He was on his way home from a trip and feeling tired so he decided to stop at a What-a-burger to get a large shake. There weren't many cars on the parking lot so it seemed to be a good time to stop. As he entered he noticed the place was deserted except for two farmers in overalls drinking coffee. It looked like he was going to be able to get in and out quickly with no problems...or so he thought. He stepped into the restroom to wash his hands and came right out. But now something was different. Now there was a line with 10 to 12 cheerleaders each holding a fistful of $1 bills and all making individual orders. He couldn't believe it. He was in a hurry to get home. All he wanted was a shake. And he didn't want to stand in line for an hour to get it!

He was astonished at how quickly the restaurant had filled. The two farmers must have been a little surprised by the sight of the sudden busyness as well because they were both staring at the cheerleaders like they had never seen one before.

Where had they come from? There was no bus or van outside and they didn't seem to be accompanied by anyone who looked like a teacher. How had they gotten there? Did they just drop out of the sky? Now a dozen cheerleaders might possibly be an answer to prayer for a teenage boy but for him, at that particular moment, they were merely a source of irritation. And then he remembered. Could this be an answer to his prayer? Maybe they did drop out of the sky...sort of.

He had been asking God for help to lose weight, but hadn't considered his help would come in the form of hungry cheerleaders. Too tired to wait, he walked out, got back into his truck and completed his drive home minus 1 large chocolate shake. Who says God doesn't have a sense of humor?

Many times God doesn't answer our prayers in the manner we think He will. We seem to get our own ideas of how He should do things. Sometimes we view things as a frustration when they could be an answered prayer. I suppose that is because we want things done OUR way. How often do we ask for God's help but what we really want is for Him to do it for us...not help us?

The Bible tells us in 1 Corinthians 10:12 (NIV), 'No temptation has seized you except what is common to man. And God is faithful; he will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted, he will also provide a way out so that you can stand up under it.'

Now I'm convinced many caught in that same situation might have handled the problem another way. Some would forget their previous plea to God for help to lose weight and choose not to see the long line as an answer to prayer. And consequently, cave in to the desires of the flesh. Of course a Christian would pray first wouldn't he? But what would his prayer be? Would he pray for strength to withstand the temptation or simply begin immediately to pray for patience to withstand the wait?

Which would you do?