Some Assembly Required

“Don’t worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God your needs and don’t forget to thank him for his answers.” Philippians 4:6
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“Some assembly required”, these three words on the box of a new toy can cause a Dad to turn pale and a Mom to gasp in horror. What usually follows are several late night hours squeezing “A” into “B”, bolting “D” into “F” and hoping no one notices if steps 4, 5 and 6 are skipped altogether. All these parents wanted was a gift for their child. What they got was a project…sometimes a project for life.
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Chris Gray

“Some assembly required.” It is not the most welcome sentence, but it is an honest one. Seems to me there are a lot of life journeys that should include these words in large print! Marriage, children, relationships and so many more.

Life is a gift, but a disassembled one. It comes in pieces and sometimes falls to pieces. Part “A” doesn’t always fit part “B”. The struggle seems huge and inevitably, something is missing. It is such a common problem. Who doesn’t have some area of life that isn’t working? How do you respond when the pieces don’t fit? In frustration? In anger? In prayer?

I’d like to say that I always respond in prayer, but in truth I am a recovering prayer wimp. More times than not, my mind zigs, then zags, then zigs again. When it comes to prayer, I think I am afflicted with ADD. But, I also know there is great power in prayer, even simple prayers. Mary, the mother of Jesus, knew this too.

Remember the story of the wedding in Cana? The bride wasn’t the daughter of an emperor. The groom wasn’t a prince. Apart from one detail, the event would’ve been lost in time. But we remember it because Jesus was on the guest list.

While Jesus was there, the wedding party ran out of wine. Enter Mary, mother of Jesus. Mary said to Him, ‘They have no wine’ (John 2:3). In other words, the pieces did not fit, so she took the problem to Jesus. She wasn’t bossy or critical, nor did she blame Jesus. She didn’t try to fix the problem. She just stated the problem.

Then Jesus said to her, “Woman, what does your concern have to do with me? My hour has not yet come. Mary said to the servants, “Whatever he says to you, do it (John 2:4-5). Apparently, Jesus had no intention of saving the wedding banquet. This wasn’t the time nor the place He had planned to reveal his power. But then Mary entered the story: Mary, someone He loved, with a genuine need. So, what did he do? Jesus told the servants to fill the pots with water and the water became wine.

​When life doesn’t fit, it is easy to worry or be critical or try to fix it. But like Mary, we should take our problem to Jesus and leave it there. State our problems simply, present them faithfully and humbly trust in Him.

Blessings, Chris

​Inspired by The Power of a Simple Prayer by Max Lucado