When We Heard God Speak

It was a moment we will never forget.  Standing behind the pickup truck, my brand-new husband and I wondered: would the mattress fit inside?

Today in my devotions, the question was asked: "Think back on your history with God.  What has He told you that you expect to remember with crystal clarity the rest of your life, and why was it so important?"

Two instances come to my mind where, in a non-audible way, God reassured Dan and I of the same thing: I will help you and I will take care of you.

The first item that entered our home.  (We still have it!)

The first experience happened twelve summers ago when Dan and I were fresh out of the starting gate in our marriage.  We had taken a short honeymoon, then hopped in his little Mazda and made the hot summer trek from Oregon to Iowa to finish our last year of college.  We had brought hardly anything with us (we didn't own anything worth bringing!) so when we arrived in our little one-bedroom apartment in Dubuque, IA, we immediately went to Target and Walmart to get some necessities. 
My aunt, who lived 3 hours away in Chicago, had graciously found a few large items that we would need, mainly a table and chairs and a mattress set.  The problem was, she lived 3 hours away and we owned a tiny sports car.  So Dan and I went over to our college to ask someone in charge if we could borrow one of the campus' 12-passenger vans to go pick up our stuff.  The campus was almost deserted as school wasn't quite yet in session, but we found Rick Volgarino, someone we barely knew, who I think worked in the finance department.  He told us we weren't allowed to take a van, but after a few moments, he offered his own personal pickup for us to use.  We were surprised and touched by his generosity, from this man who hardly knew us.  But we weren't about to say no, so we drove that pickup all the way to Chicago to pick up the furniture.  When we looked at the furniture sitting in my aunt's driveway, it finally occurred to us that perhaps the stuff wouldn't actually fit into the truck.  Uh oh.  It was a kitchen table, a small buffet and hutch, six chairs, and a mattress and box spring!  Good thing my new husband was a strapping guy with good packing skills.  He slid the mattress into the bed of the pickup, and no-joke - there was hardly an inch to spare on either side.  It fit perfectly.  It was like it was made to have traveled in that pickup!  Dan was able to squeeze in all the rest of the stuff and we headed back to Dubuque...just as it started to rain.  Oh, but did I mention that the pickup had a canopy on it?  It did.  And we marveled at God's goodness and provision.  Neither Dan or I will ever forget that day when God seemed to write in black and white on the bed of that pickup: I will help you and I will take care of you.

Waiting for some action - May 8, 2006

The second experience took place almost seven years later on the day our first child was born.  Matthew had decided that my tummy was much more comfortable and comforting than the outside world was going to be, so eight days went by after my due-date and he was still a no-show.  So my doctor decided to induce me.  We went to the hospital that morning bright-eyed and bushy-tailed and confidant that we were soon going to see our little son.  I was given Pitocin at about 10:30 am.  Then hours passed, and I still had hardly felt ANYTHING remotely close to labor.  At about 2:30pm, a nurse came in and told us that we had a few choices.  I don't remember what a few of them were, but one of them included the words, 'Go home until we start seeing some action.'  What?  Isn't that what Pitocin is for...action??  We had fully expected to leave the hospital with our baby in our arms, not still in my belly!  The nurse left the room, and right there with me squatting on my birthing ball, Dan and I prayed that the Lord would give us direction as to what we should do.  As soon as we finished, I realized that before we decided anything, I had to go to the bathroom.  So I stood up...and my water broke.  I have still never to this day had a prayer answered so fast as that one!  Not five seconds after we had said, 'Amen,' God had heard and had answered.  Well, the labor pains picked up real fast after that and nine hours later (four minutes before midnight), we were gazing with awe on our first-born son.  And we could almost hear God whisper to us, I will help you and I will take care of you.

In a few weeks, Dan and I will be celebrating our twelfth anniversary.  As we look back and look ahead, we love being able to say with confidence that the Lord has been our Shepherd all our life-long to this day (Gen. 48:15).  We are deeply grateful for the little moments where God told us in a big way: I will help you and I will take care of you.