The Power of Praise

Rejoice in the LORD always. I say it again, rejoice!
Philippians 4:4 (NIV)

Have you ever stopped to consider that we are told to rejoice? Commanded to really. It’s not a case of rejoice if you want to or when things are going really well. No, God wants us to rejoice always. The key is that we are supposed to rejoice in Him.

When life is not playing out according to our plan and it seems that God has forgotten who and where we are, still we are commanded to praise Him. And when we obey His commands, we are blessed. Have you ever stopped to realize that praise blesses us? God, in His infinite wisdom, has chosen to inhabit the praises of His people. (Psalm 22:3) Evil has no place in God’s presence. It’s in our darkest hour, when praise is the furthest thing from our mind that we need to praise God most. I learned this lesson when I least expected it and from such a young servant of God – my 4 year old daughter.

I was discouraged and disheartened with life. Times were very difficult and I felt so very alone. I had let my eyes fall from Jesus, the Author and Perfector of my faith, and instead focused on the burdens I had picked up. I knew that God wanted more for me than what I was experiencing but I was powerless to see the way. I was listening to the lies of the enemy. I was focused on the size of my problems and I had forgotten the size of my God.

As I was driving my little girl to preschool that morning, I couldn’t hold back the tears. I was frustrated by life and lost in my own thoughts. I turned on the CD player. I was oblivious to the song playing until all of the sudden I realized that Taylor was singing every word out loud and clear…”From everlasting to everlasting, You are God” (Brian Doerksen, Everlasting, Today CD). I looked into the rearview mirror and was immediately struck by the fact that she wasn’t just singing, she was praising God. No sooner did that realization strike than the words of Psalm 8:2 rang almost audibly in my ears…”From the lips of children and infants you have ordained praise because of your enemies, to silence the foe and the avenger.” (emphasis mine).

I was speechless. I was so overcome by what God had just done that I nearly pulled over to the side of the road. You see, that verse had come to me in it’s entirety – complete with reference – and I had never memorized it. The week earlier, it had been one of many verses mentioned in my Bible study but it hadn’t even registered with me enough to underline it. God knew that I was losing the battle. He knew that I needed to be rescued and He used the vessel close at hand to minister to me. He ordained praise from Taylor’s tender little heart. As she lifted up the Truth of who He is, He made His home on her praises and silenced the foe and the avenger who was savagely attacking me. In that moment of recognition, I was set free! O God, “What is man that you are mindful of him?”

We are so precious to God. We are His children and He takes great delight in us. He desires to rescue us. When we are losing the battle we need to remember whose team we’re on. We need to remember God’s faithfulness in the past and trust what He’s doing in us today. He alone sees the big picture!

In Psalm 77, the psalmist is crying out to God for help. He’s distressed and his soul refuses to be comforted. He wonders if God has forgotten him. Will God never again show mercy? “Then I thought, ‘to this I will appeal: the years of the right hand of the Most High.’ I will remember the deeds of the LORD; yes, I will remember your miracles of long ago. I will meditate on all your works and consider all your mighty deeds. Your ways, O God, are holy…You are the God who performs miracles; you display your power among the peoples.” Make a choice. Choose to dwell on the faithfulness God has shown you in the past. In the midst of your circumstances, trust God and bring a sacrifice of praise before His throne. Not only will He be delighted, but you will be changed for having been in His presence!

Rejoice in the LORD always. I say it again, rejoice!
Philippians 4:4 (NIV)

A Note From the Lord

You keep track of all my sorrows. You have collected all my tears in your bottle.
You have recorded each one in your book.
Psalm 56:8 (NLT)

Have you ever wished that the Lord would speak to us today as He did with the apostles? Have you read how Jesus bent down and wrote in the dirt causing a mob to disperse and felt a twinge of envy wishing He would do that for you? Have you ever wondered if He really sees and cares what you’re going through? One day, in the midst of life’s darkest season of my life, He proved to me that He does.

