Splinters

Splinters.  Tiny pieces of wood, glass or metal that get under your skin that causes irritation and pain until you get them out.  We all get them one time or another during our lifetimes.  Sometime during the course of the day, Will got one in his finger.  While I was trying to get it out, he screamed, jerked, cried, and anything else you can think of while I was trying to remove it.  Even though it caused pain, it was only temporary.  The pain would end as soon as the foreign object was gone.  Instead of sitting still and letting me work, Will cried out, pitched a fit over it hurting and made it impossible for me to work.  Instead of taking just a few seconds, it was all over in about forty-five minutes.

As I was working, explaining and observing, I thought of how we are with God.

Us:  "God, it hurts!!"
God:  "Yes, I know child, but only for a minute if you let me do what I need to do."
Us:  "NOOO!!  It's too painful!!  STOP!!  Please stop!!!"
God:  "Let's keep going.  I've almost got it."
Us:  "NO!!  I don't want to do it any more.  Let me wait until tomorrow to take care of it."
God:  "No, it will be worse tomorrow.  I need to get it now and make it better."
Us:  "Do we have to?"
God:  "If you let me work, it won't take long.  It will all be over with quickly."
Us:  "Okay...first let me breathe...I'm not ready yet....just a little longer."
God:  "Let me look at it."
Us:  "Just a look.  OUCH!!  You hurt me!"
God:  "I didn't touch you.  I didn't even get close.  Let me try again."
Us:  "Do we have to do this?"
God:  "Let me try again.  Look, here it is.  All better now."
Us:  "It's over?  Wow, it doesn't hurt anymore."
God:  "See, I told you.  Let me bandage it to protect it.....There...all done!"

If we would just let God work, He might accomplish what He needs a lot sooner.  It would still hurt at times but not as bad.  If we fight Him over it, it just makes the situation worse.  Abba will have to dig deeper than He intended to get all the junk out.  But, He will finish and make it all better.

Will knew I didn't want to hurt him.  He knew the splinter had to come out.  Because he fought me over it, the process took longer than it needed to.  Isn't that the way we are when God wants to remove something potential dangerous or hurtful in our lives?  We just need to trust Him to take care of it.

²⁸ And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are the called according to His purpose. (Romans 8:28, New King James Version)