We Woodards: The POWER of prayer

Well, we now know why it is nice to have a landlord! Last night at about 8:15, we were getting ready to leave to workout, when we were surprised by a loud knock on the door. A neighbor had been driving by and had noticed water gushing down our driveway. We bundled up to go out and trudge through the snow and ice to take a look at the geyser that had erupted in our yard. Water was bubbling up out of the ground and through our driveway, down the street. Because of the frigid temperatures, that water was quickly turning to ice, and our street was becoming a home-made ice rink. We frantically called our landlord(who didn't answer), the city of Des Moines sewer people (who said because it's private property they are powerless), and about five other random numbers of people we thought might somehow help. Since it was after-hours, no one was in their offices and we were getting more and more worried. We were worried that it was our fault (although we had done nothing wrong and our own water was working just fine.) We were worried that the water under our trailer would create problems to the foundation (and I was worried that our trailer was going to float away during the night...) Basically, we were getting really worried. As we stood out in the freezing snow, neighbor after neighbor stopped by to remark on what a mess it was (but all with no real help or advice).

Finally, after an hour-and-a-half of frantic phone calls and doorbell ringing, we went inside to warm up and to resort to the only thing we could think to do, and that was to pray. Feeling completely powerless, we laid our fears and worries down at His feet and were prepared to wait for His answer. We didn't have to wait long, though, because as Aaron was finishing up his prayer, we heard boots crunching through the snow outside. We jumped up to see who was there, and it was our landlord himself! He gave us the good news that it wasn't our fault, we wouldn't float away in the night, and that first thing in the morning he would have a crew out there digging it up and fixing the broken main. As soon as we got back inside I (Andrea) burst into tears of thanksgiving and we both called our worried parents (who we had frantically called just moments before for advice). Everyone was super-thankful and exhausted at this point, so we just went to bed.

This morning when I woke up, I was glad to see the crew was there as promised! A little digger-machine and our landlord greeted me at 8 AM, and by the time we left for work, they were already hard at work on the hole and the mess of an iceflow that was our street. We'll see what progress they've made by the time we get home. So today, we are so thankful for a God who answers prayer, a landlord who fixes broken mains, and a place to go to get away from the horrible racket and mess they're making in our yard!

Here are some pictures from this morning: