Short Stories

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THE CURSE

Once upon a time, there was an old woman that had recently lost her husband of many years. Finding herself suddenly alone, she would often sit on her patio, reminiscing about the past. During one of these many afternoons, her attention was curiously drawn to a squirrel which had made his home in her backyard. She had seen squirrels in the backyard many times, but she had never taken the time to really observe one. It seemed she had always been too busy to notice the beauty of these simple creatures. She became amusingly fascinated with the squirrel. It was a relaxing distraction that took her thoughts off her desperate situation. She found herself looking forward to her afternoons, to seeing the squirrel and watching him as he busied himself in his relentless pursuit of gathering food. Day after day, she watched the squirrel for hours with child like amusment, attentively, as he whiled away his hours, gathering his food.

One day as she watched the squirrel gnawing through the shells of some hickory nuts and acorns, she thought about the circumstances which life had forced upon the squirrel. It seemed that all his time was spent in the relentless pursuit of gathering food - just to survive. Her heart went out to the squirrel, she wanted to do something for him, to make his life less burdensome, more comfortable. After all, without knowing it, he had provided her with companionship, and had given her comfort from the grief within herself. She wanted to give something back, to somehow repay the squirrel for all he had done for her.

Determined in her heart to lighten the squirrel's burden in life, she went to the store and bought a variety of seeds and nuts without shells. She put some of the food in a dish and placed the dish in the back yard. The dish was far enough away from the patio so as not to scare the squirrel by her presence yet the dish was close enough so that she could observe the squirrel closer than she had been able too in the past.

It wasn't long before the squirrel noticed the dish. He quickly circled the area several times, and then he approached the dish with caution and began to eat the food as he watched the old woman from the corner of his eye. The old woman was delighted. Each day she would fill the squirrel's bowl and each day she would inch the bowl closer to her patio. It wasn't long before she had the squirrel eating out of her hand. She and the squirrel became very good friends, and together they spent most of the summer in each other's company.

The mourning period had waned. A year had pasted since she lost her husband. The squirrel had helped her greatly to get through her grief. She knew the time had come to end her isolation and to involve herself, once again, with life. She would miss her afternoons with her friend but she consoled her thoughts by telling herself she would still see him from time to time. She volunteered her time to several charities. The time she had to spend with the squirrel began to dwindle as she became more and more active in other things, just as she knew it would but no matter how busy she became, she never forgot to put food out for her little friend.

One day the old woman went to fill the dish and she noticed that it was still half full. As she thought about it, she realized that for each week over the past month, more and more food had been left in the dish. She hadn't seen the squirrel for quite sometime, but she knew he was still around because his food was being eaten. Maybe his appetite isn't what it used to be, she thought to herself. I'll make time to see my old friend, maybe next week, she thought but that week passed, and so did another, then another, still she didn't make the time - until she noticed that the food wasn't being touched at all! The squirrel had stopped coming.

She wondered what could be wrong. She became concerned for the squirrel and decided to go and look for him. She put the bag of food down next to his dish and walked back to the small clump of trees at the edge of her backyard. There on the ground among the trees, she found the remains of her old friend. Her heart was broken by what she had discovered. His mouth was wide open; his teeth had grown so long that he was unable to close it.

In her heart, she had perceived his toil in life to be cruel. In her love, she sought to lighten his burden. In her ignorance, she became the cause of his death. In the absence of understanding, there is nothing crueler than our perception of love "the heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked: who can know it?" (Jer 17:9). GOD, in his wisdom, knew that through the toil of the squirrel, his teeth would wear away. In his providential care for the squirrel, he provided him with teeth, which would grow continuously.

Like the old woman, we too look upon the misery and the tribulations of our lives, and we perceive it to be cruel. "Life is cruel," we say amongst ourselves, "why has GOD given me these burdens to bear?" Like the old woman, we too are ignorant of GOD'S wisdom. In his providential care of us, it is by the struggle of life that GOD is able to bless us. The lost man looks into the world and says: "If there is a GOD, why does he allow such cruelty to exist in life?" As he makes his boast against GOD, we secretly begin to question our own hearts, and we are tempted to agree with him having forgotten or never knowing what the scriptures say.

