Little Answers

So often we are told that the Lord answers prayers in His own time, in His own way, and that we need to have patience as we wait for His will to unfold in our lives. But then there are the times when we get our answer right away.

Last fall, we had a short-term foster placement for a family of 7 children, ages 2 to 16. It was actually a blast sharing our home with these great kids, and it was fascinating getting to know their individual personalities. The hardest nut to crack was the then-13-yr-old boy. When he arrived, he seemed sullen, resentful, and my first thoughts on meeting him were, "Oh great, a grumpy teenager." But once he opened up, something about him just resonated with me. Here he was, in a tough situation, caught between childhood and manhood, and he had a great, wry sense of humor and excellent perception. One of those kids where you know they could easily go either way as they get older, depending on the influences in their lives and how they respond. Basically, I just liked him.

Well, foster care being what it is, I never had the chance to share my positive impressions with him, and I've always regretted that. I feel it's so important to let kids know they are valued, especially when many things in their lives might be telling them otherwise, and this omission weighed on me. We still have some association with this family, however, and last night I found myself saying a brief prayer that the Lord would take care of them, and guide me towards ways I could help and support them, however that might be. A few minutes later I was in their driveway to pick up one of his older siblings, and surprisingly this now-14-year-old comes out of the house (in the pouring rain) to poke his head in the car to say hi. I saw an opportunity and grabbed it, and told him briefly what a neat kid I think he is, and how much potential he has. Typical teen response was a monosyllabic "yeah," (not dismissively, rather more like, "of course, I knew that.") I then said, "you'll make me proud, right?" Another "yeah," and a smile, and he was on his way.

Now, this won't make the record books for the most expressive and incisive conversation ever held with a teenager, but I feel good about it. The timing, coming so shortly on the heels of my prayer, seemed too coincidental to be accidental. There was no reason for him to have come out to the car in the first place, he's never done so before, and yet there he was. I don't begin to understand the Lord's plan for this family, but I know He has one, and am thankful my husband and I have had the opportunity to be a small part of it.