I was washing diapers today.
Let’s rewind.
I was washing clothes yesterday. I put in the detergent. I poured the Downy into the Downy ball. I put in the clothes. I closed the washer and walked away. I completely forgot about the Downy ball. It remained on the counter unseen until the end of the cycle. This was frustrating. Now my clothes won’t be as soft. Or smell as good. And what do I do with the Downy-filled ball? I moved it to the counter. Living in the economy-apartment that I do, I don’t have much counter (the washing machine is right next to the kitchen counter – it is, during the preparation of more complex meals, an extension of the kitchen counter). So I moved it to the top of the washer. It was in my way there, as well, so I moved it inside the washer. Then the thought occurred to me that I had better not leave it in there, for tomorrow was Diaper-Washing-Day and if I accidentally put fabric softener on my diapers, the normally absorbent cloth would start repelling liquids.
Okay, back to today. I was washing diapers today. I turned on the washer, put in the diapers for their initial cold rinse, and got in the shower. Not long into the second refrain of “I Love My Duck” I got to thinking… did I ever take that Downy ball out of the washer?
Oh no.
What if I didn’t? I don’t remember taking it out. I don’t remember seeing it on the counter. The rinse cycle has a hard spin that will surely release the fabric softener. How do you get that out of diapers? Will I have to buy all new diapers?
And, being in the shower with a head full of shampoo, I wasn’t in the position to run out and check, so I did the next best thing.
I prayed.
Oh Dear God. Please don’t let that ball be in the washer. Please. Please. Please.
Rinse and repeat.
I finished my shower, wrapped myself in a towel, and hurried out to see. The ball was on the counter.
And I’ve been wondering about this ever since: Was that an answer to prayer? Or did I simply never put it in the washer to begin with. How often do you think God directly intervenes in our lives? Over silly little things like fabric softener?
I don’t think we could ever know the number of times God intervenes. I think if we did we’d be scared to leave the house. 🙂
I bet that God sent one of his angels to pull that fabric softner out of the washer, that would have ruined all your diapers and God cares about that! I have had things like this happen and it’s so amazing to me to think that God cares about even the little things. We expect him to stop a car from smashing into the side of us, or to keep the baby safe while we shower; but isn’t it great to know He cares about our cloth diapers too?!
BTW, I can’t even count on one hand the number of times I’ve filled the downy ball and left it sit on top of the dryer.
God is not bound by time. I’d say you did not put the ball in the washer in the first place. However, that is not to say that God did not directly intervene. God works through ordinary means, and He may have worked in your previous actions, making sure that you did not put the ball in the washer in the first place. That’s my interpretation :-).
Susan, that’s along the lines of what I was thinking. Either I just never put the ball in the washer in the first place, or His omnipresent nature heard my prayer from the future and used my actions in the past to be an answer to my own prayer.
And Jes, it’s awesome to know our mighty, sovereign King cares about my cloth diapers! Mind-boggling.