Day 29: Wednesday, March 29, 2017       Matthew 21:22

 “And whatever you ask for in prayer with faith, you will receive.”

It was six months into my husband’s second deployment, and I was 1,700 miles away from family.  I was on my own with two boys, ages four and two.  As both boys are usually awake by 5 a.m., I was always short on sleep.  The stress of being both mother and father was wearing me down.  The past week had been particularly difficult, as I felt all I was doing was yelling at and correcting my oldest son, quickly losing my patience over small infractions.  One night after putting the boys to bed, I prayed for the opportunity to be a loving parent rather than a disciplinarian.  Just a few hours later at   2 a.m., CJ was awake with an impressive stomach bug.  I dutifully got him cleaned up, changed his sheets, and then we snuggled on the couch through the rest of the morning.  Sleep was precious to me, but I was more thankful for the chance to care for my sick boy.  No parent ever thinks he or she will be happy cleaning up vomit at 2 in the morning, but that was the answer to my prayer.  I wouldn’t have traded all the sleep in the world for those few hours on the couch with my precious boy that morning.

Prayer: Lord, grant us faith to trust in Your wisdom.  Help us to recognize when You are present and to be thankful when You hear our prayers.  Amen.

Contributed by Allyson Mather