The Boll Weevil

The title for this article may seem a bit strange but bear with me a moment.  The town of Enterprise, Alabama, erected a monument to this bug  December 11, 1919.  The weevil is a pest which infests and destroys cotton crops.  This bug visited the farms around Enterprise destroying the cash crop for the year.  Imagine how they must have felt! These invaders came, conquered the cotton crop, crippled the economy of the area, and the farmers were defenseless.  The men and women no doubt felt like crying out “Woe is me!” So why did the town erect a monument, something usually done to honor not condemn, to this devastating, destructive pest?

The events that year forced the farmers to diversify their crops and the results were wonderful.  Their new crops brought in more money and they were protected from another devastating crop destruction from a lone pest infestation.  What began as a tragic event ended as a disguised blessing.  This is how life often works.  Something happens that appears to bring only trouble, but when allowed to run its course the result is often improvement.

So what is happening in your life?  Anything going on that causes you to cry out to God, “Why is this happening to me?”  What has you are thinking “Nothing good can possibly come out of this!”?  Wait a little while and see what awaits at the end of the tragedy, you may find a blessing far greater than the tragic event or events that began it.

If you are thinking no way.  I ask you to consider Joseph.  His brothers hated him so deeply they wanted to kill him.  Instead of following through they sold him into slavery and deceived their father into thinking he was dead.  While a slave he worked hard managing Potipher’s household only to have his master’s wife lie and have him imprisoned.  While in prison he continued to work hard, he aided Pharaoh’s butler who promised to help him, but forgot for two years.  Years later Joseph’s brothers stand before him and Joseph said, “And Joseph said unto them, Fear not: for am I in the place of God?  But as for you, ye thought evil against me; but God meant it unto good, to bring to pass, as it is this day, to save much people alive” (Genesis 50:19,20).  God allowed all that happened to Joseph, but look at the blessing that came about as a result.  God can help all of us bring good out of difficulty.

—Denny