There was a farmer who had an old mule who fell into an abandoned well on his property. The farmer did all he could to get the mule out but nothing worked. His neighbors joined him and still there was no way to get the animal out of the deep well and finally the mule just laid down to die. The men decided that they would just go ahead and fill the well up with dirt and put the poor animal out of his misery. They began to shovel dirt on to the animal and it seemed to revive him and as each shovel of dirt rained down on him, the mule would shake it off and tramp down the soil and stand on top of it. The men shoveled and the mule shook off the dirt and in time the level of the dirt got so high that the old mule was able to leap out of the well and escape. That old story has been around forever, but it is a great lesson for us all. There are times when we are going to feel like we are trapped down in that well. And we can’t see any way out. And then we pray and then the dirt comes raining down on us like some kind of insult to our injury. And we can lay down and just give up…or, like that old mule, we can shake off the trials that seem to never stop and ask God to give us the faith and the courage to not quit. There are times when what we see as hardship after hardship coming down on us is actually God taking our problems and trials and using them to build our faith and our endurance. And if we will let God work in our pain, he will develop in us strength of character and character will lead us to hope. And this hope does not lead us to disappointment, because God is working in us and for us and instead of bitterness and resentment, our hearts become filled with love that gets there because of the work of the Holy Spirit. So never give up in the midst of frustration, fatigue, fear or failure. Remember that God will be with you if you will let him. He loves you…but he is going to make you into something stronger, better and more beautiful than you could ever imagine. Trust him and don’t give up! Here’s our Bible verse for today…
Romans 5:3-5 NLT We can rejoice, too, when we run into problems and trials, for we know that they help us develop endurance. (4) And endurance develops strength of character, and character strengthens our confident hope of salvation. (5) And this hope will not lead to disappointment. For we know how dearly God loves us, because he has given us the Holy Spirit to fill our hearts with his love.
Remember I’m praying for you!
With love, PJ
Romans 5:3-5 NLT We can rejoice, too, when we run into problems and trials, for we know that they help us develop endurance. (4) And endurance develops strength of character, and character strengthens our confident hope of salvation. (5) And this hope will not lead to disappointment. For we know how dearly God loves us, because he has given us the Holy Spirit to fill our hearts with his love.
Remember I’m praying for you!
With love, PJ