Clear Direction
Sometimes I need some help to figure out just what is the right thing to do. So, I will generally try to talk to some people who might be knowledgable and consequently helpful to me. Or, I might read books or search online for some expert advice.
This week, I needed some help decided the best course of action. In this case it was pretty urgent and I didn’t have time to read any books, but I did have some time to call and seek insight from my friends and my doctor. But, after all the input from others, I still didn’t know what to do. It was then that I FINALLY realized that the One who has all the answers in my friend and I could and should pray about this! It seems so obvious now and I am ashamed that it took me over an hour to realize that while I had prayed about the situation, I hadn’t asked for wisdom from God.
Now, I needed wisdom to know where to take Thaddeus, my little guy with a gash in his head from a collision with the corner of our coffee table. The small hole in his head was not life threatening in any way, but seemed deep enough and thick enough that he could possibly need stitches to fix it up nicely or just some steri-strips. So, I hemmed and hawed about whether I should take him to our doctor that night (the earliest I could get an appt) or go to urgent care in the afternoon (more immediately). Finally, when I prayed I asked God to just tell me clearly, so I could know for sure what the best thing was for Thaddy. I said, “I wish I would just clearly hear a voice telling me ‘Take him to urgent care!’ or ‘Take him to the doctor!'” Generally this is not a method I would recommend for prayer, but in my desperation, I simply cried out to my best friend and the One who knows and controls everything.
Well, I prayed as I drove to pick Eila up from school and after I told Eila what was going on (not even 5 minutes later), she said very loudly and forcefully: “Take him to urgent care!” I mentioned at this point that I had just prayed for God to tell me clearly if I should do that and she said, “I told you: Take him to urgent care!!” Then, Josiah joined in and I would have to be a complete fool not to recognize God speaking through my children and answering my prayer loud and clear. I may have been foolish to not ask God sooner, but I am no fool, so I dropped Eila at the gym and headed to urgent care. Amazingly, there was not one other person at urgent care. We had a great doctor with no wait and great care. She decided that he definitely should get stitches since his cut was still bleeding lightly and was very patient with a nervous little boy while she fixed him up. We left with a very happy boy who said “I don’t like stitches, but I like stickers!”