“You, O God, sent a plentiful rain,
Whereby You confirmed Your inheritance,
When it was weary.” (Psalm 68:9)
When it was weary.” (Psalm 68:9)
It was a
typical Saturday morning. I had just stepped off the ice rink, put my hockey
gear in my bag, loaded everything up in my car, and got inside of the car to
head home.
I put the
key in the ignition and turned the crank as I have done every time I have
driven the car for the past four years. The car started right up, but immediately
started jerking as though the engine was running on diesel fuel that was gelled
up.
I managed
to drive the car a short distance when all of the sudden the engine stopped and
the car came to a slow halt.
I put the
car in park and turned the key. Once again, the engine started, but this time
the car was jerking even more profusely. I managed to drive in close to a curb
before it “died” again.
I noticed
that where the car had come to a halt was a “tow away zone”; which meant that I
couldn’t leave it parked there for very long; especially since we were
scheduled for a snow storm in a few hours.
I also
realized that I hadn’t brought my phone with me and all of my teammates had
already driven away.
I stopped
and prayed and sought direction before I tried to start the car once again. I
was able to get it started (still firing erratically) and drove it between the
sputters out of the area where it had been parked.
The
thought occurred to me that I was only a few blocks from the home of one of
Cathy’s sisters as I looked for a safe place to park the car. I decided to
crawl my way to her house.
When I
arrived, I parked the car in a spot across from her house and made sure that it
would not get towed.
I got out
of the car and knocked on her door and was greeted by two of her children who
informed me that their mom and dad wasn’t at home and wouldn’t be back for
several hours.
I asked
if they would call Cathy for me and they said that they didn’t know her number…But neither did I because all of my numbers
for my friends and family are on my cell phone!
Realizing
that I had Cathy’s number on a piece of paper in my wallet, I asked to borrow a
phone.
I called
Cathy (who was at a craft sale with one of my daughters) and let her know what
had happened and proceeded to secure some numbers; including a ride and a tow
truck.
Cathy’s
response was almost nonchalant when she said; “We will see how this all works
out…”
My
daughter told Cathy that she would ask her husband to pick me up.
While I
waited for my son-in-law to arrive, I called for a tow truck and was informed
that it would be at least two hours; which was ok as long as they got it off
the roads before the snow storm arrived in three hours. They said that they
would do their best.
I
returned the phone to my nephew and waited outside for my ride; which arrived
in a short time. I loaded my hockey gear and sticks in his car and thanked him
for the ride.
Long
story short, the car was delivered and after praying about it, we donated it to
a non-profit that fixes up cars for people in need. They even towed it away!
And,
simulcast with this, someone was purchasing a different car with the intention
of giving it to us as an early Christmas present.
In less
than one week we had a new vehicle and had the old one taken away. Praise the
Lord!
It is in
these times that my faith gets tested; will I simply trust the Lord to provide?
It is during times like this that it is easy to miss provision as one gets
stuck with questions of “why?”
The truth
is the Lord knows so much better what we need than we do.
But we
want provision without any loss. We want a miracle without a need that requires
a miracle. We want sunshine without the rain (or snow or storms or…)
We want
the flowers without the rain.
It was a
typical Saturday morning. I had just stepped off the ice rink, put my hockey
gear in my bag, loaded everything up in my car, and got inside of the car to
head home.
I put the
key in the ignition and turned the crank as I have done every time I have
driven the car for the past four years. The car started right up, but immediately
started jerking as though the engine was running on diesel fuel that was gelled
up.
I managed
to drive the car a short distance when all of the sudden the engine stopped and
the car came to a slow halt.
I put the
car in park and turned the key. Once again, the engine started, but this time
the car was jerking even more profusely. I managed to drive in close to a curb
before it “died” again.
I noticed
that where the car had come to a halt was a “tow away zone”; which meant that I
couldn’t leave it parked there for very long; especially since we were
scheduled for a snow storm in a few hours.
I also
realized that I hadn’t brought my phone with me and all of my teammates had
already driven away.
I stopped
and prayed and sought direction before I tried to start the car once again. I
was able to get it started (still firing erratically) and drove it between the
sputters out of the area where it had been parked.
The
thought occurred to me that I was only a few blocks from the home of one of
Cathy’s sisters as I looked for a safe place to park the car. I decided to
crawl my way to her house.
When I
arrived, I parked the car in a spot across from her house and made sure that it
would not get towed.
