There’s a story about a school in Washington State that faced a unique problem. Apparently, a number of 12-year-old girls were beginning to use lipstick and would apply it in the bathroom. After putting it on, they would press their lips to the mirror, leaving dozens of little lip prints. Every night, the maintenance man would clean the glass, but the next day the girls would inevitably do it again.

Finally, the principal decided something had to be done. She called all the girls to the bathroom and explained that they were causing a major problem for the custodian. To demonstrate how difficult it was to clean the mirrors, she asked him to show the girls. The custodian proceeded to take out a long-handled squeegee, dip it in the toilet, and clean the mirror with it. As you can imagine, ever since that day, there have been no lip prints on the mirror!

When we face situations that seem impossible, a little ingenuity and creativity can go a long way. God gave us intelligence, fortitude, and imagination—tools we can use to pull ourselves up out of desperate situations.

But we can only take that so far because sometimes we can’t. There are times when we realize how fragile life is when we realize we really don’t have as much control as we’d like to think. If you’ve ever lost someone close to you too young or faced the injustice of cancer, or if you remember what it felt like on 9/11/2001, then you know that there are situations in which no amount of creativity or ingenuity or self-will can save us. 

However, the good news of our faith is that there is a strength, a hope, and a power that is beyond us. We worship a God who makes a way through the wilderness, a God who rescues, a God who redeems, a God who brings life even out of death. 

I pray that when you find yourself in difficult—even heart-wrenching—situations, when your own creativity and strength are exhausted, you will draw upon the power and presence of the living God we know in Jesus.

Let us pray:  Giver of Hope, we thank you that we do not walk alone. We thank you that we don’t have to carry the weight of the world on our shoulders. We thank you that we can cast our cares on you and depend on you. We also thank you for those who walk beside us. We pray today for all who are desperately in need of your grace and presence. We pray in the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Amen.