It happened five weeks after we buried my Dad. Mom was having an exceptionally difficult day. If you have ever grieved for someone so close to you, you know that some days loneliness attacks you from nowhere with such force that it takes your breath away. This particular day, the loneliness was accompanied by that ache way down in the pit of her stomach and she clutched it in an attempt to dull the pain. To make matters worse, she had been called to my grandparents early that morning because my grandfather’s health was so poor that we wondered each day if it would be his last. Unlike Dad, Grandpa had been satisfied by a good, long life. Normally, the threat of such a loss would be easier to take but the tender hugs of my grandfather seemed to ease Mom’s heartache more than anyone else’s those days. She simply couldn’t bear to lose those too.

After settling the kids into bed, there was a surprise knock on my door. It was Mom. The prospect of spending the evening alone in her house was too much for her that day. She wanted to “do something”. When I asked her what “something” was, she said, “let’s go shopping!” Now, my Mom is incredibly different from all other women I know in the fact that she hates shopping. Wandering through the women’s department is not pleasurable for her. So when we found ourselves in a local department store, I was a little taken back. It was even more rare that she actually tried on clothes when she shopped. My Dad had always bought the majority of her clothes for her. Within a few minutes, her eyes lit upon a cute denim skirt with tiny flowers embroidered on the pockets. There were a number of them there in assorted sizes. She just grabbed one, which wasn’t her usual size, and off we went to the change rooms. I’m sure silent tears spilt behind those closed doors.

The doors opened and out came Mom. The skirt fit perfectly and instantly won our approval. Mom slid her hands into the pockets as she turned before the mirror. She stopped and pulled out a scrap piece of paper – probably the remnants of an old envelope. On it were scrawled these words, “He (Jesus) healeth the brokenhearted, binding up their wounds.” They are the words of Psalm 147:3. You could have blown me over with a whisper! Where had that note come from? Why was that old scrap of paper in the pocket of that new skirt? Only God knows that! And only God could possibly know how desperately she, we, needed to be reminded that He sees our broken hearts. It hadn’t escaped His view. Many times as people expressed their sympathy to us in the countless cards we received, that very verse was used. But you are used to seeing it there. You expect it. Somehow, for me, it was devoid of some of its meaning as I thought to myself, “yes, yes, I know that Lord, but it just hurts so much.” Well, I know now that God understands. He understands the loneliness. He understands the pain. And He understands when we just really need to see things in black and white – like in that little note…
…we have a great High Priest who has gone to heaven, Jesus the Son of God.

Let us cling to Him and never stop trusting Him. This High Priest of ours understands our weaknesses, for he faced all of the same temptations we do, yet He did not sin. So let us come boldly to the throne of our gracious God. There we will receive his mercy, and we will find grace to help us when we need it.
Hebrews 4:14-16 (NLT)

God Keeps His Promises

I love the LORD because He hears and answers my prayers.
Because He bends down and listens, I will pray as long as I have breath!
Psalm 116:1, 2 (NLT)


Have you ever wanted something so badly that you aren’t sure how you can live without it? I have. When my husband and I had been married about 5 years, we decided that it was time to start our own family. What began as such an exciting adventure soon became full of anguish as month after month, no child was conceived. If you have ever struggled with infertility, you will know the intense feelings of personal failure that come with the knowledge that your body isn’t capable of doing that which you feel it was created to do. You fight a vicious emotional battle with yourself as, for some paradoxical reason, you are now keenly aware of a world full of pregnant women. Being barren can be an incredibly painful experience that can only fully be appreciated by those who have been there. This is the situation that I found myself in.

As if it were yesterday, I remember sitting in a doctor’s office and hearing the words, “I am 90% sure that your body does not release any eggs and that you will never conceive without fertility drugs.” When I immediately begged to be prescribed the drugs, I was told that until she had documented two complete years of my infertility herself, she would not prescribe any fertility medication. How I made the drive to my husband is a miracle in itself. The tears that poured down my face would have put any rainstorm to shame.

I poured over the scriptures, trying desperately to claim the promise that the LORD made to Hannah in 1 Samuel 1. Try as I might, I knew that the LORD wasn’t giving these verses to me. If I presumed to claim them, I knew it would be a lie. I went to visit my pastor and poured out my heart in a flood of tears. His response was so far from what I had hoped for as he said, “Karrie, God never promised that you would have children.” I knew that he was right but the truth of those words devastated me. His next words held a challenge that comes from wisdom. What was I going to do now? Would I still love the LORD? Would I still serve Him? Where did this leave me and God?

