A week and a half ago, I was doing a load of laundry. I put in the clothes and soap, and turned on the washer; it filled up with cold water, and then…did nothing. Except hum, that is. No agitation, no draining, no rinsing, no spinning — just humming. This had happened a few times before, and a repairman had taught me a really high-tech fix: jiggle the control knob, and turn it off and back on. (I told you it was high-tech!!) So I promptly jiggled the knob and turned it off and on — over and over and over and over again. (I can be VERY persistent.) And still nothing but humming.
I finally took the wet, soapy clothes to some friends’ house to finish laundering, all the while wondering how much money it would cost for a new washer, and how much time it would take to hunt down a good deal.
The next evening at my church cell group, I asked for prayer about replacing the washer. My friend Sherry suddenly said, “I think my sister has an extra washer and dryer!” Sherry’s sister had moved to a new house a while ago with washer & dryer in tow, only to find a set left behind by the previous homeowners. So to make a long story short, I now have not only a working washer in my basement, but a newer dryer, too!
My immensely talented friend Susan, a scholar/ singer/ songwriter/ philosopher, would undoubtedly find an insightful spiritual analogy in all this. Alas, my thoughts tend toward the more concrete and mundane, so I’ll just leave you with this (perhaps rather obvious!) scripture:
“…your Father knows what you need before you ask Him.” Matthew 6:8, NASB