Dropping Names and Getting Results
By Jerri Phillips

Today, I took on big business. I mean, BIG business. We've been having problems with our cable modem service, and we have tried to resolve the conflict nicely. We called the day it went out, which was over a week ago. It would take five days for them to get to it. The technician came that day and realized it was out of his league, but someone would be here the next day to fix it. When no one came by a reasonable time, I called and was told that someone would be here within 48 hours. Once again no one came, so I called again. It would be another 48 hours, which brings us to today. No one showed... again. Another call. "No, ma'am, we don't have you down until Friday." I'm sorry, when? "Friday." Friday my big toe. I want this fixed today! Once again, I was promised that a supervisor would call and they'd work on it. You know, same stuff, different day. So, I made it clear that I would call the City Council, Better Business Bureau, even the FCC if necessary. There were laws created to protect consumers from monopolies that charge unreasonable rates and give poor service, and I would go to whomever was necessary to have such laws enforced.

They called my bluff. The last man informed me that he could cancel the work order for Friday, but he couldn't reschedule anything until Saturday. Like that is helpful!

When I got off the phone with Mr. Not-Remotely-Helpful, I considered my options. We try to teach our children that they have two options when facing a problem. They can either try to do something about it (even if the efforts are fruitless), or they can keep their mouths closed and continue to allow someone to mistreat them. There are times for both, and God has given us the power to determine into which category a problem falls. I sat in my chair in my office and looked across the hall to see my precious daughter sleeping soundly in her bed. As bad as I dreaded it, I knew what I had to do.

I called my research associate, who happens to be my husband, and asked him to find the city numbers I needed. I was starting at City Hall, and I would work my way up if need be. My trusty assistant happened upon the number for the communications regulator for our city. I don't know what his official title is, but he handles all the complaints about communication companies in our city, and when need arises, he suggests courses of action to the Council.

I decided to start with him. Initially, I asked him what a citizen needed to do to motivate the Council to seek out another cable modem provider. To my joyful surprise, that action had already been taken. In fact, next month the new server should be approved. However, it will take over a year for the new server to be ready for business. Oh, yuck.

"So what do I do in the meantime?"

My new best buddy gave me some numbers for contacts to call if I needed service again. As for the issue we have been trying to resolve for a week and a half, he would handle it. He'd make some calls, and he would try to get it taken care of within the next 24 hours. 24 hours?! Sure. Usually, when he called, it always took less than a day to get things fixed. "Oh, wow."

"In fact, next time you have a problem, just call me first, and I'll take care of it. If you can't reach me, call one of these people and tell them I said to call. Be sure you mention my name and tell the that the City is involved." Oh, wow.

I am nearly babbling with excitement as I tell him how much I appreciate his help and assure him that I won't abuse his services. "Ms. Phillips," he interrupts, "that is my job. If you have a problem, it is my job to make sure that it gets taken care of." Well, yeah, but I mean, with little issue like service being out during my heaviest day of the week, I know that happens. "If it happens, I need to know so I can deal with it. You are paying good money for this service, and if they are interrupting your service at your peak time, they need to quit, and I'll handle it." (I think I am in love! Okay, well, he may at least be my new best friend.)

Again, I stumbled and bumbled through a plethora of thanks and hung up the phone nearly intoxicated with power. I know The Name. I now have the number and ear of The Name. You ever felt like that? You ever battled and battled and battled until you are ready to do someone bodily harm or at least egg their car, and suddenly, you get in touch with the right person and are given The Name that you can flash like a mighty sword and see incredible, expedient results? I was at that point. I went from poor customer of a big company monopoly to the wielder of The Name all in a few hours. Oh, wow.

Of course, despite his urgings, I have no intention of abusing The Name. I mean, why drag him into the little things? He has big jobs to do, like... other stuff.

But then, there is this other side of me that is staring at me in disbelief. You have The Name, and you don't intend to use it? Why kind of brainless person are you anyway? Didn't he say you could? Didn't he tell you that is his job? Then what are you thinking?! Use The Name and be thankful!

I see the point, but still, I probably won't use it a lot. After all, I am not in the habit of using The Name I have now for the little stuff in my life. .

You see our communications regulator isn't the only Name I know. I know the name above all names (Philippians 2:9). I know the name Jesus. He told me the same thing the communications regulator told me today. "Cast all your cares on me because I care about you (1 Peter 5:7)." Now, that seems simple enough, right? "All" is not a hard word to comprehend. It's pretty simplistic, and yet, I seem to struggle with a working definition of exactly what is being said here.

I seem to get into this mentality that "all" includes all the big stuff, like when someone I know has a drug problem they are trying to get over or someone is facing a debilitating disease. I know how to ask for someone to find a job or find a house, but the "little" things are a whole different matter.

For instance, these are two health issues facing our family right now. Rob' s blood pressure was dangerously high. His doctor gave him three months to lose weight, exercise, and cut out sodium with the hopes of dropping the blood pressure, or Rob would be put on medication to control it. I have sinus problems. I wake up with an earache that returns off and on throughout the day. I am constantly tired from the pressure in my head and ears as well as the sore throat. Sometimes it is all I can do just to stay awake to take care of the kids.

