I’m not sure you could call it a legitimate prayer. It was just a quick utterance, “Dear Lord, please let there be a lamp that works for mom.”
That day when I arrived at her room, mom was sitting mostly in the dark, with just a small table lamp lit. When she saw the confused look on my face, she explained that the cleaning lady had cleaned the top of her torchiere light with a feather duster and the halogen bulb caught a feather on fire! Fortunately, it was quickly snuffed out and the lamp turned off and unplugged.
I knew that mom had owned that light for many years and it didn’t owe her anything. However, it was the perfect lamp for her. The switch was low enough to reach from her wheelchair and it easily rotated to turn on and adjust the light level. The replacement had to have these same qualities and be affordable. Also, we needed it right away as the room doesn’t have an overhead light and this light served that need.
After disposing of the old light in the dumpster nearby, I drove to Menards to begin my search. I knew that lamps with halogen bulbs were in the process of or had already been phased out because the bulbs get very hot and anything that touches them can catch fire, like a feather duster. This fact was not encouraging!
I walked into Menards and directly to the lighting area. Low and behold, within 5 minutes I found it. On display and in stock was a lamp with all the properties we required with one important difference; it took a standard 100-watt bulb! Donna, my favorite Menard’s employee guided me to an affordable, long lasting, soft white, dimmable LED bulb. Now I was in business!
I headed back to mom’s and installed the new lamp. It worked perfectly and she even loved the design aesthetic!
It was then that I remembered my utterance. God not only heard my groan as a prayer, but He answered it swiftly and perfectly.
“But in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving present your requests to God.” – Philippians 4:6
God absolutely cares about the little things that happen in our lives. On that very day, He had blessed me and mom with just what we needed right then and there.
Keep on praying,
-Jan