Tag: Patience

The Miracle of an Ordinary Day

When we wake up in the morning, we never know what a day will bring.  Someone didn’t even wake up. 

On any given day someone has a heart attack, an upsetting diagnosis, serious accident or injury, a job eliminated, a divorce finalized, a sudden death, an important relationship ended, victim of a crime.   

These things happen to someone somewhere every day. In light of all that can happen, when we live through an ordinary day without a personal catastrophe, or knowing about one, that is a miracle in itself.  

A Miracle

One day it dawned on me that I am thankful for what I see.  Am I thanking God for what didn’t happen?

I love flower gardening and grow lots of flowers.  One day I was weeding and pruning flowers that are in front of the wooded area in back of my house.  When finished, I decided to prune the holly bushes.

As the branches fell to the ground, I would pick them up and place them in a bag.  When I got to the last bush, as I reached down to pick up branches, my hand went across something solid under the bush.  When I looked to see what it was, there was a huge copperhead snake curled under the bush.

I was terrified.  I couldn’t believe it.   The snake had every opportunity to sink its teeth into my neck or face, yet the Lord protected me from the unseen danger.  Copperheads are the type of snakes that are most likely to bite.   In North Carolina there are more copperhead bites than all other snake bites combined. 

It was a miracle.  

Story time

A person’s alarm clock did not go off as scheduled which made her late for work.  Because she was late, she was unable to have coffee with some co-workers she enjoyed starting off the workday with.  For lunch she went to a restaurant.  It took what seemed like forever to get her meal. Late again.

Nothing was going right that day.  When she got home she was going to relax and soak her aching feet.  As soon as she was getting ready to plug in the foot massager, the power went off in the house.

She couldn’t believe how rotten her day had been.  She prayed and asked God why He would allow almost everything to go wrong when she had not neglected to pray for a good day.

The Lord replied: “You overslept because there was a reckless, speeding driver that was going to crash into someone. If you had been on the road at that time it could have been you. 

You weren’t able to have coffee with co-workers because the conversation was a lot of gossip and complaint about the company you work for and I didn’t want you to become embroiled in the controversy ahead. 

Your lunch was delayed because the chef was sneezing and not feeling well.   Another chef had to be called to replace him.  This caused a delay in meal preparation which prevented you from getting sick from possibly contaminated food.

I know you really wanted to have a nice foot soak, however, there was a short in the wiring.  If you had been able to plug it in you would have been electrocuted.”

A Miracle.

So many times, we don’t understand what is going on behind the scenes.  We blame God for not answering our prayers when He is answering them.  A prayer for safety.  A prayer for job security. A prayer for health.

1 Thessalonians 5:17-18 (KJV)

“Pray without ceasing. In every thing give thanks: for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you.”

Christians are to trust God and be thankful in every situation.  He knows and does what is best whether we understand it or not. I’ve learned to be thankful for the miracles God has performed in my life even though I can’t specifically say what some are.

Miracles are not always manifested in spectacular ways.  They can happen during an ordinary day in what didn’t happen.

Question for Reflection:

Are you thankful in every situation, or quick to complain and blame?

Lessons From a Bird: Being Content with God’s Provision

By Cynthia Cummings-Walker

For a couple of days, a beautiful bright red cardinal kept flying into my window that faces the patio.  I didn’t know why and was concerned that it would injure itself.  After a couple of days I realized that the bird was trying to fly to the red flowering Canna plant I have just inside that window.

The bird completely ignored the birdfeeders, birdbath, and urns of beautiful flowers blooming all around the patio.  None of that seemed to matter.  The bird was determined to get to the Canna through that window, although it was closed.

The Cardinal did not realize that in being outside, it had the freedom to fly anywhere it wanted to go.  It could travel to places where it could enjoy a variety of flowers and food.  Being around other birds the Cardinal could find a mate.  

Many people are like the Cardinal. The Lord has provided us with everything we need, and much of what we desire. When lust for something that looks more appealing sets in, we may become dissatisfied, ignoring what we have and go after that which is unreachable.  Sometimes to our own detriment. 

In Genesis chapters 2 and 3 is the biblical account of Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden.  God had provided the most beautiful garden that anyone could possibly imagine. Adam and Eve did not have to plant anything nor toil to maintain its beauty.  There were no weeds.  A mist came up from the ground to water it.  There was little to do except enjoy it.

The trees there were exceptionally lush and stunning to look at and countless fruit trees to eat from.  There was only one restriction. God told Adam and Eve they could eat fruit from any tree in the garden, except one.  It was the tree of the knowledge of good and evil located in the middle of the garden.

Adam and Eve had a close and personal relationship with God.  They lived in a beautiful, perfect environment. What more could they want?

One day Satan approached Eve and asked her why she was not eating from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil.  Eve said that God told them they could not eat from that tree.  If they ate from it they would surely die.

Satan told Eve that what God said was not true and if they ate from the tree they would not surely die. He said God was restricting them from that tree because if they ate from it their eyes would be opened and they would be like God, knowing good and evil.  

Eve was tempted to disobey God, blinded by the lust for something that was forbidden. She erroneously felt that God was withholding something better than she already had.  Eve ignored the lush and beautiful garden she lived in and focused on what she was closed out from having.

It was like the Cardinal wanting to get to the Canna. Eve succumbed to the temptation and ate a piece of fruit from the forbidden tree and gave some to Adam. This was a disastrous decision. It probably took less than a minute to make, yet one that brought irreparable damage to Adam and Eve and their relationship with God. 

The result of their disobedience destroyed their entire way of life. The penalty for Adam and Eve’s disobedience caused God to remove them from the garden and banned them from ever returning. 

The far-reaching consequences were that Adam would have to work by the sweat of his brow for the rest of his life. Eve would have to suffer labor pains in childbirth. Their son Cain would kill their other son Abel.  Of course, they had no idea of the price they would have to pay for being ungrateful and disobedient. Do we?

Things may look tempting and good from the outside looking in. The Master Gardener has a reason for closing a door or window. Even though the Cardinal was intent on entering my home for the flowering plant through the window, I restricted its entry and the window remained closed. 

Unbeknownst to the bird, if it had managed to get inside, it would be paying a high price.  It’s freedom to enjoy all of nature would be gone, and it would be restricted to one flower in an atmosphere which is not conducive to the bird’s intended purpose, nor its survival.

2 LESSONS TO BE LEARNED FROM THE CARDINAL

  1. In life, learn to be content with God’s provisions and enjoy what you currently have. The door or window may be closed for a reason. When the Lord has something for you, you will have access to it in God’s time.  Pray and wait.  
  2. Trust God. He is good.  Everything the Lord does is right and done for our good.  God has reasons for restrictions. Some things may be detrimental to us, or it is just not the right time. If we try to force our way in, that can cause self-induced misery, or worse.

As for the Cardinal, it kept flying into the window until I realized why the bird was doing it and moved the Canna to another spot where the bird could not see it. The Cardinal then refocused and enjoyed the provisions outside where it was. Once it is consistently warm outside at night, I will put the Cannas outside and the Cardinal can enjoy them then. 

Disaster can be borne out of haste. Good things come to those who wait.

Have you ever made a decision in haste and regretted it?

Do you, when God does not answer a prayer the way you want Him to, patiently wait, trusting that He knows what is best?