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Life is filled with adversity. Whether you call it hardship, danger, misfortune or just plain difficulty it is still adversity. We are living in an age of such things but there are lessons adversity offers us if we will just take the time to see them.

            Many of the characters of the Bible we call heroes were born out of adversity. There are heroes of today that display the same character traits as these found in the Bible. Each one offers guidance in how to benefit and overcome the adversities we face in this life.

            Too often we see any kind of hardship as a negative. And truly it does contain negativity, but it also offers gems of wisdom if we seek them out. I am not advocating you seek adversity as it will find you; I guarantee. What I am asking is that you use these times to learn valuable lessons that can enhance your character. I want you to see the positive that is often imbedded in these times.

            As we discuss the people listed in this book, I hope you will recognize that they are and were human just like you and me. The thing that stands out about them is that they took their times of adversity and turned them into an opportunity to produce a good outcome.

            Another thing I want you to see is that each of them had strengths and weaknesses. They chose to build on their strengths and create an environment that benefited others as well as themselves. We are offered the same opportunities when we face adversity. Like them the choice is up to us.

            I hope as we visit them you will see the character traits that helped them become the heroes we look up to. Although we may never reach the place of a historical hero, we can be as heroic as they were right where we are.

            I have included the Scripture reference to each of the Bible characters in this book. Although I may not quote the entire passage listed, I may emphasize certain text. As in all my writings, I encourage you to read the Bible for yourself. It gives you a standard by which to judge my words as to whether they are true or misleading. After all I too am human like you.

SOME GROUNDWORK

          I want to start with a story I heard a long time ago. I think it helps us have a reference point to build our thoughts on.

            A man was given the privilege of seeing what heaven and hell was like. His first place to visit was hell. There was a lot of chaos emanating from the closed door. When he opened the door and stepped inside he saw a hugh banquet hall that went on for miles. The table was set with all kinds of delicious foods and drinks but the people seated around the table had their hands set in splints so that they could not bend their elbows to feed themselves. They were complaining and arguing and trying to somehow remove the splints but to no avail. It was a very sad and disturbing sight.

            Next he stood before the door to heaven. He could hear laughter and sounds of enjoyment emanating as he stood outside. As he entered the room he was surprised at what he saw. As before, there was the same  hugh banquet hall. The table was set with all kinds of delicious foods and drinks and the people seated around the table had their hands set in splints so that they could not bend their elbows to feed themselves. But instead of berating their condition they were feeding the person on their right and left and being fed by those on either side of them. They were laughing and chatting and enjoying just being together.

            The point I want you to see in this story is that both places had the same environment and adversity. However, the one group spent their time trying to change what they could not while the other found ways to help each other and enjoy the opportunity that was available when they worked together to overcome the obstacle they faced.

            When we face adversity it seems to keep us from doing the things we want to do. We can focus on the hindrance the adversity causes or we can look for ways to find opportunity and creativity to add joy into the difficult time. The point  to consider is, do we look for ways to find joy and creativity in tough times or just sit and wallow and complain.

            The second thing I want to address before we proceed is that each person we will talk about had tenacity. They displayed determination to address the adversity and find solutions. They were persistent when answers didn't come right away. They didn't get discouraged for long. They were persistent. We need to develop the habit of tenacity.

            Life is always going to throw us some curves. We must remember that we have overcome such things before. The exact problem may not reoccur, but we have found solutions to adversity before and we can overcome this time as well. Remember adversity comes in many forms, as we stated in our introduction. It is how we face it that is the issue.

            I remember one Christmas when my family was in dire straits financially. There was no money for decorations or gifts. My mother was creative and went out and found a large  dead tree branch which she covered with whipped wax from candle bits she found around the house.  We decorated it with things made from colored paper. It was a very unique tree. For gifts we made some gifts from things we had and gave books and clothes we had outgrown.

            You might think that was a sad event, but for us it is a precious memory. We had so much fun thinking of things to make and do to make Christmas special in spite of our circumstances that we didn't even consider how poor we were at the time. We felt very rich indeed.

I thought it might be good to list the lessons adversity offers before we look at the people I have chosen to give you as insight into these lessons. I hope listing these lessons will give you a framework to build your arsenal against adversity with. I hope they will give you a toolbox of tools to draw from when adversity comes to call in your life.

-- Everyone faces adversity whether it comes in the form of hardship, crisis, danger, misfortune or just plain difficulty. It is not adversity itself but how you prepare for and address it when it comes that often determines the final outcome.

-- Today is the time to plan for how you will face adversity. Think about what things that are unchangeable in your life and character regardless of what life throws at you. Then adjust the weak places with things that will sustain you when it comes.

-- Remember adversity may change your circumstances but it should not change who you are and what you stand for.

-- Adversity will show you and the world what you are truly made of.

--Work on the things you can address and don't allow the things you can't to hamper you overcoming adversity.

-- Learn from others, both past and present, how they confronted adversity and overcame it. Remember you are not the first or last person to face adversity.

--Adversity should challenge you to become and better stronger person. You get to choose how it will affect your character.

--Adversity may allow you to help others become better people. You can be a positive example. Sometimes the rewards of your overcoming adversity benefits others more than yourself.

--Most times adversity can be overcome and does not come to stay. But even if the effects of adversity changes your physical life it does not have to alter who you are

Noah

            Whether you attended Sunday School or not, everyone knows the story of Noah and the ark. It seems to be a favorite. In fact, for centuries people have looked for the remains of the ark whether to validate or disprove its existence.  Science has discovered that many parts of the world today were indeed underwater. But whether you accept the story of Noah or not, he has some valuable lessons to teach us.

