“Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we
ask or imagine,” Ephesians 3:20 NIV
canoe around our local forest preserve lake. For many years, we easily handled our
75 pound aluminum canoe. But after lugging the boat to the water one day in
1999, I said, “Let’s look for a something lighter.”
our fall vacation that year. An Old Town Discovery 119K seemed just right. Our
combined weight was well under the weight it could carry and the boat itself
only weighed 43 pounds. But we couldn’t find one in stock anywhere on vacation.
The day after we arrived home, we pulled into the parking lot at our local
dealer. As we walked up to the outdoor display, I said to Jerry, “There it is! God
must want us to have it!”
out to test it. Jerry stepped into the little boat and held on to the dock as I
climbed in.
“This feels cramped,” I said, squeezing my overweight body
against the end of the boat.
Jerry paddled a few strokes. “This is harder to row than the
aluminum canoe, too. We’re drawing several inches.”
Dismayed, we stored the new green canoe in the garage and devised
a golf cart contraption to carry the old one.The golf cart conveyance worked, but every time I saw that green
canoe hanging from the ceiling, I thought, “God,
what’s the plan on the canoe? We spent $500.
We tried to sell it, and even though a few people came to
see it, nobody ever even gave us an offer. I finally stopped asking questions
and accepted it as one of God’s mysteries.
Then, in 2003, I lost 40 pounds See article and Jerry lost 20. Something
clicked one July day and I said, “Let’s try the green canoe.” You can guess the
rest of the story. Jerry could paddle around easily with 60 fewer pounds and I
had plenty of room in my smaller body.
The solution of losing weight had never crossed my mind. I’d
been overweight for years and expected to continue to be heavy. But God had a
surprise for me and a solution to the canoe problem. Sometimes situations
remain mysteries, but sometimes, God has a solution for us way beyond our meager
imaginations!
Jesus, we want your solutions, not our own feeble ideas. Help us keep taking our problems to you, so you can surprise us with your solutions.