"Pray to Him, tell Him anything, trust Him; you have no idea just how much God loves you!"
I can't begin to count the number of times that I heard people say those words to me. When you grow up in a Christian home and hear those words often, you tend to not hear them with your ears, but your heart hears, and it remembers them.
Even as a mature, single woman in my fifties, I heard those words...from my parents. My mom was the one who could tell when I needed to hear those words the most. She knew that sometimes living with her and Dad could be a struggle for me. All three of us had our daily crosses to bear. I have terrible eyesight that keeps me from driving. Mom was in a wheelchair for the last 17 years of her life as a result of cancer. Dad had memory problems that slowly progressed into an Alzheimer's diagnosis. Even with the challenges each of us faced, the constant power of those words was always with us.
Prayer and love are the two elements that enabled the three of us to enjoy, talk, listen, and laugh! We laughed together a lot! Even in the days that were so bad that we would hardly talk to one another, one of us would find a way to open the conversation by laughing about something. The other two would join in; then the talking would start, apologies would be made if they were needed, and we would just move on. Prayer and love! Such wonderful words to have in your life.
I helped Mom and Dad live their lives as well as I could until I couldn't. Sometimes, people would ask me, "How can you, at your age, still happily live with your parents?" I would always just kind of shrug and say, "When it [your lifestyle] is based on love, you just do it." Mom's Non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma, which had been in remission for 17 years, returned in the form of lung cancer. At 92 years old, she was not strong enough to survive any treatment, so she was transferred to an "end of life" facility for the last few months of her life. God, in his awesome provision, allowed for Dad (because of his Alzheimer's) to be Mom's roommate in their final days. They had been married for over 66 years. See? Love!
Dad contracted COVID right before Thanksgiving. The Lord called him away from his pain and confusion three weeks later. Mom joined him two months after.
This past year, I chose to say that "I am on my own" rather than " I am alone.” My daily walk with the Lord is the only thing that gives me the strength to send those lonely feelings away. The Lord has brought good people back into my life who are true blessings. He has big plans for me. He knows what is best. And that makes my heart grin with joy. He has even led me to return to a church full of forgiven people who are happy to be a part of my life as well.
Yes, I am in for a ton of hard work along with frustrations and tears, but since the Lord will be in every situation right there with me, I can only look for the Romans 8:28 moments that will outnumber the trying ones.
When your heart aches from all its broken pieces, remember to pray. Jesus is right there. When you feel so alone and there are no friendly faces in sight, trust. Jesus will fill those moments with incredible peace. Why should we center every day of our lives around Christ? Because of love.
