The Almighty Plan

Today was a day of seeking: seeking ways in which I could be used in this community. During the school year, I thought it would be neat if Christians would go to hospitals and spend time playing games and talking with patients or people waiting in the waiting rooms. On my drive to Hamilton, that thought resurfaced in my brain. Well, there is a hospital several blocks down from where I am staying, so I decided to grab a couple Bibles, cards, dice and some paper and head over there, to see where the Lord would lead. To be honest, I had visions of sharing Christ with someone over a game of cards... you know... maybe witnessing a few miraculous healings... who knows... God works wonders, right?

Well, I got there and felt no leading at all. Actually, all I felt was oppression and pain... the oppression of broken bodies... broken spirits. There was a chapel right at the entrance to the hospital so I went in there seeking guidance. I kneeled and prayed for quite some time and I did feel a lot better, but didn't hear anything, so I got up and walked around. A waiting area met my eyes and I went in there and looked for people who maybe needed someone to talk with, but no one stood out. Well, by this point, I wasn't going to force anything, so I got up and walked out of the hospital. I wasn't sure what to do and was kind of frustrated with either God's lack of speaking to me or my lack of hearing. I had dreamed big and had thrown myself out there, so why didn't God come through and bring something... anything to me? I found my answer on the walk back...

While walking back, I came up behind and elderly woman walking down the street. She dawdled along at a snails pace, hunched over a four-wheeled walker, slowly making her way in the direction I was traveling. I knew, she was who I was supposed to talk to. I came up beside her, slowed down to her pace and greeted her with a smile. Her face slowly twisted up from the sidewalk and smiled at me. She said she didn't here me coming. We walked for a while talking about where we were from and other such details. It turned out, she was from a retirement home down the street and she liked to go out and walk every day. A ways into our walk, she made a comment saying, "you don't have to wait for me." to which I responded, "I'm in no hurry." She said, "That's surprising...everyone's in a hurry these days." The comment didn't catch me off guard because it is so true. We don't take the time to slow down and "smell the roses" as the phrase goes. Eventually, we got to where I was staying and I bit her farewell and a nice day, to which she responded by smiling at me and thanking me for walking with her.

It is strange how God works. So many people in our day and time, and particularly my generation, want to see God heal the sick and bring new people to Christ by the thousands. We want to be wow-ed and caught up in the splendor of God's awesome might. These are the things we look for and when they don't come, disappointment and maybe even a lack of faith sets in. Yet, there are noble ways to be used right in front of our noses: even closer than a hospital 5 blocks away.

I don't believe I was wrong in going to the hospital and dreaming big about what could happen because I believe we are called to dream big. Yet, in dreaming big, we can't forget to "dream small" in how God works. Walking and sharing with an elderly woman would seem small in our eyes but it may be just as big as converting 1000 people in one shot. Jesus wasn't always preaching to the crowds and healing the sick, he did take time to talk with a Samaritan woman and share a meal with Zacheus. I don't know... I am still trying to figure it out just like everyone else. Thoughts?
Thanks and God bless you all!

Timothy