Safety in the Storm
"Call unto me and I will answer thee, and show thee great and mighty things which thou knowest not.” Jeremiah 33:3*
Isn’t our God awesome? He truly does delight in answering prayer.
When I was just Junior-aged, World War II broke out and my parents became separated by the war. My Dad had enlisted in the armed services and Uncle Sam promptly sent him overseas.
As a "war widow" my mother could not afford much in the way of housing so we lived in one of the poorest sections of town. My young heart longed for the advantages the wealthier people had. The ability to travel and see other countries was one of them. How I longed to travel to the country I had heard about in Sunday school and walk the paths that Jesus trod.
Not really realizing just how very far away this country was, in simple faith I prayed to God: “Dear God, someday I want to see the places you tell us about in your Word. I don’t know how that will come about, but I know that you are able to make anything happen.”
The years slipped by and I had never been further away from home than the neighboring state of North Carolina. After graduating from high school, I met and married a young preacher boy from Northern Maine. He had become the pastor of a small church near my home. My parents joined that church and since I was still living in their home, I joined with them. A year later, I married my pastor, little realizing just how far that decision was going to carry me!
Some twenty years later, while serving our Lord in a church in Georgia, the church gave their pastor a trip to the Holy Lands as an anniversary gift. There was one stipulation to the gift – he must take his wife along!
God answered the prayer of the longing little waif from the mill village. She actually had the privilege of sitting near the empty tomb at Calvary; partaking of communion with fellow travelers; dipping her feet into the Jordan River; sitting by the well in Samaria where the woman drew water for Jesus. We even had lunch by the Sea of Galilee.
God not only heard and answered the prayer I prayed that day, but in His wisdom, he deferred the answer until I was mature enough to fully appreciate the gift. Answered prayer is truly a love gift from God himself.
Audrey Mullen