RWYK and answered prayers

A week ago Thursday I woke up, had a nice long prayer and Bible study time, and then worried. I worried all day, and went to bed worried. About what, you say? Everything. I worried about what the girls are missing being home schooled, and about what they would miss if I put them back in school. I worried that I'm too hard on them and that I'm not hard enough. That I give them too much, or not enough. That I'm not a good wife or mother or friend. I worried that I was worrying too much. I would pray about it, but as soon as I would stop praying, I would start worrying. (Maybe that's why we're supposed to "pray without ceasing!") I couldn't get to sleep that night, even though I kept on praying and trying to stop worrying. When I got up the next morning, tired and grumpy, I thought about what my Dad would say: Remember what you know. One of the most life-changing Bible studies I've ever done is Beth Moore's Breaking Free. The concept in that study that had the biggest impact on me was tearing down the wallpaper in your mind that is keeping you in bondage, and re-papering with the Truth. (Paul said the same thing in Romans 12:2 "Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God's will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will.") So I looked up worry and anxiety in my concordance and started quoting 1 Peter 5:7 every time a worry came up. Victory!

Mike preached at our pastorless church Sunday morning. He got a cold last, oh, Monday or so, but was feeling much better. When he got up to speak, I could tell from his voice he needed water. You know how sweet church people put water on pulpits for preachers? Never happens for Mike. I was in the choir loft thinking, "OK, I'll pray that God will put a thought in a deacon's brain to bring Mike a glass of water." Then I had an even better thought--Jesus told the woman at the well he'd give her living water that would never run dry. I prayed that He would be Mike's living water right then, 'cause he really needed it. Then I forgot about it until after church at the college picnic when Mike said, "I was dying, my throat was so dry before I preached, but as soon as I got up there, I was fine!" Wow. God is amazing.