Good article. Thanks for sharing.
Vicki
----- Original Message -----
From: "Phil Scovell" <[log in to unmask]>
To: <[log in to unmask]>
Sent: Wednesday, June 09, 2004 10:44 AM
Subject: Where Is God When I Am Hurting?
> Where Is God When I Am Hurting?
>
>
> By Phil Scovell
>
>
>
> I was probably about 8 or 9 years old when it happened. When
> I got bored and couldn't find anything to do, I would always go
> and ask mom. Her answer was always the same, "Spit in your shoe."
> Very creative. When I got old enough to have a come back such as,
> "What else can I do besides that, mom?" Her answer was always the
> same, "Ask me again and I'll tell you the same." No help there, I
> reasoned. When I got bored, however, I always did the one thing I
> really loved and that was riding my bike.
>
> I would ride around my block because two sides of the square
> were busy streets with lots of traffic and two corners had gas
> stations. I would pump for all I was worth and roll as fast as I
> could go. One side was slightly down hill, too, and I could get
> my bike up to over 30 miles an hour. I had to be careful around
> the two gas stations because cars were, of course, always coming
> and going but I kept a sharp eye out as I made the rounds.
>
> One day, I decided to reverse my run and ride counter
> clockwise. I have no idea why I made this decision but it was
> just something different to do.
>
> At one corner was a used car lot. It was small and the
> owners lived on my street above the car lot on a pretty high hill.
> His office building for the car lot was literally built right up
> to the sidewalk which ran in front of the business. thus, when
> making the turn to the right around his building to empty out on
> my street, you could see nothing in advance. You just had to pray
> nobody was there. One day, my prayers were not answered.
>
> As I made the turn, there was a car, big as life, directly in
> front of me. He was on the wrong side of the road. He wasn't
> supposed to be there. Why was he there in the first place? I
> stomped down on my breaks with all the strength I could muster
> but slammed directly into the car bumper and fell off my bike into
> the street. The man jumped out and helped me. He thought he had
> killed me I'm sure. I was scared, not because of what had just
> occurred but what could have occurred. I kept insisting I was all
> right as the man helped me pick my bike up. Fortunately, I had
> slowed just enough that my bike sustained no damage. The man
> inquired as to my safety one more time and I insisted I was fine
> and everything was ok. He let me go.
>
> As I peddled home, I realized how easily I could have been
> hurt, or even killed, by doing what I had just done. From then
> on, I never rounded that corner without nearly stopping to a crawl
> in order to peak around to see if anybody was in the way. To this
> day, I cannot figure out why that man's car was on the wrong side
> of the road.
>
> Have you ever found yourself on the right side of the wrong
> side of something? As far as you know, things are going along
> normally. Nothing is different. You've made few changes that
> should effect anything in your life. Suddenly, wham. You are on
> the ground eating dirt. Where was God? Why did He let it happen?
> You are scared and all sorts of horrible thoughts detonate deep
> within your imagination and you think all types of wild hideous
> frightening thoughts. Maybe you just found out you have cancer.
> Perhaps you just lost your best friend. Maybe a parent died after
> suffering far too long. Perhaps one of your children, or
> grandchildren, are hurt and need emergency surgery. Perhaps your
> mate announces they want a divorce. Maybe you found out your 17
> year old daughter has had an abortion or your 16 year old son is
> HIV positive. Maybe your Christian wife of 12 years, who has been
> working in the church with you as the youth pastor, announces she
> is lesbian and leaves you. I had a man one day sitting in my
> office who told me he had been diagnosed as schizophrenic. A
> pastor friend called me one day and asked if I knew any Christian
> counselors. I asked why. My friend said, a good pastor friend of
> his lived in California. The man was married, had four children,
> and had been pastoring all his adult life. He was in his mid
> fifties. He had announced to his wife he was leaving her and the
> church because he was a latent homosexual. What if one day, as a
> friend of mine did, you and your friends go out to the lake where
> you always swim. Diving in, the water is too shallow and you
> strike your head. When they drag you out just before you drown,
> you learn you are paralyzed from the neck down for the rest of
> your life. Maybe you learn your fourteen year young daughter is
> pregnant. What if you are a little boy or girl coming home from
> school only to be told your father died that day. Where is God at
> all these times?
>
> The answer is too simple for human minds to remotely
> comprehend. God is where He has always been and that is with you.
> Sometimes you even get to see him. My mom did when my father
> died. Jesus stood on the other side of the bed and when my mom
> looked up, she saw Him. She said she could have reached across
> the bed and touched; Him because He was that real. Mom said,
> "You've come to take him?" Jesus said, "Yes. I have come for
> him." Mom let dad go. I believe that is the key, that is,
> letting go. Sometimes that isn't possible without help from some
> friend who loves you and that I understand very well. Some of
> these things I have mentioned I have experienced myself. I have
> finally learned, through the pain and the fears and the tears,
> that Jesus is always with us and at the end of life, we will find
> Him there as well.
>
> I Flew Kites With Jesus
> www.SafePlaceFellowship.com
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