When police in Germany went to arrest Maria Brunner for a stack of unpaid parking fines, all run up unbeknown to her by her unemployed husband using her car, they were surprised that she actually thanked them and waved to people as she was driven off to jail. Maria, who supports her husband and three young children by cleaning houses, said, ‘I’ve had enough of scraping a living for the family. As long as I get food and a hot shower every day, I don’t mind being sent to jail. I can finally get some rest.’
For most people going to jail would be the worst that could happen. But Maria showed that the worst thing can sometimes be the best thing – depending on how you look at it. I suppose that’s why the Bible says: ‘Our temporary problems are producing an eternal stockpile of glory for us that is beyond all comparison.’