So I'm going to see Otis and Buttercup in November, actually following up on a plan I made.
Back in January, before the layoff, Otis and I discussed going to see a speaker we both value as he was going to be appearing in Seattle. "Hey", I said, "Why don't I just fly up there and see it with you? We can go, hang out, mock you, say hi to the beautiful Buttercup, and wander on my way?"
"Sounds good, especially the mocking me part" said Otis (or at least, that's how I recall the conversation running).
And then the layoffs came, with all the chaos that ensued. Otis asked me once or twice "Are we still on?" and I'd always answer "Sure".
So then it came to crunch time - this week. Not sure how I was going to pay for it, and was thinking about not doing it. And then the thought hit me: this was a commitment that I made to myself. I would not back out on a commitment I made to others - why do I treat myself with less respect?
How to pay? Suddenly, the thought drifted in my head "You've got miles on United you've never used. How about those?". And earlier in the week, I got my "rebate" from the phone company in the form of a Visa gift card. And there, amazingly enough, my inability to solve the practical side was solved (That whole "God is in Control" thing).
There are a couple of lessons I draw from this:
1) (And I should know this) Keep the commitments you make to yourself. Worry about that foremost. The rest will work itself out.
2) If you want something bad enough, a way will appear. Don't discount the hand of God in our lives.
So off I will go in November to enjoy the cool Pacific Northwest and friends.
And, of course, mocking Otis. He told me it was okay...
Friend,
ReplyDeleteI'm glad you get to go to Seattle, but don't settle into magical thinking too easily. I agree that the Way opens, but to think that God arranges plane tickets is so demeaning to the Maker of All as to be far beneath your nimble mind and spirit. If I really, really, really want my mother back from the grave, the Way that opens is simply not going to restore her in any literal, physical way. That would be gross, hard to clean up and, most importantly, totally against the clear pathway of His will for the direction of my life.
Hmmm. Well, I honestly don't know how else to account for it. I had a need, and the need was filled. Do I think God arranges plane tickets customarily? No. Do I think that God can act on a request? Yes, yes I do. The only other place that such thinking can lead is either "luck" (which is contrary to the sovereignty of God) or some sort of "positive mental attitude" (PMA), that through my attitude I somehow willed the plane ticket and money into existence. One way preserves the sovereignty of God, the other magnifies man and his cleverness or ingenuity.
ReplyDeleteI might also question the word "demeaning". As a parent, I am happy when I am able to fill the requests of my children, the more so if it is something they desire. Is it demeaning of me to fill a child's request as well? Or when God is called the Giver of All good, is it only the "good" that is significant (whatever qualifies as significant to the individual)?
So many say that they believe God answers prayer and is concerned with the least portion of our lives, yet live as if they only depend on themselves. What sort of witness is that?