September 18, 2013
Sometimes it’s fun to pray those “impossible” prayers asking for things that, to my mind, seem completely unable to materialize. I like to not limit the Lord, and sometimes I think it offends Him when we think something is beyond His ability. Knowing His sheer delight in answering prayers and aiding us in any way possible, as we pursue His will, gives the boost of faith to truly ask “anything in His name.”1 And then I wait with curiosity to see His response.
I know I can’t expect that every single thing I ask for will come to me, right then or even ever. So I even state that in my prayers, adding, “If You know it’s best. If not, I trust You to work out something better.” Then at least I’ve opened the door for the miraculous, and it’s amazing to see what does come about—such as what happened with our food and shopping situation.
Can an impossible request be answered, tailor-made? Here’s what just happened to us.
For months I’d been praying for “something” to work out. It was even hard to know what exactly to ask for, but I stated our challenges and what would be ideal to have in our situation.
Buying our weekly food was a problem. I can’t leave the house most of the time, due to health and vehicle issues. So I can’t shop. It all falls on my already overworked husband to do it. It was draining for him, and took away from the little time he had when he was not working, instead of spending time with his children or resting.
I also wanted food to cost less, so it was less of a financial strain. We wanted fresher and healthier food, right from the local farms. Any help in the health department was worth exploring; we knew that the plastic packaging, chemicals, and long storage and preselling time that is common in the main shops wasn’t helping us any.
How could the Lord answer such a request?
One morning my five-year-old wakes up and says, “Mommy, in my dream last night there was a message that said, ‘Something special is going to happen tomorrow!’”
And sure enough, it did!
The day was nearly over when there was a knock on our door. I stood there to hear a man telling me everything that was my wish come true. I could hardly believe it. Of all the houses, of all the cities, of all the states in this huge country, here was a representative from a team of farmers that wanted to do something new. They wanted to bring food from the farms right to people’s doorsteps.
I was a bit in a daze, but worked through the steps of signing up for it. Now, I just “shop” online, selecting what we need that week. We open our door early on Tuesday morning and there is our weekly food in boxes! Fresher, no plastic packaging, and costing less than what we had been paying at the shop.
I’m taken aback. There really isn’t a tailor-made need that is too hard for the Lord to figure out a solution to.
Yesterday, when wondering if it really is cheaper, I looked in the boxes and there were several extra things placed in our box. I added up the cost of all those unexpected “free” items and it came to a notable amount. My son said, “I just felt in my heart the Lord gave us the extra food today to show us His love.”
It didn’t happen overnight, and took many months of praying for it—whatever “it” was supposed to be. But “when the desire cometh, it is a tree of life.”2 Now instead of feeling drained, we are elated and feel like it’s a Christmas miracle every week!
Here is another story that a friend of mine wrote to me about praying down the impossible.
John and Sarah, longtime missionaries in Thailand, needed a house. They had been the last ones in a missionary center that had closed down. They looked for a place but could not find anything that suited their needs. So they went back to the landlord and asked if they could stay at the center, and they would look after the place till the landlord found someone to rent the house. Because the landlord appreciated their missionary efforts, he graciously allowed them to stay there rent-free for two years, as no one had wanted to rent the place. However, near the end of two years it seemed like one person wanted to rent the place.
John and Sarah went to the Lord and He gave them a beautiful promise: “I am going to bring you to a very special place where you will be able to continue to do your work for Me. Keep looking to Me and I will bring you to the perfect place where you can have all your needs met. So do not fear this time but look on it in great joy, for I am continuing to use you and to keep you both. So remember, in all your ways acknowledge Me and I shall bring it to pass. It is not I maybe, or I might, but it is I shall. Please remember that. They that put their trust in Me will find a place of rest. That not only means spiritually, but physically too.”
The landlord’s representative came to the door and regretfully announced that the landlord needed the house back. John and Sarah had thought they would have at least two months’ notice so they would have time to find a new place. However, that was not the case.
“I’m sorry," the representative said, “the renter wants the house right away, so you will need to move out in one week.”
“One week!” John and Sarah exclaimed, “How can we possibly find a new house, pack, and move in one week?”
However, there was no way around it. The landlord’s representative apologized for the short notice and the inconvenience it was causing.
John and Sarah prayed for a miracle, and then started making the necessary preparations and packing up their belongings.
Shortly after this, the landlord’s representative got in touch with them again. “The landlord’s family got together to discuss your situation,” he said, “We’ve known you for a long time and you are doing a good work. We felt so bad to have to ask you to leave the house, which you’ve also taken good care of.” Then he leaned forward with a big smile. “They came up with a solution for you. The house they own across the street had been occupied by a lady for ten years, but she just happens to be moving, so the house is available. You’re welcome to move there. And,” he added with a smile, “with the same arrangement to begin with—rent-free.”
John and Sarah were amazed at how the Lord had engineered the whole situation for them so that they could stay in the same neighborhood. They praised and thanked the Lord for this wonderful answer to prayer.
The house across the street is more suitable for them and much easier to manage. After a few months of living rent-free, they signed a five-year contract with a very good rent, so they don’t have to worry about having to move again on short notice. God is truly a wonderful Father and never takes anything away but He gives us something better!
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