Don't Worry About The Egg

 

Disclaimer: Obviously I am not an actual angel. However, I feel like God speaks to my heart and I would love to share it with you. Please enjoy.

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Thank you. Janice Austin Bates

When someone asks you to pray for them, or about something for them, do you stop and pray for them right then? Or maybe you tell them that you will be praying for them.

I find that I will do either one, depending on how I am feeling at the time. I always know that I should stop and pray for them right now, but other times I am afraid I will pray for them and they will not receive the miracle they need. What if that happens? Then I will have to figure out an excuse for why God didn’t answer prayer. What if it causes them to believe that God isn’t real, or He doesn’t really care about our needs. What if they never bother to pray again because it didn’t do any good anyway?

I end up having to rein myself back in and remember that God never has egg on His face, so what am I worried about. Then I have to stop and realize I am living in fear, and God doesn’t call us to do that. Besides, no matter how smart I think I am, God is smarter. A whole lot smarter, and He knows what He is doing.

God reminds me that it isn’t my job to make sure a prayer is answered. That is God’s job, and He does it well. Sometimes we don’t think a prayer is being answered, but one way or another, it is.

Pastor Chris at our church was talking about that last Sunday. When someone asks us to pray for them we are not to promise them we will pray. We need to stop right then and pray with them. That is our part. The rest is up to God and He knows exactly how to do it.

I bowl on a bowling league every Thursday. A nice couple in the league have a beautiful dog named Emma. She comes to bowling with them.

Last week Emma showed up with four shaved areas with stitches where she had surgery. Tammy, the owner, said she had four tumors removed, and the one in her abdomen was very large, very deep, and the vet said she was sure it was cancer. The vet sent the tumor to the lab to see if she got it all, and how bad it was. Tammy was very scared.

When Tammy wasn’t looking I laid my hands on Emma and prayed for her. Then I had to ask myself what was going on. Was I ashamed? No, I know I am not ashamed of being a Christian. So maybe I am afraid. I knew instantly that was the problem.

God impressed on me that I was to tell Tammy I prayed for Emma, and then trust Him.

When I told Tammy I had prayed she was very grateful. I also told her about a prayer meeting I go to each Wednesday at our church. I said I would ask them to pray too.

I prayed several times during the week. Then at the prayer meeting I told everyone about it. I said I wanted Emma to be healed for her sake, and as a witness to Tammy. We all prayed.

This Thursday when I went to bowling I was anxious to hear if they had any news on Emma yet. As I walked to my team’s lane I saw Emma standing there. To my horror, her entire abdomen was completely wrapped in bandages. This looked way worse than it had last week.

As the doubting Thomas I am capable of being, I immediately started thinking about how I was going to tell Tammy that we had prayed, and I was sorry it hadn’t worked.

Then I saw Tammy walking toward me. When she got to me she put her arms around me and held me so tight it almost hurt, and she wouldn’t let go. I was expecting her to burst into tears and tell me Emma was dying. Suddenly she started saying “Thank you” over and over. She must have said it twenty or thirty times. Then she looked into my face and told me the lab report said it was not even cancer at all. It was just a cyst.

I asked what the bandages were about and she said Emma had fluid collecting in her abdomen so they drained it, and the bandages are keeping pressure there so the fluid won’t collect again. The vet said Emma is going to be fine.

What do you know. Even through all my doubts, God was in control.

I asked Tammy if she knew who did this, and she said that she knew it was God. We started talking about God and I told her she and her husband need to be in church learning about God, and she agreed.

She asked about our church and loved what she heard. She had a commitment this weekend she couldn’t get out of, but she wants to start coming next Sunday.

This was the goal in the first place. I wanted this to be a witness to Ron and Tammy and draw to them to God.

If I had allowed my fear to hold me back (and believe me, that is what I was doing until God nudged me) none of this would have happened.

This was a real lesson for me. God reminded me once again that we are not to live in fear. When God tells us to pray for someone we need to do it, and then rest in the assurance that God will work His plan. God cannot work through us if we do not do our part.

So, are you living in fear, or trusting in God? It can be a constant battle, but it is worth the effort.

Think about it.