Friday, April 27, 2007

Of Putting Troubles to Use

Storm clouds at dawn
Mexico Beach, Florida
photo by Linda McCloud +


What good is trouble? Fifteenth century writer Thomas a` Kempis left us this pearl of wisdom:

"Sometimes it is good for us to have troubles and hardships, for they often call us back to our own hearts . . . Sometimes it is good that we put up with people speaking against us, and sometimes it is good that we be thought of as bad and flawed, even when we do good things and have good intentions.

"Such troubles are often aids to humility, and they protect us from pride. Indeed, we are sometimes better at seeking God when people have nothing but bad things to say about us and when they refuse to give us credit for the good things we have done. That being the case, we should so root ourselves in God that we do not need to look for comfort anywhere else."

--From The Imitation of Christ, Chapter 12, "Of Putting Troubles to Use"

In Peace,

Linda +

The Rev. Linda McCloud
Founding Pastor
The Episcopal Church of Our Savior at Honey Creek
www.oursaviorhoneycreek.org