The Good Towels

Recently my mother-in-law came to visit for a few days.

I had just completed some refurbishing around the house that included some work in the guest room and guest bath. I was pleased that she would get the benefits of the time/dollars I had spent in that area.

On the day she was to leave, she told me that she had been careful not to disturb my new towels. She said that she had found some old towels to use and would take them to the laundry room before she started home.

I was stunned. She hadn't taken advantage of the offering I had made. In fact, she had gone to extra effort to avoid what I had provided. She had dug into the back of the cabinet to find some nearly threadbare, unraveling towels that I didn't know were there.

I felt sad and frustrated. I know that she was trying to be nice; I know her actions were not meant to sadden me, but I would have enjoyed doing something special for her.

I wondered if we do similar things to God. Thinking about the blessing of prayer, I know that God has told us in many different words that we should pray, pray continually, pray persistently. He tells us how to connect with Him. He invites us.

Then we decide that this isn't big enough to pray about, or this isn't something I should bother God about, or this is something I should be able to handle on my own. And we don't accept his offer to us.

Instead, we try to bear the load alone. We struggle. We hurt. When all the while, He would dearly love to be able respond to our prayers.

It seems that we aren't very good at accepting gifts. We aren't very good at enjoying the moment. Or, perhaps we get confused and try to apply the principles of sacrifice in the wrong circumstances.

Sometimes it's okay to use the good towels, be grateful for them, and enjoy them.