Hush, hush little luxury. Don’t you cry. You’ll be a necessity by and by.I waited as he wandered through the house in the dark, trying to remember where he had last seen candles and matches. The flashlight that normally rests on the floor between the bed and the nightstand had apparently sprouted legs and wandered off (a.k.a. he left it in his truck). Meantime, I found my cell phone and determined that it was 11:45 pm. Naturally, the book where I keep emergency numbers was not where I usually keep it (a.k.a. I was cleaning in a hurry and shoved it somewhere convenient…but where?). Around midnight, we could be heard rummaging through my closet, looking for the book by candlelight. He called the electric company and obediently navigated through the phone trail (If this call is in reference to a residence, press 1…if you are experiencing a power outage, press 3….if tempers are flaring at your house, count to 10, hang up, and go to your neutral corners, etc.). The calm, recorded voice finally told him that the work order had been sent and we should have electricity by 2:00am.
Great. We were sentenced to two hours in the dry heat of the Sahari desert. I wearily flopped on the bed. My husband disappeared. As he returned, he said, “Well, everyone on our side of the block is in darkness, as well as the street behind us.” I sat up in total disbelief. “Did you go outside in your boxers?” “Yep. I walked down the alley. It’s not like anyone could see me. It’s pitch black out there.” “YOU WALKED DOWN THE ALLEY,” I screeched, incredulously, “AND NOW YOU’VE CRAWLED INTO BED WITH YOUR DIRTY ALLEY FEET?!” He just chuckled, as I made a mental note to wash the sheets ASAP.
In an effort to distract myself, I decided to pray. I began to list for God the luxuries that had, at some point in my life, become necessities. The list went on and on, not just water, but clean water in abundance, hot and cold, running in pipes into several rooms of my house. Even though we have not had rain in
As the list went on and on, my prayers shifted from thanking God for these luxuries to asking His forgiveness for not appreciating them and looking for every opportunity to use them to His glory. Maybe He had to take one luxury away for two hours in the middle of the night to help me see all He has done for me.
“Be joyful always; pray continually; give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.” I Thessalonians 5:16-18
Posts
2 comments:
you have some talent. keep it up
-son
Yesterday a friend of mine came over for dinner (she actually brought dinner - the best kind of dinner guest). As she came in the door, she was lamenting the oppressive temperature and how draining it is just to get in and out of your car. We also discussed our lack of enthusiasm for yard work because of the heat (which I hoped provided some explanation as to why the weeds and grass were taking over in my flower bed). As we sat down to eat our meal, I said a prayer in which I thanked God for our air conditioned homes, cars and offices. I also acknowledged that there were so many others in the world dealing with so much more than just being uncomfortable as we go from one air conditioned space to another. After my amen, my friend said, "I feel terrible." Not really what you want to hear after you've just said a prayer, but it did lead to our discussing how blessed we really are. It is so easy to get into a complaining mode. It almost seems like we're more confortable in our conversations if we can complain. It is easier to get someone on board with complaining than with being thankful. Shouldn't it be much easier for us to give thanks in all our circumstances than for those whose daily lives deal with having enough food for their children, dodging missles and rockets, running from tsunamis and the myriad of other circumstances that the rest of the world has to deal with?
Post a Comment