Elizabeth Wood
Dear Friends,
On Saturday mornings my husband and I make a big pot of coffee and allow ourselves a guilty pleasure. We turn on the tv and watch the British show “Escape to the Country.”
It’s much like all the other “property search” programs where a couple sets out to find a new home. Its particular appeal to us, however, is that it focuses on people in the UK who want to move out of the city to somewhere more peaceful. We are treated to stunning views of the Lake District, or the Yorkshire Dales or the Scottish Highlands—and it’s about the only time I ever feel a little homesick for the UK.
The show begins with the couple telling the host what they want in a new home—the price range, number of bedrooms, how large a garden, etc. The host shows them two or three properties based on their guidelines and each has pros and cons. House #1 has a great kitchen but the garden is too small. House #2 is a great bargain but sits too close to the road.
The following day the couple visits the Mystery House—a property that would appear to be a non-contender. Sometimes the building itself is unusual—a converted mill or stables that would need imaginative restoration. Sometimes it’s a house in town, when the couple was convinced they wanted to be in the suburbs.
The couple is often shocked by how appealing they find a house so different from what they said they wanted. Sometimes they fall in love and the Mystery House becomes their first choice. But even when they don’t choose the Mystery House the couple acknowledges that seeing it opened them up to possibilities outside their original parameters and challenged what they thought they wanted.
We are often certain we know what we want. We pray that God will “make it happen!”
Sometimes God’s answer is “yes!” We then rejoice that God has given us what we asked for. But sometimes God’s answer is “no!”—even though we are certain what we want is correct. And sometimes—the one I struggle with most—God’s answer is “not yet!” The time is not right.
When we get a “no” or a “not yet,” it is easy to conclude that our prayers are unanswered. But then there’s the Mystery House—the answer we didn’t know was possible, the timing we never thought would work, the path that is so far from what we imagined.
A tip someone taught me is to pray for what I want—and then to add three words: “but if not….”
I pray to be promoted but if not may God show me other opportunities. I pray to be reconciled with someone but if not may that person continue to feel God’s presence in their lives. I pray that my candidate will win but if not may God show me how to serve under other leadership.
—Elizabeth