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Pastor Gets Mugged!
Be joyful
always; pray continually; give thanks in all
circumstances,
for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus. 1 Thessalonians 5:18 NIV
No, it wasn't me. I'm talking about Matthew
Henry, a pastor in late 17th century
England. Henry was attacked by thieves while
walking home one night, They beat him
severely, stole his wallet, and left him
bleeding in the road. Later that night he
wrote about the experience in his diary, and
he recorded this prayer:
Lord, let
me thankful first because I was never
robbed before;
second, although they took my purse, they did not take my life; third, because although they took my all it was not much; and fourth, because it was I who was robbed, not I who robbed.
Note that he is not thankful for the
evil done by others, nor for the
physical pain he suffered as he prayed.
We are not called to give thanks
for things that God himself is
not thankful for! The old preacher gave
thanks that, by God's mercy, worse
things that could have happened did
not! In every trial, we can find
reasons to be thankful if we are willing
to be obedient and look. It is rarely
easy to see beyond our own hurts, but it
helps to know that--for all who have
received Christ's forgiveness as a free
gift--all our pains & sorrows will one
day fade away forever and ever (see
Revelation 21:4).
Pastor Charlie Scott |
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