By the Rev. Thomas M. Boles PhD., DMin., D.D.

On a trip to Israel, a tourist was amazed to hear a young Jewish man recite his

family lineage back 14 generations. She reflected upon her own family

tree, and realized that she could only trace her own lineage back five generations.

She concluded, “God is the only one who knows my beginning from my ending.”

Ultimately, that is true for each person. No one fully knows what another has

experienced early in life, or what genetic influences may be brought to bear in a

person because of the behavior of his or her parents and other ancestors.

A part of each person will always remain a mystery,

known to God alone.

Or struggled beneath his load.

There may be tacks in his shoes that hurt,

Though hidden away from your view,

The burdens he bears, if placed on your back

Might cause you to stumble, too.

Don’t be too hard on the man who errs,

Or pelt him with wood or stone,

Unless you are sure, yea, double sure,

That you have no fault of your own.

Success is to be measured not so much by the

position that one has reached in life as by the

obstacles which he has overcome while trying.

Don’t find fault with the man who limps

Or stumbles along life’s road,

Unless you have worn the shoes he wears,

to succeed.

Blessed is the man who perseveres under trial, because

when he has stood the test, he will receive the crown of

life that God has promised to those who love Him.

James 1:12