carpenter

  My mother's father worked as a carpenter. On this particular day, he was

  building some crates for the clothes his church was sending to orphanages

  in China. On his way home, he reached into his shirt pocket to find his

  glasses, but they were gone.

  When he mentally replayed his earlier actions, he realized what had

  happened; the glasses had slipped out of his pocket unnoticed and fallen

  into one of the crates, which he had nailed shut. His brand new glasses

  were heading for China!

  The Great Depression was at its height and Grandpa had six children. He

  had spent $20 for those glasses that very morning. He was upset by the

  thought of having to buy another pair. It's not fair, he told God as he

  drove home in frustration. I've been very faithful in giving of my time

  and money to your work, and now this.

  Months later, the director of the orphanage was on furlough in the United

  States. He wanted to visit all the churches that supported him in China,

  so he came to speak one Sunday at my grandfather's small church in

  Chicago. The missionary began by thanking the people for their

  faithfulness in supporting him.

  But most of all, he said, I must thank you for the glasses you sent last.

  You see, the Communists had just swept through the orphanage, destroying

  everything, including my glasses.

  I was desperate. Even if I had the money, there was simply no way of

  replacing those glasses. Along with not being able to see well, I

  experienced headaches every day, so my coworkers and I were much in prayer

  about this. Then your crates arrived. When my staff removed the covers,

  they found a pair of glasses lying on top.

  The missionary paused long enough to let his words sink in. Then, still

  gripped with the wonder of it all, he continued: Folks, when I tried on

  the glasses, it was as though they had been custom made just for me! I

  want to thank you for being a part of that.

  The people listened, happy for the miraculous glasses. But the missionary

  surely must have confused their church with another, they thought. There

  were no glasses on their list of items to be sent overseas. But sitting

  quietly in the back, with tears streaming down his face, an ordinary

  carpenter realized the Master Carpenter had used him in an extraordinary

  way.

  There are times we want to blame God instead of thanking him! Perhaps we

  ought to try to thank Him more often. May GOD bless your week. Look for

  the perfect mistakes. People are like tea bags - you have to put them in

  hot water before you know how strong they are.

  ~Author Unknown