God Carries a Crate

"You have not because you ask not."
Could it really be that simple?
Probably when the Bible records those words, it is with reference to things like developing a soul that God would want hanging out with Him for all eternity.  I mean, it is not likely that God would reject the heartfelt sincere prayer of someone begging for the soul transformation that would bring her the ability to pray more deeply, love more fully, reflect God more completely.  I don't think it generally means material possessions, though every single one of my kids has quoted that verse at one time or another as support for the shiny new thing that they felt I had been biblically mandated to provide.

So I didn't even think to pray for a crate for Lucky.  I did what anyone does who needs an item and wants to get it as cheaply as possible. I got on the computer and hit my favorite button, the shopping button. The world of crate construction has expanded like melting cheese since I last  was in the crate buying market. There are still the basic wire crates with the single function of keeping a dog contained in a small space that  will prevent him from packing his bags and heading off to a vacation on the busy highway a mile away.  But now there are also crates that are designed to meld seamlessly with home decorating.  Crate end tables, made of cherry with tasteful mission-style flavor. Crate coffee tables that hide the imprisoned pet neatly under the magazines artfully arranged on a mahogany surface. Crate couches with padded seats for the guest who wants to sit on the dog without getting dog hair on his black pants. Rattan crates, plastic crates, wood crates, glass crates.... gold plated crates.....crates for small dogs, crates for big dogs,  crates for growing dogs with removable walls so one crate is all the growing pup will ever need.  I can't imagine what impoverished third world countries that make a total of $1.23 per year think of people who spend thousands of dollars for a dog crate that can double as a cappuccino machine.

But even the cheapest dog crates the size Lucky requires were not cheap.  So it was with incredulous delight that I perused the email from an old friend who read my blog and offered large crates that she was just going to donate to the Humane Society anyway. Instead, she would donate them to Lucky, and to Hollow Creek Farm.

I didn't pray for a crate, but God sent me one anyway. And He sent it in the arms of a loving friend who also stood and listened to some of the turmoils of my soul and eased some of the burdens that we all carry.  I suspect God knew I didn't need the crate as much as I needed the sweet listening spirit of a friend. God works in mysterious ways, and while the path is often clear in hindsight, sometimes it doesn't make any sense at all while we are lost in the underbrush.  And then, He reaches into the bramble and clears a patch with a fellow traveler.... and the traveler bears the image of Love and carries a crate.

Psalm 112:4-6 (New International Version)

 ⁴ Even in darkness light dawns for the upright,
       for the gracious and compassionate and righteous man. 
 ⁵ Good will come to him who is generous and lends freely,
       who conducts his affairs with justice.
 ⁶ Surely he will never be shaken;
       a righteous man will be remembered forever.