Make Sure You Have A Pen That Works

In my last post, we left off with the prayer that put our marriage vows in motion, Michael FINALLY received an opportunity to earn a paycheck and web-training day has arrived! I peek in on him and he has his headset on, listening while playing a game on the computer. I ask him how it's going.

Let's face it. None of us enjoy being on the receiving end of someone stating the obvious. If you've ever been on the phone with an internet help line then you know what I mean. The trouble shooting begins with the question "is your equipment plugged in?" And poof! Our patience evaporates. It becomes important to alert the technician that we are smarter than the average caller and so yes, of course it's plugged in. We also want to "helpfully" communicate that we were proactive and rebooted the equipment before calling so no need to take us through that step either. But it's useless. The technician has exact procedures and policies to follow, it can't be rushed. And to quote a bumper sticker I once saw on the back of a vehicle, "I won't go faster. I CAN go slower."

I can't tell you how many times I've spent loving effort and money to purchase "just the right" greeting card for a special occasion only to ruin it because I didn't perform a scribble test on a scrap piece of paper.  So I end up with these faint dent lines where the print should have been and now have to attempt tracing over them to conceal the error. 

The Holy Spirit in operation will reveal truth, will give spiritual gifts and will produce good fruit despite our life's circumstances. Just like the internet help line, we can't rush this process. 

The twins third birthday rolled around at the same time as Michael's brief training with his new company. We had no money for presents. But we had family and friends and brand new neighbors! This new family conspired with our friends next door and showed up to the birthday party with gorgeous, enormous presents for our three year old boys. GLORY! Michael and I were impacted by so many friends, family and strangers whose own lives were evidence of the instrument of the Holy Spirit working through them. Random blessings and acts of kindness through these individuals is how God chose to provide for those 6 months when Michael was out of work.  

Confirm you possess and hold a working lawn mower. Unable to afford the expense of lawn care, our grass was long overdue for trimming. One Saturday morning I watched a complete stranger begin to mow our lawn. I went to warn Michael because I was sure it was our HOA, who, having lost patience, decided to send their own landscapers and bill us later. I watched from the window as Michael went to confront the trespasser. Turns out, he was a new neighbor who had heard about our circumstances and he wanted to help by mowing our lawn. Jaw. Drop. This is what the working instrument of the Holy Spirit looks like. 

That 6 months of unemployment allowed the Lord to remind us that HE is the working instrument of provision, the working instrument of peace and that we are His letter. During those 6 months, we stated the obvious to the Lord every time we prayed. "God, Michael needs a job. God, we are going to lose this house. God, we really need a break through."  Answers of provision by others living open-handed were strokes of His pen on us. Life circumstance. It is what it is. But the Holy Spirit in operation will reveal truth, will give spiritual gifts and will produce good fruit despite these circumstances.   

Michael never did quit because no other job offers ever materialized. But remember, at this point in our story, he is barely 10 minutes into training and we don't realize that pen or no pen, we are in no way prepared for the Merchant Processing industry.