The Knock-Knock Book
If I Hear God Knocking, Do You Think I Should Answer?
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PART III ANSWERS TO PRAYERS
Sometimes – well, actually, make that most of the time – "things" happen in our lives and we just don’t have a clue as to why they happened. Seeing the "cause and effect" is a typical human solution to explain phenomena that might otherwise keep us up all night trying to figure them out (This is about to get deep – hang in here with me!). In other words, we can understand that when a child leaves the ice cream container sitting on the counter instead of putting it in the freezer, we have melted blobs of ice milk all over the counter. Taken one step further, we can even understand that while once that particular counter top was clean and life was good, it is now full of ants celebrating, and more ants on the way. We may not like it, but we do understand it. It’s all part of creation and God’s plan, right? Part of that "cause and effect" equation, right? Well, maybe.
So, how do we explain the death of a child, or the termination of a pregnancy before its time? How do we "cause and effect" an accident that takes away the use of a child’s arms or legs, or meningitis that paralyzes for life? How do we accept a divorce of someone whom we perceived as a "perfect" couple, or an affair and the subsequent devastation? Not quite as simple as the ice cream and the ants to explain, is it? Probably our first response, after the shock and pain, is, "It’s just not fair!" JB
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IT’S JUST NOT FAIR
Babies are supposed to be an easy thing to have – just get married, do whatcha gotta do, and voila! Pregnant! Right? After years and years of having to take daily temperatures, marking them down on my basal temp chart, swallowing one to three pills for five days in a row, and calling my husband and saying, "It’s TIME, dear – right NOW," I have come to this conclusion: the only ones who can ever get pregnant by just "doing it" are those who are having illicit sex – you know, the kind you’re NOT supposed to have until you’re married. Just how fair is that?
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About the Book
The thought of doing The Knock-Knock Book was conceived one Sunday morning while I was sitting through the second service in our church – notice the italicized word there; I had already heard this sermon during the first service. It (the thought) probably occurred when my brain focused and wouldn’t budge from something the pastor must have said at that particular point in time, and thus, the thought of writing about God knocking in our lives and how we responded to this became the fixed point in my brain that morning. With the help of my cohorts in writing, who all knew exactly what I wanted them to do (ha!), we managed to cover an array of topics that have occurred in our lives. These topics range from the birthing of children, wearing of the snakeskin, and being colorblind, to facing up to the realities that we do turn into our parents (Oh, no! Now what?) and that death happens. While most people can tell a story of something that has happened to them, not everyone can see the hand of God in the middle of it all. I’m not even sure we can always recognize the hand of God when we’re specifically looking for it! However, God, and His hands, are there in our lives. He waits for us to hear Him knocking in our lives and wills us to look to Him for direction. His hands point the way, and then: they comfort us if we mess up big time; pick us up if we stumble because we aren’t watching where He wants us to go; hold us and keep us safe from our own mistakes and heartbreak when we don’t listen; and wrap us close to His heart forever. And even more than that, His hands will bless us beyond our comprehension, if only we will listen, hear His knock and open the door to Him.
About the Author
Judy Burhans
Kay Bradburn is the mother of two grown children and works at the University of Alabama, teaching technical writing to college students. She enjoys "nesting" in her country home and watching the squirrels watch her.
Sandra McCutcheon is also the mother of two grown children and spends her waking hours looking at insurance figures. Music and being "in charge" of something fill her time; her hippie days are over – maybe.
Karen Zecher, mother of one (soon to be two), is a full-time mother and wife. She spends many hours teaching her daughter rhymes and songs; wait, maybe it’s the other way around.
Susan Sadler is the mother of three grown women, four growing grandchildren, and most recently, one new great-grandchild! Her passions include playing the violin like a violin is supposed to be played.
All of these women make their homes in the Huntsville/Madison, Alabama area, which is known primarily for its high-tech engineers, space research and rockets. It is now known for five women who have heard God knock in their lives and decided to "answer" the door. Like the scientists who launch their rockets into outer space, we are stepping out in faith that some of our stories will hit a target in your heart and make you feel the power and love of God in your life.
To God be the glory – great things He has done!