Wednesday, November 09, 2005

Prayer That Puts You To Work

"Strider! Co-ome!"

"Here, boy!"

"STRIDER! DINNERTIME!"

Our cries had been ringing through the neighborhood for hours, but there was no sign of our yellow lab. He'd been missing since 3 o'clock. By midnight, hoarse and chilled to the bone, we gave up searching. But we didn't drop into bed without praying for his safety and recovery.

Early the next morning, we made posters and stapled them on trees near the pond and in the woods. The phone rang fifteen minutes after we got home.

"I saw your poster," a voice said. "Do you want to come get your dog?"

Before long, Strider was home, and all was well. Was this the result of prayer? I wondered. Or a well-placed, eye-catching poster? What if we'd prayed but hadn't put up the posters? Or vice a versa? Would we have found our dog? Maybe. But usually both are needed, prayer and action, faith and works, because God delights to call us partners, even in the granting of our own requests. Keep talking to the Master, keep working, keep asking for direction, keep waiting for the next step. That's how Kingdom work gets done; that's how anything lost gets found ... even a tired, footsore dog who wants his own bed.

2 comments:

T. Suzanne Eller said...

Mitali, I am reading your new book for moms and dads. Good job! If you need an endorsement, let me know.
Suzie

Jeanne Damoff said...

Good thoughts on prayer and action. I'm glad you found Strider! :)