Kodak Moments – Week 3
By Margaret Lackey, Concord, North Carolina

(Ordained Minister, Evangelist, Christian Comedian, Executive Assistant to Administrative Bishop, WNC Church of God State Office)

“I thank my God upon every remembrance of you, always in every prayer of mine making request for you all with joy” (Philippians 1:3, 4, NKJV).

As evangelists, my husband, Ron and I have opportunities to visit different churches.  We both enjoy photography so God impressed us to take pictures where we minister.  Photos of churches, pastoral families and congregations are placed in an album.  As a part of our ministry, we pray over it, thanking God for opportunities for fellowship and worship with members of His big family, asking Him to bless that local ministry.

Often in my devotions, I reflect on Kodak Moments.  Blessings of friendship and love flood my mind.  God will direct me to pray more specifically at times.  And I am also thankful for those times when He brought my face to someone’s mind in an hour when I needed a prayer.

Simple acts of kindness can turn into stories of divine intervention.  A cashier in the grocery store kept coming to mind.  She was quiet, reserved and never said much, but would respond if one spoke to her.  I didn’t know her.  Unsure of why I kept seeing her face, the only thing I knew to do was pray for her; so I did.  Later, when the store was not crowded and I was the only one in her line, God prompted me to tell her I had been praying for her.  Unaware of her religious affiliation, I was not sure how this information would be received.  “I don’t really know you,” I said, “but God has brought you to my mind often lately, and I’ve been praying for you.”

Shocked and surprised, with quiet tears she responded, “Thank you…you don’t know how much that means to me!  I’ve spent a lot of time lately at the hospital with my mother who was dying.”

I assured her that I would continue to pray for her and her family.  As I left the store, my heart beat a little faster and my step was a little lighter.  God had given me a Kodak Moment.  

“Don’t let me miss them!” I prayed, “not just those I can capture with a camera lens, but chances to make an indelible print in the mind of someone who is hurting.”  People need to know that God loves them and that there are people who care enough to tell them so.

Through the years undoubtedly people have cringed to see me coming with a camera in my hand.  Oh, no, it’s her; they silently scream, or loudly whisper, “She’s going to want to take a picture!”

Unlike the paparazzi that dog celebrities to death, allowing them no chance to breathe, I always ask permission to take a picture.  (Well, usually…a candid shot now and then makes an album more interesting.)  But I never want to be perceived as someone who is trying to force anything on anybody.  I simply want to be available for Kodak Moments.

God needs women who are looking for those opportunities—not just through the lens of a camera, but through the eyes of the heart that see a need and grasp the moment to “click” with someone who needs a hug or a prayer.

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