By Jan Penton-Miller

Panolian Columnist

Hurry up and wait. That seems to be what I have been doing a lot of…waiting. And those who know me absolutely understand that waiting is something I have never been good at. I like to see things coming together, and it’s never too soon for me.

The paint in the house Mike and I are purchasing is perfectly fine, but it is a dark color, and I’m all about light. It seemed like a no brainer to paint before we moved our things in, but finding a painter has been extremely difficult. Everyone seems to be tied up with all the new construction so I planned on painting the entire house with the generous kindness and help from some special friends.

When I woke up this morning to closing day a myriad of emotions ran through my mind, not the least of which was anxiety at the big job awaiting me. I have been in a ladies Bible study of Elijah, an Old Testament prophet of great faith. He asked God for incredible things and God heard and answered his prayers in a monumental way.

The gist of our study is the fact that we should be women who pray bold prayers. I’m afraid that many times I run out to take care of things myself without taking time to ask for what I need. Well, this morning I realized that I had been trying to find a painter, and Mike had been trying to find a painter by every means at our disposal.

We had called all the painters we knew with no luck. We had asked our friends for referrals and called their suggested painters. At last we found someone, but something came up and he couldn’t make it. I was out of ideas and stressed at the thought of painting an entire house.

This morning I sat down with my study of Elijah and thought about the bold prayers he had prayed. I simply told the Lord how I was feeling.

“God, I really could use some help. Would you please send someone?”

That was it. Not a very eloquent prayer, but it was heartfelt and to the point. I felt relief although I had no idea how things would pan out. I went about my day preparing to start on the painting after closing this afternoon. My room mother and team mom days were kicking in, and I thought that everyone would be so much happier with some yummy snacks.

I planned to hit Wally World up, but at the last minute wheeled into the Dollar General after changing the power at Coast Electric. After buying enough snacks to sink a battleship I was on my way to the car when I heard someone call to me.

“Hey, Miss Jan. I’ve been meaning to call you guys back, but I’ve been super busy. What’s going on with you?”

It was my friend, Jamie, who had painted for me before. And guess what? He was available!

Write to Jan Penton-Miller at jpentonauthor@gmail.com