Interrupt Me
Who would ever pray “God interrupt me today?” It might seem to be ludicrous according to the world’s standards since we all have our agendas and the things we want to accomplish. Anything that is not on our “to do” list is usually met with resistance. However, when we begin to look at the interruptions as divine appointments we can enjoy the ministry opportunities that God puts in our path.
This morning when I prayed, “God interrupt me today” I wasn’t a lunatic, but instead was anxious to see what God has planned for our day. My Friday morning began like many of them do, starting off slow, but when people realized that it was the end of the week they began bombarding me with all of the things they had forgotten about earlier in the week.
Things got a bit overwhelming so when my phone rang and a friend asked if I wanted to take a quick walk around the lake, I jumped at the opportunity to get away from my desk for a few minutes and enjoy the beautiful day. Even though this was certainly not the first interruption from my day, I do think it was the first one in answer to my morning prayer. My friend needed to talk about some issues going on in her life and wanted prayer. So after walking and talking around the lake we stopped at the wooden swing, held hands and prayed for her life and for God’s guidance and direction in situations and circumstances that threatened to engulf her.
Back at the office, the emails kept coming and the phone kept ringing, but there was a fun cook-out planned, so everyone met on the patio and ate burgers and hotdogs, while enjoying the lively conversations. Just as I was getting ready to go back to the office, a friend sat down beside me and said, “I’ve been thinking about you so much lately.” And then proceeded to tell me about her 10 day old nephew who was in critical shape, having seizures and possible brain damage from a difficult birth. As the tears were flowing down her cheeks I realized that this was interruption number two for the day. We left the table and found a quite spot to pray over the life of the precious little baby.
Once more at my desk, the requests just kept coming and my hopes of getting away a bit early were dashed, but God was still at work. If I had not stayed until 5:00PM I would not have received the email which alerted me of a mix-up in two reservations for the weekend, a visiting journalist and a VIP from the Denver office--now wouldn’t that have been a fun mess to have come back to on a Monday morning? Thank you Lord for that “interruption” gift.
Once that fire was out, I was off to the best part of my Friday. Our church was having an outreach cookout for a neighborhood apartment complex. My dear friend and I were working in the kitchen together when she received a text from a friend whose father had been admitted to the hospital and was it intensive care, hanging onto life, but barely. A final interruption for the day was a prayer session in the kitchen.
I can think of no better way to spend a day, being interrupted by people who needed a friend to stand in the gap in prayer. So I hope you will join me in asking God to interrupt your days, then stand back and watch Him work.
Psalm 33:11 But the plans of the LORD stand firm forever, the purposes of his heart through all generations.
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