            As I am writing this book the world is facing a pandemic caused by a virus they knew nothing about when it started spreading. Yet, as we have learned about its characteristics, the type of people it affects gravely, what parts of the body it attacks, we have created ways to identify and treat it. Noah faced the same predicament in a different way. Rain had never appeared on the earth before. [see Genesis 2:5-6]

            Then everything changed when God said... Genesis 6:13,14  So God said to Noah, “I am going to put an end to all people, for the earth is filled with violence because of them. I am surely going to destroy both them and the earth.  So make yourself an ark of cypress wood; make rooms in it and coat it with pitch inside and out.

            Noah is told to build an ark because God was sending rain and would flood the entire earth.  Here was something that Noah knew nothing about--rain. God gave Noah explicit instruction on what to do to save his life and family. [see story in Bible]. Noah now had the choice to obey the instructions or ignore them. We have been faced with the same choice. Our governments have laid out instructions to keep us safe and protect others from getting the virus. We too get to choose whether to obey or not.

            Scripture tells us that Noah was obedient for 100 years before the flood came. And he spent another 14 months in the ark after that. Some have had trouble being obedient for 6 weeks as we learn about and battle this virus.

            Noah did what he knew to be right when all those around him did not. Today society puts lots of pressure on us to conform to the current standard of social order. The problem is this standard changes and what was right yesterday is no longer acceptable. Noah had a moral compass that didn't change just because society had changed. Since he had a solid foundation he was ready to face the challenge of building the ark against something he had never seen or encountered. He didn't waver even when it was many years before the rain came.

            We need to have a moral compass that does not change whenever circumstances change. It will keep us steady even in rough times for we know it is solid and will keep us moving in the right direction.

            Noah had patience. He had endurance, persistence, and serenity. Even though he didn't understand what exactly  was going to happen he had confidence in where he put his faith and trust and could face whatever was to come with confidence.

            Many times we quit after a few tries if things don't turn out as we think they should. Patience is not a virtue we seem to cultivate these days. Look at our technology. We want it faster and better and are never satisfied with what we have. We go over our heads into debt because we can't wait to save for all the things we want. In that case, we may make our own adversity. I am not saying improvement is bad. What I am saying is being content with the good things we do have without putting our finances in straits is wise.

            What if Noah had decided to disregard God's instruction, it is possible that you and I would not be here today. But the real point is his actions had a long range and far reaching impact on others. Like Noah we may never know how our choices and actions affected others. We may never know what consequences might have occurred had we chosen to not do what we know is right. But like Noah we can be assured that doing what is right regardless how long it takes will have a positive effect on those we care about.

            We will always run into unknown adversity but we can follow Noah by choosing to be obedient to what we know is right and being patient until we see an end to what we are facing.

Here is a review of the lessons we can learn from Noah when facing adversity.

·       Begin now to establish a moral base that does not change. A regular compass points north no matter how you turn it. We need a set of principles that will keep us pointing in the right direction regardless of how society changes.

·       Do what you know is right even if no one else does. That takes courage.

·       Be patient because adversity never goes away over night.

·       Keep yourself in a positive mind set. See the good things that you do have and try to keep a calm attitude.

 Here are excerpts from Genesis 5:32-10:1 (NIV) so you can read the story for yourself.

After Noah was 500 years old, he became the father of Shem, Ham and Japheth. This is the account of Noah and his family. Noah was a righteous man, blameless among the people of his time, and he walked faithfully with God. ¹⁰ Noah had three sons: Shem, Ham and Japheth.

 Now the earth was corrupt in God’s sight and was full of violence. God saw how corrupt the earth had become, for all the people on earth had corrupted their ways. So God said to Noah, “I am going to put an end to all people, for the earth is filled with violence because of them. I am surely going to destroy both them and the earth. So make yourself an ark of cypress wood; make rooms in it and coat it with pitch inside and out. Noah did everything just as God commanded him.

The Lord then said to Noah, “Go into the ark, you and your whole family, because I have found you righteous in this generation. Take with you seven pairs of every kind of clean animal, a male and its mate, and one pair of every kind of unclean animal, a male and its mate,  and also seven pairs of every kind of bird, male and female, to keep their various kinds alive throughout the earth.  Seven days from now I will send rain on the earth for forty days and forty nights, and I will wipe from the face of the earth every living creature I have made.”

And Noah did all that the Lord commanded him.

Noah was six hundred years old when the floodwaters came on the earth.  And Noah and his sons and his wife and his sons’ wives entered the ark to escape the waters of the flood.  On that very day Noah and his sons, Shem, Ham and Japheth, together with his wife and the wives of his three sons, entered the ark. They had with them every wild animal according to its kind, all livestock according to their kinds, every creature that moves along the ground according to its kind and every bird according to its kind, everything with wings. Pairs of all creatures that have the breath of life in them came to Noah and entered the ark. ¹ The animals going in were male and female of every living thing, as God had commanded Noah. Then the Lord shut him in.

For forty days the flood kept coming on the earth, and as the waters increased they lifted the ark high above the earth. The waters rose and increased greatly on the earth, and the ark floated on the surface of the water. Only Noah was left, and those with him in the ark.

The waters flooded the earth for a hundred and fifty days. But God remembered Noah and all the wild animals and the livestock that were with him in the ark, and he sent a wind over the earth, and the waters receded.  The water receded steadily from the earth. At the end of the hundred and fifty days the water had gone down and on the seventeenth day of the seventh month the ark came to rest on the mountains of Ararat.  The waters continued to recede until the tenth month, and on the first day of the tenth month the tops of the mountains became visible.

