00:00Tom, well, Tom lived on Maple Street in Fort Collins, Colorado, and Maple Street didn't
00:12make the news.
00:13It didn't have landmarks or traffic or ambition.
00:19It had cracked sidewalks, wide porches, and mailboxes that leaned a little to the left.
00:27In the early mornings, the street smelled like brewed coffee and cut grass, and by evening
00:35porch lights flicked on one by one, like quiet signals saying, we are still here.
00:45And at the far end of the street lived Tom Walker.
00:49Now Tom had been there almost thirty years, long enough that the house itself felt like
00:55part of him.
00:57Long enough that the silence inside it had learned his name.
01:03Behind the house stood a fence, once white, once straight, once strong.
01:13Now it sagged in places, boards loose, nails rusted, weeds pushed up along the base.
01:20And when the wind came through, just right, the fence creaked like it was tired of holding
01:28itself together.
01:32Tom, well, he noticed it every morning.
01:36And every morning, he told himself the same thing.
01:41Tom believed in Jesus, not loudly, not with many words, but honestly.
01:55He prayed before meals, even when he ate alone.
01:58He kept his Bible next to the lamp, though some nights it stayed closed.
02:06On Sundays, he sat in the back pew of First Community Church, nodding quietly while the pastor preached.
02:15Life had changed him, his wife, Mary, had died five years earlier after a long illness, the kind of illness that drains joy a little at a time.
02:30After she was gone, the house felt bigger than it used to, and time, well, time felt heavier.
02:42The hardware store kept him busy, but not fulfilled in the way that it once had.
02:48Customers still came, but slower now.
02:53Chains had moved in two towns over.
02:57Tom smiled through it, but inside he wondered how long he could keep going.
03:04So, when the fence started falling apart, he did what felt safest.
03:10He prayed about it.
03:13Lord, he would say quietly, standing at the sink,
03:17You know I'm tired.
03:20You know my back isn't what it used to be.
03:24If you want that fence fixed, you'll make a way.
03:29Then he'd grab his keys and head to work.
03:34One afternoon, Tom noticed movement near the fence.
03:39A boy stood there, skinny, restless, kicking the dirt with the toe of his shoe.
03:45It was Eli, the kid from next door.
03:51Eli lived with his mom, Sarah, who worked nights at the nursing home.
03:56The boys spent a lot of time outside, throwing a ball against the garage or riding his bike in lazy circles.
04:05Mr. Walker, Eli said.
04:09Tom looked up from his coffee.
04:12Yeah, buddy.
04:14Eli hesitated.
04:16My mom says our dogs keep getting through the fence.
04:20He ran into the road yesterday.
04:23Tom felt a twinge in his chest.
04:26I've been praying about it, he said, trying to sound reassuring.
04:33Eli nodded.
04:35Oh, he said.
04:37Okay.
04:38And then the boy walked away.
04:41That night, Tom lay in bed, staring at the ceiling.
04:46Not because Eli had been rude.
04:49Not because he'd been accused, but because the answer had sounded hollow when he heard it out loud.
04:59I've been praying about it.
05:03Sunday came quietly.
05:06Tom took his usual seat near the back, hands folded, eyes tired.
05:13The pastor read from Matthew.
05:15Why do you call me Lord, Lord, and do not do what I say?
05:24The words felt sharper than usual.
05:28The pastor hadn't raised his voice or pointed fingers.
05:33He just said,
05:35Sometimes we confuse faith with waiting.
05:39But Jesus didn't tell people to wait until they felt ready.
05:43He told them to follow.
05:47Tom swallowed hard.
05:50Jesus never prayed away responsibility.
05:55He fed people.
05:57He healed people.
05:59He stopped and helped people standing right in front of him.
06:05Faith wasn't passive.
06:08Faith was obedience.
06:10And that afternoon, Tom stood in his backyard again.
06:16The fence leaned worse now.
06:19And for the first time, Tom didn't pray for God to fix it.
06:24Instead, he said quietly,
06:28Jesus, I think I know what you're asking me to do.
06:33There was no miracle, just honesty.
06:39Tom realized something that unsettled him and freed him at the same time.
06:45He had been waiting on God.
06:48God had been waiting on him.
06:51And Monday morning, Tom didn't open the shop right away.
06:57He put on old jeans, grabbed his tool belt, picked up a hammer that hadn't been used in years.
07:06His back protested immediately.
07:10But he lifted the first board anyway.
07:12The fence didn't come together quickly.
07:16Nails bent.
07:18Sweat soaked through his shirt.
07:21He had to sit down more than once.
07:24But each board felt like something more than repair.
07:29It felt like obedience.
07:31Halfway through the morning, Eli appeared again.
07:37You're fixing it, the boy asked, eyes wide.
07:41Tom smiled, wiping his hands on his jeans.
07:45Yeah, he said.
07:47Turns out Jesus wanted me to stop waiting and start helping.
07:52Eli laughed.
07:53My mom says Jesus usually does that.
07:57Well, neighbors noticed.
08:00Some brought water.
08:02Some offered spare wood.
08:04Sarah thanked Tom with tears in her eyes.
08:10The fence took three days.
08:12But something else changed too.
08:16Tom slept better.
08:18The heaviness had lifted.
08:21Purpose returned quietly, like it had never really left.
08:27Not because the fence was fixed.
08:30But because Tom had finally listened.
08:34Years later, the fence still stood.
08:39Straight, painted, and strong.
08:42And when Tom told the story, he always ended it the same way.
08:51Jesus doesn't ask us to fix everything.
08:55He asks us to be faithful with what's right in front of us.
09:00Because faith isn't saying, God will handle it someday.
09:05Faith is saying, Lord, show me what you already placed in my hands.
09:13And help me obey.
09:15And sometimes, in small towns and quiet lives, if it's going to be,
09:22Well, Jesus is waiting for you to take the first step.
09:31God bless you, my friends.
09:32God bless you.
09:33Amen.
09:40For more information, visit us.
09:42God bless you.
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