The Worth of a Quarter

I have been toying with the idea of recording thoughts, insights, and stories for the purpose of strengthening and empowering my own faith as well as others’.  The word “empower” is very telling: it means to invest with power, supply with ability, and enable.  “Empowered faith” allows us to do things we otherwise could not on our own.  Faith is more than just an emotional anchor, it is a tangible tool.  My aim is to figure out how to use it and help others do the same. 

The other day, I was reminded of this experience.  It is dedicated to anyone who has ever had a difficult day.  I am sure I am in good company!

It was early October, and I was in my second year of teaching choir.  I didn't wake up intending for it to be a bad day, but as the day continued, everything seemed to be going wrong. 

That morning, I woke to discover that someone had actually pried open the hood of my car and had stolen the light bulbs and plastic covering for my turning signals, leaving only two black holes and some misplaced wires.  I was shocked that was even a possibility! Then the shipments of choir uniforms came in, but the color was wrong, which meant a lot of extra work and stress to ensure that the right color would arrive by the concert. On top of that, my favorite scarf from New York went missing sometime before lunch.  I was sick, tired, and completely frustrated.  

                During my prep period, I decided to use the last five minutes and read a talk entitled, “The Privilege of Prayer.”  It begins with a story about a man who had an extremely difficult day at work.  As he was biking home, he said a very simple prayer that he would be able to find a quarter on the side of the road so he could buy some chicken to cheer him up before coming home to his wife and family.  Miraculously, he found a quarter across the street, and he was able to buy the chicken and ride cheerfully home. 

                As I sat in my office, tears started to come.  (That is especially bad when you have to teach in less than a minute!)  I needed a “quarter.”  How was I supposed to teach these kids in the broken and beat state I was in?  I wasn't sure exactly what I needed, but I knelt down and prayed to the Lord for strength.  I prayed for my own version of a quarter—just something that would help me get through a difficult day at work.

3^rd period came quickly, which was naturally a rough class to teach considering it was 120 non-auditioned 8^th graders.  Help!   I wondered how I would be able to continue teaching the next class, when one of my 8^th grade boys came up to me. “Miss Johanson,” he said, “I just found this quarter on the ground.  Do you want it?”  That was my answer.  A Quarter.  He literally answered my prayer with a quarter! God does have a sense of humor!  I almost laughed and tried not to cry in front of my student.  “Thank you.” That was definitely one way to let me know I was not forgotten!  Even a couple years later, I still have that quarter.

As I was thinking about this experience, I decided to record the lessons learned.

1.       God exists. He loves us and is actually aware of what we are going through. 

2.       He has a sense of humor! J I prayed for a quarter (figuratively) and I got…a quarter! Fabulous!  I can now dry my laundry an extra 12 minutes!!  But in all seriousness, that quarter means we are remembered and loved.  More importantly, it means that our prayers are always heard, even if they are not answered in the way we had expected or hoped. 

3.       God’s love does not mean you will get what you want when you want it.  Yes, it would have been nice for my turning signals to have appeared on the piano in the auditorium, but that didn’t happen.  It isn’t wise for a parent to give a child everything as soon as they ask for it.  What a mess the kid would turn out to be!  But I am grateful for a tangible token to remind me to never get discouraged.

4.       Finally, be the answer to someone else’s prayer.  Jesse will probably never know what finding that quarter meant to me that day, but as long as we each keep serving and looking for opportunities to help, we are bound to do something good.