After forty days Noah opened a window he had made in the ark  and sent out a raven, and it kept flying back and forth until the water had dried up from the earth.  Then he sent out a dove to see if the water had receded from the surface of the ground. But the dove could find nowhere to perch because there was water over all the surface of the earth; so it returned to Noah in the ark. He reached out his hand and took the dove and brought it back to himself in the ark. He waited seven more days and again sent out the dove from the ark.  When the dove returned to him in the evening, there in its beak was a freshly plucked olive leaf! Then Noah knew that the water had receded from the earth. He waited seven more days and sent the dove out again, but this time it did not return to him.

By the first day of the first month of Noah’s six hundred and first year, the water had dried up from the earth. Noah then removed the covering from the ark and saw that the surface of the ground was dry.  By the twenty-seventh day of the second month the earth was completely dry. Then God said to Noah,  “Come out of the ark, you and your wife and your sons and their wives.  Bring out every kind of living creature that is with you—the birds, the animals, and all the creatures that move along the ground—so they can multiply on the earth and be fruitful and increase in number.

 So Noah came out, together with his sons and his wife and his sons’ wives.  All the animals and all the creatures that move along the ground and all the birds—everything that moves on land—came out of the ark, one kind after another.

²Then Noah built an altar to the Lord and, taking some of all the clean animals and clean birds, he sacrificed burnt offerings on it.  The Lord smelled the pleasing aroma and said in his heart: “Never again will I curse the ground because of humans, even thoughevery inclination of the human heart is evil from childhood. And never again will I destroy all living creatures, as I have done “As long as the earth endures, seedtime and harvest, cold and heat, summer and winter, day and night will never cease.”

Then God blessed Noah and his sons, saying to them, “Be fruitful and increase in number and fill the earth.

Tammie Jo Shults

      Like Noah, Tammie Jo Shults had created a lifestyle that would help her with whatever she faced in life. Everything that went into Tammie Jo's character was ready for the unexpected and that is exactly what happened in 2018.

Taken from an interview done by Decision Magazine, October 2019

      On April 17,2018 Southwest Airlines Flight 1380 was on its way from LaGuardia to Dallas with 144 passengers aboard. However, twenty minutes into the flight something horrible happened.

      The aircraft began to shudder violently and the cockpit filled with smoke making visibility impossible. Tammie and her co-pilot, Darren Eillsor, grabbed the controls. Just as suddenly, there was a deafening roar and a piercing pain stabbed their ears. At the same time the plane skidded to the left and the nose headed for the ground.

      The cause? A piece of turbine fan blade had broken off and caused catastrophic  engine damage. The shrapnel from the explosion took out chunks of the wing and tail, ripped a panel underneath the wing and severed the hydraulic lines around the engine.

      A piece of debris shattered the window of row 14  and sucked the air out of the cabin. Though the passenger seated there was only partially sucked out because she was wearing her seatbelt; she  did not survive. Everyone worked to get her back into the cabin and did CPR to try and revive her to no avail.

      The left engine had now become an anchor.

      Working together the pilots were able to stop the roll. Now they had to work with the plane and not against her to keep it airborne and land in Philly. Of course there was panic in the cabin so Tammie's first job was to reassure the passengers and decrease the panic. Even with having gained control the plane continued a bone-jarring shudder.

      Tammie said in an interview, 'We had a plan and a destination. I think about how important that is in our spiritual walk and relationships, and it doesn't have to change our circumstances to change us. We were still in the same aircraft, but it changed everything.'

      Regardless of who's turn it is when an emergency happens, the captain 's job is to land the plane.  With Tammie's hands full keeping the plane upright, Darren took over communication with air traffic control. Needing to make one more 90-degree right turn to line to plane up with the runway, when Tammie put in controls to execute the turn nothing happened. Total silence came from the cockpit and from the ground. It would be months before Tammie heard her voice in that void say, 'Heavenly Father? Lord, what am I missing?'

      The answer was clear but not what Tammie wanted to do. She would need to pull power from her good engine and sacrifice airspeed and altitude. With that dead weight left engine there was no way the plane was going turn right. Slowly the nose swung around and Tammie ordered the landing gear down. The strain on the engine, the decrease in speed had them descending as they headed towards the runway. She had one shot.

      Tammie saw the fire trucks at the end of the runway so she let the plane coast towards them once they touched down. The voice recorder put it her final words, 'Thank you, Lord. Thanks you, Lord.'

      When asked what lessons do you hope people will take away from your experience, Tammie said,' The habits that make you on the ground, in building character, all come together to sum up who you are and what you are. When your mettle is tested...it's going to be all the things you have previously put in your tool box.'

Footnote:

You can read her story in her book, Nerves of Steel  available at BillyGrahamBookstore.org.

 

Daniel

            Here is another favorite Bible story; Daniel in the lions' den. But there is much more to this man.

            Although Daniel was Hebrew, he spent most of his life in Babylon. He was imported as a captive when Nebuchadnezzar conquered Jerusalem in 605 B.C. He must have been a young man but he had been in Israel long enough to know about God and the rules and practices of his Jewish faith.  And soon it was evident that Babylon wanted to erase that knowledge from his mind and practices.

            His Hebrew name, Daniel, means "God is Judge." Shortly after his arrival in Babylon, however, probably as part of the Babylonian’s attempt to brainwash the young exile, his name was changed to Belteshazzar, which means, "Bel’s prince." Bel was the ruling god of the Babylonian pantheon.

