THE DREAD

There it was. The dreaded message on the computer screen: “You have just destroyed this computer; prepare to spend $1000 for a new computer.”

Well not exactly.

But you know how the something-dreaded-happened part of our brain can work. A little problem can twinge anxiety as the situation mind-wise explodes into a catastrophe.

Ann was working on a friend’s laptop computer; actually trying to help out with software installation. The process was near completion. All that was left to do was to turn off the computer and then restart it.

Then the dreaded happened. The message came on the screen: “Non-system disk or disk error. Replace and press key when ready.” Ann pressed key after key. “Error!” She tried some more of her computer tricks. “Error!”

“I was really, really worried,” Ann said. “I actually prayed.”

The Bible says, “But do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving present your requests to God.”

Now, Ann knows how to pray. Yet even for her, like most of us, when “the dreaded” hits; our brain can read: “error.” Instead of prayer we think of how we can solve the problem.

Ann said, “I knew God knew how to fix the computer.”

With hands touching the edges of the laptop computer, Ann bowed her head. “Oh God, please let this work.” Unfamiliar with her friend’s laptop computer, her left hand hit a rectangle button on the side of the computer as she prayed. This caused a floppy disk to immediately eject from the computer.

Instantly the problem was solved.

Need some dreaded problems ejected from your life?

Pray. “God in heaven, you’ve asked us to pray about everything. God I desperately need Your help . . .  Oh God please let this work.”