I wrote this post awhile back, but I needed to read it again. So, I decided to re-post it, just in case you missed it the first time around.

Last week, I picked up a couple of prescriptions at the drive-through pharmacy. I had missed a dose of one of them; so, I pulled both bottles out of the shopping bag, retrieved my needed dose, and pitched both bottles into my purse. Then, I drove away and continued my errands.

I retraced my steps from the previous day, beginning with my vehicle. It was way passed time to clean out my car; so, I even vacuumed out the cracker crumbs dropped over the last few weeks by my grandkids. But I found nothing but trash and a few coins.

Next, I asked my husband, Dan, to check his car, since I'd been in his car the previous evening. I even requested that Dan check his car trunk; I had placed my purse in there at one point. But no luck there either.

Where else did I take my purse? I had met my daughter and daughter-in-law for lunch at a local restaurant, where the grandkids could play on their indoor playground. So, I called the restaurant and asked if they had found my meds. The manager even checked the booth where I had been seated. Nothing.

Where could I have dropped that bottle? The other bottle was still safe at the bottom of my purse. Perhaps I left my purse unzipped at some point, and the other bottle dropped out. I even combed areas where I knew my chances were even slimmer for finding it—like in my office and in the kitchen. I finally gave up and called the pharmacy to request another bottle, knowing I'd have to pay full price, without insurance coverage this time.

When I picked up my meds again, I was grateful they only charged me the regular price that I normally paid for the pills. And when I put my bottle in my medicine basket, I continued to wonder, Where is that other bottle?

The next morning, when I stopped to refill my daily pill container, I pulled out my medicine bottles again. There with the rest of my meds was the missing bottle of pills. Where did it come from? Was it there all along, and I just overlooked it?

Direction. I immediately thought of an on-going prayer request of mine for direction for my future writing life. I get so confused with all the ideas and distractions that come my way. So, I've been begging the Lord for clear direction. Perhaps the Lord is telling me that the answer is right under my nose.

Shoes. Later that day, I did it again—I couldn't find the shoes I wanted to wear. The first place I looked was where they should have been—in my closet. But I couldn't see them when I looked. So, the search began—in my office, under my chair in the den, in the bathrom—but to no avail.

The searches were making me weary. I tend to misplace a lot of things these days—my glasses, my cell phone, my keys.... and most of the time I trace my steps right back to the first place I first looked and find them there. And once again, as I walked back into my closet looking for my shoes, they appeared right on the shelf where they belonged—in the first place that I had looked earlier.

Questions. What's the lesson here? Am I going crazy? Am I getting paid back for all the times I made fun of my husband for losing his things? Or is this a direct message to me to slow down and think through things before I jump to conclusions and panic? Can I trust that I'm hearing from the Lord correctly the first time I ask for direction?

Prayer. Lord, help me to remember that You are always with me. I can expect that You will hear me when I pray. And You promise to guide me in all of my ways. Help me to trust You. Amen. (Phillippians 4:4-7)

Photo/KarenJordan

Did my lost meds remind you of a story or lessons from your own life?