             Part of his preparation involved eating the king’s delicacies. Daniel refused, probably because the meat and wine had been offered to idols and/or conflicted with Israel’s dietary laws.

Daniel 1:3-10The king ordered Ashpenaz, his chief official, to select from among the Israelite exiles some young men of the royal family and of the noble families. They had to be handsome, intelligent, well-trained, quick to learn, and free from physical defects, so that they would be qualified to serve in the royal court. Ashpenaz was to teach them to read and write the Babylonian language.  

The king also gave orders that every day they were to be given the same food and wine as the members of the royal court. After three years of this training they were to appear before the king. Among those chosen were Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah, all of whom were from the tribe of Judah. The chief official gave them new names: Belteshazzar, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego.

Daniel made up his mind not to let himself  become ritually unclean by eating the food and drinking the wine of the royal court, so he asked Ashpenaz to help him, and God made Ashpenaz sympathetic to Daniel. Ashpenaz, however, was afraid of the king, so he said to Daniel, “The king has decided what you are to eat and drink, and if you don't look as fit as the other young men, he may kill me.   

            Here was Daniel and his three friends exiles in a foreign land that did not believe in the same morals or even in their God. It would have been easy for them to just go along and fit in. Isn't that what we mostly do today? We try our best to just fit in. No one would know that Daniel and his friends had been taught differently. None of his family back home would know whether he kept his faith and standards. After all here was an opportunity for advancement in Babylon, all he had to do was fit in.

            But Daniel would not give up his moral convictions. Still he respectfully asked for a trial to prove that he was wise in his choice. Daniel was a skilled negotiator. When ordered to eat foods that offended his conscience, he made a humble appeal to the steward in charge. When the steward rejected his appeal, Daniel made a counter-offer. “'Please test your servants for ten days: Give us nothing but vegetables to eat and water to drink. Then compare our appearance with that of the young men who eat the royal food, and treat your servants in accordance with what you see. [Daniel 1:11-19]

            God blessed Daniel's faithfulness and gave him and his friends superior wisdom and understanding. God gave them true wisdom that helped them serve others all their lives. They understood things that others missed.[ Daniel 1:17-21]... No matter what question the king asked or what problem he raised, these four knew ten times more than any fortuneteller or magician in his whole kingdom. Daniel remained at the royal court until Cyrus, the emperor of Persia, conquered Babylonia.

            Daniel was respectful and honest with those in authority. He was humble and knew when  help was needed to solve a problem. He looked out for others when they too were in danger. He never abandoned his convictions even when it might improve his standings with others to do so.

            Daniel reminds us that with great ability comes great responsibility. Excerpts  from Daniel 2:1-19 , 24-27 In the second year of his reign, Nebuchadnezzar had dreams; his mind was troubled and he could not sleep.  So the king summoned the magicians, enchanters, sorcerers and astrologers^] to tell him what he had dreamed. When they came in and stood before the king, he said to them, “I have had a dream that troubles me and I want to know what it means.” Then the astrologers answered the king, “May the king live forever! Tell your servants the dream, and we will interpret it. The king replied to the astrologers, “This is what I have firmly decided: If you do not tell me what my dream was and interpret it, I will have you cut into pieces and your houses turned into piles of rubble. 

The astrologers answered the king, “There is no one on earth who can do what the king asks! No king, however great and mighty, has ever asked such a thing of any magician or enchanter or astrologer. What the king asks is too difficult. No one can reveal it to the king except the gods, and they do not live among humans.” 

 When Arioch, the commander of the king’s guard, had gone out to put to death the wise men of Babylon, Daniel spoke to him with wisdom and tact. He asked the king’s officer, “Why did the king issue such a harsh decree?” Arioch then explained the matter to Daniel. At this, Daniel went in to the king and asked for time, so that he might interpret the dream for him.

 Then Daniel returned to his house and explained the matter to his friends Hananiah, Mishael and Azariah. He urged them to plead for mercy from the God of heaven concerning this mystery, so that he and his friends might not be executed with the rest of the wise men of Babylon. 

 Then Daniel praised the God of heaven. Then Daniel went to Arioch, whom the king had appointed to execute the wise men of Babylon, and said to him, “Do not execute the wise men of Babylon. Take me to the king, and I will interpret his dream for him.”

The king asked Daniel (also called Belteshazzar), “Are you able to tell me what I saw in my dream and interpret it?” Daniel replied, “No wise man, enchanter, magician or diviner can explain to the king the mystery he has asked about, but there is a God in heaven who reveals mysteries. He has shown King Nebuchadnezzar what will happen in days to come.

            We too will run into opposition at times. It is important that we respond respectfully. Being able to have  a constructive conversation will go a long way to finding a suitable solution. As we face these new unique times, treating each other with respect and working on sensible solutions will help us all come out winners.

            Daniel suffered physical infirmities.  For though you read that he was gifted in interpretation of dreams and visions, it caused him human suffering. [Daniel 8:27,10:8] The chronology of Daniel’s life shows that he was known as a faithful government servant for more than 70 years.  Daniel was in his eighties when he faced the lions' den.  He had built a reputation that was sterling. Everyone knew Daniel's habits of conduct. [Daniel 6:1-4]

             There arose some jealous colleagues that decided to get rid of the elder statesman, but because he was above reproach, they failed to find any “charge or fault” against him. Determined to bring about his demise, they crafted a plan for religious persecution, convinced the unwitting king to sign it, and targeted Daniel for execution.  Even when his enemies used his actions against him, Daniel did not change or compromise even when it could mean his death.

