Romans 8:28 New International Version (NIV). 28 And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.
Karen Scott writes, ” Sometimes, just a few minutes of time and attention is all the gift another person needs. Sometimes, you get the opportunity to communicate with another person that you value them, that they matter are important, that you hope that their lives matter in light of eternity. Never doubt that a gift of your time and attention is valuable. You can hold it in your hand or choose to give it away”
I am a staunch believer in “the ripple effect” of life. As the title of this post suggests, I also believe things happen for a reason and “there is a silver lining in every cloud”. My journey through adversity via my battle with Guillain Barre Syndrome did nothing to dampen that belief. Why? My family and I experienced 1st hand people choosing to give away their time and attention so that they could encourage and support us. My life has also been made different by GBS. As I have written before, I hope I will always remember the positive things that have occured because of this now almost 8 month recovery process. Out of the dark clouds of what was a significant health challenge came new friends, deeper existing relationships, a renewed commitment for taking care of myself, and stories about other people’s lives being made better because of how we inspired or cared for them in some way.
Here is one little tiny story of how the Lord used my illness and the offer of a cookie- Taken from an email from a friend. “One day, there was this Christian man at a local Health and Rehab facility, being cared for by a friend who was a CNA. This man with GBS offered her a delicious cookie, she asked who made it, you mentioned the name of a friend . . . and shooting stars went off. :-))) This patient didn’t know about a long relationship between the CNA and the cookie maker. However, one VBS evening at Abundant Life in July, when I was looking for more children to round-up, there was the CNA and we had a big hug and quick reunion-style chat about meeting the Christian man, the cookie, and reconnecting with the person who chose to take the time to make cookies for the patient. She also happened to mention proudly that her daughter loves to read the Bible and loves to read it aloud to her! Wow, so encouraging . . . so the twins did do a few nights of VBS and loved it.” The email went on to say it didn’t stop there. My friend asked the CNA, “have you ever thought about sending the twins to a Christian school?” . . . She was interested, but cautious about what it would cost……
Fast forward a few more weeks and only a couple of brief texts . . . and suddenly, God brought it all together and there were enough scholarships left at a local private school for both of the CNA’s daughter to enroll!
The moral to this true story is, if you get the chance, don’t hold back the cookie, your time, or whatever else you can offer. Instead give it away and be time and time again amazed at how your gesture will be turned into good many times over.
