Express Service

When We Ask, He Provides
We’re all familiar with God’s answers to prayer: “Yes,” “no,” and “not yet.” Recently I received a response that was closer to “on the double!”

My husband, Rich, is a godly man. He’s also a guy. So sometimes when we have important matters to discuss, diving into an in-depth analysis of the situation, surveying all its aspects and developing a carefully-crafted response, isn’t his favorite thing to do. He’d rather putter in the garage or take the boat out for a spin.

As I said, he’s a guy.

Of late, Rich has struggled with fatigue and forgetfulness. Sometimes he doesn’t sleep well. And I’ve been wondering: is he ill? Is he depressed? How can I help him? My tentative efforts to open a dialogue have not led us to a heart-to-heart.

A few weeks ago he came home from work and said, “I don’t want to go to small group tonight. I’m exhausted.”

After confirming that he simply wanted to rest, I went off to small group without him. At the conclusion of our meeting, as always, each member of our group shared prayer requests. I asked the group to pray for Rich, explaining his “blahs” and forgetfulness and adding that we hadn’t really been able to pinpoint the problem or have a good chat about it.

The next day, Rich raised the subject with me. And we talked.

3 In the morning, O Lord, you hear my voice; in the morning I
lay my requests before you and wait in expectation.
Psalm 5:3 (NIV)