July 8, 2020 –
The college student was sitting on the bench outside of the city library, waiting for it to open.
Suddenly, a school bus with 12 to 15 grade-school children arrived for a field trip to the library. Their chaperones told the kids to hold one another’s hand and stick together and not speak to strangers.
As in most small field trips, there was a young out-of-the-box boy who immediately broke the rules and approached the college student sitting on the bench. One girl shouted out to him, “Don’t talk to strangers!” The boy thought for a moment, and then asked the young man on the bench, “Are you a stranger?” “Yes, I am.” One chaperone spoke up and reminded the children that not all strangers would harm them.
The boy continued, “Do you have a knife? Strangers have knives, and they hurt kids.” The college boy set up straight and said, “Yes, I do, but it isn’t for harming kids, I use it for whittling.” The boy’s next question was, “What’s whittling?
For many Christians, God is a stranger waiting to hurt or punish them. So, they attempt to avoid Him. But God shouldn’t be a stranger; He is your friend and invites you to confide in Him. The Bible says, “Come to Me, all of you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. All of you, take up My yoke and learn from Me, because I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for yourselves. For My yoke is easy, and My burden is light.” (Matthew 11:28-30, HCSB)
God doesn’t use prayer to punish us; He uses it to bless us. If you ask, “Why doesn’t God bless me?” You’ve asked the wrong question.”