THE HONEY and the STING

Two men were walking through a field in late spring. They were walking a few miles apart from one another when the first man came across a honey bee hive. Being hungry from his walking he approached the hive hoping to satisfy his hunger with a little taste of sweet honey.

Before he could get his hand in the honey he was stung by one of the guard bees. He immediately reasoned that it is not worth the pain of the sting to get the honey, and he turned and went on his way.

Some time later the second man came upon the honey bee hive and thought to himself how wonderful the sweet taste of honey would be. As he eased slowly, closer and closer to the hive he endured several painful stings until finally he had a delicious handful of fresh wild honey.

He went some distance from the hive and sat on an old tree stump relishing the sweet amber of the honey and the honey comb.

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Life is much like this story. We must come to the place where we decide if the risk of the sting is worth the satisfying sweetness of the honey. Many times in life we draw back from the sting and we never experience the sweetness that is part of life that only comes with the sting.

How do we choose?

What is of more importance...the comfort of avoiding the stings of life, or the sweetness that is only found in the honey of life?

The Sweet Honey:

To know Christ
A good friend
A college Degree
Falling in Love
Becoming a parent
A broken heart

The Sting:

The death of a loved one
The loss of a job
The struggle of trials of many kinds
The rejection of a good friend
The going astray of a beloved son or daughter

It is true and learned by all slowly and steadily on this path we call life, that there are trials, hardships, pain, grief. But in Jesus Christ we have so much Joy, Hope, Love, Grace, Forgiveness. When will we take the time to let a few bites or stings from life jar us to the beauty of Jesus Christ and all that he has to offer to us for both here and eternity.