As parents, we see our children struggle in life. We watch as they make mistakes and fall into trouble. We perceive their lot in life to be cruel, and we run to unburden them. "It is not their fault," we say, "life is too cruel to them." We bail them out, we withhold correction, and we comfort them. In the absence of understanding, there is nothing crueler than our perception of love. "He that spareth his rod hateth his son." (Prov 13:24)

As providers, we struggle and we sweat to provide a better life for our families. Like the old woman, we desire to make their lives easier, less burdensome, more comfortable. We perceive their struggle to survive to be cruel. We worry for their needs, and in our love, we work to provide them with comfort and leisure. By all our efforts, we alienate them from the life, which is in GOD. It is by the struggle of life that GOD is able to bless them. "Take heed, and beware of covetousness: for a man's life consisteth not in the abundance of the things which he possesseth." (Lk 12:15)

The whole world is bent on "Making Life Easier." We live in the age of the remote control, microwave cookies, and maintenance free siding. If it doesn't come easy, then it's not worth the trouble. We see struggle, and we seek to remove it. We see burden, and we seek to lighten it. We see failure, and we blame it on the difficulty of life. We see accountability, and we perceive it as cruelty. We are all accountable and the struggle of life holds us responsible for our actions. It is the struggle that represents the love of GOD in our lives, "for whom the LORD loveth, he chasteneth." We see people having difficulty and we perceive it as evil. GOD has placed them on his anvil that he may shape and mold them. Why do we seek to interfere? GOD sends tribulation into our lives and we say, "what did I do wrong that I should be so mistreated?" Know ye not, that GOD sent it for good and not evil, to bless you?

Know ye not, who the old woman really is? Oh that we only knew what Daniel knew and refuse to be tempted by the king’s meat. Christians are not being defeated by conflict but rather by kindness. Satan is a master of disguise he draws us in, as he inches our dishes ever closer. We eat from his very hand, and we can't even see it. Like Esau, we sell our birthright for a bowl of nuts. Through the blindness of our hearts we have become ignorant; our understanding has become darkened, and we have become alienated in our minds from the life of GOD. We see good, and we perceive it as evil we see evil, and embrace it, no longer able to know the difference. We call hate, love, and we call love, hate. Is it any wonder that our children grow up confused? "Awake thou that sleepest, and arise from the dead, and CHRIST shall give thee light." (Eph 5:14) Gather your nuts while ye may, and be not swayed by the comforts of this life. "In the world ye shall have tribulation." (Jn 16:33)

After the fall of Adam and Eve, GOD cursed the ground saying unto Adam: "Because thou hast harkened unto the voice of thy wife, and hast eaten of the tree, of which I commanded thee, saying, Thou shalt not eat of it: cursed is the ground for thy sake in sorrow shalt thou eat of it all the days of thy life Thorns also and thistles shall it bring forth to thee and thou shalt eat the herb of the field In the sweat of thy face shalt thou eat bread, till thou return unto the ground for out of it wast thou taken." (Gen 3:17-19). GOD cursed the ground for man's sake, and in so doing, GOD condemned sin in the flesh. From then on man would bring forth his substance through hard work, and by the sweat of his face.

GOD does not intend that we should be comfortable in the world, nor does he intend that we should find contentment in this tabernacle of dirt. As long as we are in this flesh, we are to be reminded that we are not where GOD intends for us to be. Like the Jews who wandered in the desert for 40 years, GOD did not intend for them to be comfortable. We, like they, finding no rest within our surroundings, are to hope for the life that shall later be revealed. GOD cursed the ground, from which our flesh was taken, thereby condemning sin in the flesh, that the spirit might be saved blameless through hope. Thus we should no longer live our lives in the satisfying of the flesh, but we should reckon ourselves dead, and through death, our minds are set free from the dictates of the flesh. We are raised to newness of life, we are freed to serve the law of GOD with our minds.


"For I reckon that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us. For the earnest expectation of the creature waiteth for the manifestation of the sons of GOD. For the creature was made subject to vanity, not willingly, but by reason of him who hath subjected the same in hope. Because the creature itself also shall be delivered from the bondage of corruption into the glorious liberty of the children of GOD. For we know that the whole creation groaneth and travaileth in pain together until now. And not only they, but ourselves also, which have the firstfruits of the Spirit, even we ourselves groan within ourselves, waiting for the adoption, to wit the redemption of our body. For we are saved by hope: but hope that is seen is not hope: for what a man seeth, why doth he yet hope for? But if we hope for that we see not, then do we with patience wait for it. Likewise the Spirit also helpeth our infirmities: for we know not what we should pray for as we ought: but the Spirit itself maketh intercession for us with groanings which cannot be uttered. And he that searcheth the hearts knoweth what is the mind of the Spirit, because he maketh intercession for the saints according to the will of GOD. And we know that all things work together for good to them that love GOD, to them who are the called according to his purpose." (Rm 8:18-28)

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