O give thanks unto the Lord; call upon his name: make known his deeds among the people. ~Psalms 105:1
Many are attempting to erase our history of all the bad that has happened, but with each bad event that is erased, so are the great things God has done with man's bad intentions. After my first grade year in 1961, I don't remember ever hearing the name Squanto again. I don't remember what was said about him when I was only 6. I raised children and taught school for years. Squanto's name never crossed my mind again until I ran across this picture book by Eric Metaxas. Squanto and the miracle of Thanksgiving.
The Thanksgiving tale of the Indian who greeted the Pilgrims with an English “Welcome” and then taught them to plant corn and catch fish always seemed to me to be just that – a tale, until I learned how God brought it all about.
A slave ship sailed along a shore, kidnapping young boys and taking them back to Spain; a n entire tribe wiped out by disease; a lone man given his freedom returned from Europe to find no one left. There’s far more to the truth than meets the eye here. God is always taking the evil of man's devices and turning them into good for those who love him. The slave traders of Europe meant it for evil against the Indians. They cared only for their pocketbooks, but God used the terrible situation for good. The people who came seeking to worship Him in a new land were starving and fearful of the Indians surrounding them. They needed someone who could help and someone they could understand. God placed Squanto, the Indian, once captured and sold as a slave, there to willingly help the starving Pilgrims.
In the Bible, Joseph’s brothers sold him into slavery. They thought he probably died in Egypt until they went there to buy food. Who should they find to provide for them, but their own brother, in control of all the food of Egypt ? Joseph’s brothers meant it for evil against Joseph, but God had used it for good.
Joseph said to them, “Do not be afraid, for am I in the place of God? But as for you, you meant evil against me; but God meant it for good, in order to bring it about as it is this day, to save many people alive. ~Genesis 50:19,20.
Confusion and mistrust surround us on every hand, but God has not left us alone. He is working all things for our good
Pray for our nation and all our leaders. Pray for wisdom as Christians. Help wherever you can. Do not be afraid, because God is with us through every circumstance, working all things for our good. (Romans 8:28).
Do you know other stories of how God used terrible situations for good?
Here are a few places to begin.
This week, reflect on the things in your life that at the moment, were horrific and hard to bear, but God used them for your good.
In God We Trust
Father God, help us trust You even when we cannot see how You are working things together for our good. In Jesus's name. Amen
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