Sounds like a deep question doesn’t it? For me it was a question I kept asking myself while I was working at this table:
Kilonzo would pour a bucket of maize on top then Jane and I would move the maize around to let the chaff fall through the netting and then pick out the bad pieces. As I kept examining the maize and working I realized how easy it would be to skip over the bad pieces and just brush all the maize into the bucket. Then I asked myself if I skip over the “bad pieces” in my life? Sometimes I do and I can’t imagine the blessings I’ve missed because I wanted to keep things the way they were.
I also wondered if I would want to keep those bad pieces in my life? It would be easier and more comfortable, and honestly I probably wouldn’t be here in Kenya if I had left the selfishness (a really bad piece) in my life. Instead, God brought that to my attention through smaller choices revolving around my selfishness several months prior to the “big move” which helped make it easier for me to be obedient at the time I needed to walk by faith, not by sight.
I confess, I’m still selfish at times, but He continues working on me and the blessings I see (a child’s smile when handed a sucker, a mother’s gratitude for a small gift of eggs or the hope a student feels when encouraged in their studies) lifts my spirit and pushes me on to giving more of myself to His service. So when there is a “bad piece” the Holy Spirit brings to my attention I have to examine it and by His strength throw it aside…leaving it lay on the ground not to be picked up again.