WHAT ARE YOU DOING
Nina Williams

"What are you doing?" 

"Nothing." I playfully tried to hide the fork behind my back. "Go on and leave."

Bruce shook his head. "I can't believe you're still doing that. Nobody makes gravy with a fork."

By now I knew I was captured and there was nothing I could do to hide it. Again, I laughed. "Look. My gravy comes out o.k., doesn't it?"

The manner in which I make gravy has become a constant source of teasing for Bruce. He can't imagine that someone would rather use a fork than a spoon. But to me it just seems easier. I have already used the fork to mix the flour and water and it seems natural to use it to finish the process. Bruce has tried everything to shame me into using a spoon. He has told the kids that he's going to leave me if he catches me with a fork again. He's implied that if anyone else saw it, they would have me committed. One evening Darby saw me with the fork and she laughed and ran to "tell Dad" what I was doing. We all laugh knowing that the next time I make gravy, I'll probably still use a fork. 

So it was this evening. I had dinner just about ready. The gravy was beginning to thicken. The bread was ready. And Bruce walked into the kitchen. Again, he tried to shame me into admitting the craziness of my method. But tonight I had an answer. "Look," I said. "Doesn't my gravy come out all right?" I leaned over to put my arms around his neck.

Bruce side stepped me and feigned disgust. "Don't try to hug me. That can't make up for what you're doing." And so our game continued.

I hugged him and laughed. "But you didn't answer. Isn't my gravy o.k.?" Still he refused to answer. Suddenly I was hit with inspiration. "Jesus didn't do everything the way he was supposed to. Didn't he have some pretty unorthodox ways of accomplishing what he wanted?" We bantered the conversation back and forth a few minutes more while I finished dinner. 

As silly as all this sounds, God moves in ways that we would never expect. Could you imagine going into war with a glass pitcher, a lantern and a horn? The seventh chapter of Judges shows us that's exactly what God commanded Gideon to do.

How about Joshua and the battle of Jericho? Who would ever believe that simply marching about a city for seven days without speaking could cause the walls of the city to fall? Yet in Hebrews 11 we see that it happened.

Perhaps you need something to encourage you from the new testament. Would you ever think that you could go fishing and find the one fish in the sea that would have the right amount of money that you needed? In Matthew 17:27 we find that by following the direction of Jesus, Peter did exactly that. What if you were blind and someone spit on you. Would you expect to regain your sight, or would you be angry? Mark 8:23 tells us what the blind man did. 

We all face different situations in our lives. And usually, we feel that nobody else could be facing a situation like ours. Whether it be finances, or health, or family problems often times we feel our situation is insurmountable. Possibly we have tried to work things out on our own. We may have even prayed and told God how we think he should solve the problem. Have you been waiting for what seems ages for a solution to your problem?

Perhaps you need to encourage yourself in the Lord. Remember how David encouraged himself at Ziklag? (I Samuel 30:6) Look back to your past. Have there been instances that God has delivered you before? Did it always happen in the way or time that you thought it would? 

Perhaps you're new at this. Maybe you don't have a past track record to rely on. Encourage yourself. Acts 10:34 tells us that God is no respecter of persons. What he has done for others, he will also do for you. 

Yes, God will move on our behalf. And while he is not challenged by our problems, we are often times challenged by the way he instructs us to proceed. We question whether or not that could really be God. But over the years, I have come to learn that God is capable of doing whatever he wants, however he wants to do 
it. 

As you seek God for the answers to your needs, be willing to do whatever it is that he commands. Don't be angry or upset if His methods aren't the methods you would have chosen. Always look for the positive side. And above all, expect the unexpected. God's only limitations are the ones that we place on him. 

God might not use a fork to make gravy, and you might find yourself wondering, "God. What are you doing?" But you'll never be disappointed with his results.