Category: suffering

For Such a Time as This

Posted on by Susan Panzica
My friend, Dawn, shared with me about her experiences working an office where the boss is heavily into Scientology. This is not always easy as her values often contrast with his. He talks about the importance of being legal and ethical, yet his actions don’t always follow his words. It is a delicate situation where she must abide by certain rules, yet not compromise her own values and standards.
I am reminded of the book of Esther. Growing up in the Jewish faith, I always loved this story and the holiday of Purim that we celebrated each March with many festivities. All the children would dress up as a character from the story, come to temple, march in a parade and eat such delicacies as “hamentashen cookies.” Boys come as King Ahashuarus (or Xerxes as the Gentiles say), Mordecai or the evil Haman. Girls would be Queen Esther or Queen Vashti, if you wanted to be a rebel. One year, my mom made my sister and I the best costumes ever. We were the “Hamentashen Twins.” Dressed in black leggings and turtlenecks with giant posterboard triangles sandwiched over our shoulders, we were an awesome sight to behold. We even won 1st prize – which was one crummy coloring book that had dots of dried paint in it. If you put a paintbrush in water and touched it to the page, you could paint the picture. Well, we tried it, but without removing the page from the book. One drop of water spread and expanded the entire book and ruined it completely! So much for the grand prize! Oh, well, at least we had the glory!! Anyway, I digress – –

And, check out the shortest bangs ever! Thanks, Mom!

Esther had been chosen to be queen after the Queen Vashti was banished for disobeying the king’s wicked orders. The king’s advisor, Haman, hated the Jews and was plotting their destruction. Esther’s beloved relative, Mordecai, advised Esther that she must approach the king and plead for her people’s deliverance. When she told Mordecai that the king might kill her if she approached him uninvited, he responded “…And who knows but that you have come to the kingdom for such a time as this?” She heeded his advice, and with great wisdom and a little trickery, the nation of Israel is spared.

When we are faced with circumstances like my friend’s that are contrary to our beliefs, who knows if God has placed us there “for such a time as this?”

  • Perhaps we are there to shine our light in a dark place.
  • Maybe God will open opportunity for honest sharing.
  • Or we might be there just to pray for the people involved.
  • He might ask us to speak up (“Let your conversation be always full of grace, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how to answer everyone” Col. 4:6)
  • Or He might want us to keep silent (“Even a fool, when [s]he keeps silent, is considered wise.” Prov. 17:28) and make it a matter of prayer.
  • If He wants us to speak up, “do not worry about what to say or how to say it. At that time you will be given what to say, for it will not be you speaking, but the Spirit of your Father speaking through you.” Mt. 10:19-20
  • But we can be sure this one thing – that as we seek His will, He will guide us.

As the world around us gets darker each day, will you be ready “for such a time as this?”

Susan

The Hammer, The File and The Furnace

Posted on by Susan Panzica

Yesterday’s post has a followup that has ministered to me greatly over the years. In his book, “Encourage Me”, Chuck Swindoll related the story of “The Hammer, The File and The Furnace”. Here is an excerpt from that tale:

The hammer is a useful and handy instrument. It is an essential and helpful tool, if nails are ever to be driven into place. Each blow forces them to bite deeper as the hammer’s head pounds and pounds. But if the nail had feelings and intelligence, it would give us another side of the story. To the nail, the hammer is a brutal, relentless master – an enemy who loves to beat it into submission. That is the nail’s view of the hammer. It is correct. Except for one thing. The nail tends to forget that both it and the hammer are held by the same workman. The workman decides whose “head” will be pounded out of sight…and which hammer will be used to do the job. This decision is the sovereign right of the carpenter. Let the nail but remember that it and the hammer are held by the same workman…and its resentments will fade as it yields to the carpenter without complaint.

The same analogy holds true for the metal that endures the rasp of the file and the blast of the furnace. If the metal forgets that it and the tolls are objects of the same craftsman’s care, it will build up hatred and resentment. The metal must keep in mind that the craftsman knows what he’s doing … and is doing what is best.

