DOES GOD SUSPEND OUR ACCOUNTS?

As I was walking out the door my husband joked, “Are you sure you know how to use the ATM?” 

I laughed. Because it was actually funny. My husband frequents the ATM, and I rarely go because I use my little silver plastic rectangle instead of cash almost everywhere.

But I was on an adulting roll, you know despite all the days you’re not, there are some days you’re in the groove, so I set out to run the errands that had been accumulating--batteries to be recycled at the hardware store, library books that needed returned, a package that needed to go to the post office, and the visit to the ATM, because there was a rare instance when cash was necessary. 

that time the ATM ate my card

I was checking things off the list, feeling organized and in control. I parked uptown right next to the ATM, inserted my card and...the machine seized it. It gave me some message communicating that it was taking my card, but I was so surprised I’m not really sure what it said. Umm...what? Why?

And so, I drove to the actual bank and went inside, filled out a little slip of paper requesting a withdrawal, stood in line, then got the cash I needed. I also told the teller about my card. She checked my account and was surprised, because our balance supported the transaction. Then she started laughing. “It says you haven’t used that card in over two years?!”

“Sounds about right. I never need cash. And my husband always gets it.”

The teller was trying to be kind, but was obviously amused and confused that I’d gone over 700 days without using my card and all of a sudden wanted to use it today. The machine was programmed to consider this suspicious activity and yanked the card.

1. The whole thing humbled me. Remember, how I’d felt so organized. Ha. 
2. It made me grateful for a God, who is always with me, even when I stumble or can’t apparently use an ATM.

Hebrews 13:5 NLT

But the thing that struck me most was this. If we reach out to God, if we pray, if we call out His name for help, if we open our Bibles, He never ever says, “Ummm. No. It’s been too long. You haven’t prayed in over two years. Sorry, we’re just going to end this conversation now. It looks suspicious, so I’m going to disconnect the call.”

Nope. That’s not how God operates. He says, "I will never fail you. I will never abandon you."--Hebrews 13:5. He’s so opposite of this world. It is refreshing. And stunning. And lovely.

If you’ve never spoken one word to God, He’s ready to talk to you today. You don’t need to apply for an account, register a card, have the correct credentials, make a certain amount of deposits in your account, or wait for approval. If you haven’t spoken to Jesus in years, He’s ready to talk to you today. You don’t have to drive to your local branch (church), fill out some papers, or stand in line. He’ll talk to you wherever you’re currently standing, sitting, or going.

Banks should be cautious about who is taking money out of accounts, and I’m grateful that mine has security around my account. But God is never cautious about us. He created us, so He literally knows every thought in our heads and every cell in our bodies. We haven’t hidden anything from Him. Not that scar on the bottom of our foot or on our heart. Not that lie we told or the excuse we made. And we don’t have to. He loves us. Period. Forever. He loved us when He created us, and He loves us still today. No matter what’s transpired in the interim. 

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