Speaking of Guardian Angels and Being Blessed
It
is a strange thing to say but I feel blessed. This is not a new thing. I have
felt blessed all my life. But it has been acutely present lately… at a time
when you would think that I shouldn’t feel blessed.
I’ll write more about that later but I just want to share one experience now.
I have received so many notes, cards, email messages, and Facebook posts than I ever anticipated. People who are practically strangers to me but go to the same church I do have sent me cards to let me know that they are praying for me. And, when I say, “practically strangers,” what I mean is that we are part of the same congregational community but they go to the 8am service that I have only been to once and I really don’t know them. But, we share a community, and so many of them have reached out to me when they heard that I am going through chemotherapy.
Similarly, I have heard from people who were once an integral part of my community when I was serving the church in Golden or Loveland but I may not have seen physically in a year or ten. I still live here on the westside of the Denver metro area so I run into people from those communities from time to time but the days of regular contact are long gone. And yet, I have heard from many of them also. Here’s where the story gets specific.
About a month ago, I received a card from a family that I knew from my days as a minister in their congregation. I was already crying after reading the words that they had written in the card before I realized that this card also contained a generous check.
I know the kindness of people and still it is surprising. But more than that, it is so deeply moving. As I cried, my children were nearby and my daughter, Georgia, asked, “Why are you crying, Dad?” And I said, through tears, “People are just so kind.” At this point, my son, Tyler, came over to me and said, “Yes, Dad, that is why we are here. To be kind to each other.” Such wisdom, so beautiful to hear it coming from him.
So, of course, I was blessed by the kind heartfelt words in the card. And I was blessed by the generosity of this family as well. But I was triply blessed because their actions also gave me the opportunity to see the young man that my son is becoming.
Yes, I have cancer. I also have so many blessings.
I’ll write more about that later but I just want to share one experience now.
I have received so many notes, cards, email messages, and Facebook posts than I ever anticipated. People who are practically strangers to me but go to the same church I do have sent me cards to let me know that they are praying for me. And, when I say, “practically strangers,” what I mean is that we are part of the same congregational community but they go to the 8am service that I have only been to once and I really don’t know them. But, we share a community, and so many of them have reached out to me when they heard that I am going through chemotherapy.
Similarly, I have heard from people who were once an integral part of my community when I was serving the church in Golden or Loveland but I may not have seen physically in a year or ten. I still live here on the westside of the Denver metro area so I run into people from those communities from time to time but the days of regular contact are long gone. And yet, I have heard from many of them also. Here’s where the story gets specific.
About a month ago, I received a card from a family that I knew from my days as a minister in their congregation. I was already crying after reading the words that they had written in the card before I realized that this card also contained a generous check.
I know the kindness of people and still it is surprising. But more than that, it is so deeply moving. As I cried, my children were nearby and my daughter, Georgia, asked, “Why are you crying, Dad?” And I said, through tears, “People are just so kind.” At this point, my son, Tyler, came over to me and said, “Yes, Dad, that is why we are here. To be kind to each other.” Such wisdom, so beautiful to hear it coming from him.
So, of course, I was blessed by the kind heartfelt words in the card. And I was blessed by the generosity of this family as well. But I was triply blessed because their actions also gave me the opportunity to see the young man that my son is becoming.
Yes, I have cancer. I also have so many blessings.
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