Giving Thanks for Poison Ivy and Fleas

I know, I know. Who in their right mind would give thanks for poison ivy and fleas?

Remember the book “The Hiding Place” by Corrie Ten Boom? If you haven’t read it I strongly encourage you to do so. It’s one of the top 5 books I have ever read and one of 2 that I have read over and over again (the other is the Bible). Why do I love the book so much? Because it’s a true story of the remarkable family set in Holland during WWII.  Corrie’s and Betsie’s (her sister) courage and faith never cease to inspire me.

Corrie and Betsie were imprisoned in a concentration camp. They had smuggled a Bible into the camp and traded it back and forth during the day. If the guards found a Bible or caught anyone having meetings, they were to be executed. At first, the women held these meetings very timidly. But as the weeks wore on and no guards came into the bunkroom, they grew bolder. Corrie marveled at this.

Why was it that no guard came in?

Betsie  told Corrie, “I found out for sure, Corrie. I overheard two guards. The guards will not step foot in the bunkroom because of the FLEAS! Thank God for the fleas!” she exclaimed. The women added that to their prayers daily.

And that’s the story I thought of this week when I found myself giving thanks for poison ivy.

When one of my son’s friends got poison ivy and it got to the point he couldn’t stand the itching, he finally went to the doctor. He’s young, only 19, and if you have teenage boys you know it isn’t easy to convince them to seek help. Anyway, he went and the doctor took one look at him and said, “You look really pale. Are you feeling okay?” When he admitted he’d been extra tired the doctor ordered a blood test. When the test results came back he received a phone call advising him to proceed immediately to the hospital. Normal hemoglobin count in a young male is about 15. His count was 5.

After 2 units of blood his color improved and his level increased to 8. He was released a day later but will be having further tests.

When I think about how awful he must have felt and how low his count was I find myself once again giving thanks for poison ivy.

I can’t tell you how many times throughout my life I have experienced something that at the time felt like a bad case of poison ivy. Not literally, but figuratively. I bet it’s happened to you too.

Something bad happens and you suffer through it and as a result you gain a nugget of gold. Maybe it was something you learned or maybe a blessing that came about only because of what happened. The point is at the time we can’t see any possible way that something good can come from something bad.

We can’t, but God can.

Sometimes it’s really, really hard to have enough faith to say, “God, there are things going on in my life that I don’t see any possible way that anything good could ever come from this, but I know you are in charge of the universe so I will place my trust in you.”

Thank you, Lord, for poison ivy, fleas and allowing me to place my trust in you!