Daniel 6:10,11Now when Daniel learned that the decree had been published, he went home to his upstairs room where the windows opened toward Jerusalem. Three times a day he got down on his knees and prayed, giving thanks to his God, just as he had done before.  Then these men went as a group and found Daniel praying and asking God for help.

            His enemies knew what Daniel would do. Sometimes we have to remember that the enemy of our souls knows us well and he too will attack us at the point he sees as our weakest. Daniel could have closed his windows and then it would be hard to prove he prayed to God. Do we try and hide personal convictions by closing our windows so the world can't accuse us?           

            Here is some of what Daniel gives us as guidance on how to prepare for whatever adversity we may face. He starts by having determined what kind of a person he was going to be [He purposed in his heart...] Next he decided that doing what was right was more important than getting ahead. He looked out for others not just himself [see Daniel 2:24] Finally he built a reputation that was solid; people knew how he would respond to whatever life threw at him.

 

Samuel Wilberforce  

 Born August 24, 1759  Died‎: ‎29 July 1833 (age 73)

            Like Daniel, Wilberforce had physical issues and grew up separated from family and loved ones. He too had a gift of gab and was an influential speaker. As you read this short biography you will note much of Daniel's character as part of William's too. The times were different but the application was the same. One characteristic I hope you notice is that Wilberforce was tenacious in his pursuit for justice and did not waver despite many setbacks. He was most noted for his fight against slavery though he invested his life of integrity that turned the tide against many other injustices of his day.       

            Wilberforce was a small, sickly and delicate child with poor eyesight. When his father died his mother struggling to cope, sent the nine-year-old Wilberforce to a prosperous uncle and aunt. He became interested in evangelical Christianity due to his relatives' influence. But his mother and grandfather, alarmed at these nonconformist influences and at his leanings towards evangelicalism, brought the 12-year-old boy back to Hull in 1771. Wilberforce was heartbroken at being separated from his aunt and uncle.

            In October 1776, at the age of 17, Wilberforce went up to St John's College, Cambridge. Witty, generous and an excellent conversationalist, Wilberforce was a popular figure. He made many friends including the more studious future Prime Minister William Pitt.

            Wilberforce began to consider a political career while still at university, while he and Pitt frequently watched House of Commons debates from the gallery. Pitt, already set on a political career, encouraged Wilberforce to join him in obtaining a parliamentary seat. In September 1780, at the age of twenty-one and while still a student, Wilberforce was elected Member of Parliament (MP) for Kingston upon Hull. Free from financial pressures, Wilberforce sat as an independent, resolving to be "no party man". Criticized at times for inconsistency, he supported both Tory and Whig governments according to his conscience, working closely with the party in power, and voting on specific measures according to their merits.

            Wilberforce used his speaking voice to great effect in political speeches; the diarist and author James Boswell witnessed Wilberforce's eloquence in the House of Commons and noted, "I saw what seemed a mere shrimp mount upon the table; but as I listened, he grew, and grew, until the shrimp became a whale.".          

            After his earlier interest in evangelical religion when he was young, Wilberforce's journey to faith seems to have begin afresh around 1785. His conversion changed some of his habits, but not his nature: he remained outwardly cheerful, interested and respectful.            Wilberforce was deeply conservative when it came to challenges to the existing political and social order. He advocated change in society through Christianity and improvement in morals, education and religion. He denounced using fear tactics and opposed radical causes and revolution.

            More progressively, Wilberforce advocated legislation to improve the working conditions for chimney-sweeps and textile workers, engaged in prison reform, and supported campaigns to restrict capital punishment and the severe punishments meted out under the Game Laws.

             He recognized the importance of education in alleviating poverty. With others, Wilberforce founded the world's first animal welfare organization, the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (later the Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals).

             In 1824, Wilberforce was one of over 30 eminent gentlemen who put their names at the inaugural public meeting to the fledgling National Institution for the Preservation of Life from Shipwreck, later named the Royal National Lifeboat Institution.

            Wilberforce was generous with his time and money, believing that those with wealth had a duty to give a significant portion of their income to the needy. Yearly, he gave away thousands of pounds, much of it to clergymen to distribute in their parishes. He paid off the debts of others, supported education and missions, and in a year of food shortages, gave to charity more than his own yearly income.

            He was exceptionally hospitable, and could not bear to dismiss any of his servants. As a result, his home was full of old and incompetent servants kept on in charity. Although he was often months behind in his correspondence, Wilberforce responded to numerous requests for advice or for help in obtaining professorships, military promotions and livings for clergymen, or for the reprieve of death sentences.

            The British initially became involved in the slave trade during the 16th century. By 1783, the triangular route that took British-made goods to Africa to buy slaves, transported the enslaved to the West Indies, and then brought slave-grown products such as sugar, tobacco, and cotton to Britain, represented about 80 percent of Great Britain's foreign income. British ships dominated the trade, supplying French, Spanish, Dutch, Portuguese and British colonies, and in peak years carried forty thousand enslaved men, women and children across the Atlantic in the horrific conditions of the middle passage. Of the estimated 11 million Africans transported into slavery, about 1.4 million died during the voyage.

            On 22 May 1787, the first meeting of the Society for Effecting the Abolition of the Slave Trade took place, bringing like-minded British Quakers and Anglicans together in the same organization for the first time.

             The committee chose to campaign against the slave trade rather than slavery itself, with many members believing that slavery would eventually disappear as a natural consequence of the abolition of the trade.

