The Abundant Wife

After 48 hours of red, watery eyes, runny nose, interrupted sleep, and general fussiness…Evelyn finally cut her 8th tooth today.  We’re both still recovering, but today there was marked improvement.  So for the last three days I haven’t walked in the morning.  Today I walked mid-afternoon when Brad could be on-call during nap-time.  It was hot and sunny outside, so I wore my beat-up old sunglasses, and ended up removing my sweatshirt a block from our house.

I couldn’t help admiring our house before I left.  In the last few days I’ve hung seven more of my paintings around the house and Scotch-taped about 15 of the kids’ artworks to the kitchen cabinet doors.  Then I unrolled a sheet of butcher paper, and duct-taped it to the dining room table where the kids could draw on it with crayons.  I also rearranged the built-in shelves in the living room, adding my art books, sketchbooks, journals, Bible studies, and travel guides to the pottery and candles that were already there.  Finally, when I returned to the house I swept the porch and pathway, brushing leaves and spiderwebs away from the display of pumpkins and acorn squash.  I love the satisfaction of a  job well-done, and enjoy my home when it is aesthetically-pleasing.

For me, one of the most difficult things about prayer is that the results can be hard to observe or measure.  I can see the difference in my home as soon as I hang a painting on the wall.  But my prayers may not be answered for years, or may not be answered in the way I hope.  However, the Bible does tell us that God hears and answers our prayers.

• “The righteous cry out, and the LORD hears them; he delivers them from all their troubles.”  Psalm 34:16
  
• “He will call upon me, and I will answer him; I will be with him in trouble, I will deliver him and honor him.” Psalm 91:15
  
• “Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you.” Luke 11:9
  
• “Then you will call, and the Lord will answer;you will cry for help, and he will say: Here am I.”  Isaiah 58:9
  
• “The Lord is far from the wicked, but he hears the prayer of the righteous.”  Proverbs 58:9
  

Don’t be discouraged when you don’t see immediate results or measurable outcomes to your prayers.  God hears you, answers you, and is with you.  He will deliver you, honor you, and give you what you need.  If you have never done so before, I would encourage you to record your prayers, because you will begin to see the many ways God is answering your prayers.