It took quite some time, and I would be lying if I said it was easy, but I made the decision that God was my God regardless of if I ever had children. My grandfather later voiced what I think became my wordless conclusion, “if God never did anything more for me than send His Son to pay the ransom for my soul, it would be enough reason to serve Him forever.” My husband and I went to visit my younger brother and his wife and their newborn baby. It was a painful experience but I knew that if I was never anything but an aunt, I would be alright. In hindsight, I know that this is the lesson that God was waiting for me to learn.

I came home from work early one morning and turned on the television. I caught a glimpse of a Christian TV program. To be honest, I would normally keep flipping through the channels in search of something more interesting, but for some reason that I can only attribute to God, this day I decided to watch. The next guest on the show read from Psalm 113. When she read verse 9, it was as if God Himself tapped me on the shoulder and gave me the promise “He settles the barren woman in her home as the happy mother of children. Praise the Lord!” Praise the Lord indeed! There was such an exquisite excitement that filled me as I knew that the Lord was giving this promise to me. It wasn’t like before. I wasn’t trying to claim someone else’s promise. I wasn’t trying to make God say something to me that He wasn’t. I knew the difference. How awesome! I began praising God in advance for the children that we would one day have.

That day arrived only 10 months later! God gave us a son! He was gorgeous! He was healthy! He was perfect! And he was mine! He wasn’t the product of fertility drugs, although I know that using them in no way diminishes the power of the miracle of a new life. He was a priceless treasure from God Himself.

When God makes a promise, He doesn’t miss a single detail. Less than a year after Carter was born, I was once again pregnant. This time, though, I miscarried. It was a heartrending trial to go through – but God got me through. You see, I had such an assurance in my heart that God had promised me children that I was able to accept this as something that God would explain to me some day and waited with anticipation for God to completely deliver His promise.
Soon I became pregnant again. This pregnancy flew by without problems – until I went into labor! The umbilical cord was wrapped twice around our baby’s neck. To make matters worse, the baby was coming face up. The heart rate was skyrocketing at an alarming rate and I was exhausted from pushing with no progress. The doctor told me that we had to get this baby here – NOW – and tripped a silent alarm. The frenzy of medical staff flying past the waiting room left my parents wondering who wasn’t going to make it – me or the baby. They were helpless to help but isn’t that when we learn that we aren’t truly helpless at all? They prayed!

Ephesians 3:20 b says that God “is able to accomplish infinitely more than we would ever dare to ask or hope.” If I had ever dared to voice my deepest desires, I would have admitted that I really wanted a son first and then a daughter. When you have been so desperate to have a baby you feel ashamed to be as particular as to request anything more than to have a healthy child but I had a vivid picture of a little girl living in my dreams. She was dainty and petite, with big dark eyes and long dark hair. I had even met a little girl that I had described as the most beautiful little girl I had ever seen – that is until our daughter was born!

Two and a half years after I first held my son, I held my daughter. The nurses told me that I had a million dollar family but I knew I had been blessed by God. Despite a prolonged lack of oxygen, we have a healthy, intelligent, beautiful daughter! God hears our cries. He cares about the desires of our heart. He keeps His promises! Praise the LORD!

It has been five years since my daughter was born – seven since the birth of my son. You couldn’t really ask for a better big brother. He’s gentle yet strong, protective and quite tolerant of his sister’s “spunk”. And my tiny daughter, she has a head full of the most beautiful long dark curls, striking big dark eyes that dance with enthusiasm, and a heart for the LORD! Oh, what an amazing God…

He settles the barren woman in her home
as the happy mother of children.
Praise the LORD!
Psalm 113:9 (NIV)

Jehovah Jirah! God Provides!