            Wilberforce had planned to introduce a motion giving notice that he would bring forward a bill for the Abolition of the Slave Trade during the 1789 parliamentary session. However, in January 1788, he was taken ill with a probable stress-related condition. It was several months before he was able to resume work.

            Pro-slavery advocates claimed that enslaved Africans were lesser human beings who benefited from their bondage. Wilberforce, the Clapham Sect and others were anxious to demonstrate that Africans, and particularly freed slaves, had human and economic abilities beyond the slave trade, and that they were capable of sustaining a well-ordered society, trade and cultivation.

             Inspired in part by the utopian vision of Granville Sharp, they became involved in the establishment in 1792 of a free colony in Sierra Leone with black settlers from Britain, Nova Scotia and Jamaica, as well as native Africans and some whites.

             They formed the Sierra Leone Company. The dream was of an ideal society in which races would mix on equal terms; the reality was fraught with tension, crop failures, disease, death, war and defections to the slave trade. The British government assumed responsibility for the colony in 1808. The colony, although troubled at times, was to become a symbol of anti-slavery in which residents, communities and African tribal chiefs, worked together to prevent enslavement at the source, supported by a British naval blockade to stem the region's slave trade.

            On 2 April 1792, Wilberforce again brought a bill calling for abolition. The memorable debate that followed drew contributions from the greatest orators in the house, William Pitt the Younger and Charles James Fox, as well as from Wilberforce himself. Lord Melville, as Home Secretary, proposed a compromise solution of so-called "gradual abolition" over a number of years. This was passed by 230 to 85 votes, but the compromise was little more than a clever ploy, with the intention of ensuring that total abolition would be delayed indefinitely.

             On 26 February 1793, another vote to abolish the slave trade was narrowly defeated by eight votes. The outbreak of war with France the same month effectively prevented any further serious consideration of the issue, as politicians concentrated on the national crisis and the threat of invasion.

            In June 1804, Wilberforce's bill to abolish the slave trade successfully passed all its stages through the House of Commons. However, it was too late in the parliamentary session for it to complete its passage through the House of Lords. On its reintroduction during the 1805 session, it was defeated.

            But in 1807, Lord Grenville, the Prime Minister, was determined to introduce an Abolition Bill in the House of Lords, rather than in the House of Commons, taking it through its greatest challenge first. When a final vote was taken, the bill was passed in the House of Lords by a large margin. Sensing a breakthrough that had been long anticipated, Charles Grey moved for a second reading in the Commons on 23 February 1807. As tributes were made to Wilberforce, whose face streamed with tears, the bill was carried by 283 votes to 16.

            The hopes of the abolitionists notwithstanding, slavery did not wither with the end of the slave trade in the British Empire, nor did the living conditions of the enslaved improve. The trade continued, with few countries following suit by abolishing the trade, and with some British ships disregarding the legislation.

            Wilberforce worked with the members of the African Institution to ensure the enforcement of abolition and to promote abolitionist negotiations with other countries. The US had abolished the slave trade in 1808, and Wilberforce lobbied the American government to enforce its own prohibition more strongly.

            The year 1823 saw the founding of the Society for the Mitigation and Gradual Abolition of Slavery (later the Anti-Slavery Society). Wilberforce urged that total emancipation was morally and ethically required, and that slavery was a national crime that must be ended by parliamentary legislation to gradually abolish slavery.  Members of Parliament did not quickly agree, and government opposition in March 1823 stymied Wilberforce's call for abolition.        Wilberforce's health was continuing to fail, and he suffered further illnesses in 1824 and 1825. With his family concerned that his life was endangered, he declined a peerage and resigned his seat in Parliament, leaving the campaign in the hands of others.

             In later years, Wilberforce supported the campaign for the complete abolition of slavery, and continued his involvement after 1826. That campaign led to the Slavery Abolition Act 1833, which abolished slavery in most of the British Empire. Wilberforce died just three days after hearing that the passage of the Act through Parliament was assured. He was buried in Westminster Abbey, close to his friend William Pitt the Younger.

            William Wilberforce is an example of characters of both Noah and Daniel. Noah continued to do what he knew was right even though it was 100 years before he saw it all come to pass. Daniel was a politician of sterling character. He used his position to benefit others and was honest in his dealings as well.

            All three men were persistent. They didn't let current circumstances keep them from doing what was right or continuing to pursue their ultimate goals.

Foot note: Amazing Grace, a film about Wilberforce and the struggle against the slave trade, directed by Michael Apted was released in 2007 to coincide with the 200th anniversary of Parliament's anti-slave trade legislation.     

 

Joseph

Genesis 37

 

Here is a person that faced misfortune and offers us lessons as we walk through his life. In an effort for diversity let's start with the lessons and insert events in Joseph's life that illustrates them.

• Jealousy can ruin a  relationship. ...  It was easy for Joseph's brothers to be jealous of Joseph. Born of Rachel, Jacob's one true love, Joseph held a special place in his father's heart.  He was a typical teen with his immature attitude that ticked off his big brothers. [Genesis 37:3,4]  Now Israel loved Joseph more than any of his other sons, because he had been born to him in his old age; and he made an ornaterobe for him. When his brothers saw that their father loved him more than any of them, they hated him and could not speak a kind word to him.

            We must be careful to recognize that people deal with hardships differently. They may not have the same maturity level to know how to deal with the circumstance and their behavior may rub us the wrong way. Still we need to respond correctly not retaliate.  This attitude may not lead to jealousy but it often leads to distrust.

