Sunday, February 21, 2010
"I had often said that if the Indians should come, I should rather be killed by them than taken alive, but when it came to the trial my mind changed..."
Confession: I'm a planner. I think through my decisions before making them to be sure that I've examined every possible angle. If I have the time to prepare for something, I will.
But there are some things in life that we simply can't plan for; unexpected illness, car accidents. We are caught off guard and unaware by the unexpected. However, even with the problems and decisions we can expect, there is still a chance that within the moment of our decision, we realize that we were wrong. And change our mind. This, I believe, is what occurred when Mary Rowlandson's settlement was attacked by Native Americans[1].
"It is not my tongue, or my pen, can express the sorrows of my heart, and bitterness of my spirit that I had at this departure; but God was with me in a wonderful manner, carrying me along, and bearing up my spirit, that it did not quite fail."
There are so many times in life, it seems, when we feel like we can hardly bear our hardships. For Mary Rowlandson, this was certainly one of those times. But I think we are often surprised by what we can endure. Although it is not what we can endure; rather, it is what God can endure. So we really should not be surprised by this if we understand who God is and choose to serve him. However, we (myself included) always seem to fall short in this.
While I'm impressed by Rowlandson's choice to praise God through and in spite of her circumstances, I don't feel that it is as noteworthy as others do. I suppose this is because my life has had circumstances where praising God is difficult (more so than most other college students, I would expect), and also partly because I think that this is what God calls us to do: Praise Him.
He doesn't say, "Praise me if your life is wonderful," or "Praise me when you get that job/promotion/boyfriend/girlfriend/etc." No, He simply tells us to praise him. Without any qualifiers, to praise him. That means he deserves praise in every circumstance, situation, and trial. Because of who He is.
So I suppose that Rowlandson deserves acknowledgment in this. And maybe I don't mean that her faith and trust in God isn't remarkable, but that it's simply an example of what all of us should do when we face difficult circumstances. She shows readers that God should be praised in all circumstances, and hopefully gives them an encouragement toward this kind of faith.
[1]Note: This is my is my term for people of this ethnic group; Rowlandson refers to them as bloody heathen[s], ravenous beasts, savages, and finally (the most politically correct term she uses in a slew of very derogatory names) Indians.
Confession: I'm a planner. I think through my decisions before making them to be sure that I've examined every possible angle. If I have the time to prepare for something, I will.
But there are some things in life that we simply can't plan for; unexpected illness, car accidents. We are caught off guard and unaware by the unexpected. However, even with the problems and decisions we can expect, there is still a chance that within the moment of our decision, we realize that we were wrong. And change our mind. This, I believe, is what occurred when Mary Rowlandson's settlement was attacked by Native Americans[1].
"It is not my tongue, or my pen, can express the sorrows of my heart, and bitterness of my spirit that I had at this departure; but God was with me in a wonderful manner, carrying me along, and bearing up my spirit, that it did not quite fail."
There are so many times in life, it seems, when we feel like we can hardly bear our hardships. For Mary Rowlandson, this was certainly one of those times. But I think we are often surprised by what we can endure. Although it is not what we can endure; rather, it is what God can endure. So we really should not be surprised by this if we understand who God is and choose to serve him. However, we (myself included) always seem to fall short in this.
While I'm impressed by Rowlandson's choice to praise God through and in spite of her circumstances, I don't feel that it is as noteworthy as others do. I suppose this is because my life has had circumstances where praising God is difficult (more so than most other college students, I would expect), and also partly because I think that this is what God calls us to do: Praise Him.
He doesn't say, "Praise me if your life is wonderful," or "Praise me when you get that job/promotion/boyfriend/girlfriend/etc." No, He simply tells us to praise him. Without any qualifiers, to praise him. That means he deserves praise in every circumstance, situation, and trial. Because of who He is.
So I suppose that Rowlandson deserves acknowledgment in this. And maybe I don't mean that her faith and trust in God isn't remarkable, but that it's simply an example of what all of us should do when we face difficult circumstances. She shows readers that God should be praised in all circumstances, and hopefully gives them an encouragement toward this kind of faith.
[1]Note: This is my is my term for people of this ethnic group; Rowlandson refers to them as bloody heathen[s], ravenous beasts, savages, and finally (the most politically correct term she uses in a slew of very derogatory names) Indians.
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