I saw the NLT version on Facebook earlier today. What you hear most is obviously the King James Version. But seeing the NLT version made me really think about it for a minute. "I have all that I need." I like it, because it's present tense, rather than the future tense of the KJV.

I have all that I need.

That kind of punctuates every request we could ever make, doesn't it? Even if we are praying for something that we desperately need... do we?

I mean, I have to move by the 19th of May, and I don't know of any prospects. It has obviously been at the top of my prayer list (along with finding a job). But... right now... in the present tense... I have a roof over my head.

With the job search- yes, I definitely need a job, but right now... plasma donation, selling books, and other getting-by means are keeping me afloat on the three bills I absolutely have to pay.

Right now... in the present... I have all that I need. "Praise God through Whom all blessings flow!"

I added the NIV and the Amplified there, because I liked the way they said it as well:

NIV: I lack nothing.

Amplified: The Lord is my Shepherd [to feed, to guide and to shield me]

"To feed, to guide and to shield me." More than just the picture of a gentle shepherd with a crook in his hand, standing among the sheep. He's there to feed them, guide them, and shield them. That's pretty cool to me.

"But... moving day is only a week away," right? Sure, and I'd like to know where I'm moving to sooner rather than later, but in the meantime, it's about entrusting it to Father.

He's got this.

Don't get me wrong- entrusting is no small thing.

One of the most important moments of my life came when I entrusted something to Father- My dad's life. He went into the hospital for something that should have been in-and-out. Next thing we know, he's in the ICU on a ventilator with pneumonia and something doctors couldn't identify. He was awake at times at first. Then he went to sleep for several days. Looking back at the timing of it, I personally think he had COVID before they had started calling it that.

Regardless, I was up there every moment that I could be. I was up there every night after work at first, then I asked for time off, and a manager just told me to go be with my dad, and he'd cover the days. So, I was up there when I could be. I liked going during midnight shift hours, because it was quieter, and I could just sit with dad. It finally got to this point:

October 20, 2019, 6:52 AM:

I wrote that on my phone while sitting next to my dad's bed in the ICU. In that moment, I came to the end of me, realizing that there was not a single thing I could do for him... except pray. So, I entrusted him to Father.

Before that prayer though? I was so scared of losing my dad, my knees buckled in the shower, and I bawled for a few minutes before I got up again. It's okay to be scared. Just don't lose faith.

Wednesday, October 23, 2019, 12:53 PM:

This was the day dad woke up. Never thought about it before now, but maybe there's a spiritual significance to the fact that it was three days after my prayer? Significant or not, I like it.

I didn't put it all in this post, because I just didn't want to at the time. I wanted to think about it some more. But here's what happened:

When I say "ugly crying," it was definitely that. I got a call from my stepmother that morning. She wanted me and my stepbrothers (and sister-in-law) to meet her at the hospital. They were asking her to consider pulling the plug on dad, because he had been on a ventilator for days, and hadn't woken up. She wanted us to come discuss it.

We couldn't agree. I finally told them I was going to go see dad, then go downstairs to the Subway that was in the hospital to get something to eat, and come back. When I went to dad's room, I leaned on the rail of his bed, and said, "Father, this is too much. We can't make this decision. So, I'm asking again: heal him, or take him home. I'm saying again that I'm entrusting him to You. Thank You, Father. In Jesus' Name, I pray. Amen," and I went downstairs to eat. There may have been a little more reiteration in there- meaning that may not be verbatim, but that's basically what I prayed.

Came back from eating, and found everyone outside of dad's room, my stepmother talking with the doctor. He literally shrugged, and told her, "I don't know. I guess we'll wait 'til Friday, and see how it goes."

You see: dad had woken up! He wasn't just awake, he was cracking jokes!

Oct 23, 2019, 7:50 PM:

I don't even know what made me go back up there that night. I think I just wanted to make sure he was still there, and doing okay. I certainly wanted to praise God, and let Father know how thankful I was. It was so good to hear that joke. You just don't know.

Two years later, the Oct 20, 2019 post popped up in my Facebook Memories. I reshared it, and added this to it that day:

October 20, 2021:

I walked out of the building with my family, and I practically danced down the hall. I entrusted my dad to Father, and He came through!

So... this thing about finding a job and a place to live? Sure, it's urgent, but God kept my dad from dying when I asked. You think he's going to leave me hanging on these two things? No way! I have GOD, okay?! I have all that I need.