For many of us, it would radically change the way we think, talk, tweet, text, behave… if we knew (remembered) God listens to, knows, and watches, everything. Everything!
I am constantly reminded of this because I can walk around my house and see answers to prayers everywhere. Some prayers, barely even prayed. Sometimes barely a thought, not even a prayer, just a thought, but God answered.
Example:
I have the great privilege of having some middle schoolers in my neighborhood. Many of them have made decisions for Jesus in the last six months.
A few weeks ago after our Sunday morning services, I was getting lunch for my own family and five of the middle schoolers turned up at my front door. They were all hungry, so they ate lunch with us. And a middle schooler can eat.
Just a day earlier, Saturday, I had shopped for everything I normally need for my kids school lunches for the coming week. My own kids are elementary age. The middle schoolers, they ate it all.
As I was cleaning up, I was talking to God about a whole lot of things and just happened to say, Oh, God, they just ate all my bread for the week.
It wasn’t a complaint, or a prayer, but merely an observation, and it was immediately followed up with, No big deal. I can run out tomorrow and buy more.
I didn’t give it another thought.
Back at Church that night, a friend came running at me, excited and smiling ear to ear. She started saying she had had a dream the night before. In the dream she saw me standing praying and asking God for bread.
Bread! Of all things. Then she put $20 in my hand saying, This is for your bread.
My jaw dropped. I had just stood at my kitchen sink a few hours earlier saying, God, they just ate all my bread…
It wasn’t a prayer. I wasn’t even asking for anything. I was just making an observation. Merely an off-handed comment. I have a long time habit of having conversations with God like that about everything.
The amazing thing is my friend had the dream before I had given my young middle schoolers lunch.
God’s provision was there before I needed it. Before I had even given my bread to make lunches, God knew and had made provision.
God hears, sees, and knows, everything, and when we are faithfully serving Him, His provision is there before we even need it.
We should trust Him a whole lot more than we do.
