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.
For all the negative things we have to say to ourselves,
God has a positive answer for it.
译文:
孤岛上的故事
在一次海难中，唯一的幸存者被（海浪）冲到了一个荒无人烟的小岛上。他疯狂地祈祷，希望上帝来解救自己。每天，他都眺望海平面寻找救援船只，可是除了汪洋一片，什么也看不到。
他感到筋疲力尽，最终决定用那块带他来到小岛上的浮木建一个简陋的小屋，保护自己在险恶的环境中不受伤害，并用来存放自己仅有的财物。
但是，有一天，他外出寻找食物，回到小屋时却看到他的小屋正在熊熊烈火之中，滚滚的浓烟直冲向天空。最悲惨的事情发生了：他现在变得一无所有。满腔悲愤，他仰天长叹：“上帝啊，您怎能这样对我！”
然而，第二天一早，他被轮船的汽笛声吵醒了，一艘轮船正朝着小岛驶来。是的，那是赶来营救他的。
“你们是怎么知道我在这里的？”这个疲惫的男人问前来救他的人。
“我们看到了浓烟，你发出的求救信号。”救援人员回答说。
人们很容易因为事情不顺利而气馁。但是我们不能因此而丧失信心，因为，即使当我们遭遇苦难和悲伤时候，上帝也与我们同在。
记住，下次当你的小屋着火被烧成了灰烬，这可能正是为你带来上帝福音的信号。
对于所有我们所认为负面的事物，上帝都有一个正面的答案。