Unlikely Places

God calls us to be obedient in unlikely places.  Yesterday I found myself lying in a dentist chair pumped up with a healthy does of lidocaine waiting for a 10mm titanium screw to be ratcheted into my upper jaw.  I tend to grind my teeth at night, and have unfortunately had several root canals, one apses, and now one implant (sinus lift included) as a direct result.  While lying there waiting for the numbness to take full affect I had the opportunity to chat with the assistant who would be helping out during the surgical procedure.  She was also a grinder and shared with me that it had recently gotten much worse.  When I inquired why, she told me that her 55 year old father had been diagnosed with stage 4 lymph node and bone marrow cancer last Friday.  I asked if her father was a believer and she said yes.  The doc then walked back into the room and I was obliged to open wide for the next hour and a half.  God placed it on my heart to pray for that assistant and her father during my procedure, actually it was a welcome distraction.   I had a chance to talk to the assistant after the surgery and shared with her that I had been praying for her Father and shared a few specifics that I felt God had laid on my heart during the prayer.  She was a bit surprised, thanked me and then it was time for me to depart. 

I am continually amazed at the need that is all around us.  Prayer is powerful, it is the language we use to communicate with God.  He asks that we simply love, and his love is not isolated or bound to church walls.  It is easy to get caught up in the busyness of our lives, zipping from task to task, never pausing to see what God has placed right in front of us. 

My prayer today is that I would be sensitive to the needs of others and that I would show them the love of Christ.

Question to ponder - What unlikely places is God asking you to show others his love?

1 Corinthians 13:3-5

 

³ If I give all I possess to the poor and give over my body to hardship that I may boast,^[a] but do not have love, I gain nothing.
 ⁴ Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. ⁵ It does not dishonor others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs.