A Delightful Answer to Prayer

I felt the sting at the tip of my nose.

You may also have experienced it—the sting that signals “I am about to cry!” During and after my divorce, I relocated from my home in Maryland, USA, and found myself living in Cody, Wyoming, USA. On this particular day some years later, I felt so incredibly lonely. All I wanted to do was hop on a plane and return to Maryland.

How I longed to reunite with the family and friends I felt so comfortable with. I wanted to be with those who knew me best. The tears came, and I begged, through prayer, for God to find a way to get me to Maryland before my birthday.

Even as I asked, I wondered how it would be possible.

My work commitments and finances made it impossible for me to arrange on my own. Despite that, I continued to pray and left the planning to Him.

A week before my birthday, I went out to my makeshift pottery studio, which takes up one corner of my garage. There, under my slab roller, sat a box my ex-husband had brought me the last time he visited. I had not opened it yet—even though it had been a few years. I opened the garage door to let in more light, sat down, and decided I should finally open the box and take a look inside. And there it was—my trip to Maryland! The box was filled with photos from my life on the East Coast. I spent several hours poring over all the pictures in the box.

They spanned the years and took me back in time to all the vacations, family get-togethers, pets, events, and holidays I had so enjoyed.

You name it, it was captured in the photographs I held.

I laughed, I cried, and I found myself saying things like, “Oh, I had forgotten all about this!” Or “Wow! I can’t believe such and such,” and “Oh! This was so fun!” The memories filled my heart to overflowing. God had heard my pleas and had graciously provided a way to get me home to Maryland. Not in the conventional way, by boarding a plane and flying across the country. Yet my heart was comforted. I felt satisfied, fulfilled, seen and heard, and incredibly thankful for the memories I had been able to enjoy.

Thank You, God, for a creative answer to my prayer! My friend, how will God answer the longing of your heart today?

Gayle Cochran Wright