Bethel

So early in the morning, Jacob took the stone that he had put under his head and set it up for a pillar and poured oil on the top of it. He called the name of that place Bethel [which means the house of God].
Gen. 28:18-19

At the edge of our cemetery, by which I mean the cemetery adjacent to our house, is a small meadow which backs up to a grove of trees covering the slope down to the road. At the place where the meadow and the treeline meet is a stone about the size of a coffee table. Slightly tapered at one end, like a miniature Pride Rock. The first time I saw it, I thought of the rock that Sylvester becomes in Sylvester and the Magic Pebble. It looks much like that rock.

I have always thought of it as a friendly rock, waiting for a picnic blanket to be spread over it or for lovers to share their intimate thoughts while sitting on it in the twilight or for a young woman in need to sit on it and ponder...

Today, we encountered quite a snag in our aspirations to buy a house. I was discouraged when I came home and frustrated. I also had a lot to do including baking for our church class tomorrow evening. But I knew I needed to pray and I thought a hard run might help me do that. I put on my sneakers and jogged a lap around the cemetery, meditating on Proverbs 19:23.

The fear of the Lord leads to life, then one rests content, untouched by trouble.

My legs, unaccustomed to such exertion, quickly tired and I walked to the rock to sit and think. Sitting soon became reclining and I lay on the rock on my back (which was surprisingly comfortable), staring up at the blue sky through the crisscrossing still-bare branches of the trees. I turned to another verse card.

2 Peter 1:3 His divine power has given us everything we need for life and godliness through our knowledge of him who called us by his own glory and goodness.

Slowly, the words seeped into my heart and convicted me of my selfishness. What do I need that I don't already have? Nothing. God has already provided all that I need, and if other needs arise, He will meet them as well. Our house search is in His hands. We need nothing that He has not promised to provide. And as for life and godliness, this evening that included baking that cobbler and getting dinner ready for Husband who would be home soon. I had all I needed to complete those tasks, and for this evening, that was all God asked of me.

I have given you all you need, He said to me. It's time to get up, go inside, and bake a cobbler for Me. I stood up from the rock - my Bethel - walked inside, and obeyed.