The Holy Spirit has a home in all of us. He is there working behind the scenes. We are inspired in so many ways by the Lord. He leads us in his ways if we listen.

A friend of mine related a story to me about just such an occasion. She was a widowed mother to one fine boy. She had never had a hard time making ends meet in the 5 years since she had become a single mother but over the past year her finances had degraded. She had what happens to so many of us. Life, cold hard unforgiving life. She broke her ankle, her son needed braces, someone hit her car, and to top it off the water heater and furnace in her house blew. She said “Even the house my husband and I made a home out of for our little family felt like it was betraying me.” She said she “kept her chin up”, as her dad had always said, and kept it all going took out lines of credit when she had to and was making ends meet.

One morning after she had her son off to school she received a call from her work telling her she didn’t have to come in today and that basically she still had a job but she would be reduced to 3 days a week 60% pay, however, her over priced health insurance would still continue the same as it was.

She said she fell to the floor and sobbed for what felt like hours. She screamed, cried, banged on the floor, the cabinets, the table and whatever else was close. She said she was broke, that was it, her limit. She lied in a heap on the floor. Muttering to herself desperately “what am I going to do? …..It’s too much…..! Please Jesus help me.”

Aaaaaoooogaahhh, Aaaaaoooogaahhh, Aaaaaoooogaahhh, the sound of an antique car horn rang out rousting her from her from a deep sleep. She realised she was still on the floor. Panic stricken and almost instinctively she hopped to her feet. It’s my alarm, my phone, where is it? She glanced around the room, which felt strangely foreign in the late afternoon light. She snapped out of her haze. Then yelled “THE BUS!” Her son would be home any minute! She ran to her room changed, put her hair up and ran out the front door just in time to see the bus pulling away and her son getting the mail.

He came running up smiling “mom I got the mail”. She hugged him long and deeply, so long that he gave her a pat on her back signifying “the hug is ending let go” just like her late husband had. She let go he smiled gave her the mail (which lately she had dreaded) and ran in the house yelling “I’m hungryyyyyy”. She went in after him offering him cereal. She thought maybe a snack or maybe his dinner if she was lucky because after the day she just didn’t feel like cooking.

While her son ate his cereal crunching and slurping like he had not eaten in weeks, while she dared to open the mail. Dreading each envelope. Water bill, credit application, gutter guard ad, coupons and then bank letter that read “Important information about your loan”. She felt her pulse quicken and almost put down the letter but then thought to herself “I’m already broken there is no way to break more so why not just rip off the bandage!”

She opened it and the front page said escrow review but was otherwise blank it said for “security purposes”. “Great” , she said under her breath, “here it comes!” “Huh” he son said? “Nothing honey” she replied. The next page read “escrow reviews are usually done annually to insure sufficient funds are available in account to cover taxes, insurance etcetera… blah blah blah, randomly we audit accounts for accuracy, your account was selected for audit, see details on the following page.” She felt tension start to well in her stomach. She flipped the page and it laid out escrow overage “what” she thought, and a check for 3k was attached. SLLLLUUURRRRPPP! Her son had the bowl up to his mouth finishing the milk. Looking back at the letter and details, her son, her kitchen and the world faded into the distance as if the were not on the same plain of existence. The letter laid out everything her escrow account was used for and the that tax rate had been figured incorrectly. As she looked through the list she saw an item listed as “Extended Home Warranty, for appliances and home systems……

“mom, heeeey moooom, MOOOOOM!” She snapped out of her haze jolting her back to a reality where the 3k would help a lot for now but she thought what was that Home warranty thin…… MOM!…….g? He son said “like my moustache?” With a smile, going back in to the bowl to ad to his milk moustache. “MOM, hey mom look at this, “Got Milk?” He laughed and so did she. Then wham she was transported back to that birds eye view again and this time billboards from the side of the freeway on her daily commute flashed through her head. She had always thought they were cheesy and wondered if they really had any effect on people? They read “Got Jesus?”. At that instant she knew they did, as she considered herself spiritual but uncommitted, she knew they were the reason she asked in her desperation “Please Jesus help me!”

She snapped back to the presence with a joy she never knew. She hugged her son so hard she felt his breath blow on her neck from the sudden squeeze, she ran into the living room flipping on the radio spinning and half dancing in the golden late afternoon sunshine. Her son joined her and together they danced and laughed while in her head she said “thank you, Jesus”

In the days that followed she found out her husband had bought the home warranty and it covered the water heater and furnace so she would be reimbursed. Five years later her husband was still taking care of her and God picked the perfect time to reveal it. Additionally, after a dentist visit she was informed her sons teeth had moved into position with the preparatory retainer and so she received a refund from the money she had paid towards his braces!

She even found a church to start attending where she felt she fit in. In fact, she started working for the church daycare administration part time which eventually turned into full time.

The point is prayers are answered, they don’t have to be long heck you don’t even have to have a long history of belief. All you have to do is have faith and ask. Jesus will take care of the rest just as he did the thief on the cross next to him.

“Truly, I say to you, today you will be with me in paradise” (Luke 23:43).

So believe that Jesus has your back, ask for help and know he will provide gloriously!