Confinement, Hope: Two Peas in a Pod

The feeling I have the least amount of tolerance for is that of confinement. Feeling trapped in an unfit body, an intense mind, an unhealthy relationship, a house with no car, a job with no opportunity for growth, or trying to raise kids without money. When I feel that I have no choice in the matter it drives me crazy. That's when I want to run-far, far away. Running doesn't eliminate any of the reality, it only temporarily avoids the burden and postpones the consequences.The very nature of many of life's circumstances are restricting. Perhaps we made a choice initially and wish to take it back. Perhaps we are resisting the fact that everything changes or that we have to grow up. Perhaps some one else's decisions have put us in a compromising place, taken our happiness from us.

In attempting to find a common theme for this blog- as to captivate a diverse audience and keep you all hooked- I've decided that the thread that will connect us is that of unfortunate situations. Although, we won't stop there. The purpose of a village to join hands is to help and lift. Through one another's experiences we can find comfort, relief, unity and even self worth.


No matter who you are, where you live or what your circumstances-there is always hope.
"We learn to cultivate hope the same way we learn to walk, one step at a time. There may be times when we must make a courageous decision to hope even when everything around us contradicts this hope. Hope sustains us through despair. Hope teaches that there is reason to rejoice even when all seems dark around us."  -Dieter F. Uchtdorf


The stories of Corrie Ten Boom and her sister Betsie are courageous and of the character we can all become in our own horrific situations. Thankfully most of our discomforts, complaints and sufferings won't compare to their strife.

Corrie writes:

"Barracks 8 was in the quarantine compound. Next to us--perhaps as a deliberate warning to newcomers--were located the punishment barracks. From there, all day long and often into the night, came the sounds of hell itself. They were not the sounds of anger, or of any human emotion, but of a cruelty altogether detached: blows landing in regular rhythm, screams keeping pace. We would stand in our ten-deep ranks with our hands trembling at our sides, longing to jam them against our ears, to make the sounds stop.

"It grew harder and harder. Even within these four walls there was too much misery, too much seemingly pointless suffering. Every day something else failed to make sense, something else grew too heavy."

They couldn't go anywhere, they had absolutely no freedoms. They were in a life or death situation of which I'm sure death seemed the desirable choice at times. When they were moved to Barracks 28, Corrie was horrified by the fact that their reeking, straw-beds were swarmed with fleas. How would they survive here?

It was Betsie who discovered God's answer:

"'"Rejoice always, pray constantly, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God." That's it, Corrie! That's His answer. "Give thanks in all circumstances!" That's what we can do. We can start right now to thank God for every single thing about this new barracks!'

"I stared at her; then around me at the dark, foul-aired room…"

They thanked God for the fact they were together. They even thanked God for the horrible crowds of prisoners. And then, Betsie thanked God for the fleas.

"The fleas! This was too much. 'Betsie, there's no way even God can make me grateful for a flea.'

"'"Give thanks in all circumstances,"' she quoted. 'It doesn't say, "in pleasant circumstances."  Fleas are part of this place where God has put us.'

"And so we stood between tiers of bunks and gave thanks for fleas. But this time I was sure Betsie was wrong."

It turned out that Betsie was not wrong; the fleas were a nuisance, but a blessing after all. The women were never bothered by supervisors coming in and harassing them. They finally discovered that it was the fleas that kept those supervisors out.  (Excerpts taken from The Hiding Place by Corrie ten Boom)

Even under unbearable circumstances these sisters were able to turn their sour situation into a sweet prayer of thanks. Amazing. If they can do it why can't we? Why can't we see our children as blessings, our spouses, our homes, our jobs, even our pets? We can, it is a choice. A choice to look beyond ourselves and our own prisons, to see the sunlight no matter how tiny the window. But it isn't that simple. Sometimes it takes awhile to get to the point where we are ready to let go of our misery, stop playing the victim, to take charge of our lives. And so we will blog. We will try to understand one another in the pain each unique situation presents. And then we will raise each other up to overcome the challenges life thinks will keep us down. I say-Bring it.