“Call to Me, and I will answer you, and show you great and mighty things, which you do not know.”
Jeremiah 33:3
During a recent summer, Olaf and his wife needed to replace the multi-level roof of their home. They quickly moved forward to acquire estimates before winter set in, knowing the cold months could come rapidly in the northwest where they live. Appraisals indicated that the crown of their home would take nearly a year’s salary by some people’s standards. Thus, Olaf assured his wife that he was up to performing the immense task himself, even though he had never swapped out a shingle roof for a metal one.
Upon removing the original roof that had been in place for more than 40 years, he discovered sections of rotting wood so bad that he could stick his finger through to the insulation. Unexpectedly, the job required additional materials, a lot more time, and another trip to the lumber yard.
Soon the entire roof and the rotten boards had been peeled away, exposing the home’s insulation. Hoisting the new, heavy wood that needed to be positioned under the steel roof proved challenging.
In the middle of the job, Olaf noticed the blackening of the sky. He looked down at the uncovered interior of the roof. Beneath the insulation was the sheetrock. Below the ceiling of drywall sat his bed.
The storm persisted in moving in the direction of his exposed project. His wife called up to him, “Olaf, this tempest is going to be a major rainstorm. Cover everything and come inside.”
When he refused, she shook her head and went into the house. Olaf immediately began to pray: “I gotta get this thing done. Winter is coming! I need to work while I can.”
Anxious, she called to him on the roof again: “You have got to cover it and come inside.”
“If the God of the Universe wants it to rain on my house, then let it be! I’m going to keep working.”
The thunder rumbled; lightning flashed in the darkening atmosphere. Olaf believed that God could divert the storm, so that is what he asked his heavenly Father to do. When Olaf put forth his petition before Heaven, the storm split and pummeled the earth all around him; however, he and the roof remained dry.
Call to Action
God “is well pleased when [we] make the very highest demands upon Him, that [we] may glorify His name. [We] may expect large things if [we] have faith in His promises.”1 Olaf asked God to control the weather surrounding him, which was something only God could do. He needed a miracle, and God delivered because Olaf boldly went before the throne and believed that God would answer.
“‘Ah, Lord God! It is you who have made the heavens and the earth by your great power and by your outstretched arm! Nothing is too hard for you.”
Jeremiah 32:17 ESV
God loves it when we ask Him for the huge things that only He can deliver. We limit Him when we ask for things that we have the ability to do. The next time you need something humanly impossible, why not look to your Creator and “expect large things”?
Unless noted otherwise, scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
- Ellen G. White, The Desire of Ages (Oakland, CA: Pacific Press Publishing Association, 1898), 668.
