Day 41: Experience

So, Cheyenne lost her poodle -- a smallish stuffed animal -- about a month ago. She has been praying every night for a month that she would find it.

My faith in God is not hinged on whether or not Chey finds her poodle. I know He is there and I know He has his reasons for things. Last night, though, I heard a story (from Conference) of a little boy who lost something, prayed, and found it. It was the beginning of his testimony. I rather petulantly wondered, "If God can help that little boy, why can't He help Cheyenne?"

About that time, Mariah came in because she couldn't find one of the glitter balls that she has been playing with lately. I told her to go look for it. Instead, she laid on my floor and whined and hit me with her emotional barrages until I said, "FINE! I will go look for it! Why can't it wait until morning? It doesn't matter! Why don't you find it yourself? Why do you make your problem my problem? Solve your own problems instead of lying around whining about it!"

The irony was not lost on me.

The ball was quickly found and I found myself pondering the two situations. Why did I want God to answer Cheyenne's prayer? I wanted Him to show her that He loved her and was listening. The poodle is not important, but the love is.

And that is where I went wrong with Mariah. The ball was not important but the love is. When I help her, I show her love. I should have welcomed this opportunity to help her feel secure and cared for. The next time I am irritated when I am asked to find something, I will try to remember this "lesson of the poodle."