Those situations in life that you may at first think are misfortunes, when you take a moment and look a little deeper, you will see that God’s grace encompasses all things, all events, and all situations. Look a little closer and you will find the pearls and blessings in disguise.
Following an accidental shipwreck, Jimmy clung for dear life in the water to a long piece of wood. Floating aimlessly in the ocean, he became the sole survivor. As the tide fluctuated, he finally drifted to an uninhabited island and made it onto the shore.
Jimmy strongly believed that God wanted him to live. So he prayed every day, wishing that God’s grace would help him again and let him return to his hometown.
Shipwrecked and alone on a deserted island
He sat on the rocks beside the seashore of the island every day, staring out at the sea eagerly hoping and expecting ships to pass by and rescue him. But day after day, nothing appeared except for the open sea and sky.
As hope faded, the shipwrecked Jimmy finally decided that he had to make a long-term plan for his survival in this dangerous environment. He used the life-saving wood as a pillar to build a simple hut, and began his search to store up survival food, shelter, and provisions.
Due to his unremitting efforts, his stockpile began to increase, he did not have to worry about food, and he gradually calmed down.
One evening, Jimmy went out to forage for food and returned to the hut. From a distance, he suddenly found that his hut was engulfed in a raging fire, and the smoke kept billowing into the sky.
It’s all over! it’s all over! he thought. Everything that he had worked so hard for turned to ashes in an instant.
God’s Grace to the rescue
The forlorn Jimmy threw himself onto the ground, pounding the ground and crying helplessly. He shouted in sorrow: “God! How could you treat me like this!”
After crying for so long, Jimmy finally fell asleep, exhausted.
At dawn, Jimmy awoke to the sound of a ship’s horn approaching the island. Stunned, he said: “Ah, someone is coming!”
The ragged Jimmy boarded the rescue ship in disbelief. He couldn’t wait to ask the crew: “How did you know I was here?”
“We saw the smoke rising into the sky and knew someone was trapped here”, they answered calmly.
There are so many instances of God’s grace happening in all our lives, in all parts of the world. A disaster turns into a blessing, a blessing in disguise. Although the specific plot, storyline, or processes may be different, they all demonstrate the same universal truth: “Whether we encounter misfortunes or blessings, they are God’s grace, because God knows what we really need, and what is best for us. Our Creator loves us more than we do ourselves.
Translator: Patty Zhang
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