“And my God will meet all your needs according to His glorious riches in Christ Jesus.”
Philippians 4:19 (NIV)

Among my little notes and treasures that I keep tucked inside my Bible, is a grocery list. Why you may ask? Because it is a reminder to me that my God is faithful!
Recently, my husband and I renewed our level of commitment to being wise with our finances. As I sat down one evening to plan out the next morning’s grocery list, I carefully looked at our current supplies. We had company coming for the weekend and I wanted to make sure that we were supplied with healthy necessities for them and the next two weeks until we were paid again. I input the items, quantities and prices into a spreadsheet. I wanted to be organized and prepared to stay within our budget. When the items were all tallied, I was distressed to see the total read $309.00! Now that had items rounded to the nearest dollar so there was “play” in those numbers but it didn’t include any tax.
“Oh, Lord!” I cried. We couldn’t justify $309 on groceries. I went back over the items and the quantities. I guessed we could do without this… or maybe that… All of my adjustments resulted in negligible change. My husband reminded me that he needed deodorant. That hadn’t been on the list. My son came in and asked, “Mommy, can we buy a chapter book for Morgan? She’s been sick all week from school and I want to get her a treat.” I nearly cried! My anxiety started to mount. I calmly told my son to pray about it and ask Jesus for the chapter book but my own faith wasn’t nearly as confident. As everyone made their way off to bed, I retreated to my “spot” and poured my heart out to the Lord.
Psalm 142:1-3 says, “I cry aloud to the LORD; I lift up my voice to the LORD for mercy. I pour out my complaint before him; before him I tell my trouble. When my spirit grows faint within me, it is You who know my way.” I laid out all of the details before Him, though He knew them all. I asked Him to snuggle me in and remind me who He is – my trustworthy Master! As peace descended and I sensed His call to trust Him with our needs, I even dared to ask for a suitable chapter book for Carter’s friend. I felt the Lord ask me to voice the number that I wanted to spend but I struggled to do that. My budget said that I needed to get all of my supplies for under $250 but I couldn’t quite say that number in prayer. It seemed impossible.
The next morning, the kids and I made our way to the grocery store. We were there early so as to get as many of the “good deals” as possible. We started through the store, heading for the day old sections. Not much there. I kept hearing the Lord say “trust Me” and with every ounce of faith within me, I did. We began a methodical shop through the store – one item at a time. As I began stroking items off of the list, a trend started appearing. The things that I needed to buy would read something like this… “First two sale price $3.49, over the limit price $5.50”. You know what else… it wasn’t the “no name” items that were on sale. It was the brand name items that I rarely allowed myself to purchase that were the sale items that day!
We rounded the corner and I saw the beautiful photo frame display that I had been eyeing for the last three months. I had often been tempted to purchase some wall frames for the kids’ new school pictures but it had been the Christmas season and I hadn’t been able to justify the expense. Today, those beautiful frames were on sale for $9.98 each!! I couldn’t believe it! Could I have some, Lord? He seemed to smile as He said, “of course.” I felt Him rewarding me for being patient and waiting when He had told me “not yet” those times before.
My faith was increasing by the time we were half way through the list. As we passed a clearance bucket, I told my son to take a look in it and see what he could find. You guessed it – he found the perfect chapter book! There was only one in the bucket! It was a pretty little book about fairies! Written for a grade 4 girl and even bound in purple – her favorite color! As Carter asked me if we could get it and I passed the question on to the Lord, He answered, “well, you prayed for it!” How sweet!
Who would have thought that a grocery store could have been so full of miracles that day? We rounded another corner and they were just marking down the day old produce… exactly what was needed to complete our list. Taylor picked out pineapple – a real treat! As I unloaded our groceries onto the conveyer belt, I gave up trying to do a mental tally of prices. I knew that many of the items had been sale priced that day but the odd item had been more than I had allotted. A couple of things I had decided to pass on but there had been a couple of items we had picked up instead. I kept back the two frames and the book to pay for out of a separate account. I had a coupon for $30 off your grocery bill when you spent a minimum of $250. As I handed it to the cashier, he said, “I’m sorry, Ma’am, but you haven’t reached $250 yet.” What? I couldn’t believe it. The total read $244. I gave him the frames and book. He rang those through and deducted the coupon. My total WENT DOWN to $238.00!! How great is my God?!! I got everything I needed. I had the two frames that I had eyed for months. Carter had a book for his friend and my daughter had pineapple! How amazing! I choked back the tears as I bagged up our stuff. Why does He care so much? Why do I doubt when He is so faithful?
I could tell you more, you know… there were more miracles that day, like the teller at the bank. God is always more than we can imagine! He is bigger, stronger, more interested, more loving. Every time I think I get a “handle” on who He is He says, “you just think you know Me” and He wows me all over again!
Do you have needs that feel impossible? Today I can tell you that I know with assurance that God is who He says He is and He can do what He says He can do! But for the next time that my faith feels small and anxiety grows large, I’ll pull out that piece of paper that says “$309 $238 with 2 frames, 1 book and pineapple!” Thanks Lord!

“Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice!
Let your gentleness be evident to all. The Lord is near.
Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything,
by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God.
And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding,
will guard your hearts and your minds In Christ Jesus.”
Philippians 4:4-7 (NIV)

God Still Performs Miracles

I will remember the deeds of the LORD; yes, I will remember your miracles of long ago. I will meditate on all your works and consider all your mighty deeds.
Psalm 77:11, 12 (NIV)

Have you ever cried out to know the God of miracles from days gone by? I have. I wrote in my journal one day “remind me again, Lord, who You are”. My thoughts were drawn to Psalm 77. My heart could relate to Asaph, the writer of that psalm. He cried out to God for help. He cried out to God to hear him. His soul refused to be comforted. He wondered if God had forgotten him - if God had forgotten to be merciful. Then, Asaph made a choice. It was one that I followed that day. Together with Asaph, I chose to remember that God’s ways are holy – so unlike mine. I chose to remember that my God is the same God who performed miracles as He lead His people to display His power. I read of the awesome power of God as He led His people through the sea, I heard myself ask “why don’t You do miracles like that anymore?” Silently, I heard the reply “I do”. Here is the eyewitness account of a modern day miracle as told to me by my mom and verified by my dad, my aunts and many other witnesses.

When my parents were children, 9 and10 years of age, they both attended the Smoland Mission Covenant Church. It was a small Swedish church on the Manitoban prairies. The pastor at that time was a man by the name of Rev. Kenny Englund. About 8 years prior to coming to be their pastor, Kenny had fallen from the roof of a construction project and had broken his back. The result of this fall had not been paralysis (a miracle in itself) but rather had been excruciating migraines day in and day out. For years, though in constant pain, Rev. Englund continued to serve the Lord through preaching. However, the continuous pain took its’ toll on him and he made the difficult decision to leave the ministry. He decided that he would make his announcement from the pulpit the following Sunday. On Thursday of that week, Rev. Englund took a trip to the neighboring town of Neepawa with his friend and fellow pastor from the Anglican Church in Minnedosa. While they traveled, he shared his decision with his friend.
A storm was brewing and by the time the two men headed for home it was a fierce prairie storm. The thunder roared as lightening flashed across the sky. Torrents of rain made it almost impossible to see the road ahead and so the friends pulled the car off to the side of the road to wait out the storm. Suddenly, a bolt of lightening rocketed to earth just outside of the car. There was no mistaking how close it had come as the car trembled with the ferocity of the strike. Unbeknown to anyone but God and Rev. Englund, the migraine stopped. Immediately, it was gone. The unwavering cycle of pain was broken. Unwilling to say anything at that point, the two men finished their trip.

On Sunday morning, it was a much different announcement that was made from the pulpit of that little Swedish church. Rev. Englund was able to declare to his people how God had saved him from leaving the ministry and that he had been completely and totally healed! His testimony had such a profound effect on my mom that when Rev. Englund asked the congregation to think on what they needed to trust God for, my mom knew the answer needed to be “her life” and she asked Jesus to be her Lord and Savior that very day!

You would think that this would be the end of the story but God was not finished demonstrating his mighty power. You see, this miracle only set the stage for God to lead and guide this congregation in another miraculous way. At the time that Rev. Englund was pastor of that little Smoland Church, there was dissension among the people as to whether or not they should stay out in the country or relocate their congregation to the nearby town of Minnedosa. They had been considering the relocation for a fair long time. As always, there were pros and cons to each side and they had been unable to come to a decision. That Sunday, when Rev. Englund announced his healing, one of the members ran home to get his camera so that they could mark this joyous occasion. There are numerous photographs of Rev. Englund shaking hands with his parishioners as they left the church that day. I have seen some of them. In the background, on the wall, there was a poster. It was put there on behalf of the church library to remind people that there were books due. On it there was a drawing of a clock with the simple phrase “Time’s Up!” The time on the poster read 1:50.

