but even if He doesn’t…
God answers prayers.
We get bus cards that basically mean we can use any bus in Birmingham (maybe even the whole of the west midlands) to get round. They’re about £55, but then we’re good for transport for a month. Otherwise you end up paying £4.40 a day, which usually works out a bit more than that because you have to have exact change.
Anyway, this morning as I got off my bus I realized that I had left my bus pass on my seat (in the bus I had just got off!) PANTS! After stressing out a bit, I decided I would wait on the other side of the road and wait for my old bus to get all the way into town and come back out to where I was – in hope that it would still be there.
Prayer time…It would be easy for someone to steal it and use it for free transport for a few days until we cancelled it. Prayer…The bus drivers never look at the photo part of the card…prayer. A bus comes I ask the driver to search it. Nothing. More prayer. I text my wife: “Please pray its on one of the next 3 buses” because I couldn’t wait all day. More prayer.
Then the next bus. I head upstairs to have a look. Nothing. PANTS! Then just as I am about to get off the driver calls me…”hey this was handed in to me…” and he’s holding out my bus pass.
My thoughts: Prayer works!
Five minute later I’m worshiping God with a new song about how God looks after me, and the day seems a lot brighter. I’ve even got a smile on my face. Then it dawns on me: “how would I react if I hadn’t found it?“.
Would I still be worshiping. Would I still be able to praise and trust God that He is still looking after me? Would I be smiling? Probably not. A few verses come to mind on this:
Deuteronomy 8.2 “Remember how the Lord led you all the way into the wilderness to test what was in your hearts”
Deuteronomy 32.39 “I wound and I heal”
Job 13.5 “Though He slay me, yet I will hope in Him”
Dan 3.17-18 “our God is able to save us from the fire…but even if He doesn’t we will not bow to you”
Oh Lord may I bless Your name when You don’t seem to answer my prayers, when things go badly. May I still trust Your protection on my life, and Your ability to work everything for my good and Your glory, even when things don’t go well. Amen.
