“In all this Job did not sin nor charge God with wrong” (Job 1:22).
Once again I have been reminded of how blessed I am. Every now and then, the Lord has to show me something and say, “Hey, have you forgotten to count your blessings today?” Just a little while ago, I saw a family on the beach with a little boy whom I would guess to be about six or seven years old. He was so thin that it looked as if you were to touch his arms or legs, they might snap like toothpicks. It was obvious his parents were being very protective of him. They were hovering as closely as possible, yet trying to let him enjoy the ocean. I felt very emotional as I sat and watched this family.
My thoughts turned to a dear friend of mine whom I have known for many years. She came into our lives when we moved to Virginia to pastor a church. She has a disabled son who is now about 35 years old. She was babysitter for our three girls for the seven years we were there, and she never took a dime from us. She refused to accept any money at all and always said that it was her way of blessing us. Can you imagine that? “Blessing us?” Should not the person in that kind of circumstance be the one who was on the receiving end of the blessing? Did I forget to mention that her husband also wrestled with an ad- diction to alcohol?
I used to stand in our doorway and cry as I watched her leave our home and struggle to get her son into the car. He never wanted to leave. Sometimes, I would say to her, “The Lord thought you were really special to bless you with a child like Jamie to love and care for.” But on those late nights when she would call in tears because she felt so overwhelmed, I would pray with her, and she would tell me she didn’t feel special at all. She felt very much at a loss because she was helpless to change her son’s situation. No reasons or simple answers exist as to why difficult challenges come to some while others seem to be untouched by difficulty all together.
I am blessed to have learned a few things. One is that it’s possible to reach out beyond our own world of difficulties and help meet the needs of others. I’ve also learned not to be so upset and impatient with my children about things.After all, I knew they would eventually grow out of it. Mine would, but not everybody’s. My girls learned to accept and love someone different from them. What a blessing that they were given such an opportunity.
