It occurred to me that I am being a little unfair to the family
cat (who rules in our home – really, I’m not kidding). Yes, the family cat does have a name. In fairness, I should use that name when I
speak of it. Nancy gave the family cat
the name Ruby Tuesday, named after one of our favorite restaurants. We were just at the Ruby Tuesdays Restaurant in
Sioux Falls, South Dakota last week and noticed that they had done a complete
makeover. The place had a more modern
feel to it and seemed roomier. We had a
nice time at Ruby’s namesake restaurant.
I don’t want to make this Lenten journey all about the family
cat – oh, sorry - Ruby. The primary
theme I’m working with is "Embracing the Uncertain", not embracing your cat when
it bugs you. The devotional for today
focused on prayer – that prayer is essentially simple, but is not that
easy. The devotion relates a story of two
football players who were in separate accidents. One perished as a result of his injuries, the
other survived. But it’s what happened
during the crash of the one who survived that makes this topic on prayer more
difficult to understand.
The surviving football player was being interviewed after
his recovery and he said that when the car was flipping over, he threw his
hands off the wheel and called out Jesus’ name.
In essence, he was praying for Jesus to be with him in this most
horrific moment. The interviewer (from Sports Illustrated)
wanted to know if God would have saved the other football player had he called
on Jesus’ name. Or would God have saved professional
golfer Payne Stewart (whose plane crashed in South Dakota), or even with any
one of the victims at Columbine High School had any one of them called out in
prayer. The football player didn’t
really have a good answer for that question.
These are tough situations and there are no simple answers
to these or any other tragic events that have taken place over the years. I can’t even imagine. On some levels, it doesn’t make sense that
God would select one situation over another if persons have been praying for a
quick response for safety and security from God. Then again, we aren’t in on the wider plan
that God has for us as humanity. The
best thing we can do is to remember that when life gets difficult, we need to
call on God’s name in prayer and trust that we will be heard. We do not have to go it alone.
I’m grateful that even though I might have an unwillingness
to call out the family cat’s name, I am more than willing to call upon God’s
name for grace in times of need.
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