I’m pleased to welcome Jean Pike to the blog this week.

Changing seasons. Unexpected blessings. Love that lasts forever. These are a few of M. Jean Pike’s favorite things. With a writing career that has spanned two decades, Jean combines an insatiable curiosity about humans and why they do what they do with a keen interest in the quirky and offbeat things in life to bring readers unforgettable tales of life, love, and the inner workings of the human heart. Her short works have been featured in Chicken Soup for the Soul, The Lutheran Digest, GRIT and others. The Little Things is her eleventh novel.

Jean has a devotional to share with us!

Guidance

It wasn’t Cory’s day from the start. The puppy wet on the carpet. His five-year-old son, Max, spilled an entire half-gallon of milk. Rushing out the door, he discovered his truck had a flat.  

He changed the tire, dropped Max off at school and hurried across town, hitting every red light on the way to work. He arrived thirty minutes late, and that rushed, out-of-synch feeling clouded his whole day.

After work he collected Max from after-school program and headed home.

Finally, some tv and a cold drink, he thought. But no. In his rush to leave that morning, he left the bedroom door open and the puppy had discovered his down comforter. He popped Max a bowl of popcorn then tackled the feathers that littered the house. He’d just opened a cold bottle of cola when his phone rang. His next-door neighbor, Jordan.

“Hey, Cory? I’m in a bind. Do you think you could help me out?” Jordan asked.

Cory’s temper flared. Jordan always seemed to be in some sort of bind. Well Cory had his own problems. He was searching for an excuse when an odd feeling overcame him; a feeling that it was very important he help.

“What’s up, Jordan?” he asked.

“I’m supposed to start my new job at the factory today and, well, I got as far as the last exit and ran out of gas. Could you …?”

The factory was twenty minutes away. Forty minutes round trip, plus a stop at the gas station. Would this day never end? You need to learn to organize your time, he wanted to snap, instead of putting things off until the last minute! But the nagging feeling persisted. He waited a moment before answering. “Sure, I can do that for you, buddy,” he said.

Max munched on his popcorn as Cory collected their jackets. “Where are we going now, dad?”

“We have to take Jordan some gas.”

“Why?”

“So he can go to work.”

“But why do we have to do it?”

“Because evidently we’re the only friends he has.”

Thirty minutes later they pulled up to Jordan’s car. Cory topped off the gas tank while Max finished the last of his popcorn. But what Cory thought was a simple errand turned out to be much more.

“Thanks, Brother. I owe you again. I should have filled up this morning.”

“No big deal. We all make mistakes.”

Back home, Cory slid a frozen pizza in the oven. When the pizza was ready, he went to find his son. Max sat in his bedroom with the puppy, amid the shredded remains of one of Max’s toys.

“It’s ok, buddy,” Max said. “We all make mistakes.”

The words stopped Cory cold, for they were his words, spoken in his exact tone.

Suddenly he knew why it had was important that he help Jordan. His son had been watching, evaluating, learning by Cory’s example how to be a good man. A good Christian. And he’d come so close to blowing it! Had he followed his own instincts he would have missed out on the opportunity to demonstrate one of God’s commandments: Love your neighbor as yourself.

For the first time that day Cory felt at peace. It was hard being a single dad but for once he got it right. Watching his child, he was grateful for being entrusted with the awesome privilege of being Max’s father. For the still, small voice that guided him along the way. As he began to count his blessings, it didn’t seem like such a bad day after all.

Whether you turn to the right or to the left, your ears will hear a voice behind you, saying, “This is the way; walk in it.” Isaiah 30:21

Lord, thank you for your divine guidance. For your still, small voice that quietly shows us the way. Help us to always have ears to listen, and hearts to obey. In Jesus name, Amen.

Jean has a new book coming out this month.