Answered Prayer

As a young Christian in the ‘70s, I spent a lot of my prayer life asking for world peace. I believe God will answer that prayer well past the timeline I had in mind as a teenager. As I grew older, my prayers changed. Some sounded like I thought God was a genie, but most sounded like I thought he would never really answer. Later I spent an enormous amount of time asking God to heal my broken marriage. He answered that prayer with a gut wrenching “no” and now, looking back, I am so glad. He had something so much better for me around the corner! Since then, there has been a much more personal heart-wrenching prayer that I prayed for 15 years that I have seen God answer. I can’t share it, but suffice it to say, it was BIG! Praise his Holy Name!

About ten years ago I discovered the beauty of writing my prayers. In fact, that is how I started blogging. I got so much practice at writing that I discovered a love for it. Back to my point. When I wrote down my prayers, I was able to go back and see what I asked and often I could see how He answered it. What a wonderful thing this has been for my walk of faith. God’s time is so different from my short attention span.(After all, it was God who created elephant’s memories.)

When reading over my past prayers, I see some of the things I couldn’t at the time. I see each uniquely designed answer. Some answers I am still waiting on but by reviewing God’s work in my life, I have begun to let go of the framework of time and have developed a hair more faith than I had when I was in my teens.

Since my expectations of God’s answers have no time frame, there is shock and awe in the random timing of His answers. For example, I was driving home the other day on the winding two-way, no passing road to our neighborhood. A “crotch-rocket” pulled out behind me on this narrow road and began tailgating me. The only thing that makes me more nervous than tailgaters is motorcycles and winding roads. I clenched the steering wheel and said a quick prayer for tailgating-crotch-rocket guy. Within a minute of that prayer, the guy passed me on a blind no-passing curve. I was relieved no one was coming the other way and he was out of my sight. Then, a minute later I rounded another curve and there was crotch rocket guy on the side of the road frantically trying to start his motorcycle. I was absolutely amazed that God answered my prayer so swiftly because that is not his usual MO. I thank God for sending me this reminder that he is listening and he answers prayer. 

Pride, Prejudice and Self-Checks

 

After listening to the news yesterday, I found myself shaking my head about folks who… And that is a problem. Not their problem; it is mine. Time for a reality check.

If I think I am not influenced by my culture, I probably am. If I think I know more than those other folks, I probably don’t. If I wonder how anyone could “fill-in-the-blank”, I could easily be a victim of the same behavior. If I ponder how folks could fall for “fill-in-the-blank”, I may be the next to fall. If I think folks in a particular other state are all clueless, I may be the clueless one. If I think my kids would never, my kids are out there “nevering” right now behind my back. If I think folks who watch that other news channel, go to that other church, vote for the other party, attend that other school, have lesser education, or are from the other generation are brainwashed, it may be me who has been indoctrinated.

Every so often I get fed up with those other folks and that is when I am most dangerous. That is when I am the problem. People may be flawed in different ways, but we are all still flawed. I have come to realize that it is when I watch the news and spend time on social media that I get most pompous about my good choices and their bad choices. It makes me feel angry, uptight and hopeless. That is my sign to step away. But not only do I need to back off of the news and social media, I need desperately to engage with folks that are living in a different walk of life than me. I need to see them eye to eye and listen to their stories. This is the only hope for my judgmental condition. This is the only way I can learn to humble myself and dig out of my prideful existence.

I must periodically remind myself that God made us all. We live all over a big globe. We are raised in so many different cultures. There is not a culture that has the inside track on wisdom. Only our Creator has the inside track on wisdom. He is our source. And this can only happen if we will humble ourselves, give up our stiff-necked ways and bow before Him.