"And my God shall supply all your need according to His riches in glory by Christ Jesus."
Philippians 4:19 (NKJV)
Philippians 4:19 (NKJV)
Guest Post #6
"A Christmas Miracle" by Gentle Joy
"There was a Christmas when money was so very tight and presents would only be whatever small things I had on hand and could find to give. Our small son had severe medical problems (including a trach and heart problems) which required many expensive supplies and trips, but we were so thankful to have that son home and with us for Christmas. So many surgeries on his little body and so many prayers that he would make it through each one and someday be able to eat on his own, get strong and even talk.Life had been reduced to the needed and gifts were not a part of that even though we had children. The little artificial Christmas tree went up early and we sang carols as the kids made pictures to give as gifts, and we were thankful. Food was low and Christmas dinner would be as festive as I could make whatever we had on hand. In terms of “things” we had very little, but we were blessed to be together. The frequent surgery and hospital stays controlled our schedule and lack of money kept us from overeating, that’s for sure!
One day we were surprised by a call from a nurse friend of ours who said she and her nurse co-workers wanted to adopt us for Christmas and asked for a list of what we would like to have. That was a very uncomfortable thing to make as it felt like we were asking for things and we put a few things on the list, keeping them as inexpensive as possible, so they could pick one of them. Those precious nurses overwhelmed us with kindness and gave us EVERYTHING on the list and some other things too. I still use the brown glass bread pans from that Christmas over 25 years ago. The kids had toys, clothes and goodies... and we had food for a special Christmas dinner after all.
The kindness shown to us was precious and we appreciated those nurses and the gifts, but even more precious was the realization that we were okay with what we had and would have been thankful to have little instead of much. Being together as a family and having our sick son able to be aware for the holiday was sweet. God has taken care of us in many ways. We have been in need many times and other times we have had plenty and we thank God that He has always taken care of us. By the way, that “sick” son is now a healthy adult who eats (a LOT), works hard at his job and has his own lawn business besides and though his voice remains a bit raspy, he talks just fine. He loves the Lord and has a tender heart for people and is a man I greatly respect."
Gentle Joy's Bio:
I am a Christian wife and recently "retired" homeschooling mom after homeschooling all 6 of our kids k-12. (Does a homeschooling teacher ever REALLY retire?) I write 2 blogs about herbs, gardening, recipes, health and nutrition, saving money, projects, topics to inspire and make us think, photography, and more. I love the Lord and He is continuing to teach me and help me to grow in my walk with Him.
You can find Gentle Joy's homemaking blog at Gentle Joy Homemaker, and you can visit her photography blog at Gentle Joy Photography where you will find amazing photos like these!
And this! One of my personal favorites!
Thank you so much, Gentle Joy, for sharing this heartwarming story of God's providential care at Christmas!
In case you missed them, you can read previous Christmas Memory Sharing Posts by clicking these links:
For those who may not have seen the update on our last blog post, congratulations are in order for Kitty from Kitty's Kozy Kitchen!!
She was the winner of the giveaway for the Blind Pig & The Acorn Paul & Pap Wilson CD!!
Stay tuned for a sweet Christmas Memory Sharing post by Kitty sometime before Christmas!
