I was on YouTube last week. I can’t remember what I was searching for and if you are anything like me you start clicking on the random suggestions on the side panel.

On this particular day I found myself watching a video on occupational hazards. It was a compilation of some pretty bizarre things going wrong on various construction sites around the world. With the tagline after each one “Nobody was hurt”.

It got me thinking about what occupational hazards I might have as a church pastor. Over the years I have concluded that it is eating biscuits and cakes. I go round to visit folk and they are always so generous in giving me a cup of coffee and a lovely selection of goodies.

I remember years ago in Edinburgh going to visit a lovely elderly lady. We had a great time chatting away, and then, just as I was about to leave, she said "you will be wanting a cup of tea". Before I could reply, she was in the kitchen and then basically came back with a huge plate of cakes and sandwiches which she placed on the table.

After looking round and confirming that there wasn’t six other people in the room, I hadn’t seen I lifted the plate and offered her first choice. “Oh no, son," she said. “I’m watching my weight, they are all for you."

So much for the famous Edinburgh saying, “you’ll have had your tea”!

A few years later I mentioned as part of a sermon that my favourite biscuit was a Tunnock’s Caramel Wafer. For the next month, you can guess what biscuit I got with my coffee.

It’s a hard life, right enough. I thought 'is this a method for me to get things that I really want?'. My next sermon had as an illustration that my favourite car was a BMW. Nothing!

Okay, I didn’t say that, but joked with people about it. But wouldn’t it be great if we could just want something, ask for it and we got it?

Sometimes we think about prayer like that and either give up or don’t bother as we don’t get the answer we are looking for.

The creator God knows us better than we know ourselves. He always answers. Sometimes we are not listening. Sometimes it’s not what we expected. Sometimes it’s no.

He is not only Creator but also our Heavenly Father and He knows what is best and right for us.