Previous Challenge Entry (Level 4 – Masters)
Topic: TASTE (07/01/21)
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TITLE: Bitter and Sweet | Previous Challenge Entry
By Ellen Carr
07/08/21 -
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“You can't win them all,” said her brother. But that was cold comfort. Cold was the word. She felt cold, unmotivated, and completely uncomforted. Sitting here on this jetty she felt her inner turmoil matched the swirling wind and icy water.
Years of studying at night while she held down a full-time job had culminated in a Masters Degree and Janine had expected to sail into her dream job. She had put in many long hours and given up lots of other things. She had worked extra unpaid overtime in the finance company and fully expected that to land her the managerial job. But it hadn't. Roger Mayer got the job. Roger, who had just joined the company and hadn't even finished his Masters. It was so unfair.
Bitterness welled up and Janine called out silently to God.
“Why didn't you get me this job when I had worked so hard and done all the right things? I prayed for your help. I feel so let down!”
She put her head in her hands and wished tears would come. Instead she felt a bitter taste in her mouth and the cold enveloped her again. She sat that way for a long time, sorry for herself and cross with God.
A black swan landed gracefully on the water nearby and glided slowly past her. Despite her despondency she noticed its beauty, how effortlessly it swam. She watched it peck amongst the reeds and find some food. How serene it seemed.
'Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they?' *
It was a Bible passage she had learned and God was reminding her of its words. Another passage came to her as she sat there on the jetty:
'Are not two sparrows sold for a penny? Yet not one of them will fall to the ground outside your Father’s care. And even the very hairs of your head are all numbered. So don’t be afraid; you are worth more than many sparrows.' **
The birds. The swan. The sparrows. God was telling her something. As she looked at the swan, now some distance away, it took off, lifting effortlessly into the sky. Small birds, perhaps sparrows, fluttered around the reeds.
Something sweet flooded into her. It was God's peace. She was valuable to him and he was watching over her life. He knew everything about her and he had her future in his control.
* Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they?' Matthew 6:26Matthew 10:29-31 (NIV)
**Are not two sparrows sold for a penny? Yet not one of them will fall to the ground outside your Father’s care. And even the very hairs of your head are all numbered. So don’t be afraid; you are worth more than many sparrows. Matthew 10: 29-31(NIV)
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