• Joseph's coat had been stripped, but not his character. ... Even when the coat that stated his special place of honor was removed from him, who Joseph was could not be taken from him. Who we are on the inside is more important than what we are seen as on the outside. Joseph's coat said he was special but it was his character that was going to get him through life successfully.

[Genesis 37:23-28] So when Joseph came to his brothers, they stripped him of his robe—the ornate robe he was wearing—  and they took him and threw him into the cistern. The cistern was empty; there was no water in it. As they sat down to eat their meal, they looked up and saw a caravan of Ishmaelites coming from Gilead. ..Judah said to his brothers, “What will we gain if we kill our brother and cover up his blood?⁷ Come, let’s sell him to the Ishmaelites and not lay our hands on him; after all, he is our brother, our own flesh and blood.” His brothers agreed. So when the Midianite merchants came by, his brothers pulled Joseph up out of the cistern and sold him for twenty shekels of silver to the Ishmaelites, who took him to Egypt.

• Be a diligent, productive worker. ... regardless of where Joseph was put to serve he proved to be an exceptional worker. As we read through Joseph's life we see that doing the right thing didn't always work in Joseph's favor. We need to decide what our work standard is going to be. We can be industrious or do just enough to get by.

Here is one such example: [Genesis 39:1-6] Now Joseph had been taken down to Egypt. Potiphar, an Egyptian who was one of Pharaoh’s officials, the captain of the guard, bought him from the Ishmaelites who had taken him there... Joseph found favor in his eyes and became his attendant... Potiphar put him in charge of his household, and he entrusted to his care everything he owned.... the Lord blessed the household of the Egyptian because of Joseph. The blessing of the Lord was on everything...  So Potiphar left everything he had in Joseph’s care; with Joseph in charge, he did not concern himself with anything except the food he ate.

• God protected him in the midst of troubles. ... False allegations put Joseph in prison when he failed to compromise. But Joseph found ways to serve even there. Joseph is a good example of a positive attitude. He didn't like his situation but he didn't let his situation change who he was.

 [Genesis 39:7-20] Now Joseph was well-built and handsome, and after a while his master’s wife took notice of Joseph and said, “Come to bed with me!”  But he refused. And though she spoke to Joseph day after day, he refused to go to bed with her or even be with her... When his master heard the story his wife told him, saying, “This is how your slave treated me,” he burned with anger. Joseph’s master took him and put him in prison, the place where the king’s prisoners were confined.

            Even being falsely accused and thrown in prison, Joseph continued to be a man of integrity. He was kind and industrious and soon found himself in charge of the prison. We may not get a promotion by being a reliable worker, but we will know who we are. Joseph didn't use his industry to try and get ahead, he just continued to be who he was.  [Genesis 39:23] The warden paid no attention to anything under Joseph’s care, because the Lord was with Joseph and gave him success in whatever he did.

• He was promoted and blessed. ... Joseph was in training during his times of hardship so that he was ready when severe adversity arrived. Joseph told the cupbearer what his dream said and although the cupbearer had said he would help Joseph it would be a long time before that happened.

      God's timing isn't always ours. Many times we face hardships that prepare us for what we will face further down the road. Joseph never thought he would rise to the position he did, he just kept being himself and was ready when the ultimate challenges came. Perhaps that is the attitude we need to cultivate as well. We never know what life will bring.

            Genesis 41:1-16 When two full years had passed, Pharaoh had a dream... In the morning his mind was troubled, so he sent for all the magicians and wise men of Egypt. Pharaoh told them his dreams, but no one could interpret them for him... Then the chief cupbearer said to Pharaoh, “Today I am reminded of my shortcomings. Pharaoh was once angry with his servants, and he imprisoned me and the chief baker in the house of the captain of the guard. Each of us had a dream the same night, and each dream had a meaning of its own. Now a young Hebrew was there with us, a servant of the captain of the guard. We told him our dreams, and he interpreted them for us, giving each man the interpretation of his dream... So Pharaoh sent for Joseph, and he was quickly brought from the dungeon. Pharaoh said to Joseph, “I had a dream, and no one can interpret it. But I have heard it said of you that when you hear a dream you can interpret it.” “I cannot do it,” Joseph replied to Pharaoh, “but God will give Pharaoh the answer he desires.”

It is hard to say how long it was from Joseph being sold into Egypt until the time he is put in charge of all Egypt. However, we know that Joseph was 30 when he was promoted by Pharaoh.

Genesis 41:39-44 Then Pharaoh said to Joseph, “Since God has made all this known to you, there is no one so discerning and wise as you. You shall be in charge of my palace, and all my people are to submit to your orders. Only with respect to the throne will I be greater than you.”...So Pharaoh said to Joseph, “I hereby put you in charge of the whole land of Egypt.” Then Pharaoh took his signet ring from his finger and put it on Joseph’s finger. He dressed him in robes of fine linen and put a gold chain around his neck. ...Thus he put him in charge of the whole land of Egypt. Then Pharaoh said to Joseph, “I am Pharaoh, but without your word no one will lift hand or foot in all Egypt.

• He chose forgiveness over resentment or retaliation... Joseph wanted to know if his brothers hearts had changed. But he didn't seek revenge even if they had not. Read the story for yourself in Genesis 42-45.

            We must be careful to not carry a grudge. Getting even rarely turns out well. There is a right way to seek justice. When we carry a grudge we are tied to the one who offended us. Usually, they have no idea that they have such an influence on our life. They go on living freely while we carry this burden of resentment that colors everything.

            Many times society today chooses to lash out violently to injustice. But the result is injury to the innocent and damage to property. The true message of confronting what is wrong is lost because it is destroyed in the violence that buries the voice against the injustice.

