IS YOUR HUT BURNING?

The only survivor of a shipwreck was washed up on a small, uninhabited
island. He prayed feverishly for God to rescue him, and every day he scanned
the horizon for help, but none seemed forthcoming.

Exhausted, he eventually managed to build a little hut out of driftwood to
protect him from the elements, and to store his few possessions. But then
one day, after scavenging for food, he arrived home to find his little hut
in flames, the smoke rolling up to the sky. The worst had happened;
everything was lost. He was stunned with grief and anger. "God, how could
you do this to me!" he cried.

Early the next day, however, he was awakened by the sound of a ship that was
approaching the island. It had come to rescue him. "How did you know I was
here?" asked the weary man of his rescuers. "We saw your smoke signal," they
replied.

It is easy to get discouraged when things are going bad. But we shouldn't
lose heart, because God is at work in our lives, even in the midst of pain
and suffering. Remember, next time your little hut is burning to the ground

---- it just may be a smoke signal that summons the grace of God.