Every Friday for three years I baked for our church’s staff. They enjoyed the homemade cookies and cakes during coffee break, and I loved showing my appreciation for their hard work.
While I was at home recuperating from knee surgery, a friend telephoned one Friday and offered to take the weekly treat to the office for me. “I don’t know if I can send anything,” I replied. “My supplies are low, but if I can, I’ll bake an apple pie.” It was one of the specialties I could do in my sleep. However, a search of my pantry revealed that I had all the ingredients—except apples.
I do have an apple tree in my backyard, but I knew that all the apples on the lower branches had long since been picked, and I hesitated to climb a ladder to reach the higher ones. Still, since there was nothing else to do, I hobbled out to look at the tree, murmuring, “Dear God, help me find some apples.”
As I turned a corner and saw the tree, my jaw dropped and I started to laugh. The apples at the top of the tree had grown so large that the branches, bent from their weight, were down where I could easily reach them.
I picked the apples I needed. Not only does God answer prayer, His answers can make me smile.
