The Phone Call

I was working from home this week when I received a text that made me sigh.  It was from a person that I find particularly stressful, with a personality I'd rather avoid.  This person tends to be argumentative and often talks down to me.  

Give me a call when you get a moment.

My heart sunk.  I'd rather not, I thought.  But, according to my driver's license, I am an adult.  As an adult, I should return texts and phone calls, even when I'd rather pretend I never received it.

I dropped my head at my desk.  I could delay it for an hour, perhaps.  No, I decided, it makes no sense to torture myself for an hour.  I might as well get it overwith.

Just then, my phone rang, and an unknown number popped onto the screen.

"Hello, I am with the women's ministry at the church and I was just calling to see how you are doing and if there's anything I need to pray for in your life."

She sounded incredibly sincere.  She caught me off-guard.  I stammered for a minute, then I said, "I am actually doing really well, and I can't think of anything I need to be prayed for."

It didn't occur to me to have her pray over my unfortunate text message.  It was so small and insignificant, plus it would take a while to explain the whole situation.  I was in a hurry to handle my problem, after all.  

But, if I'm being totally honest, I also was refusing to be transparent or vulnerable.  I don't know why I do that, but I would rather be the "pray-er" than the "pray-ee" in pretty much any situation.  Isn't it always easier to be the "pray-er"?  

She said, "Well then we can pray a prayer of praise that you're doing so well.  Do you want to pray with me, or would you rather I pray for you after we got off this call?"

I chose to pray on the call.  Upon my confirmation, that sweet little woman prayed a sincere, heartfelt prayer praising the Lord that I was doing so well, considering all of the challenges in the world today.  

I hung up.  

I looked out the window, up to the sky.  "I know that was You," I said out loud.

It didn't take long for my attention to shift back to the phone call I needed to make.  I returned the call as requested, and the stressful situation turned out to be not-so-stressful.  I moved onto the next tasks in my day, and it wasn't long before I completely forgot about the sweet woman who prayed for me.

I wonder how often we miss God's grace because we're so focused on the problems directly in front of us.  When we move to and fro throughout our day, refusing to look up, we miss the bigger picture.  We're focused on the trees, when there's an entire forest that God wants us to view instead.  Without perspective, we miss the rhyme and rhythm of life.

Anxiety and fear will always draw our gaze back to our problems.  But, anxiety and fear always discount God's presence.  That sweet, obedient woman was being used by God to send a message to me.  I am not meant to face the problems of life alone.  That was never His design.  I am meant to navigate life in tandem with Him, conquering obstacles in my path together with my creator, rather than entirely alone.  When I approach problems on my own, I am ill-equipped.  When I approach problems with Him, I have inexhaustible resources.

I can never fully understand why we have a creator who cares so much about even the littlest details of our lives, but we do.  His love for us knows no bounds, and He has the ability to stand by our side, even through the smallest conflicts of life.  I still can't fully wrap my mind around a Savior so thoughtful.  But, when you really, really love someone, you care about the smallest details of their life.  That's how He feels about us. 

Zepheniah 3:17 "The Lord your God is with you, the Mighty Warrior who saves.  He will take great delight in you; in his love he will no longer rebuke you, but will rejoice over you with singing.”

Imagine what life could look like if we viewed every day as an opportunity to work through our problems and conflicts with God.  Gone would be the stress and anxiety that keep us in a constant state of fear.  Instead, the confidence of knowing that nothing is too difficult for God to handle would greet us on a daily basis, promising peace as long as we keep our eyes on Him.

Its time to look up.  Its time to see the forest through the trees.  

The God of the universe is on our side.