Everybody Has a Story


I’ve always said, “Everybody has a story.” Some are known and very visible while others are silent and unknown.
First timers at church can often be spotted by the questioning look on their faces, but this couple was different. They had been in the Valley for only about a week, and were not the usual summertime vacationers in for a respite from the heat or retired second home owners. They were looking for answers to the question, Is this where God really wants us?

The wife was a newly diagnosed breast cancer patient and they had discovered the cancer center in our community. The questions swirling about them stemmed from whether or not they had jumped too quickly to the conclusion to move or was it truly from God. If we are honest, this is something most of us do when we are trying to figure out if we are following the path that God has for us.

After my conversation with the couple who had been prayed over by a fellow parishioner, talked with the pastor and visited with another cancer survivor the church service began. How would God minister to them? No, no, no the question is really how would God minister to me through them?
As the worship service began, they were bold in claiming the goodness and faithfulness of God and giving Him all praise and glory. You could tell that they were clinging to Him in their trial, by lifting their hands in worship and almost dancing. Tears flooded my eyes.

Would I be as trusting if I had just received the same diagnosis? Would I be able to display joy in the situation that they would be facing?
If I hadn’t just heard their saga, I could have made an assumption from their worship that everything in their life must be great—their finances in order, their bodies healthy, their lives perfect, but I would have been wrong. Everybody has some type of story; it’s how we choose to respond to God in it and through it that makes the difference.

Psalm 100:1-2 Shout for joy to the Lord, all the earth. Worship the Lord with gladness; come before Him with joyful songs.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Roxy--Our Adopted Best Friend

Image
Roxy was our beloved pet for 14 years. We got her for my daughter Lynn’s sixteenth birthday. Lynn had been begging for a dog and in a weak moment we agreed to her request. We decided that a pound puppy would be a good choice, so off to PetsMart we went, since they brought in a selection of puppies for adoption each weekend. Upon surveying the motley crew of dogs and cats, Lynn and I spotted a couple of cute white dogs with black and brown spots—a brother and sister pair, but we weren’t quite sure if one of them might be “the right one.” So back to the car for the next stop, and off to the humane society we went. Anytime you go to a place like that you hurt for the sad little animals just peering through the cages, longing to be grabbed up into your arms to be loved and cared for and you wish that you could take them all home. After checking out the big dogs, the small dogs, the old and the young, the hairy and even scary dogs, it was determined that none of those was meant to go home...
Read more

Bavarian Cream Pie

Image
2 eggs 1/8 t salt 3/4 c scalded milk 1 c whipping cream 1 T gelatin 1/4 c cold water 1/2 c sugar 1 t vanilla Chocolate crumb crust Beat sugar and egg yolks. Then add milk and scald until it sticks to the spoon, stirring constantly. Let gelatin and cold water soak until dissolved, then add to milk and let cool. Whip cream and egg whites separately and then mix together. Mix cream and egg mixture to the milk that has been cooled. Add vanilla to mixture. When this begins to congeal, pour into chocolate crumb crust. Put into refrigerator for at least 4 hours. Sprinkle crushed crumbs over the top before serving. www.hearthope.org
Read more

Kolaches

Image
Easy Kolaches This recipe is from Judie Byrd who has a cooking school in Fort Worth, TX. It is so easy and good. 1 stick of butter or margarine 2 packages of 10 count flaky biscuits 1 can pie filing (any flavor) Topping: 6 T flour 4 T cold margarine 1/2 c sugar Separate the biscuits in half, according to the flaky layers. Dip each piece in melted butter and place on a cookie sheet. Make an indentation in the middle of each using your thumb. Put about 1 tablespoon of pie filling into the indented space. Make the topping by cutting the flour and sugar into the cold butter. Sprinkle topping over pastries. Cook at 375 degrees about 15 minutes or until good and brown. If you don't have pie filling, you can use jam. www.hearthope.org
Read more