I got out
of the car and knocked on her door and was greeted by two of her children who
informed me that their mom and dad wasn’t at home and wouldn’t be back for
several hours.
I asked
if they would call Cathy for me and they said that they didn’t know her number…But neither did I because all of my numbers
for my friends and family are on my cell phone!
Realizing
that I had Cathy’s number on a piece of paper in my wallet, I asked to borrow a
phone.
I called
Cathy (who was at a craft sale with one of my daughters) and let her know what
had happened and proceeded to secure some numbers; including a ride and a tow
truck.
Cathy’s
response was almost nonchalant when she said; “We will see how this all works
out…”
My
daughter told Cathy that she would ask her husband to pick me up.
While I
waited for my son-in-law to arrive, I called for a tow truck and was informed
that it would be at least two hours; which was ok as long as they got it off
the roads before the snow storm arrived in three hours. They said that they
would do their best.
I
returned the phone to my nephew and waited outside for my ride; which arrived
in a short time. I loaded my hockey gear and sticks in his car and thanked him
for the ride.
Long
story short, the car was delivered and after praying about it, we donated it to
a non-profit that fixes up cars for people in need. They even towed it away!
And,
simulcast with this, someone was purchasing a different car with the intention
of giving it to us as an early Christmas present.
In less
than one week we had a new vehicle and had the old one taken away. Praise the
Lord!
It is in
these times that my faith gets tested; will I simply trust the Lord to provide?
It is during times like this that it is easy to miss provision as one gets
stuck with questions of “why?”
The truth
is the Lord knows so much better what we need than we do.
But we
want provision without any loss. We want a miracle without a need that requires
a miracle. We want sunshine without the rain (or snow or storms or…)
We want
the flowers without the rain.
And yet the Bible tells us that the LORD “makes His sun rise on the evil and on the
good, and sends rain on the just and on the unjust.” (Matthew 5:45)
As I
reflect, this didn’t come as a total surprise. The car had been occasionally
idling a little rough and we had (a different) son-in-law who is a mechanic
look at the car and told us that the timing chain was damaged and needed to be
replaced very soon. We were driving on borrowed time.
I also
realized that the Lord had been preparing me all week when I had a passing
thought; “You need to get rid of this vehicle in order to get a different one…”
I also
had a gut-check to wait before I purchased license tabs for the car along with
purchasing hub caps that were missing for the car.
And, that
same week, two different people said; “If you ever need a car, here is a place
that I would recommend…”
I also had heard to bring my phone to my hockey
game (which I never do).
Bottom
line is that we were taken care of on all levels and all areas. Our posture was
to be one of trusting Him as we sought FIRST His kingdom.
Knowing
that upon us all a little rain must fall; and that isn’t necessarily a bad
thing if we want to see the flowers (provision)…
As I
reflect, this didn’t come as a total surprise. The car had been occasionally
idling a little rough and we had (a different) son-in-law who is a mechanic
look at the car and told us that the timing chain was damaged and needed to be
replaced very soon. We were driving on borrowed time.
I also
realized that the Lord had been preparing me all week when I had a passing
thought; “You need to get rid of this vehicle in order to get a different one…”
I also
had a gut-check to wait before I purchased license tabs for the car along with
purchasing hub caps that were missing for the car.
And, that
same week, two different people said; “If you ever need a car, here is a place
that I would recommend…”
I also had heard to bring my phone to my hockey
game (which I never do).
Bottom
line is that we were taken care of on all levels and all areas. Our posture was
to be one of trusting Him as we sought FIRST His kingdom.
Knowing
that upon us all a little rain must fall; and that isn’t necessarily a bad
thing if we want to see the flowers (provision)…
Psalm 65:9 says;
“You visit the
earth and water it,
You greatly enrich it;
The river of God is full of
water;
You provide their grain,
For so You have prepared it.”
Or as Al Bowlly sang;
All Scripture
taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used
by permission. All rights reserved.
“You visit the
earth and water it,
You greatly enrich it;
The river of God is full of water;
You provide their grain,
For so You have prepared it.”
You greatly enrich it;
The river of God is full of water;
You provide their grain,
For so You have prepared it.”
Or as Al Bowlly sang;
“The
roses may be there
Behind
the garden wall,
Before
their fragrance fills the air
A little rain must fall.”
All Scripture
taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used
by permission. All rights reserved.
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