By F. D. Adkins
Last Monday got off to a rocky start. I got up with the intention of getting the laundry over with first thing. And I did get the laundry done, it just did not go exactly as I had anticipated. The washing machine had decided that it no longer wanted to enter the spin cycle. So, it continued to rinse and drain, rinse and drain, rinse and drain. As it repeated this process, it also reset the timer to the beginning of the rinse cycle. Needless to say, I was frustrated. I had a load of sopping wet towels that needed to be rung out before I could put them in the dryer and a list of chores that I had thought I would already have completed at this point.
But when my husband pulled the washing machine out into the floor to work on it, he found a problem that could have turned out much worse than just a washing machine not spinning. The black rubber hose that connects the water supply from the wall to the washing machine to the water supply had a section that was swollen up like a water balloon. Of course, my husband quickly turned the water supply valve to the washing machine off.
Now, while a broken washing machine may be frustrating, it is not detrimental, and by far, much worse things happen in life. But I wanted to share this story because, as my husband pointed out to me, if the washing machine had not torn up, we would not have found the hose that was about to burst. And if that hose had burst while we were gone, our entire house would have flooded.
What’s my point? My point is that the broken washing machine actually turned out to be a blessing.
***
As we go through each day, we will face obstacles. Things will not always go perfectly. We will get discouraged. But God is always in control, and even though we only want sunshine and rainbows, God will use those bad times in life for good.
- “And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose.” Romans 8:28 KJV
For example, take a look at Joseph. His brothers had bad intentions. Joseph was sold as a slave, taken far from his home and family, and even imprisoned for something he did not do. But in the end, his family would have starved if those bad things had not happened.
- “But as for you, ye thought evil against me; but God meant it unto good, to bring to pass, as it is this day, to save much people alive.” Genesis 50:20 KJV
Paul and Silas were beaten and thrown into prison. If they had not been in prison, and if they had not chosen to stay when the prison doors opened and their stocks fell off, the prison guard would not have come to know Christ that night. And if that prison guard had not come to know Christ that night, his family would not have either.
- “And he took them the same hour of the night, and washed their stripes; and was baptized, he and all his, straightway. And when he had brought them into his house, he set meat before them, and rejoiced, believing in God with all his house.” Acts 16:33-34 KJV
Often when we face difficulties, we find ourselves complaining and grumbling. Why? Because we are human just like the people we read about in the Bible. God rescued the Israelites from a life of slavery and was taking them to a land flowing with milk and honey. But what did the Israelites do? They complained. And Jeremiah, a prophet of God, seems to be on an emotional roller coaster as he is singing praises to God in one verse and then wishing he has never been born in the next (Jeremiah 20:13-14).
However, as we go through this year growing in our walk with God and aspiring to be more like Jesus, let us give thanks in the bad times and the good times because we know God is working things out for the good just like my husband pointed out that we should be thankful for the washing machine tearing up. The purpose of the storm may not be as obvious as my washing machine example. We may not see the reason right away, or we may never see the purpose in the difficulty. But “…we know that all things work together for good to them that love God…” (Romans 8:28 KJV).
Bible verses for this week:
