Words to Treasure
It was good for me to suffer. That’s what helped me to understand your orders.
Psalm 119:71
Why do bad things always happen to me?” Grace climbed back on her fun board and looked at her foot. She had cut her foot on some coral, and it was bleeding all over. Razor sharp coral was all over the waters of the Hawaiian Islands. It wasn’t a big cut, but it needed attention. This was such a downer, because today was one of those perfect spring vacation windsurfing days. Now she’d have to sail in. Grace watched the other kids zip over the waves. Her aunts and uncles waved as they tried to get their sails out of the water. You could tell they didn’t live by the ocean.
Her mom examined her foot. “Well, you won’t be going back out today. Actually, this could be a good thing. I could use some help with your little cousins until your aunts and uncles come back in from their sail lesson. They don’t get a chance to windsurf every day like we do. So it’s nice that we can babysit for them.”
Not all “bad” things that happen to us are evil and wrong. Sometimes God allows things to happen so we learn something important. Grace learned that maybe today was more about sharing her beach with family than enjoying it by herself.
Did You Know?
When the Babylonians finally attacked Jerusalem, they destroyed and burned palaces, houses, and even Solomon’s temple. They took away treasure, and they took away God’s people as slaves. But was it a bad thing? Or was it an important lesson?