I was reflecting a few days ago and came across a gift that I didn’t realize that God had given me. On Tuesday, June 22, 2010, I cut my thumb on a table saw. I was very fortunate that I did not do more damage. It did require seven stitches. The wound healed nicely over time, and my right thumbprint is forever obliterated. I certainly was not pleased that I stupidly hurt myself, but I missed observing a specific blessing from God. Not the specific blessing of the healing, but what the injury changed in my daily practice of journaling.
Since November 1, 1988, I had written in my daily journal 7,897 days. (I had missed seven days somewhere along the way. Otherwise it would have been the full 7,904 days.) Not once did I ever type my journal entry on my laptop. Besides not being a good typist, I never thought about doing anything but writing out my journal entries.
Since my right thumb was temporary incapacitated, writing was not an option. So on June 23, 2010, I typed my first journal entry. I have never gone back to writing out my daily journal entries even though I did it almost daily for 21 years, 7 months, and 22 days. The accident on the 22nd forever changed how I journaled.
So what is the gift that God imbedded in the hurt? I am a much better typist. Is there a benefit to this skill? The first book that I authored took years to get into print. It was not entirely based on my puny typing skills, but they certainly contributed to the slow process. The last two books that I authored took months, not years, from beginning to end. God did not cause my accident, but He has certainly used it to His advantage.
That is one example of many in my life where I see God providing a gift in the midst of a hurt. I am not suggesting that God always provides a gift in the midst of hurt, but in my experience, He normally does. If I focus only on the hurt, I will miss His gift.
So, are you hurting? Is it emotional, physical, mental, spiritual, financial, or some other hurt or distress?
Remember: the hurt is just the “box” in which God delivers His gift.
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