I experienced some spiritual warfare today. A lot of it. I think last night that, I am only partially joking here, the devil showed up in heaven to ask God what he could all whisper in my ear this morning. Considering all the pain I was tempted to meditate on, I did quite well. That being said, on my way to church this morning, I asked God if I could just find a penny on the sidewalk. Pennies mean a lot to me because God and I used to have a conversation through them. We still do sometimes. You can read about how the conversation started here.
As I walked the rest of the way to church, I scanned the sidewalk – as hard as if I had truly lost something and was looking for something that was already highly valuable to me. I was looking for “the” penny not just “a” penny. It was already highly valuable to me. All the negative voices asked me what I thought would happen if I found the penny. Would it really encourage me? Would I feel discouraged if I didn’t find a penny? I never found a penny on my way to church. I never thought about it again. I didn’t really expect God to answer though I hoped He would.
I was walking home from church five hours later. I had totally forgotten about my search for the penny, but was still fighting a hard battle. I was praying or thinking about Scripture or complaining or something. As I crossed the railroad tracks, I discovered what my reaction would be if I found “the” penny today. There it lay, right in the tracks, as filthy as could be. I literally exclaimed, “The penny!” as I rushed to pick it up. Then I started to sob.
That was the beginning of a better day as I went into my noon time with God and began to meditate on the gospel message. I sobbed in the beginning. By the end, I knew the gospel was what really mattered.
This evening after the battle had subsided, I had had my evening time with God, and I was on the way to dinner at a friend’s, I saw another penny as I crossed the street. This time I didn’t sob. Instead I exclaimed, “Oh my God!” as I rushed to pick it up with a great big grin splitting my face.
My God is a faithful God. Sometimes He talks to me through pennies. I think I am going to keep the railroad penny as special reminder of His love. I washed it off when I got home, and even soaked it in vinegar and used a toothbrush to try to clean it. It is still dirty. I am crying just thinking about it. Last Sunday God answered my prayer and gave me cookies. This week He answered my prayer and gave me pennies. Each time He gave me more than I asked for. I asked for a sign, and He provided an abundance. I asked for a penny, and He gave me two.
The God of peace will soon crush satan under your feet. Romans 16
Comments