Good Neighbors and The Power of Prayer

Today I'm feeling grateful for good neighbors and the power of prayer. A couple of weeks ago there was a very wet snowstorm that broke a few tree limbs in my back yard. This past weekend the weather was finally nice enough for me to clean up the branches, but I had a busy day and was concerned I wouldn't be able to fit everything in. I was also worried that my chainsaw wouldn't start, because I hadn't used in since last August and had made the mistake of leaving gas in it (which can be very bad for small engines).

My neighbor had offered to help me with the project, and he and his kids started pruning the smaller branches while I went to get gas and oil for my chainsaw. By the time I got home they had completed their work, and I started to get the saw ready. I was quite worried that it wouldn't start, because it has given me a lot of trouble in the past. So I said a quiet prayer.

I believe that every prayer is answered in some way, even if the answer is "no" or "not this time" or "not yet," and even though I was praying for something relatively trivial I believe God cared about it because I cared about it. And, amazingly, the chainsaw started within a few pulls (it's never started so easily before). It reminded me a little of the time my car started to overheat. I looked at the temperature gauge and prayed, and watched in amazement as the needle moved from "hot" to "cold" in a matter of seconds. I've never seen anything like it before or since, and it may have just been a faulty gauge ... but I still consider it a miracle. Sometimes I wish all my prayers could be answered so quickly and exactly, but God works in mysterious ways.

With a running chainsaw and my neighbor's help I was able to complete my backyard tree project very quickly, leaving plenty of time for the rest of the activities I had planned that day. Just that morning I had told my wife that, with the exception of cutting those tree limbs, I was expecting to have an enjoyable day. But as it turned out, doing that work was the best part of my day because of an answered prayer and a neighbor who cared enough to reach outside himself.