• Joseph chose to restore his family instead of destroy it. Perhaps he had every right to make them pay but instead he saw that although they thought to eliminate him, God had a bigger and better plan. We can choose to look for the better plan when we face hard times.

            There will always be the choice to make things better or make things worse. To build up, restore or tear down. We can destroy someone through character assignation just as severely as doing them bodily harm. Or we can choose to find a way to bring about a better outcome than was evident before the crisis.

 Genesis 45: 4-7Then Joseph said to his brothers, “Come close to me.” When they had done so, he said, “I am your brother Joseph, the one you sold into Egypt! And now, do not be distressed and do not be angry with yourselves for selling me here, because it was to save lives that God sent me ahead of you. For two years now there has been famine in the land, and for the next five years there will be no plowing and reaping. But God sent me ahead of you to preserve for you a remnant on earth and to save your lives by a great deliverance.

            Joseph's life teaches us that sometimes the same adversity comes back to challenge our resolve and character. We see three times when Joseph was honorable and others were not. His brothers plotted against him. Potiphar's wife lied about him. And the cupbearer forgot about him for years. Yet each of these events didn't keep Joseph from being true to who he was.

            Joseph used his abilities and later his power to better the lives of those around him regardless of his circumstances.  These are qualities that are sorely needed in our world today.

St Patrick

 

Everyone knows the Patron Saint of Ireland. We love to celebrate his day each year.  I hope you can see the similarities he had with Joseph. 

            He was born into either a Scottish or English family in the fourth century. He was captured as a teenager by Niall of the Nine Hostages who was to become a King of all Ireland.
            He was sold into slavery in Ireland and put to work as a shepherd. He worked in terrible conditions for six years drawing comfort in the Christian faith that so many of his people had abandoned under Roman rule.
            Patrick had a dream that encouraged him to flee his captivity and to head South where a ship was to be waiting for him. He travelled over 200 miles from his Northern captivity to Wexford town where, sure enough, a ship was waiting to enable his escape.
            Upon arrival in England he was captured by brigands and returned to slavery. He escaped after two months and spent the next seven years travelling Europe seeking his destiny.
            During this time he furthered his education and studied Christianity in the Lerin Monastery in France. He returned to England as a priest. Again a dream greatly influenced him when he became convinced that the Irish people were calling out to him to return to the land of his servitude.
            He went to the Monastery in Auxerre where it was decided that a mission should be sent to Ireland. Patrick was not selected for this task to his great disappointment. The monk that was selected was called Paladius, but he died before he could reach Ireland and a second mission was decided upon.    Patrick was made a Bishop by Pope Celestine in the year 432 and, together with a small band of followers, travelled to Ireland to commence the conversion.
            Patrick confronted the most powerful man in Ireland, Laoghaire, The High King of Tara as he knew that if he could gain his support that he would be safe to spread the word throughout Ireland. To get his attention Patrick and his followers lit a huge fire to mark the commencement of Spring. Tradition had it that no fire was to be lit until the King's fire was complete, but Patrick defied this rule and courted the confrontation with the King.
            The King rushed into action and travelled with the intention of making war on the holy delegation. Patrick calmed the King and with quiet composure impressed the King that he had no other intention than that of spreading the word of the Gospel. The King accepted the missionary, much to the dismay of the Druids who feared for their own power and position in the face of this new threat. They commanded that he make snow fall. Patrick declined to do so stating that this was God's work. Immediately it began to snow, only stopping when Patrick blessed himself.
            Still trying to convince the King of his religion Patrick grasped at some Shamrock growing on the ground. He explained that there was but one stem on the plant, but three branches of the leaf, representing the Blessed Trinity. The King was impressed with his sincerity and granted him permission to spread the word of his faith, although he did not convert to Christianity himself.
            Patrick and his followers were free to spread their faith throughout Ireland and did so to great effect. He drove paganism (symbolized by the snake) from the lands of Eireann.
            It is said that Patrick was tempted by the Devil while on a pilgrimage at Croagh Patrick. For his refusal to be tempted, God rewarded him with a wish. Patrick asked that the Irish be spared the horror of Judgment Day and that he himself be allowed to judge his flock. Thus, the legend that Ireland will disappear under a sea of water seven years before the final judgment was born.
            Patrick died on March 17th in the year 461 at the age of 76. It is not known for sure where his remains were laid although Downpatrick in County Down in the North of Ireland is thought to be his final resting place. His influence is still felt to this day as Nations the world over commemorate him on March 17th of every year.

 

 

            Let's do a quick recap of what we have learned. We will all face adversity in whatever form it comes. Whether it is hardship, danger misfortune or difficulty, we can face it successfully if we remember the lessons these people teach us.

            We get the opportunity to choose how we will respond to the challenges of adversity. We can face it directly with confidence or we can fight against it. We can choose to let it defeat us or we can persevere until we win over it. We get to be a support to others or just look out for ourselves. We have more power than we often realize. These people are here to encourage us and offer us guidance so we too can come out successful.

            It is important to remember that adversity often comes for a long visit . But we can be prepared if we remember the lessons we have learned. Here they are some of the tools we have gathered in preparation for adversities' arrival.

1. Remain obedient in doing right even if others do not.


2. Have a moral standard that is unshakable.


3. Trust even when things seem to get worse before they get better.


4. Practice perseverance which will help you keep a right attitude as you face the challenges before you.


5. Use your abilities to make life better for those around you regardless of your current situation.


6. Be honest with God and yourself. He knows exactly where you are and cares for you if you let Him.

 

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