Life's Challenges - Stories -
Trapped
The Pit
A man fell into a pit and couldn't get himself out.
A subjective person came along and said, "I feel for you down there."
An objective person walked by and said, "It's logical that someone would fall
down there."
A Pharisee said, "Only bad people fall into pits."
A mathematician calculated how he fell into the pit.
A news reporter wanted the exclusive story on the pit.
An IRS agent asked if he was paying taxes on the pit.
A self-pitying person said, "You haven't seen anything until you've seen my
pit."
A Christian Scientist observed, "The pit is just in your mind."
A psychologist noted, "Your mother and father are to blame for your being in the
pit."
A self-esteem therapist said, "Believe in yourself and you can get out of the
pit."
An optimist said, "Things could be worse."
A pessimist said, "Things will get worse."
Jesus, seeing the man, took him by the hand and lifted him out of the pit.
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Shake It Off
A parable is told of a farmer who owned an old mule. The
mule fell into the farmer's well. The farmer heard the
mule braying - or whatever mules do when they fall into
wells.
After carefully assessing the situation, the farmer
sympathized with the mule but decided that neither the
mule nor the well was worth the trouble of saving.
Instead, he called his neighbors together, told them
what happened, and enlisted them to help haul dirt to
bury the old mule in the well and put him out of his
misery.
Initially, the old mule was hysterical! But as the
farmer and his neighbors continued shoveling and the
dirt hit his back, a thought struck him. It suddenly
dawned on him that every time a shovel load of dirt
landed on his back, he should shake it off and step up!
This he did, blow after blow. "Shake it off and step
up... shake it off and step up... shake it off and step
up!" he repeated to encourage himself. No matter how
painful the blows or distressing the situation seemed,
the old mule fought panic and just kept right on shaking
it off and stepping up.
You're right! It wasn't long before the old mule,
battered and exhausted, stepped triumphantly over the
wall of that well! What seemed like it would bury him
actually blessed him - all because of the manner in
which he handled his adversity!
That's how life is! If we face our problems and respond
to them positively, refusing to give in to panic,
bitterness, or self-pity. The adversities that
come along to bury us usually have within them the
potential to benefit and bless us. Remember that
forgiveness, faith, prayer, praise, and hope all are
excellent ways to "shake it off and step up" out of the
wells in which we find ourselves!
Author Unknown
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