God pokes me in the ass...

So, in my very recent past I was teaching private natural childbirth classes to mostly middle class couples who paid dearly for them. I did it for almost 8 years until finally, last fall, decided to hang up the plastic pelvis and move on to other things. (Kitchen Gadgets! LOL)

Well, this morning, in the shower, God poked me.

(God does that pretty regularly, bless him...)

I suddenly had this flash that I should teach childbirth classes to young women who have decided to have their baby instead of having an abortion. Soap dripping in my eyes, I realized that I am uniquely qualified to offer my time on a volunteer basis. I could even train labor assistants to help women who have no other support out there.

One thing I have learned with these divine pokings is that they do not keep well. I have to act on them right away or they get stashed under a thousand other things in my day. So I immediately called a Pentacostal friend who is involved with some kind of prenatal clinic for unwed mothers. (That is so quaint a term these days, isn't it?)

I laughingly said that God "Laid a burden on my heart" (which is how charismatics describe it when the Holy Spirit pokes them...) and told her what had transpired in the shower.

She could hardly contain herself. Only a few weeks before, she had started volunteering for this clinic right down the street from me who specialized in helping and counciling young women who wanted to have their babies. She gave me the name and phone number of the director.

And I called. The director told me that this very weekend, there was a young woman in labor who had no support. A couple volunteers from the clinic were going to go to the hospital with her. I told the director that I can offer childbirth classes to the young women AND I can train the support people too!

Now, don't get me wrong, I am already totally stretched thin at this point. I have my new business and family stuff and a kid in kindergarten and another in third grade. Plus I am on the board of directors for an after-school arts program for at-risk kids. And I am mostly just a lazy person who would rather nap than anything. So, after I hung up with her, I explained to God that I am happy to be of service, but I need him to meet me halfway. God, I said, if you want me to do this, I need you to give me the strength and energy and the time to do it. I am going to need your help here, Big Guy. I can't do this alone.

I am somehow pretty sure I won't have to.

So. How has God poked YOU lately?