Defeat Your Saboteurs

God has a sense of humor                          

I was in Lima, Peru en route to Ecuador.  I arrived late but wanted to go out for a meal.  The room clerk advised me to leave everything in the hotel safe except what I needed, so I took $20 dollars and went on my way.  Not long after, I was assaulted and the $20 dollars stolen.   I went to the police.

I was mad. That night I complained to God.  In my heart, I wanted a Christian to comfort me, to tell me how nasty these folks were to rob me.  But what I said to God was:  “Father God, send me a Christian.”

Before my flight left the next day, I got into a taxi for a tour of the city.  The driver, an off-duty cop who was moonlighting, would not shut up. He spoke of his misadventures and, as the ride went on…sin.   I didn’t want to hear it; I wanted a tour.   But he just would not shut up. For more than two hours I listened to this cop’s sins. 

When we arrived at the airport, fed up, I asked him if he would like to accept Jesus as his Lord and Savior.   Suddenly in tears, He replied “Yes!”

I led him through the sinner’s prayer – finishing just as we pulled up to the terminal.

As I reached for the door handle, God spoke to me:  “You met a Christian!”  I could hear Him laughing.  He knew that’s not what I had meant when I told Him I wanted to meet a Christian; I had wanted to be comforted.  The joke was on me.

I didn’t know how to react.  It seemed unfair. I wondered if there was any way I could return the “Touché” and play a joke on Him without His being able to know all about it beforehand. (Alas. No way!  Well maybe, using the Bible to hold His feet to what we want?)

Yes. God has a sense of humor.