Yesterday I walked around work saying: “God, You’ve got to help me get through these tasks.”… “What to work on first, how to manage my responsibilities, manage ME, just make life clear. HELP.” I walked around knowing that if He can start everything, can create everything, can move everything, surely SURELY He can help me, and yes He did and does, He helps us with our work. He’s already gone before us. And so we can ask for fine tuning to know if we are in sync.

I hit the end of the day and even though I feel so BACK LOGGED on my work, this probably means the LOGS in my eyes are preventing me from seeing things His Way, I did know that I got stuff done. I also knew the piles in front of me but prayed GRATEFULLY that at least I COULD work, am ABLE to work. And I am grateful that I see a pause possibility, and I can take a few days off to visit home. 

Just then an older friend texted me that she broke her arm walking the dog and I know this is devastating to her because it means she’s out of work, yes she gets paid but she’s out of the building meaning she cannot physically be in to see the people that she wants to see day to day. Please pray for her.  She is light and salt to me, I pray her better. Lord give her hope, give her joy in life, bring her to new ways to be light and salt. Lord You ARE the great physician. 

Light and salt, keep us going. I must keep myself going knowing that I can go.

Immediately after, exhausted and heading to bed, the word of encouragement I needed came in this tiny 1950’s devotion book (Windows Towards God, Charles Schmitz) that was among my first “fall from the sky” God placements that I noticed in my faith journey that first awakened month. These are short stories from the 1950s, a thin book that I now keep by my bedside. I don’t read many devotions since I write them, but this little book was a gift in a hidden box of church closet clutter 7 years ago. How God drops gems into our clutter ALL THE TIME. Just the morsels we need.

The answer I knew, and yet this passage held the reminder I needed. “Who is He? The Man among men. The King of kings. The Savior of saviors.  Educators save others but He saves the educators.  Scientists save others but He saves the scientists. He is the Physician of physicians. He is the savior of saviors.”

I immediately texted it to my friend in the need of the Great Physician. 

Scientists need Jesus too. Me too. Managers need Jesus too. People who do ANYTHING need Jesus. Me too. We all need His help. People who do anything need the WISDOM from the Lord. (And memory to follow it).

Double down He does – over and over again – so this morning here are more reminders of God’s messages with the prayer of Solomon showing up in another occasional devotion I read on email… ASK FOR WISDOM AND DISCERNMENT. 

Oh yeah, not only does God want to give it to us, He wants us to know how to ask…  Don’t ask for riches, don’t ask for long lives, don’t ask for things (even though He can give them) BEFORE YOU ASK FOR WISDOM ON HOW TO USE THEM. 

Ask how to live through the life you’re already living. Ask how to just get through the day today. 

And of course, God will answer on ALL of the issues of your life… God has you in the Palm of His Hand, so that He can bring you closer to Himself. “We kneel in streams of mercy”, as Paul Balouche sings.

Lord, we need to know Your Ways are above our ways. Be with us, shine the LIGHT moment by moment. 

Be our restoration and guide. 

Be our best advice as we drop our pride.

Be our straight path maker for our stride.

Be loud, cover our noise like an ocean tide.

Be our Life Physician, our Healer, our guide. 

Amen 

—

1st Kings 3:3-15

Solomon showed his love for the Lord by walking according to the instructions given him by his father David, except that he offered sacrifices and burned incense on the high places. The king went to Gibeon to offer sacrifices, for that was the most important high place, and Solomon offered a thousand burnt offerings on that altar. At Gibeon the Lord appeared to Solomon during the night in a dream, and God said, “Ask for whatever you want me to give you.”

Solomon answered, “You have shown great kindness to your servant, my father David, because he was faithful to you and righteous and upright in heart. You have continued this great kindness to him and have given him a son to sit on his throne this very day. Now, Lord my God, you have made your servant king in place of my father David. But I am only a little child and do not know how to carry out my duties. Your servant is here among the people you have chosen, a great people, too numerous to count or number. So give your servant a discerning heart to govern your people and to distinguish between right and wrong. For who is able to govern this great people of yours?”The Lord was pleased that Solomon had asked for this. So God said to him, “Since you have asked for this and not for long life or wealth for yourself, nor have asked for the death of your enemies but for discernment in administering justice, I will do what you have asked. I will give you a wise and discerning heart, so that there will never have been anyone like you, nor will there ever be. Moreover, I will give you what you have not asked for—both wealth and honor—so that in your lifetime you will have no equal among kings.  And if you walk in obedience to me and keep my decrees and commands as David your father did, I will give you a long life.”  Then Solomon awoke—and he realized it had been a dream.