No Prayer Is Too Small

A few weeks ago, after a lovely trip to Flagstaff, our family stopped at Slide Rock in Sedona for a day full of water play and adventure.  It was absolutely breathtaking.  The cold mountain water feels like a blessing to me as it washes over my body.  By the end of the day, I’m cold and shivering because, eventually, hours of frolicking in freezing mountain water takes its toll on your body, but it’s a small price to pay for so much fun. 

The sky was blue, the mountains were red and the green pines stood out in contrast against the landscape. To think God put water right in the middle of all this majesty, well it just goes to show how great God is. 

Derek wasn’t interested in swimming, so he took over on baby duty while Chandler and I made our way to the small cliff for some jumping.  

This is now Canyon's reaction every time I take a photo.

CHEESE!

Up the creek a few hundred feet from the slide is a real curved, dipping, slippery slide made by Mother Nature herself. 

After cliff jumping, I scampered my way up to the top of the slide and after waiting for several others in front of me, I pushed off.  Once was not enough.  I went again and again.  Because of my amazing husband, I had no mother duties and I took full advantage of this.  Again and again I went.  Most people sat and scooted into the slide, but I found if I lay on my back the water lifted and took hold of me, swiftly pushing me down into the turns and curves of the slide.  With the water in control, I was a bit out of control – getting dunked unexpectedly and hitting a rock a bit too hard, but it was worth it until several people in front of me stopped in the middle of the slide to take a picture.  I tried to sit up as quickly as I could, but I was coming down fast.  With my hands, I tried to stop myself and that’s when my pinky finger hit against the rock and pulled.  The pain was immediate.  Had I broken it?  I finished up the slide and pulled myself out of the water as the pain in my finger built.  I can be a bit accident prone, so I’m familiar with the process of a sprained finger, toe; a swollen ankle.  After some examination, my finger didn’t appear to be broken, but my day of fun most likely was. 

Unless!!??

Could I ask God to help me, with my hurt pinky finger, that I wouldn’t suffer too much pain on this beautiful day?  I didn’t have any pain reliever, no Tylenol or Motrin, so I needed God’s relief.  I wanted to play.  I wanted to frolic.  I wanted to make memories. 

So, I said a pray, instinctively gave my own finger a kiss (like I would if it was one of my kids) and went back to playing.  The pain in my finger was a bit of a distraction, but after 10 minutes, I noticed the cold water was helping subside the pain.  Almost as cold as ice, the water was working to reduce swelling.  By the time I found my big boys jumping off the high cliffs, the pain was practically gone.

God heard my little selfish prayer.  I was granted a pain-free day and even that night on the drive back home to Phoenix, I marveled that hours early I’d wondered if I’d broken my finger.  This is not the first time God has done this and I’m sure it’s not the last.

Flagstaff Picture Canyon

Kachina Trail Snowbowl

The Weatherford Hotel

We love Flagstaff.