The next day, another one of those fierce prairie storms had just let up and my dad, my grandfather and a hired man were headed out to do some work on the farm when they saw smoke rising from the direction of the church. They went, as quickly as they could, to the church to check it out. When they got there, they found the church had been struck by lightening and was being wracked by flames. They dove into action. There was no way to save their church but there were so many things that needed to be saved. They managed to carry out a number of items including some pews, a partially scorched piano and the church clock before the Smoland Mission Covenant Church succumbed to the flames.

The tiny congregation chose to rebuild – in Minnedosa. They felt that God had made the decision for them but they really didn’t know how right they were until they realized that the clock, which was permanently frozen at the time of the lightening strike, read 1:50. Time’s Up! God had spoken. Many of them had the photographs to prove it!

Have you ever read the book of Job? In Job 38:35, God is basically reminding Job who He is. God said, “Can you make lightning appear and cause it to strike as you direct it?” God can. Two bolts of lightening. Two miracles! Twice God had intervened to lead and guide His people.

There is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under heaven:
A time to be born and a time to die…a time to heal,
A time to tear down and a time to build…
Ecclesiastes 3:1, 2a, 3b (NIV)

His Eye is On The Sparrow

Not even a sparrow, worth only half a penny, can fall to the ground
without your Father knowing it. And the very hairs on your head are all numbered. So don’t be afraid; you are more valuable to him than a whole flock of sparrows.
Matthew 10:29 (NLT)


One of my favorite stories growing up was one that my mother often told me. It took place when I was a young child and circumstances in Mom and Dad’s life were especially tough. They were in the midst of terrible trials and felt the heavy burden of being very alone. My mom was making frequent trips into town. Along the way, she passed a fence and on it hung the lifeless body of a bird. To fully appreciate the impact this had on my mom, you have to understand that she hates birds. For as long as she can remember, she has had an incredible fear of them. And so, her eyes seemed compelled to search out the dead bird as it dangled from the barbwire fence.

One evening, laden with the cares of the day, she again saw the bird’s body sprawled in suspension from the sharp barbs. She distinctly remembers crying out to God, “Lord, You say that You care for me so much more than You do the sparrows. You say that You see each one fall and yet You don’t even have the decency to remove this one from the fence! How can I trust You to care for me?”

Mom continued on her way. I don’t know how she felt as she managed to get through the commitments she had that night. But the next day, as she once again passed by that old barbwire fence, I know that the bird was gone. It’s absence struck my mom in a profound way. It was like God’s voice could be heard saying, “I saw that little bird. It didn’t escape my notice, but I needed you to notice it so that I could use it to show you how much I care!” You see, if my mom had never seen that dead old bird hanging from that cruel old fence, those words “So don’t be afraid” may never have come to her mind. That promise “the very hairs on your head are all numbered…you are more valuable to him than a whole flock of sparrows.” would not have been so profound. And the peace of God, which comes from truly resting in His sovereignty and power, may have been a whole lot longer coming.

Isn’t it ironic, that the Lord often uses the ugly and disgusting things that we hate, to gain our attention so that we don’t miss His blessing? We want His blessing so badly that we often miss it just because it doesn’t come in the packaging that we expect. Oh Lord, please help us see Your blessing even in the midst of things that make us want to turn our eyes away!

There is a little song that we sang all of the time as children. It has always been inextricably tied to this story for me.

God sees the little sparrow fall.
It meets His tender view.
If God so loves these little things,
I know He loves me too.
He loves me too. He loves me too.
I know He loves me too.
If God so loves these little things,
I know He loves me too.
Author unknown

A Lesson in Sunshine

Yet the LORD longs to be gracious to you; he rises to show you compassion.
Isaiah 30:18

One morning, in the midst of a particularly difficult time in my life, my children and I were ready a few minutes early and so we sat on the couch to snuggle and pray for the day. The sky was dark with clouds and rain was imminent. It was a repeat of the day before and the day before that. It was just dark.

I wanted to teach the kids that we should want what God wants for us each day. And so, we prayed that God would bring into that day what He desired for us and that we would learn what He wanted to teach us. At the end of my prayer, I threw out “and Lord, could You give us a little bit of sunshine?” It was one of those casual statements that you sometimes say in prayer but don’t really expect God to answer. I got up to grab my purse and the knapsacks when all of the sudden, I realized that a glorious beam of sunshine was streaming in the window. Dumbfounded, I went back to my little children who were staring at the sun light. The dark, gray clouds had parted to reveal the brilliance of the sun in the middle of a clear, blue sky. “Look Mommy,” my son said, “God heard our prayer!”

