devotional for 8/3&4/12...Listen to what God is asking us to do

I need to apologize for not posting this first thing on Friday morning. Life happens inspite of all of our plans. This is an interesting story by Glenna Williamson that illustrates how we need to listen to what God leads us to.
God bless from Corinne Mustafa
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Be Sensitive To God’s Leading

I have experienced in my walk with God….the many times the Lord has lead me to be sensitive to his calling or sensitive to His Spirit to do something right at that moment that He was bidding me to do. Sometimes I have obeyed and sometimes I have been slack in His calling.

This one instance I remember many years ago, I was already in my thirty’s raising children by myself I was awakened out of a dead sleep one night with the thought of a neighbor girl that I used to know years and years ago growing up in Livermore. Her name was Dolly. I lived down the street from Dolly and her family when I was a teenager and didn’t really know them much other than by sight. Dolly was probably four or five years older than me, so I actually didn’t have much contact with her in school other than to acknowledge her if we’d pass in the hall way. I didn’t have any idea through these passing years where Dolly may now live or anything about her life….but I knew what I was feeling from the Lord.

This particular night that I was awaken out of sleep, I actually got up out of bed and stood by my bedroom window looking out into the deep dark of night….and I felt a heaviness, a burden in my heart for Dolly. I could envision what she then looked like in high school, but this was years and years later and I now lived in Tracy. I hadn’t even thought of Dolly in probably over twenty-five years….so why was I awoken in the middle of the cold night with this urgent pressing feeling that I needed to intercede for Dolly?

I went with my inner feelings and recognized that this burden that I was feeling so urgently and deeply must be from the Lord, and so I stood there by my window and began to pray. I no more hardly began to pray when intercessory prayer came into my spirit with words that can not be uttered with tears and moanings and groanings beyond my understanding. I prayed in the Holy Ghost and felt the heaviness on my chest praying for I don’t remember how long until finally this burden of prayer lifted and I went back to bed.

I did think of this from time to time, but through the rush of daily hectic living had kind of forgot about that night of prayer. One Saturday morning some months later I went to our local Save Mart grocery store. I got a basket and made my way through the isles toward the back of the store. When I looked at a lady standing by the meat section with her grocery basket…my eye caught her frail figure. This woman looked pale, tired and very weak and I couldn’t help but stare at her….when it dawned on me “Is that Dolly?” I tried not to be too conspicuous, but I kept pretending that I was looking at the meat counter, but I was inching my way closer to this poor frail lady. The closer I got I actually could see the familiarity of features that I had remembered about Dolly as a teenager. I kind of held my breath as the remembrance of prayer came back to mind. I got close enough to her basket and I said “Is you name Dolly?” She looked at me and her eyes were void of spark she only had a questionable look as her forhead wrinkled with a question ….and she said “Yes, I’m Dolly?”

I said, I don’t know if you remember me or not, my name is Glenna Mort, my family used to live down the street from you and your parents when we were teenagers in Livermore. Dolly’s eyes did perk up and she with a soft fragile voice said “of course I remember you Glenna, how are you? My goodness it’s been a long time, do you live here in Tracy now?” and I told her “Yes, I was living in Tracy now with my three children as my folks also moved here years ago”. She said “Well it’s so good to see you, I’m surprised you recognized me”. I kind of half heartily smiled and said “Oh Dolly, none of us really ever change!”

My heart was pounding inside my chest, because I knew this was no coincidence of us coming across each other like this. I knew the Lord had directed our paths….and I needed to get enough courage to touch her shoulder and tell her that recently she’d been on my heart and I had an experience with the Lord and with intercedings prayed for her. (although I wasn’t even sure she’d know what I was talking about). And so I got those words out….and Dolly stood right there and began to weep uncontrollably. Her eyes were red, not from crying, but I could see that she was sick, her skin was pasty. I then broke down my account of how the Lord had awoken me in the middle of the night some time back and how I got up out of bed and prayed much for her even though I’d not seen her for years and years.

Dolly began her story, as customers in the store had to walk around our baskets, but my focus was on her and I don’t think I paid any attention to anyone else around us.

Dolly unburdened her heart to me through tears running down her face, that her life has been hard. She has cancer and has been very ill, she and her husband now live in Tracy and have one son that they just moved off to College and it was about to crush her sole to see him go off miles and miles away from her with her facing the fear of cancer in her body that was taking her life. I tried being strong and looking her straight in her eyes talked of the Lord’s understanding in her life and that we’re never alone as God will wake someone up even in the middle of the night to intercede in prayer for her needs. Dolly shakily stood there now looking at me with partly disbelief and partly a hope of the miracle that just happened.

I told Dolly that I would continue to pray and she said so sweetly “Thank You Glenna,” We rolled our grocery baskets down different isles and although my eyes were filled with tears, I had a peace and an understanding of what God had done. The midnight intercessory prayer, our paths connecting from all these many years….and I saw the hand of God, “The Big Picture.” I myself was amazed, but I had peace. Godly Peace.

I never came across Dolly ever again. I have wondered to this day how her life unfolded. I may never know, but this one thing I do know….It was a visitation from the Lord to shake me to prayer for someone in my past needed help. In this remembrance I can identify to the scripture that says in

1Samuel 15:22

And Samuel said, Hath the LORD as great delight

in burnt offerings and sacrifices, as in obeying the voice of the LORD?

 Behold, to obey is better than sacrifice, and to hearken than the fat of rams.

Written by Glenna Williamson