There was a man who was discovered on a tiny island in the Pacific. A castaway, he was found by some sailors blown off track in a storm. The man was thin, but had survived and built three small huts.
One of the sailors asked him, "Why are there three huts?" The man explained, "One is my house, one is my church and the other is the church I used to go to."
It is a great example of the mindset of those who change their lives in the face of the least discomfort—and in this man's case an imagined discomfort. Of course it isn't even a story about changing churches, which may be necessary sometimes (although less necessary when you're marooned on an island.) It is a story about offense, about loss of peace and a belief that internal weakness can be shored up by external reaction.
Among mere mortals, the greatest spiritual lights in history are the men and women who maintained their peace in the face of every difficulty. The Dalai Lama, Mother Teresa, Mahatma Gandhi, Martin Luther King, and Nelson Mandela all turned their faces away from offense and continued their work.
Gandhi said it this way, "Each one has to find his peace from within. And for peace to be real, it must be unaffected by outside circumstances." How did they do it? They knew the great secret of a spiritual life, which is: Even our worst experiences are part of becoming prepared for that which God has prepared for us.
The path is long and it challenges our patience at every turn. Think of David who was anointed to be King Saul's successor as a child. Twenty years passed before he was able to take the crown and in that time he was hounded into hiding in caves to avoid being killed, and had to develop a troop of misfits into an army to defend himself and the future God had promised him. Life has no shortcuts. Our challenges and problems are part of the trip and the trip is necessary.
By the time David came to power he was ready.
Our castaway thought he would shield himself from upset and offense by building himself another church. The thing is, when he changed huts, he brought the chip on his shoulder along to the new one. He believed that peace would come from outside himself, when it really only comes from within.
Everyone is on a different path. We will bump into each other from time to time, the trick is to stay rooted and in peace, learning from every difficulty and offense we may have to endure. In the end we will have the joy of a peaceful life and finally, be prepared for the future God has prepared for us.
Blessings,
Nancy
