God's teaching tools

Ezekiel 24:24 Ezekiel will be a sign to you; you will do just as he has done.  When this happens, you will know that I am the Sovereign Lord.

Although, admittedly, I am not sure I totally understand this passage, I see yet another instance of God using a man (this time Ezekiel) to remind the children of Israel that God is God, reminding them that He is omnipotent and worship/obedience-worthy.  This time, however, God asked a really difficult thing of Ezekiel in order to use him as a minister and prophet to the people.  Ezekiel’s wife died, and God asked him to not display his grief.  Ezekiel already had skepticism from the people around him, and then he had to do this.  Being the servant of God is not always easy.  God does not always shelter you from difficulty.  In fact, He may actually USE the difficulty as a stepping stone for teaching onlookers about Himself in some way.  I need to keep this in mind when things seem to go “wrong.”  It may be one of God’s teaching tools to others.  I saw this happen when I moved to Jordan with no decent household goods.  What was hard for me (having to leave so much behind in Beirut) became the key to my ability to minister to my new friends and neighbors because they saw me as one of them, not a “rich” American.  What a powerful lesson for me then and it has stayed with me all these 40 years since then.  God will use even the most difficult things in our lives for good if we allow Him to do so.