Heartaches and disappointments are like the hammer, the file and the furnace. … As difficult as it may be for you to believe this today, the Master knows what He’s doing. Your Savior knows your breaking point. That bruising and crushing and melting process is designed to reshape you, not ruin you. Your value is increasing the longer He lingers over you.

May you be willing to yield to His plan, knowing that He can be trusted and that He has your best interests at heart.

Susan

Having a Bad Day? Check this out!

Posted on by Susan Panzica

If you think you’re having a bad day, please take inspiration from this man. Sometimes, God doesn’t give us what we think we need because we would never become what He wants us to be if we had those things

I have learned to be content in whatever circumstances I am. I know how to get along with humble means, and I also know how to live in prosperity; in any and every circumstance I have learned the secret of being filled and going hungry, both of having abundance and suffering need. I can do all things through Him who strengthens me. Phil. 4:11-13

The Thorn in the Flesh

Posted on by Susan Panzica

“To keep me from becoming conceited because of these surpassingly great revelations, there was given me a thorn in my flesh, a messenger of Satan, to torment me. Three times I pleaded with the Lord to take it away from me. But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” 2 Cor. 12:7-9

In this well-known portion of Scripture, Paul begs the Lord three times to have his thorn in the flesh removed, and learns instead that God’s grace is sufficient for him.

Bible scholars often speculate that Paul’s thorn was an infirmity or illness; however, let me present another point of view. Paul specifically describes his thorn as “a messenger of Satan to torment me”. The word for “messenger” in the Greek is “angelos” meaning someone delivering a message, and every time it is used in Scripture, it is translated as a specific person or angel. Therefore, it is my belief that Paul’s thorn was a specific person in his life. Not just any person, but a person whose purpose was to keep Paul humble.

Think – Marie Barone.

In the TV show “Everybody Loves Raymond”, Debra’s mother-in-law, Marie, delivers classic lines that deliberately convey her opinion that Debra is a poor housekeeper, terrible cook, inadequate mother and so on. It’s hysterical on TV, but not funny at all if you have this type of relationship in real life. Often it is a family member or coworker, someone that you can’t escape. Someone who just gets under your skin: a splinter – or thorn- in your flesh.

You may have heard that when we ask God for something in prayer, His response may be “Yes”, “No” or “Wait”. But here, when Paul asked over and over and over again, for the Lord to remove this person, God did not say “Okay, you’ve done a great job for Me, Paul, I’ll do as you ask.” Neither did God say, “No, this person is there for a reason – to keep you humble, as you know.” God didn’t even say “Not now, maybe later.” In fact, God does not respond to Paul’s specific request at all! God does not mention the thorn, whatever or whoever it was. Instead, God’s answer can be stated this way: “Look at Me, Paul. Stop looking at the thorn. The problem is not your relationship with that person, it’s your relationship with Me. If you take your eyes off your problem, and focus on Me, you will see that I am all you need. My grace is enough for you. ”

In the days and weeks to come, we’ll be in more family and social situations than at any other time of year. It’s time to join with Paul, and look to God and His all-sufficient grace. Don’t pray with your eyes on your thorn. Pray with your eyes on Jesus Christ.

The Message Bible: 2 Corinthians 12:7-10
Because of the extravagance of those revelations, and so I wouldn’t get a big head, I was given the gift of a handicap to keep me in constant touch with my limitations. Satan’s angel did his best to get me down; what he in fact did was push me to my knees. No danger then of walking around high and mighty! At first I didn’t think of it as a gift, and begged God to remove it. Three times I did that, and then he told me, My grace is enough; it’s all you need. My strength comes into its own in your weakness. Once I heard that, I was glad to let it happen. I quit focusing on the handicap and began appreciating the gift. It was a case of Christ’s strength moving in on my weakness. Now I take limitations in stride, and with good cheer, these limitations that cut me down to size—abuse, accidents, opposition, bad breaks. I just let Christ take over! And so the weaker I get, the stronger I become.
Susan