On April 4, some of us from our building at work became temporary refugees in a different building because our building had a small flood the Saturday before. In the new building, I ended up in a nice corner where I was pretty well hidden. I didn't have a lot of traffic coming by or people stopping to talk. I was happy about this new spot because it was larger than my usual cubicle and people did not bother me much there. Or as my friend would say, I didn't bother anyone else. I will not deny that.
I was so comfortable in my new spot that I didn't want to go back to the old. We spent two months in the other building. One day, some of coworkers said they had called facilities to tell them we were ready to move back. I told them that I "depreciate" (a Denise word for "don't appreciate") that. I wanted to stay.
Well the move date came up for May 25. I knew I would return to the other building via my usual form of transportation – kicking and screaming, figuratively speaking of course. I wasn't ready to move back and I had a bad attitude about it.
Jesus said, "You are the light of the world." in Matthew 5:14
Now how am I going to be light if I have a bad attitude? We had just begun the prayer challenge and I was working on creating a lifestyle of prayer by praying about everything. So the morning of the 25th I began to pray about moving. I was talking to my mom on the phone as I approached my workplace. I told her that I needed to hang up so I could pray about this move back. I hung up with her. Then my daughter, who was driving me, started talking. After a minute or so I told her that I needed to pray. I was almost at my building. You might ask, "what's the big deal?" For me it was a big deal because of my stinky attitude. I don't want to have a bad attitude. I want to represent God well.
So I prayed the rest of the way in. I entered my cozy cube and began to put a few items in the moving crate. Then I sat down at my computer. After about an hour, I received an email with the subject "New Move Date."
YAHOOOOOOO! Thank You, Jesus! You are God who answers prayer.
I had a three-week reprieve. Surely I could have a better attitude by then.
So today was the day. I didn't kick, nor did I scream. I was okay with it. I had time to prepare. We've been praying together in this prayer challenge for a few weeks. God is helping me. When I arrived at work, my chair and my moving crate were already back at my old, smaller, less private cube. (Can't you hear my attitude?) BUT my computer was still at the other building. Yes, I could have used the laptop, but why should I when I had an excuse to spend another hour or so in the comfy cube?
The computer guy came in a couple of hours. I walked back over to my original cubicle. As I walked, I prayed: God help me to have a good attitude and to not say anything about wishing I was still at the other building. Help me to not even refer to that other building.
When I arrived at my cube, I didn't say a thing about the old building . . . for about two minutes. Then my coworker yelled over the cube wall at me – the other reason why I liked being in the other building. She was out of hollering range in the other building. but back home, she hollers and I walk back to see what she wants thinking that one day she'll get a clue. I think I'll have to wrap a clue up in big pretty box and maybe she'll get one then. HAHAHA.
Anyway, I walked back to her after she shouted my name. I told her in a calm, quiet voice, "I thought we gave up that hollering when we were in the other building."
Did anyone time that? How long was it before I referred to the other building? Didn't God answer my prayer? Oh you know as well as I do that that is not the question. The question is didn't I let God answer my prayer. Nope! I made a decision to mention the other building. For a split second I thought, "don’t say anything." (God trying to assist me.) And then I did it anyway.
God is still working on me. I'll be a better person one day. During the transition, love me anyway. :-)
Pray with me:
Gracious Father, You are good. You are the one who answers prayer. Thank You for answering the big requests and the small requests. In Philippians 4:6 New Living Translation You tell us:
Don’t worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank him for all he has done.
Thank you for allowing me to pray about everything – nothing is insignificant to You if it concerns us. Please make me more cognizant of praying about everything so that prayer is part of my culture. Thank You for showing me the results as I learn what would happen if I prayed. Thank You for allowing me to pray to You in Jesus' name. Amen.
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