Shake It Off and Take a Step Up

Most of us know that moment when we come up against something hard, seemingly impossible, where we decide to fight or flight, give up or give it our all.

One day a farmer’s donkey fell into an abandoned well. The animal cried piteously for hours as the farmer tried to figure out what to do. Finally, he decided the animal was old and the well needed to be covered up anyway. So it just wasn’t worth to him to try to retrieve the donkey.

He invited all his neighbors to come over and help him. They each grabbed a shovel and began to shovel dirt into the well. Realizing what was happening, the donkey at first cried and wailed horribly. Then, a few shovelfuls later, he quieted down completely.

The farmer peered down into the well, and was astounded by what he saw. With every shovelful of dirt that hit his back, the donkey was doing something amazing. He would shake it off and take a step up on the new layer of dirt. As the farmer’s neighbors continued to shovel dirt on top of the animal, he would shake it off and take a step up. Pretty soon, the donkey stepped up over the edge of the well and trotted off, to the shock and astonishment of all the neighbors.

Something that caught my attention in this story was that what seemed like it would bury him, actually helped him...all because of the manner in which he handled his difficulty. AND THAT'S LIFE! You can face your problems and respond to them positively, and refuse to give in to fear, anger, or depression. You will grasp that the difficulties that come along to bury you, usually have the very real potential to benefit you.

Life will always throw different bumps on your road whether it’s for you to slow down or wake up. At times those bumps will hurt, and you’ll want to fly past them. We can find comfort by this verse in James 1:4, "We need to let perseverance finish its work so that we may be mature and complete, not lacking anything".

In order to cross a stream, you need a stone on which to step. So each of our troubles is a stepping stone that helps us make progress to a specified goal. We can get out of the deepest wells by changing our perspective and knowing that all the dirt being tossed at us, is likely there to benefit us. Shake it off and take a step up!

PRAISE:

• From the Day to Unite a City event, 14 prayed to receive salvation, 26 rededicated their lives to Jesus, and 24 said they would like to be in a discipleship group and share the gospel (This is from those who filled out cards).

• Praise that their are churches and the Collision team following up with these individuals.

Prayer Requests:

• Teens are dealing with many hurts and are requesting prayer. They also care for those they love and want them to come to the saving faith of Christ.

• For youth to make wise choices with their time and friendships, and to know when to make changes that will benefit their growth in Christ.

#LyuvenaDomanskaya