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Luke 24:31a – And their eyes were opened, and they recognized him. (ESV)
Recently, I sat in church next to my eldest daughter, Hannah, and her daughter, Anastasia, who was sitting on her mother's knee whilst eating with her hands. I thought, I am glad my time has passed to get involved with those sticky hands. It is a bête noire for me — something I dislike, due to previous experiences.
Hannah was quite oblivious to the mess that her daughter's hands were making — all covered in food bits and saliva — so much so that in turn, she became smothered in sticky mess. Anastasia's focus was on eating, but Hannah's focus was on keeping her quite happy on her knee (much like her mum was at her age!) Then with no fuss, Hannah cleaned them both up with hygienic wipes.
I felt that God was trying to reach me through this little vignette in the middle of the service, so I stored it up to process afterwards.
Later, my 15-year-old daughter Zoë rang me to say that she had mislaid the spare key for our front door, having used it previously to enter. Now, not having her key or the one that she should have replaced earlier, she had effectively locked herself out. Fortunately, Caroline was about to return home in a few minutes to let her in. Sadly, she was unable to remember where she had casually put the spare key in her haste to get in.
Facing up to the need to replace the door keys if the spare key could not be found the next day, I went over all of the house's surfaces, but to no avail. Then I escalated to DEFCON 4, going through the child's jeans and jacket pockets to find out if the key was in a pocket.
Having failed thus far, I stood and asked Jesus to be involved with my predicament, to find the wayward key. The next place that I checked was the pocket of her denim jacket, which was hiding behind the dressing gown and hoodie that I had already checked, and there was the key!
I was so thankful not to have to go through all the trouble of replacing the lock and the keys. It was then that I remembered the episode from church with my daughter and grandchild. God cares about the messiness of life that we get drawn into, and He waits, unasked, for us to call out.
Let's remember that as we cast about, God is waiting, until we stop and recognize that we need His wisdom and help.
Prayer: Lord, open our eyes to see You in the everyday circumstances of our lives. We thank You that when we call out, You clean us up as You hold us close to Your heart, getting covered in our mess, because You care for us as we get sticky exploring the world about us. In Jesus' name, we pray. Amen.
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Nicely put!
So glad he does, Rod.
God is good in things small and large.
Thank you for another excellent devotional today, Rod. Very thought provoking.
Amen Rod l too am glad my granddaughters are passed the sticky hands phase!!!!!!
Your devotional definitely got an Amen from me! Very nicely written and so very true!
I know this too… just when you think
It’s impossible… Thanks, Rod,
(BC)
Good morning,
Thank you for your devotional this morning Roderick.
All the best.
Hello Rod,
I was smiling while reading your message today. Thank you for sharing this devotional.
Very good, Rod! I too have a great dislike for messy. Whether it be sticky fingers or it might be a life complicated with sin. Do I take them on with my already busy life?
Thank you, Rod, for another of your very relevant and positive writings. Yes, it can really amaze us how God hears our prayers when we call and gives us the needed answer. He surely deserves our constant praise and thankfulness.
Blessings as you continue to write and contribute devotionals.
Good morning, Rod!
Oh how I know the feeling of the “Where is it?” question! I also have learned to say “Lord, I can’t find ***. I don’t know where it is but You do. Please help me find it.” Sure enough, the missing item is located and I thank Him for helping me.
Isn’t it wonderful knowing He knows all AND cares!
Yes! My messiness has to do with computers. I cried out to the Lord in my frustration. He said I need to take the time to LEARN. We got a newer car last Friday. So many new things! I opened the manual: pg 1 We recommend you read this manual. I groaned! I was reminded of my earlier request. So much to learn! But I need to drive NOW! Read the manual. Yes, Lord. It’s the same with my cellphone, my laptop, my BIBLE. Study the manual!
Thank you – life is messy and we are blessed to have a Lord to call out to in an emergency.
Well, Rod. What amazed me about this devotional is that ZOE is 15!!! I must have been reading these devotionals longer than I thought. Would you please fly on over here and find the keys that were left on a bench outside while the house was being painted?????
As always, thanks for writing.
Hello Rod, your recounting today almost mirrored our day. We have a daughter who still lives beside us, in a studio apt, and everytime we go away, even for a day, there is a crisis of some sort. And we are called to bail her out (not from the police, just to help the situation). Today we were away, and she did call us as somehow she could not get in her house, and her dog was inside. Eventually she figured out another way to get in, but it is always something. She does not believe in Jesus, and even when we show her that something appears to have resolved due to Jesus/God’s help, she discounts that.
It’s hard to know how to help your children/young adults, to discern that help.
We often ask Jesus, but so many times it seems like such a trivial thing to ask Him, when so many in the world have it so much worse and may not have family to help them out. Do you have times that you call on Jesus, and get no reply, or does it come to you every time that you ask? I don’t get any answers or progress.
With God’s blessings for you and your devotionals, I always find something to relate to when I read them.
(Ontario, CANADA)