There's one particular scene I want to talk about though. A scene that literally changed my entire mindset. I mean.. it was like a lightbulb that went off.
Captain America, Iron Man, and Hulk all have to go back to the final battle scene of the very first Avengers movie from back in like 2012. They get there and see their younger selves fighting, and they have to blend in so they can steal the tesseract and bring it back to present reality. Young Hulk, in all of his glorious anger, is punching, stomping, and just flat out destroying everything in sight. Present/Future Hulk looks at his younger self and is embarrassed and now feeling awkward that he has to act like that now just to fit in.
Okay guys, that is all the spoilers I'm talking about. We are going to talk about that one thing the entire time. So if you were tempted and read anyways, you literally still have 2 1/2 hours of movie unspoiled to go see.
I'm not exaggerating... it's really that long of a movie.
Think about it though. Hulk has been in this nearly ten year process. A process that up to this point has felt hopeless because they lost to Thanos. They lost half of all living life thanks to one snap. It would be easy to feel like he has accomplished nothing. All the battling, all the blood, sweat and tears, everything given up.. what is even the point? And then he sees and remembers who he was when it all began. Unable to control his anger, being impossible to be both strong and rationally intelligent simultaneously... pretty much useless to anything except smashing up things. Which, if you remember, he could not even do in Infinity War, so he was really good for nothing.
Suddenly it makes perfect sense. The process fulfilled a purpose. Everything Hulk had experienced up until now... it was shaping his character and his abilities. It was preparing him and teaching him how to control his anger, think logically, and be both strength and intelligence. The process molded him into the creature he needed to be for such a time as this.
Man, imagine how relatable that really is in our own lives.
When you are feeling as if it is all for nothing, that the process is meaningless and isn't bringing any victory to your life, take a moment and look back to where it all began.
I promise you will see how the process is slowly molding you into exactly who God needs to you be for such a time as this. I promise you you are not the same as you were when it began, and you won't be the same when it is finished.
There is indeed progress in your process. If Hulk hadn't experienced the process, he never would have been able to be prepared for the Endgame.
What's your process?
How have you progressed?
Keep going.
Keep progressing.
You've got this! *insert Hulk smash here*