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| Astoria bakery in Greektown, Detroit |
A few weeks ago X left his work space and found a place where he could be alone, in the office building, and pray. X's spouse had a sexual affair with another man. She then filed for divorce. X wanted to get help for the marriage; she refused.
That morning X received a phone call from his father. "Your mother has cancer. She's not expected to live much longer." X felt his knees buckle, his breath difficult, the weight too much to bear. X had to get alone with the only One who could help make a way where there seemed to be no way. X prayed, "God, help me..."
I was alone, in my backyard by the river, sitting in my prayer chair when, unknown to me, X made his appeal to God. I already knew about X's evil-assaulted marriage. As I was praying the thought came to me, "Call X now." So I did. I believed that thought was coming from God, to me. I have learned, over many years of praying and listening and risking, that God can be in an interruption, in one's "wandering mind." What could I lose from calling X just to check in? This was, for me, a no-lose spiritual situation.
I called X. X answered, "I can't believe you called me right now. I couldn't stay in my work space and had to get alone with God. I was just asking God for help. And then you called."
We both agreed this was no coincidence. It was the orchestrating work of the Holy Spirit. I was God's answer for X, at the time.
When you pray listen for the voice of God. When this kind of interuptive thought comes to you, check it out. When you begin to discover that these things are from God, your faith and expectation will increase, and you will be used by God to help many others in their prayer-cries for mercy. This is God saying, "I hear X's cry; I am going to answer X's prayer by placing the thought of X in ______'s mind."