We basked in the sunlight. It seemed to envelope us in its’ warm rays. I breathed deep and drank in the peace and tranquility that seemed to flood the room. The moment was golden. I silently thanked God for His immediate answer to our little prayer. Then, it was time to go.

Within minutes, the clouds returned. The puppy pooped on the floor. The car wouldn’t start. My husband forgot to come and give us a ride. My daughter and I walked my son to school as it began to rain. My kids were late for school. I was late for work. These things would normally make me crazy with frustration yet that morning, it was different. God had heard my prayer. I knew He had because I had seen His sun shine. He had answered within seconds of my asking. I remembered what else I had prayed – that He would bring into this day the things that He wanted for us in order that we might learn. Somehow, there was a reason for all of these obstacles.

When my work was frustrating and someone got their “dig” in at me, I momentarily gave in to the temptation to focus on the problems of the day and not on my God who hears and answers prayer. I was tempted to think coincidence. After all, “it was only a little bit of sunshine”. But I knew. Then, the lesson that God wanted to get across to me started to unfold…

One of my favorite scriptures, Isaiah 30, came to mind. It was a lifeline in that stormy season of my life. The Lord really does long to be gracious to me.1 I desired to see sunshine that morning. It wasn’t a need that I had. God didn’t have to give me my desire but He heard one of His children asking for something and it was His good pleasure to give it. There was nothing that I had done to deserve it. He just gave it. That’s grace!

God’s words continue, “How gracious He will be when you cry for help! As soon as he hears, he will answer you.” The notes in the margin pointed me to Psalm 66:18. There is a condition for God to hear my prayers. I must not have sin cherished in my heart. The previous few months, my prayers had seemed to bounce back at me from the ceiling. But God and I had been doing some serious business recently. I had been convicted of sinful attitudes and behaviors and had confessed them before the Lord. What an assurance to me that God had forgiven me - He had heard my prayer! And if He had heard my prayer, it reinforced that He would be faithful to the rest of His word too. “Although the Lord gives you the bread of adversity and the water of affliction, your teachers will be hidden no more; with your own eyes you will see them. Whether you (I) turn to the right or to the left, your ears will hear a voice behind you, saying, ‘This is the way; walk in it.’” Praise the Lord! This was the promise of another answer to prayer. I had been praying, or rather complaining, to God that I couldn’t hear His voice. His guidance seemed far away and impossible to ascertain. That wasn’t to be the case. It was God’s desire that I know His leading.

I was getting more and more excited! The lesson I was learning was coming faster and faster. I had just learned a few days previously that when I focus all of my energies on my problems, I allow them to become idols. Isaiah says, “Then you will defile your idols…and say to them, ‘Away with you!’… And the sunlight will be seven times brighter, like the light of seven full days, when the LORD binds up the bruises of his people and heals the wounds he inflicted.” Just like the clouds rolling back and revealing the sun, the Lord let me see that focusing on my problems, why I had them and how to fix them could not be the center of my existence. But He wasn’t finished there.

It struck me that in order for those clouds to part like that – at just that time, God had to give the command for it to happen. Whoa! That’s power! God, the Creator of the universe, used that awesome, unimaginable power to speak to the clouds and part them – just for me. Why would I ever doubt that such a God would not handle the difficulties that surrounded my life! He just needed to speak the word and the clouds of my life would roll away! If He allowed them to remain, there must be a reason - something left to learn. “Okay, Lord. Teach me!”

God had known that I really wanted some sun to shine that day and in His Sovereign wisdom, He made that sun shine right into my heart. God knew everything that I was going to face that day. It had already passed through His hand. He knew what it would take for me to learn what I needed to learn. I had hurts that needed to be surrendered, idols that needed to be cast down. I needed the reassurance of God’s power, and love and grace. Praise God that He is faithful to His Word. He answers the prayers of His people. He leads and guides. And He cares not only for our needs but for the desires of our hearts.

The heavens tell of the glory of God. The skies display his marvelous craftsmanship.
Psalm 19:1