Today's Life Lesson
Whoever dwells in the shelter of the Most High will rest in the shadow of the Almighty. I will say of the Lord, ‘He is my refuge and my fortress, my God, in whom I trust.’ Psalm 91:1-2 (EVS)
A few days ago, my friend Carol and I piled in the car to do some grocery shopping. We needed gas so I decided to stop before we shopped. My debit card was declined. I pulled to another pump—still declined. We drove to another gas station and again it was declined.
Pulling the car forward, I called my bank. By this time I was getting irritated because I knew there was money to cover it. My face was red. I could hear my heart beginning to pound. Carol was sitting in the passenger side motioning for me to calm down. “Just breathe!” The bank put me on hold several times.
“Did you make a purchase with Amazon for $147.23?”
“No, I have not ordered anything from them in several months.”
The bank had locked my debit card as a possible fraud alert. The bank rep told me that it did not
look like a regular monthly payment. What happened was this: I had paid for my subscription to
Amazon for $147.23. What a relief that was! The lock was removed and I purchased gas (at too
high a price) and we headed off to get groceries. I was destressing all the way down the road and
saying my genuine “Thank You’s!”
An inconvenience at the gas pump saved me from humiliation in the grocery store. Imagine what
it might have looked like to have a mounded cart with a declined card. Of course there were
people in the checkout line who knew me.
So quickly we become overwhelmed with being inconvenienced. But what if our momentary
trouble is in fact God’s protection? Carol did not hesitate to let me know that gratitude should be
forthcoming. She was absolutely correct! How many times have we gotten a late start, couldn’t
find our keys or cell phone only to discover that there was a tragic accident on our normal route that we would have been going through at that time. God’s protection covers us! Are we grateful for the inopportune moments? Perhaps we should be saying, He is my refuge and my fortress, my God, in whom I trust.
Heavenly Father, thank You for protecting us. Help us rein in our thoughts and feelings when we feel overwhelmed. Teach us to trust You in the inconveniences. AMEN.