One Saturday evening in early March, I was sitting at the kitchen table enjoying my usual evening cup of tea and cookies when I texted a relative to see if her daughter was a Girl Scout. I knew if she was, she would be selling their cookies since they were in season. She informed me her daughter was not in the Girl Scouts.
Seconds later she sent another text with a photo of their foyer and living room. “The whole house looks like a construction site,” she texted. She stated they were in the midst of removing carpet and tile before they installed hardwood floors. But her husband was having great difficulty removing the stubborn tile’s underlayment. Even though her husband could fix or build just about anything, the underlayment was giving him a hard time.
“We have someone coming to help install the flooring on Monday, so we need to get the floors ready,” she informed me. “He has a long way to go on the tile.” I could sense the anxiety and concern since time was of the essence and the underlayment wasn’t cooperating. “Ask the Lord to help!” I suggested. “After all, he worked as a carpenter!”
“Thanks. Great idea!” she replied.
I looked forward to hearing how the Lord solved their problem. On Tuesday morning I received a text from her. “Thanks for the reminder that God cares about the small things,” she said. “I have a story to tell you about the tile.”
“I’m on my way to the vet’s office,” I responded. “Call me tonight.”
Hours later she called. She told me that after I suggested she ask the Lord for help, she went into the other room and prayed but didn’t say anything to her husband. She returned to her project sanding trim. Just moments later her husband told her that his tool broke. This confused her because that wasn’t the answer to prayer she was expecting, especially with at least six more hours of grueling work to remove the rest of the underlayment.
Her husband went to the local hardware store and rented a power tool. In amazement, she watched as he finished removing the remaining tile and underlayment in thirty-five minutes. She then told her husband of her prayer for help.
“See, God cares about the small things too,” I said. “Not just big things.”
In Philippians 4:6-7, the bible says: “Be careful for nothing; but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God. And the peace of God, which passes all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.”
In that verse, God tells us to pray about everything! If he cares about a stubborn tile job, surely he cares about ridding us of Covid-19. Let us all pray for a swift resolution and return to normal life.
Mary Therese Hutchinson 