The Doughnut Prayer

 

Still dark outside that morning, I made my way to the doughnut shop. I loved surprising the office staff with them from time to time. Opening the door to the establishment, expecting the stop to be brief and uneventful as it had been each time before, I waited for my order. Out of the corner of my eye, I noticed a middle-aged man enter the store. He was dressed in motorcycle attire and had a somewhat reserved disposition about him. I watched as he placed a small order.  Realizing my order was going to take a little longer to fill, I motioned for him to move ahead of me in line. Graciously, he accepted. Without anything to occupy my attention, I continued to watch as he attempted to pay for his food. "I'm sorry, sir," the clerk said. "You must spend at least $5.00 to use a bank card." Not having any cash with him, he politely concluded that he would have to return the doughnuts. There was no sign of smugness or embarrassment as he had a matter-of-fact disposition as he turned to leave.  At this point, I was intrigued by his behavior, as most people would have had far too much pride or maybe even a sense of entitlement to leave without demanding more of an explanation. However, he, for some strange reason, was content to walk away.

Seeing his dilemma yet not wanting to be known for what I was about to do, I subtly caught the attention of the clerk and quietly said, "Please add his order to mine." I thought this would divert attention away from the man, whose situation was making me highly uncomfortable. However, I did not want my offer of help to redirect the attention of the surrounding bystanders to me. Nevertheless, this is precisely what happened, for as I finished making the request, the man was already turning toward me to offer his thanks. What I had tried to prevent from happening was indeed happening and in a very public manner. Such attention made me quite self-conscious, so I decided to accept his thanks rather hastily and be done with the awkward situation. However, the man jogged right out of me my mental escape plan with his words. "Ma'am, I'm Billy. I really appreciate what you just did for me, and I need to pray for you right here, asking God to bless your day. May I do that right now?" My eyes were a bit bugged at this moment.

Right here, I thought. In front of all the customers and the clerks who had different ideas of spiritual truth, as evidenced by the décor in the shop, everyone would be watching.

After what seemed like an eternity, although I knew it had only been a few seconds, I quickly concluded, as I looked at him face to face, that I had no choice. This man was compelled to pray, and I knew I should not stop him from doing just that.

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With one final fleeting thought of the certainty of the scriptures that we were supposed to go into our closets to pray, not stand in the middle of the city streets and, in this case, the busy doughnut shop, I reluctantly but mentally rehearsed my response to him accepting his offer to pray over me and the day that had already begun a little too weirdly for me. With my approval, Billy began to pray. Secretly, I had hoped for three points and a poem prayer, general and not to convict for the wide variety of patrons looking on.

Suddenly, though, my thoughts shifted. As Billy began to pray, I knew this was a moment that was more than a formality. There was no need to keep his prayer in a secret closet, for it was neither showy nor filled with pride. On the contrary, it was one of the most humbling prayers I had ever experienced. He placed his hand on my shoulder and prayed so specifically for me, and the day I was walking into that, I was both touched and convicted. This encounter with Billy reminded me of the importance of acknowledging God in all things, everywhere, and at all times when He presents an opportunity. It took a disruption to my comfort zone and a humbling of my pride to remind me that God calls us not only to acknowledge Him in our life circles that seem safe and accepting, but instead, He calls us to acknowledge Him out of gratitude and obedience everywhere, faithfully. When he had completed his prayer, Billy wished me a wonderful day and, without another word, got on his bike and left. I thought about this unforeseen experience throughout the day, and on occasion, I still do when I need a gentle reminder to acknowledge the Lord's work in my life.

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The Billys of this world are sometimes hard to find, as we live in a time that seeks to diminish the work of God in people's lives and pass off His favor as human effort.

It was much the same way during the days of the prophet Hosea. The Word of God gives us a beautiful picture of what it means to acknowledge God in all things. It includes the times when what we are experiencing doesn't make sense, when we may face ridicule or criticism, or when we are trying to convince ourselves that there is a method to the madness we feel. In all, it is often when we sense God's leading in our lives that we feel the most uncertain and unsettled. This is an opportunity to trust Him as Hosea did.

Hosea lived in the northern Kingdom of Israel during the time of the self-indulged reign of a king named Jeroboam.  This king had a personal plan that he intended to carry out, which did not include acknowledging the God of the Israelites in anything. Under his reign, idol worship (remember the golden calf) was instituted. Jeroboam was so determined to keep the northern and southern kingdoms separate that he denied his people the right to worship in Jerusalem, the capital of the southern kingdom of Judah. He succeeded in separating the Israelites from God for a season and ultimately brought about their demise as a united people as well as his own.

Yet God saw the need of His fallen people, and He had a plan to restore them. A very radical, even risqué as some might call it, plan.  God called Hosea not only to be a prophet to Israel, but He also instructed him to marry a prostitute named Gomer. That was an unconventional way of getting the attention of His people, but isn't that just like our Father to use the ordinary, maybe even the seemingly forbidden, to accomplish the extraordinary? What better analogy to use than the picture of Hosea's marriage to an unfaithful woman to illustrate God's devotion to a faithless people? ​

Somewhat like my doughnut episode, the prophet dropped all pretenses and decided the cost of worrying about what everyone around him might think was not worth missing the opportunity of being a part of God's plan. He acknowledged God's command, married the sinful woman with a sordid past, and dug his heels in deep for the ride. Hosea's willingness, faithfulness, and commitment, no matter what others think, should be the force that compels us to acknowledge the Lord and be faithful to His service, like Billy.

May we be ever watching for the Lord's work in our lives and be so in tune with Him that we will recognize His work and say, "That was certainly God!" 

"…but in your hearts honor Christ the Lord as holy, always being prepared to make a defense to anyone who asks you for a reason for the hope that is in you; yet do it with gentleness and respect…" 

1 Peter 3:15 ESV.