[AkhirZaman.org] Saya dan mobil saya memiliki banyak persamaan. Tubuh kami sama-sama sudah tua, sering sakit, kadang-kadang pada hari tertentu kami tidak bisa berjalan, dan kami mengalami masa-masa prima sekitar awal tahun 1980an.
Bagi saya handphone bukanlah barang mewah, ia sudah menjadi kebutuhan utama. Perencanaan saya berjalan cepat dan otomatis, dan saya adalah orang pertama yang dihubungi karena bekerja sebagai operator mobil derek. Kaca depan yang retak dan kunci mobil yang rusak adalah masalah kecil jika dibandingkan dengan tabung bensin dan rem yang rusak. O ya, sudahkah saya menceritakan tentang lubang yang berkarat di lantai mobil saya? Saya mulai berpikir inilah saatnya untuk mencari mobil yang baru.
Dengan tekad bulat saya pergi mencari mobil yang sempurna. Saya tidak memperhatikan bagian dalam mobil yang luas, hemat bahan bakar, atau desain yang bagus dan bertenaga, saya hanya mencari mobil dengan kriteria yang biasa dicari oleh para wanita, yaitu yang bergaransi.
Kemudian, saya tertarik pada satu mobil. Harganya tidak terlalu mahal, dan kedua anak saya yang berumur belasan tahun bisa duduk di jok belakang dengan nyaman. Dan yang terbaik, mobil ini memiliki garansi piece de resistance, yaitu garansi terbaik dalam industri otomotif.
Saya mencoba mobil itu, mengamatinya dengan seksama, mengetes bannya, dan berulang kali membaca catatan garansinya. Karena tabungan saya tidak cukup untuk membeli mobil itu, saya pun memutuskan untuk mengisi formulir cicilan. Tetapi saya belum menandatangani formulir tersebut, Karena ada satu hal lain yang hendak saya lakukan sebelum menandatanganinya.
Saya pulang ke rumah dan cepat-cepat berdoa, “Tuhan,” saya berdoa keras-keras, “Saya membutuhkan mobil yang lebih baik, tetapi sekarang ini saya tidak tahu apakah saya sanggup membelinya. Tolong tunjukkan caranya pada saya.” Kemudian seperti Gideon, saya memutuskan untuk membuat permohonan saya. Saya mempunyai sebuah usaha sampingan kecil-kecilan yang baru saja dimulai. Lalu saya pun kembali berdoa, “Tuhan, jika saya menerima 200 dollar dalam kotak surat saya besok, saya akan tahu bahwa Engkau mau agar saya membeli mobil ini.”
Keesokan harinya saya begitu bersemangat untuk pergi bekerja. Saya yakin Tuhan akan menyediakan tanda yang saya minta itu. Namun ketika sampai di rumah, alangkah terkejutnya saya mendapati bahwa di dalam kotak surat saya hanya terdapat selembar cek dengan jumlah uang yang kecil, sangat kecil, bahkan terkecil sepanjang sejarah bisnis saya. Saya mulai kecewa dan bertanya-tanya pada Tuhan. “Tuhan, apakah Kau tidak ingin saya membeli mobil yang lebih baik? Saya tidak mengerti.”
Lalu pikiran saya kembali melayang kepada Gideon, Dia memohon 2 kali untuk mendapat kepastian. Mungkin besok, pikir saya. Mengucapkan permohonan adalah suatu hal yang mudah, namun menerima jawaban tidaklah mudah. Malam itu saya terus mencoba melawan dorongan yang kuat dalam diri saya untuk kembali ke toko mobil tersebut dan langsung saja menandatangani formulir itu. Sebaliknya, saya lebih memilih untuk percaya pada tuntunan Tuhan.
Beberapa hari kemudian, saya masih juga belum mendapat jawaban dari Tuhan. Pada hari itu, saya bertemu dengan seorang teman di tempat kerja. Saat itu kami semua bertemu di salah satu ruang staff. Saya dan teman saya ini sedang membicarakan masalah mobil barunya, ketika seorang temannya yang juga kebetulan ada di situ menanyai saya, “Apakah Anda tertarik untuk membeli sebuah mobil baru?” Saya pun mengiyakannya dengan cepat. Lalu Ia berkata, “Kebetulan, suami saya bekerja sebagai penjual mobil Mercedes, dan dia terkadang bisa membantumu mencarikan mobil yang harganya sedikit di atas harga obral.” Saya langsung bersemangat dan memberinya catatan tentang tipe mobil yang saya idamkan.
Dua hari kemudian dia menelepon saya dengan persetujuan yang mengagetkan yang memungkinkan saya menghemat beberapa ribu dolar. Tanpa ragu saya pun menandatangani perjanjian itu. Dan malam itu ketika saya membuka kotak surat saya, Allah telah mengirimkan jawaban atas permohonan doa saya. Saya telah menerima lebih dari 200 dolar dari bisnis saya hari itu.
Saya tidak tahu apa yang Allah kehendaki untuk saya miliki. Jika saya tidak percaya padaNya, saya sudah pasti akan kehilangan mujizat ini. Terkadang saya seolah hanya dapat melihat melalui kaca, dalam kegelapan. Bukannya Allah tidak mau agar saya memiliki mobil baru ini, tetapi Dia mau agar saya mendapatkan harga yang terbaik.
Seringkali dalam kehidupan kita, kita merasa seolah Tuhan tidak segera menjawab doa kita. Dia seolah menunda-nunda atau bahkan tidak peduli dalam masalah kita. Namun satu hal yang harus kita ingat, kita harus selalu percaya pada tuntunan Tuhan. Hanya Dialah yang mengerti waktu yang terbaik untuk menjawab setiap doa kita.
“Ia membuat segala sesuatu indah pada waktunya, . . . manusia tidak dapat menyelami pekerjaan yang dilakukan Allah dari awal sampai akhir.”
(Pengkhotbah 3:11)
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