OBVIOUS
God just makes himself so obvious sometimes,
That anybody with half a brain can plainly see!
Well that’s what happened the last 12 days of 2017,
To the unbelieving part of me.
Happy New Year to you all around the world.
As we start out this 2018,
I simply have to tell how God answered our prayer,
And proclaim how great God’s answer has been.
So, our pastor retired after 32 years at our church.
Took his wife on a one-year mission trip to Nepal,
A 3rd world nation with the world’s tallest mountains!
Now don’t that just beat ’em all?
How many Christian couples at retirement age,
Freely choose to pursue a challenging new career?
And leave all the comforts of American living,
And follow the call of God to a land far away from here?
Mission work requires the Church, with the big C.
Some must pray, some must give, and some must go.
When God touches the heart of chosen believers,
The things he causes to happen, who could ever know?
After the year—when they returned,
Their lives seemed to be busier than before.
So I made an appointment for tea with Keith,
To learn what’s next, because there is always more.
Nepal has the fastest growing Christian population,
Of any nation on this entire planet,
And the greatest need is for a pastors’ education center,
But without money we just have to “can it.”
Keith’s goal was to figure out how to finance that place.
He was certainly stuck, but he wasn’t depressed.
Praying doesn’t give God any new information,
But prepares us to see things that only God can process.
And the $350,000 required to make this happened,
Was a God-sized mountain that day—in our eyes.
We prayed God would provide it all by the end of the year!
God was the only one at our table who wasn’t surprised.
Didn’t Jesus say faith could move mountains?
Aren’t God’s promises really true?
If God answered Jonah at the bottom of the sea,
Won’t he answer prayers for you and me too?
Day 1 of our prayer happened to come December 19.
We had a prayer but not a hint of a plan.
Uh, maybe you could share with us at our Bible
study.
We combined 2 study groups so we could tell each man.
Brian Balster had just returned from Africa,
So I invited him to come and report to us too!
But wait, we only meet for an hour,
I guess I just didn’t think this through.
Ready, fire, aim!
Planning is not my strongest gift.
But Brian inspired us that pastors must be trained,
He really gave our spirits a lift.
Keith only got enough time to answer a few
questions,
About the cost of the need in Nepal.
But then a note appeared in front of me . . .
“Any money you raise for this, I will match it all!”
He clarified, “I will not pay more than half or
$175,000.”
I still couldn’t believe my own ears! Can that really be?
Who could have guessed there would be a promise for half?
On the morning of day number 3!
My unbelief asked, “Are you sure you want to do that?”
“You know, they will never even come close,” he replied.
Well, that sounded like a God-ordained challenge to me,
And it set something in motion deep in my insides.
By day 8 we had $14,220,
That had been given for this wonderful match.
On day 9, $68,600 more came in!
This prayer was starting to catch!
Day 10 and $15,070 more was given,
And I told as many as I could.
Day 11 we got $420,
Big or small God’s provision was really good.
My 12th day of Christmas was Sunday—New Year’s Eve,
Just under $100,000 had been given to this matching plan,
Carrie Pohlan came to me in the lobby after church,
And said another $60,000 had been put in her hand!
I am close, but never trust my own calculations.
Receipts show $159,600 donated dollars were given,
$319,400 will be the 12-day answer to this prayer.
God uses his Church on earth to provide answers from heaven.
Even now that Christmas is over,
And rich blessings are on clear display,
I have to keep reviewing what has happened,
Leading up to this praise-worthy New Year’s Day.
Yes, God answers the prayers of his children.
And we never seem to know in what way.
But this last 12 days of 2017 affirms once again,
We never should forget to pray.