A duck goes into a bar and asks the bartender if he has any grapes. The bartender says no and the duck leaves.

The next day the duck returns to the bar and again asks the bartender for grapes. The bartender says no and the duck leaves. The duck returns the next day and again asks for grapes. The bartender says “no and the next time you come here and ask for grapes I will nail your feet to the floor.”

The next day the duck comes back and says “excuse me do you have any nails?” The bartender says “no.” “In that case,” the duck asks, “do you have any grapes?”

How insistent are you for Yahweh to show up?

Most times when we ask for something mildy audacious and seemingly get a “no,” we just shrug our shoulders and meekly say, “ok.” In fact, most of us simply ask for the mundane and are not the least bit surprised when it doesn’t happen.

That’s a problem.

I think it’s time we starting asking about the nails.

Joshua prayed to the Lord in front of all the people of Israel. He said, “Let the sun stand still…” So the sun stood still.

Excuse me?

Sun stand still? Yeah, right!

But… what if it’s true? What if, just what if there’s something to this?

We tend to think that it is all suppose to be easy. God is our personal genie; we rub the lamp, out he pops and fulfills our most ludicrous request. If you asked Joshua how that worked, he’s likely tell you that if you ask God to show up to do the impossible, he might just instruct you to do something that is uncomfortable and inconvenient, like march around a city’s wall blowing horns or crossing swollen rivers or even –ouch!– circumcising your shame.

My experience says there’s something to this. I’m just crazy enough to ask Him to make the sun stand still AND rain down massive hail on that which stands in my way.

Any takers?