Let Them Tell Their Story

So many of my friends, and myself included, are writing their stories, or books. Psalm 107:2 says " Let the redeemed of the Lord tell their story" TNIV
I was in Medicine Hat at Eagles nest ranch a few days ago and met a new friend, Katie, who shared with me her story. Prior to her sharing I looked across the camp fire and listened to her talk about "Papa Daddy" in reference to our Lord...and I was uncomfortable with her terminology.Perhaps even a little judgmental. Later that night, alone in my car, she shared her story...her son Joshua, 19 yrs old has been  missing for the past 12 weeks and I was stunned to tears. This strong, courageous prophetess continued to say... he went missing on a canoe trip with his dog on lake Huron in Ontario. The rescuers who are now saying it is not a rescue mission but a recovery mission, have found the dog (who died  shortly after being found) they had been missing a week at the point the search began... due to a fumbled alert  (someone alerted authorities that there was a canoe in distress but after a brief search they abandoned the mission for 6 days) they now have the canoe, but not the body of her son.
Katie had her phone on and was "on alert" each time it rang, longing for closure. She also shared how she went up to the cabin and crawled into Josh's sleeping bag, the last place he was, to get as close as she could.
Oh how I long to move into a place of intimacy with Jesus ...to move as close as I can to him. This morning I was up early and re reading one of Joshua's journal entries (Katie was so kind to give me a copy) His last line was a trigger  for me, calling for a response. " The door that requires the most sacrifce will take you to the highest level."
Lord give me the courage today to move to the highest level in you. I will tell my story...thank you "Papa Daddy", for bringing Katie into my life and for her courage ... hearing her story has challenged me.

Near Accident...

I arrived an hour ago in Calgary and leave for Denver in the morning, oops it is morning now...well later in the morn. The trip up here was long with many construction delays, a one hour delay for a serious accident near Crazy Creek and then just prior to Golden a big 18 wheeler that I was following had a load shift and lost a piece of lumber which splintered on the road and on my car...no injuries to me or the car...just left me "all shook up" after doing the dodge ball swerve to avoid all the flying wood!  I passed the trucker asap and then reported it to a Mountie (who happened to be doing a radar set up on the highway) right where I was. He radioed his colleague to catch up with the trucker in the next town. The concern was for the 10 foot concrete slabs that were standing up like tee pees top on top of the lumber... least they should shift and cause a serious accident!
I had a great visit with my grandma in Penticton yesterday on the way here. I took her out for dinner, did a little shopping (to replenish her "junk food stash"), then whet back to The Hamlet (where she lives now) and they had a little out door music concert with a accordion player. It was so precious to me, grandma and I sat under a little canopy/tent and they served us lemonade and chocolate chip cookies, which we made room for even thought we had just had a chocolate malt at Wendy's! Grandma reached over and took my hand clutching it in both of her hands and then she kissed my hand and smiled a large warm smile and said "thank you so much for coming and sitting with me, and for connecting me with my past." We both cried when I left. Sigh. Tell you more later. It is hard to believe that we too will move to that stage in our life. Sooner then we care to imagine. When grandma was moving from her wheelchair to the car (for the third time on our excursion) she was getting weaker and had a little difficulty, she moaned and then said 'when did this happen...I mean when did my body get like this? I don't really remember how my body quit working for me".

Big smile. Only one life will soon be past only whats done for Christ will last. We have the gift of today.