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I
am a counselor at our
annual Snow Derby where we camp out in a park and do outdoor skills. It
is a Friday night and all-day Saturday affair where about 200 boys show
their skills with compass, fire building, first aid, etc..
Every
year the other counselors bug me about staying overnight. "Be a man," they
say. Since I have a greenhouse operation, I tell them that I need to take
care of my business. Well, this year I contemplated doing the unthinkable.
It snowed 6" the day before. After setting up a fire and camp, we decided
to go sledding on Devil's Elbow nearby.
Unfortunately, as we were goofing off, the kids sacked
me a few times and I lost my set of car keys in the snow. My heart fell.
Where could they be? It was quite dark and I challenged the group to help,
offering $5.00 to the one that found them. Someone said I should wait for
daylight rather than grope around with a flashlight. With no keys there
was no question now whether I should stay overnight or not. With a double
sleeping bag I struggled into our plastic tent holding 16 people. It was
cold! Frost lined the inside of our tent. Kids exchanged jokes and talked
in youthful fashion until 2:00 a.m. Some guys cut logs, snoring all night.
I prayed during the night that the keys would be found. At 7:00 we would
be making breakfast and, embarrassed, I would ask 200 kids to help look
for the keys.
The next morning, I went to the Devil's Elbow. I just
got there and could hardly believe it. I looked again and there they were..
laying in the snow!
Running up to my partner I said, "Praise the Lord!" Overwhelmed,
he asked, "Why would you say that for finding those keys?" I told him that
I was praying for it all last night and he thought I was off my rocker.
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As
I thought about these events, it occurred to me that we often think God
doesn't care about small things like a set of keys. Why would He even
care about someone like me or you? How insignificant are we?"
There are 2 places in the Bible (Isaiah 42:3, Matthew
12:20) that say that God will not snuff out a smoldering wick. You might
not be a raging campfire but if you have even the faintest hope that God
will ease your predicament, God will answer. You may want to be rid of
much pain in your life and have tried to use flashlights to find the answer
to the cold and darkness of your life. Jesus, God's true Light, can shine
into your life and with His keys unlock your rusty door.
 A
Prayer:
"Lord God, how much have I struggled to find answers to my
pain in my life. Make my smoldering wick a vibrant campfire by making
your Son shine into my life. Then help me to find the keys to open
the right doors to relieve me of all the pain that I have endured.
Take me I'm yours. I can truly say, Praise the Lord! Amen!" |
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