This past Sunday’s message was inspired by my daughter, Shannon, who shared with me the struggles of having to communicate with our local hardware store.
Before Covid-19, you could walk in the store and pick up the items you need; now, you have to call ahead and tell someone exactly what you need, and then they leave it outside of the store for pickup. It takes some skill in communicating exactly what you need. There is one man at that hardware store, Rod is his name. This is the guy that we usually talk to when we need something. He understands our language or "coded messages" and it’s always amazing how well he gets what we need. If you talk to someone else on staff, our explanations have to be very clear.
The woman who poured out her expensive perfume on Jesus feet (Matthew 26:6–13; Mark 14:3–9; Luke 7:36–50; John 12:1–8) knew how to communicate without any words. She humbled herself, surrendered all she had, and served Jesus by washing his feet. She understood what God wanted!
What separates us from God? We pray, but does He seem far away—like our communication is distant? We look for other things to stay connected. Today we might be tired of living like this. We ask ourselves: Is God hearing our prayer? We can go to God with confidence.
In the Parable of the Prodigal Son (Luke 15: 20-21) we read how the Father was waiting on the doorstep, looking for his son to come home. This is the same for us—He is looking for us to come back to Him. God understands us well; He knows exactly what we need. Are we looking to Him, understanding what He wants?
In Luke 19:2-5 we read the story of Zacchaeus. He climbed a tree to see Jesus, and when Jesus saw him, He invited Himself in to his house. God might surprise us when we are looking for Him. He will invite Himself in to our lives! Are we afraid of what God will ask us? We need to depend on Him, because the things that we control can be quickly turned upside down—as we are seeing in this present pandemic.
In Psalm 130: 3-6 we read:
Lord, if you kept a record of our sins, who, O Lord, could ever survive? But you offer forgiveness, that we might learn to fear you. I am counting on the Lord; yes, I am counting on him. I have put my hope in his word. I long for the Lord more than sentries long for the dawn, yes, more than sentries long for the dawn.
Let us count on the Lord as we trust Him to know just what we need. Press in to Him and He will not fail us.