Just Call Somebody
Sometimes, you just need to call somebody.
Years ago, when we needed someone to pave the entrance road of the camp, O.A. prayed about who to hire for the job, but the Lord never brought anyone to mind. Finally, O.A. felt that the Lord was prompting him to “just call somebody.” He picked a number from the phone book and connected with Leslie Horton. Leslie had already read O.A.’s book and was eager to meet with him. He ended up not only doing the paving job but gave us a tremendous discount. Over the years, we’ve had Leslie back several times to do work on our gravel roads as well—all because O.A. stepped out in faith and obedience to call somebody.
Recently, I found myself in a similar situation. For years we’ve needed someone to install underpinning around a mobile home we use for staff housing. At one point, we received a cost estimate of $1,400 for the job, but I was praying that the Lord would give us a favorable contact who could reduce the expenses. Finally, last month, I sensed the Lord leading me to “just call somebody” so that we could have the underpinning in place for winter. I looked up a local mobile home dealer who referred me to Hoyt Hodge. I called Hoyt to explain our situation. I was thrilled to discover that he knew the camp well because he’d been here before on a retreat with his church! He was eager to help us out.
“How soon do you need it done?” Hoyt asked when we met later that week.
“As soon as possible,” I replied sheepishly. I was hoping to have it finished before Christmas, but that was less than six weeks away, and I knew his schedule could be full.
“Well, I’m doing some work at my church right now,” he said. “But my next job was cancelled recently, so I can probably get to it in the next couple of weeks.”
“That sounds perfect,” I responded, thankful that the Lord had already been at work to clear Hoyt’s schedule for us. “How much do you estimate it will cost?” I asked, hoping he might respond with $1,000 or less.
“Well, I figure I can get it done for about $600,” Hoyt offered.
“Is that just for the materials?” I asked, surprised by the low estimate.
“No, that will be materials and labor,” Hoyt smiled.
“Hoyt, that would be wonderful,” I exclaimed, shaking his hand. “Thanks so much. Just give me a call when you’re ready to get started.”
“Like I said, as soon as I finish what I’m working on at the church, I’ll get out here. I just need to finish what I’m going there first.”
“That’s fine,” I said. “We’ll be praying that everything goes well for you at the church.”
Hoyt surprised me again when he called just a few days later saying he was going to come by to drop off supplies and was planning to get started on the job that week. A few days after that, he called me again to let me know that the job was finished—just one week after we had first met. I was out to town when he called, but I took at look at the job as soon as I got back to camp. Hoyt had not only done a masterful job on the underpinning, but he had also repaired and reinforced the steps on the front and back entrances.
Once again, I offered a prayer for thanks to God. He had clearly directed my steps to call Hoyt, cleared Hoyt’s schedule for the job, and given us favor with him to get great work done at a great price. It's another wonderful example of the kingdom of God at work.
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