A Break from 20

by MW Cook

I hate keys, don’t you?

This morning we woke up and couldn’t find an important set of keys. Ever been in that situation? We searched for about an hour together and then Ruth had to run off with Joe on an errand, leaving me to continue the search alone. As I scoured the house my mind started wandering. I started thinking about all the time I was wasting crawling on my hands and knees, searching for these tiny metal thingys. I wondered what I could do to redeem the time.

And then I remembered that it is the Christian’s duty to do all things to the glory of God. Whether we eat or drink or scramble for keys. So I started wondering, how can I search for my keys in a way that honors and glorifies God?

  1. Search with prayer – Rely on God as you search. Ask for help while you look. Not only that, but pray about whatever else comes on your mind. Searching for keys is a great time to catch up on prayer. Pray for your family, for the nations. In fact, every time you lose your keys, pray for Matt and Ruth!
  2. Don’t get angry – It’s easy to snap while you’re looking for keys. Especially if you think it’s someone else’s fault that they are lost in the first place. But don’t give in to that.
  3. Realize that all things work for you good – Even lost keys. You cannot know what things God wants to put in your life to help you to grow. You could not understand the reason he let you lose your keys even if he told you. But you can be assured that it’s a good reason. Maybe you need some quiet time. Maybe you’re careless and need a lesson. Maybe you shouldn’t be going out that very moment. There’s no way to tell, but rest in the fact that even your lost car keys are a part of his plan for the world.
  4. Don’t get frustrated – Don’t view it as a futile exercise. Sometimes God stops us from doing the good things we want to do just because he wants us to learn something. Your frantic searching is actually a lesson from God.
  5. Don’t be hopeless – losing keys sometimes feels that way because of the power we’ve put into those little pieces of metal. But don’t fall into the trap of placing your hope and trust on these keys. Don’t get hopeless if they seem to be gone. God is bigger than keys.

So I thought of these things and kept looking. It turned into a profitable time. Eventually I gave up and gave Ruth a call. It turns out she had been trying to call me since she left, but she wasn’t getting through. The keys, it seemed, we in her purse all the time. Joy.