Vicki,

That was excellent. I'm praising God that you didn't need a boat.

Love and Blessings,
Pat Ferguson



At 10:38 PM 9/7/04, you wrote:
>Phil, Sandy, Lelia and Julie will probably remember this day that had a
>storm.  But here's just a small miracle God did for us that was big in our
>eyes.
>
>Anybody got a boat?
>
>Have you ever had one of those mornings where you got out of bed on the
>wrong side and there was no way to crawl back in and get out on the right
>side?  Well, that was me on Wednesday morning August 18thof 2004.  Woke with
>a headache in a less than desirable mood. Then I couldn't find this or that
>in the process of getting breakfast and heading off to work.  Just as I was
>going out the door, the last straw happened causing me to loose my temper.
>On top of that, Rory went back to bed and wasn't ready to go to work.  He
>had to be called several times as well as be gently but firmly coaxed out of
>his cozy bed.  By the time I got to the bus I really did have a headache,
>and the loss of my temper had me feeling far less than my ideal picture of
>how a victorious Christian should feel.
>
>After boarding the city bus, I pulled out my Bible and began reading from
>Psalms 86.  Several verses jumped out at me.  Here they are from The
>Message.
>
>"Bend an ear, GOD; answer me. I'm one miserable wretch!"    Thinking to
>myself how true that felt, I came to verse 5. "You're well-known as good and
>forgiving, big-hearted to all who ask for help. I continued reading.  6Pay
>attention, GOD, to my prayer;
>
>10"For you are great and perform great miracles.
>         You alone are God.
>11Teach me your ways, O LORD,
>that I may live according to your truth!
>Grant me purity of heart,
>that I may honor you.
>
>12With all my heart I will praise you, O Lord my God.
>I will give glory to your name forever,
>
>13For your love for me is very great.
>You have rescued me from the depths of death!"
>
>Verse 5 especially spoke to me. In New King James it reads:
>Verse 5: "For You, Lord, are good, and ready to forgive,
>And abundant in mercy to all those who call upon You."
>
>And verse 15. But You, O Lord, are a God full of compassion, and gracious,
>Longsuffering and abundant in mercy and truth.
>
>As a side comment, note the references to truth in these verses.  It is
>interesting studying truth, as it is referred to, time and time in both the
>Old and New Testaments.  I've been looking at what God says about truth
>lately; both by studying it out and by experiential learning.
>
>Back to my story.  I took time right in the middle of the bus full of other
>commuters to quietly talk with the Lord, calling on him for his forgiveness
>which he graciously granted, according to his word.  I began thinking about
>His goodness, and what he had not only done for me in answering my prayer,
>but how he had been with me in the past.  How he had been there for me in
>every way.  By the time I got to work my attitude had completely changed, my
>heart was lighter, and there was a difference in even the steps I took along
>the familiar path to the office.  I went through the day aware somewhere in
>my consciousness that for this day I would trust in his never ending mercy
>and love.
>
>Shortly before work ended, the weather changed markedly.  The wind began
>blowing with determination and big rain drops fell faster and faster until
>they relentlessly pounded the large full length plate glass window pain next
>to my desk.  I realized that it was a good thing I hadn't left work at my
>regular time, and was still able to call my husband for a ride.  We could
>barely hear one another on the phone as we spoke together.
>
>The way home was slow going because of the high water and unbelievable
>traffic.  And the rain kept coming in steady sheets.  It suddenly dawned on
>me that I never closed the upstairs window, which I'm always careful to do
>before leaving in the mornings, and my heart almost skipped a beat.  But,
>not on this day.  I started to feel irritation and concern about my own
>careless omission.  I thought, "I'm gunna need a boat to clean up this huge
>mess, and who knows what else I'll need."  I wondered about insurance
>coverage and cost.  I made excuses for the error and was just going to think
>all those negative self blame thoughts once more, wondering what a mess I'd
>come home to when verse 15 suddenly invaded my blame game. "But You, O Lord,
>are a God full of compassion, and gracious, Longsuffering and abundant in
>mercy and truth."  I had trusted and relaxed in his mercy all day.  Why
>should that change now.  Because my circumstances had changed? I resolved to
>continue to trust in his mercy, and truth,, and take his peace.  Yes, I
>still felt concern, but no longer did I feel the sting of worry  and blame.
>I realized that I couldn't do a thing about the open window with the rain
>pouring in right now.  And how far open was that window, I wondered.
>However, we were sitting in traffic going nowhere fast.  There were big van
>shaking booms of thunder and constant jagged flashes of lightning and the
>rain was continuing to pound on our gold colored van.  It's a good thing it
>wasn't hail.  I don't ever remember seeing rain come down like that in
>Colorado.  There was one June first several years ago, that came close to
>it.
>
>It was more than an half hour before we could get home.  When we arrived,
>John noted that the window was definitely wide open.  We made a run for it,
>from the van to the back door in the deluge.  After getting inside, I could
>immediately picture the rain pouring down from the open window, which faces
>north and running down the attic stairs like a river on to the floor and
>furniture below.  I didn't even want to check on it so I asked John to
>please check.  I held my breath.  When he returned, he reported that there
>was just a small amount of water on the window sill.  That was all.  I could
>hardly believe my ears.  That window faces north and always lets rain in.
>And furthermore, it rolls off the sill and down the wall in just seconds.  I
>'ve been in the kitchen doing dishes when I hear the rain start to fall.
>Seconds later, when I dash up the stairs to close the window, water is
>everywhere.   So I asked him what he had said, and he repeated it.  I
>thought, "incredible."  A few minutes later, I went to see for myself.  John
>had closed the window.  When I opened it, I found that the screen was
>absolutely soaked.  The water was still on the window sill, and only on the
>sill.  I thought to myself how truly amazing that was.  There was no water
>drenched carpet or ruined furniture.  No mess.  No anything except for my
>keen awareness of how God had performed one of his miracles for us.  The
>boat that I thought I'd need?  Well, I didn't even need a bucket.    I only
>needed just a small cloth to take up the water.  I was the one who had
>difficulty keeping the water from slipping from the sill to the floor while
>wiping it up.
>
>Next time you think you might have some reason for needing a boat, try
>trusting in the one who says:
>That he  is a God full of compassion, and gracious, Longsuffering and
>abundant in mercy and truth.