I'm Expecting...

(and it's most definetly not what you're thinking! =D)

When it comes to prayer, I think a lot of us, (myself included), ask often, but don't really expect the so-called "answer". Why is that? It seems to me our prayers are often stuck in this rut of, asking but not expecting.

This morning I woke up not feeling very well. I was heading off to babysit, so it wasn't really a great situation. There in the early morning light I was praying a half-hearted, sleepy prayer. "Jesus, I ask that you give me strength for the day." It was a prayer with little room for God to intervene. Just give me that strength, okay? I fumbled out of my room, swallowed some breakfast, brushed my teeth, and found myself driving away.

My neck was still stiff, and my head was still pounding, and my eyes were still a bit groggy. Halfway to the destination, I realized I just couldn't spend seven hours with two little boys feeling like this.

And, I suddenly realized that Jesus could take away the aches and stiffness, the tired, dreary feeling I had. So, I asked Him. And you know what? I had hardly finished my (specific, expecting!) prayer, when my weary feelings (headache, ect.) were instantly (and I mean instantly) gone! It was amazing, and I was just so filled with His awesome wonder and might. Babysitting for the day went splendidly, too.

This has been such a lesson for me, and I hope it can send you thinking, too. Honestly, I feel foolish for all the times I've prayed prayers that have such "loose ends" that don't give our Lord room to provide in His amazing ways. Let's start expecting!

Every experience God gives us, every person He puts in our lives, is the perfect preparation for the future that only He can see. -Corrie Ten Boom

"I Love You" by Misty Edwards

He Sees Every Tear

A four year-old with dark eyes stared up at me this morning and didn't say a word. Since you never know what this might mean, I quickly followed him back to the table where he was coloring a picture of fruit. At first I thought that he might be upset because he had accidentally colored his pineapple red, but then I realized that this was a purposeful artistic touch.

"That's nice," I smiled, about to walk away. Then I realized the reason that he had tried to get my attention- he had a friend in need.

There, staring down at his empty picture of black-and-white fruits, sat Zacchaeus, tears brimming in his eyes. The moment he caught my eye, he began to sob. I carried him out of the room so that he wouldn't disrupt the thirty-two other preschoolers and sat him down in the hallway. Surprisingly, the moment he was in my lap, the tears stopped flowing and he sat in silence. All he needed were arms around him and someone to wipe away his tears.

The adult world is cruel. The moment that we're old enough to drive ourselves around and pay for the means to do it, we're expected to remain composed at all times- tough and resilient- and not show any emotion other than elation. The required answer to the question, "How are you?" is "good," no matter whether it's the truth or not.

When you're a child, of course, it's a completely different story. Kids are allowed to cry over just about anything- candy, scrapes, dinner, bedtime- it's expected of them. However, no one would be understanding if a twenty year-old woman burst into tears because she wanted the blueberry lollipop.

But life isn't always full of rainbows and sunshine, whether we're supposed to pretend like it is or not. To where can we turn?

When I told Zacchaeus that it was time for us to go back inside the classroom and stood him up, he burst into tears again, this time even more than before. But it was only a couple of seconds before he was silently settled in my lap again, content to remain there until his mother arrived.

As I sat there, I thought of Jesus and His continual arms around me and the fact that, at the end of the day, after I've answered "good" dozens of times and smiled whether I felt like it or not, He is there with open arms, ready and waiting for me to climb into His lap as a child would and tell Him what's really on my heart.

"Jesus said, 'Let the little children come to Me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of heaven belongs to such as these." Matthew 19:14

You don't have to be a child to be a child to Jesus.

Thursday's Thoughts from Heroes of the Faith

 

"In the final analysis, it does not matter what question we are asking. All questions come under one of three headings:

1. Way--we need guidance

2. Truth--we need a norm.

3. Life--we need sustenance.
Jesus said, 'I am' all of these things. Let us bring everything that baffles us into His presence, holding it up before Him by faith. In that Light, the look of things will slowly begin to change, and as we humble ourselves to receive the true answer, our eyes will be opened. We learn to know Christ, then, as we walk in His way, obey His truth, and live His life. He Himself, a living, loving Person, is our answer." -Elisabeth Elliot

"Lost" Keys

I'm always paranoid about losing my keys.

I suppose it's not so much about losing the keys as much as it is the fact that I wouldn't be able to go anywhere without them. Still, no matter how many times paranoia strikes, I always find them nestled safely in my purse and drive off into the sunset.

That is, until the other day.

I was already running late getting from one lesson to another, and I couldn't find them anywhere. I had just said my good-byes and gotten ready to leave, but after rummaging through my very small purse and even going to such lengths as pulling everything out, I still couldn't them. Great, I thought, about to walk back up the driveway.

Suddenly, before I even looked inside my hand, I realized where they were.

I had been holding them the whole time.

After slapping myself in the forehead, I drove away.

Do you ever have questions? It's very rare that I don't have some sort of question on my mind. Often I'll find myself asking God, "Why?" or "When?" or "What?" or "Where?" I'm not really expecting an answer because I've convinced myself that He wants me to fend for myself, but it feels good to just ask Him.

Here's a question: Why would He want us to fend for ourselves? Why in the world would He have come into the world to reconnect us to Himself if all He intended to do was leave us alone again?

When I really think about it, even with all of the many questions that I find myself asking God, all I really want to know is, "What should I do now?"

Well, what if I told you that asking God such a question and not expecting an answer is like searching for the keys that you're holding in your hand? He is very much within your reach- His voice, His word, His power and all that He has for you (which is everything that you could possibly need)- all that you need to do is open your hand.

"I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven; whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven." Matthew 16:19

Please believe me when I say that I wrote this post as much for myself as I did for you. Let's open our hands together, okay?

"I have no pleasure in the death of anyone, declares the Lord God; so turn, and live." Ezekiel 18:32