posted by Writer on Dec 27
Our daughter, Linnae, is a very courageous young lady. A few years ago she left a good paying job and moved to California to fulfill a dream. Since that time, after much labor, she has found two different jobs in her career field and has made a nice life for herself. We miss her presence greatly, but appreciate her and her great sense of humor very much. She has a very quick wit that we love, and it comes in handy for the position she now finds herself in.
The goal of parents is to train their kids and get them out into the world on their own, under the care and direction of the Lord, to live life as independent adults. However, no matter how old or successful they become, we never stop being concerned for their welfare, do we? The stakes go even higher when a spouse and kids are in the mix.
On Christmas Eve Linnae became very ill with a very strong form of the flu. Her roommate had left town a few days before and Linnae was left alone, unable to get out of bed, while her family was over 2500 miles away.
Even though our kids are now out from under our care, Christ always has an eye on them (Psalm 34:15; Matthew 10:29-31). In a most remarkable display of giving, God reminded our family, and Linnae, of the true meaning of Christmas through a young woman by the name of Sheila. A woman those of us back home have yet to meet.
Sheila gave up spending precious time with her parents to come and help Linnae. She was instrumental in her recovery, staying through the night to make sure Linnae stayed properly hydrated, and making sure help was nearby, just in case.
What you don’t know is that this is an especially difficult time for Sheila because she spent her first Christmas without her husband, who lost his life last summer while serving in Afghanistan. Sheila thought of others during a very trying time of her life, just as God did when He sent Christ into the world on our behalf (2 Corinthians 8:9).
Sheila gave her very best to help a friend in need and her actions humbled us. We also took time to pause to say thanks, not only to Sheila but God, who has continually shown us that He always has the best interests of our kids at heart and knows what we (and our children) need, even before we ask (Matthew 6:8).
December 29th, 2012 at 12:39 pm
I love stories like these. It shows the hand of God in our daily lives. He is always there, but many don’t see Him. Even fellow believers fail to see His work in their lives. We need to pray for the blinders to come off the eyes of everyone, for hearts to be softened. But prayer can be answered in unexpected ways, so be prepared to act when God answers. Many will see the results of His answering and not associate it with Him at all, or wonder how can a loving God allow this to occur. It’s incumbent upon believers to point it out to the blinded and hardened hearts to be used of God for His purposes.
December 29th, 2012 at 1:57 pm
What an unselfish act Sheila performed. God is always in control of every situation, and I am sure Sheila was blessed for being God’s angel to your daughter. Too often we can all feel sorry for our circumstances and forget God knows and is in control. As a parent and grandparent, I too often want things to happen my way and on my timeline. I am learning (slowly) that God’s knows the entire story while I know only a part. His work and timing will always outshine mine.
Thanks for sharing, Steve!
December 29th, 2012 at 8:50 pm
Amen!
January 1st, 2013 at 4:13 pm
Thank you for posting this dad, and for the nice words you had to say about me and my friend. I miss my family a ton, but I really do have some great friends here. Love you guys.