Hope in the Face of Darkness

Has life slapped you in the face? Are you struggling to survive an emotional or financial hit? Are you facing major roadblocks on your life journey?

If everything looks bleak and you aren’t sure you’ll ever recover, here’s a message of hope  from the wonderful inspirational speaker Corrie ten Boom, who survived living in a concentration camp and watching her sister die. The tragedies of my life pale when compared to hers, but as I’m going through them, my own trials loom large. If I let them, they can overwhelm me and block out everything but the pain. This wise lady helped me look at the larger picture.

She compared life to a tapestry. We see the underside with its tangle of threads and knots, and have no idea why so many threads are dangling or why our lives have so many dark patches, but God, the master weaver, looking down from above sees the beautiful picture that is our lives. Each thread–dark or light–has its perfect place in the finished work of art.

So when dark times come, I try to remember that God sees what I cannot, and I know on the other side lies a work of great beauty.

Life Is But a Weaving
by Corrie ten Boom

My life is but a weaving between my God and me,
I do not choose the colors; He works so steadily.
Oft times He weaves in sorrow, and I in foolish pride,
Forget He sees the upper, and me the underside.
Not till the loom is silent, and the shuttles cease to fly,
Will God unroll the canvas, and explain the reason why.
The dark threads are as needful in the weavers skillful hand
As the threads of gold and silver in the pattern He has planned.

Secret to Overcoming Obstacles

Life throws you roadblocks all the time. Losing a promotion, a job, a spouse, a limb, your reputation… No one ever knows what they might be called on to face, but you have two choices:

You either let it throw you into despair and paralyze you OR you move on. Sure, I hear you saying, easy for you to say. You have no idea the horrible situation I’m facing right now.

And you’re right. I don’t. But my inspiration comes from Corrie ten Boom, who lived through the horrors of a Nazi concentration camp and watched her sister die. She lost her parents, relatives, and home. Yet she went on to become a motivational speaker. What made her story even more compelling is that she forgave her jailer–in person.

Many people move on from situations where they’ve been wronged or hurt, but they carry bitterness with them–a poison that eats at their hearts and ruins their present. To get beyond it, takes a new mindset. Reframe the situation until you can thank the person who caused it. Many times that can’t be done with human strength; it requires moving beyond yourself to the realm of the supernatural. Believing that a higher power knows what you are going throught and has a plan for your life is often the key to reframing situations.