It was late afternoon on Christmas Eve. I was getting ready
to pay a visit with my church cell group to The Meadows nursing home. Each of
the five members of our group was to take a plate of cookies, to mingle a bit
and to wish everybody “Merry Christmas.”
The phone rang and changed that. It was Miss Evelyn, our
group leader, giving me short notice with a tall order that our little group
was now to “sing like a choir” to the group at The Meadows. “Well, they asked
us in good faith, so it’s up to us to have good faith that we can do it!”
stated Miss Evelyn.
Did Miss Evelyn have any idea that she was throwing our
little off-key non-choir into the lion’s den?
Picking up on my lack of response, Miss Evelyn added as if praying, “Remember,
our lack of carrying a tune is God’s opportunity to supply His singing angels!
Well, toodle-loo!”
Miss Evelyn’s faith statement had me worried. God’s angels
singing over us were badly needed, but would they show up within the hour and
do so on a prayer that ended with “Toodle-loo!”
Funny how time speeds up when you are dreading something! In no time I was in the meeting hall at The Meadows.
Normally a plain-Jane meeting room, it had been magically transformed with an
array of twinkling white lights and evergreen swags that hung above the
windows. A cheery fire in the fireplace offered toasty warm heat and a cozy
light throughout the room. In the center of the room was a handsome Douglas fir
tree that glowed brightly with multi-colored lights and hand-cut paper
ornaments of bells and camels and Santas. On top of it sat a doily-made star
that was precariously leaning to the right.
A loving voice cut in, “Our Miss Hilda made those!” The
voice belonged to an elderly lady with crinkly blue eyes and a wide and
friendly smile. She introduced herself as Glennie and added, “We are so proud
of everything she does and proud of what all of our residents do!”
I noticed that the residents—our audience—were taking their
seats. Many sat on folding chairs, while others arrived in wheelchairs.
Suddenly I began to see something new. Here was not a lynch-mob audience to fear, but instead a combined
community of family’s loved ones … someone’s grandma or grandpa or aunt or
uncle!
“Lord,” I prayed privately, “Let your angels show up to make
this a night of nights to bless the precious residents here!”
Without warning, Miss Evelyn tapped her pencil on the
podium—and her Ticonderoga yellow #2 was magically transformed into the wand of
the grand maestro, as she began to lead our little group in “Angels We Have
Heard on High.”
Soon, the entire room was filled with other voices
joining in over ours! So much so, that this
forced Miss Evelyn to grab the microphone. In an impromptu moment, sounding
like Mitch Miller with a falsetto voice, Miss Evelyn made the announcement:
“Welcome to our first annual Christmas Sing Along at The Meadows! Let’s ALL join in!”
Glory! The Lord had
answered prayers—Miss Evelyn’s by sending His angels—and mine by making this a
night of nights—as only He could do it in His mysterious and wonderful ways!
Merry Christmas to all and to all a Toodle-loo!
PRAYER POWER FOR THE WEEK OF 12-19-2011
This week celebrate the coming of our Lord with thanksgiving
and express your joy by joining with others to sing, pray, fellowship and share
His love. Remember those who are
away from their family members at Christmas and reach out to the poor and
lonely. Pray for opportunities to share the gospel. Thank God for His continued
mercy and protection on our nation and continue to pray that our leaders would
turn to God for wisdom and direction when making decisions that affect us all.
Pray that God will continue to protect Israel during this busy tourist season.
Ps. 145:3-4
To enrich your prayer
life and learn how to strategically pray with power by using appropriate
scriptures, we recommend the following sources by Apostle John Eckhardt: Prayers that Rout Demons, Prayers that Bring Healing, Prayers that Release Heaven on Earth and Prayers that Break
Curses. To order any or all of these click here.
James Lasher 
Abby Trivett 