Of these two items, I obviously pray over Rob. This is serious. His blood pressure was high enough to kill him. We need God's intervention, and we need it now. So I pray with fervency. God honored those prayers. He enabled Rob to go cold turkey on sodas. This is no small thing since Rob was drinking nearly a two-liter of caffeine-laden soda a day and has for a number of years. With God's power, Rob was able to give up his staple drink without cravings and without that throbbing caffeine-headache. He has lost a visibly noticeable amount of weight in only a few weeks, and his blood pressure was down to nearly regular when it was checked last week.

As for my sinuses, there is medicine I can take that will help, and it is bearable. In the big scheme of things, it really isn't anything. And, yet, it is covered by "all". So, why do I not cast all my cares on Jesus? I can give you a lot of excuses, but I think it really boils down to the fact that I just don't see why He would care. Somewhere inside my spirit is this voice yelling, "Cast ALL your cares! Cast ALL your cares!" And in my mind there is this voice saying, "He has bigger things to do than worry about your sinuses. After all, the elections are coming up in November. That is important. The martyrdom of Christians in various parts of the world is big, but asking for things like your cable modem to be fixed is just being whiney."

Do you ever wonder if God really cares about the "little" things? I have no idea where I learned that, but I really struggle with the idea that the Creator of the universe is as concerned with my finding Anna's favorite animal to sleep with as He is the fall of communism. And the truth is, I don't ever remember reading that all things are equal in importance to Him anywhere in the Bible. I don't recall seeing that He gives equal weight to matters, but I have seen where it says to pray unceasingly with all kinds of prayers (1 Thessalonians 5:17), and I have seen where it says He is faithful (pick one of many verses). I have also read the passage commanding us to cast all cares on Him for He cares for us, and I think the key to it all lies in that verse.

If you read, it does not tell us to cast all our cares on Him because they are all of equal importance in His eyes. It does not tell us to cast all our cares on Him because He thinks our concerns are important at all. In fact, I imagine to Him most of our concerns are quite simplistic. After all, our worries are all of equal magnitude to Jesus. He created the sun with four words. It's not like anything you toss His way stands out as big to Him. Besides, He has an eternal perspective, and we, too often, have a temporal perspective. So, what would compel Him to ask for our cares even when they are so unimportant? He cares for us. Pure and simple. Nothing fancy, nothing overwhelming. He asks for our cares because He loves us, and if something is bothering us, He is interested. Maybe He is not interested in the issue, but He is interested in how it affects us. In the big scheme of things, is Anna's crying for her nighttime buddy, Piglet, a big deal? Of course, not, but Jesus knows how sad she is without it, and He is also concerned about my stress level and need for quiet. The immediate issue is trivial, but the ramifications on us personally moves the Lord to concern which results in His working on our behalf.

Once again, it is all about Him and His faithfulness, mercy, and love. Amazing, isn't it?

And all we have to do to wield the kind of power that always addresses our problems, bringing positive results is call His name. Sometimes we doubt the power of The Name because we don't see the results immediately, but we have to realize that just as with the communications regulator getting cable service for me, God's results can take time. Yes, God is powerful, but sometimes His answers are slow in coming.

Daniel was highly esteemed by God, but when Daniel prayed, it took three weeks to get an answer (Daniel 10). It wasn't that God hadn't answered. As soon as Daniel began praying, the answer was on the way, but the Enemy hates answered prayers and the faith they bring. He'd rather stop them completely, but if he can't, he'll try to slow them down in order to plant doubt in a believer's mind. That is exactly what he did with Daniel, but Daniel would have nothing of it. He knew his God, and he chose to cast his cares on Him expecting an answer, and it came, just as He knew it would. Too often we mistake delay for apathy or powerlessness on God's part. As for me, I tend to fall into the "God is apathetic" frame of mind. However, according to Daniel, that is not true. It's just that there may be a variety of obstacles that slow the answer from reaching me. When that happens, it is imperative that I remind myself of God's faithfulness driven by His love.

I don't know what you are facing today. Maybe you need to find the right tie to go with your suit for that big meeting with your number one customer next week. Maybe you are facing serious financial problems that seem larger than life. Then again, you could be like me needing to get the kids out of the house but not knowing where to take them. It could be that you are having an allergic reaction to your laundry detergent and need to find a new one. Whatever is concerning you, Jesus is telling you to let Him handle it. His phone lines are not busy. His calendar is not full. In fact, He is waiting, hoping to hear from you because He loves you, and all the things on your mind are of interest to Him, not because of their seriousness but because He loves you.

I propose you have two choices when it comes to whatever confronts you today. You can do something about it and call on the One who can handle the situation for you, or you can quietly accept things as they are. Big things... little things... It doesn't matter. He is offering to take care of it all for you. That's His job. How much sense does it make to sit quietly by and let the Enemy run roughshod over you when you have someone willing to handle every problem you face? It makes no sense at all. So come on. You want to get results? Use The Name.