We all have those friends who are just a bit off. You know, that friend who does something and you shake your head wondering how on earth you could love such an odd human being. Well, that friend is me. And I own it.

You know that passage in the bible where Paul talks about us being the body of Christ? I take that statement literally. Yeah, yeah, it’s a metaphor, I get it. But we are the tangible reflection of Jesus and we have honor and privilege to be the answer to someone’s prayer. We can be the solution to someone’s problem.

Last week I met up with a friend during my lunch break. She was talking to me but I was distracted. Her lips were moving, but I felt something behind me and I couldn’t really explain it, but it felt like pain.

Me: Wait, I’m sorry. Is there someone crying or something behind me?
Her: Wait, wha—oh, yeah I think there’s a lady crying three tables down.
Me: Wow, I feel so badly for her. When we leave do you mind if we go pray for her? I feel like she’s dealing with death.
Her: Uh—ok?

We finished our lunch, threw away our trash, and I walked over to a small outdoor table with three ladies lunching. [Slow inhale. Slow exhale.] Excuse me, I don’t mean to pry, but I just wanted to tell you that I’m praying for you. She looked at me in sheer bewilderment which instantaneously made me feel like a 5150 lunatic wandering the streets of Orange County with a grocery cart and 15 cats talking about my days in Vietnam.

To assure her I wasn’t going to accost her or ask for loose change, I squatted down and told her that as I was having lunch, I felt that God told me to tell her that whatever death she is experiencing, God will restore.

That’s all I said… but that’s all it took.

She began crying again and her friends looked at me like I had dropped in from Mars saying, Nanu nanu. What I discovered through her sobs was that her dog [aka her best friend] of 13 years had died that morning and she was in such pain because of her loss. She told me she was a Christian and she was asking God to send her a sign that her dog was ok.

Though I couldn’t guarantee her dog was in heaven, I did tell her that if Isaiah talks about the lion laying down with the lamb in heaven, then at least we know there are animals. And if there are animals in heaven, why wouldn’t there be dogs? And if there were dogs, why wouldn’t there be her dog? [And her dog is in heaven, that I’m affirmed my dog Ricci will go to heaven because he’s PERFECT!] This theology is faulty at best, but given the circumstances, I felt affirmed in this assertion.

It’s all very odd, honestly. I wouldn’t necessarily say it something I do often, but definitely something I would do again. What I will say is that sometimes we are the answer to a prayer. Sometimes we can be the solution to a problem. Sometimes the best thing we can do is act like we believe the power that was in Jesus Christ and raised Him from the dead in the same power in us.

And don’t worry, if we’re out to lunch and I ask you to go pray for someone, just nod and pretend you think I’m sane. 😉 Yes, I’m that friend.

What would it look like if we all believe God wanted to use us? How would our lives change? What if God really meant we are His hands and His feet to share the gospel?

Shouldn’t our lives look different?