A Very Special Night

It was a very special night. It was a wonderful, beautiful night. An answer to a long waited prayer for the both of us. It was one of those nights that would be a lovely memory that would be remembered forever. A gift from God. My friend and I waited for a long time and finally the wait was over. My wonderful friend called me from school that afternoon to see if I was there. I was. She was coming a little later to pick me up. I waited outside when it was time. I couldn't help but smile at myself. I was so happy and so was she. Soon she came and we were on our way. We stopped at the grocery store to pick up some food for dinner. I just had to buy my friend a pink rose, her favorite flower. She loved it. We went to her place to eat. It was a delicious dinner. She really slaved over it. She joked that it was only instant, but still, she made it. My friend, her roommate and I all ate dinner together and watched a movie, but mostly we just talked. When dinner was done, my friend asked if I was ready. I said yes with a big smile. It was time. She grabbed a book that was an inspiration to us, I grabbed my Bible. We took off on our journey. It was raining, so we prayed that the rain would stop. We went to get ice cream. It was a tradition of ours from before. She said it was her treat. What a special treat from my very special friend. We hopped back into her little car and she put on our tape that I made for her. We headed to Fernwood State Park. We traveled a long a way that I was somewhat familiar with even though I traveled it only once before. How could I forget! We talked on and on just enjoying each other company. That is something we both treasured. I said to my lovely friend that I felt like I was dreaming. She gently told me that it felt too good to be a dream. She was so glad it was real. I knew she was so right. The rain didn't really bother us. We sang along with the music, laughing. Our song came on. We cranked up the music. I caught my friend listening to me and smiling. I felt good inside. I asked if we could play our song again. She said for me to go ahead and play it over. The song put the biggest smiles on our faces as we played it over and over, singing it over and over. We went over a bridge and it looked so beautiful, so I asked my good friend if we could stop. When my friend stopped the car, I got out and happily ran back to the bridge. She called out for me to be safe, being her caring self. As I looked at the running water I could hear the end of our song, which filled me up with joy. As we started up again, we said that we could hardly believe we were there and we were together. We started praising our Lord for the good thing we had that night.  It was a treasure. When we got to Fernwood, we looked for the spot where we once were before. It was still drizzling, so we didn't get out right away. We sat there eating our ice cream, talking about how beautiful Fernwood was. God did an awesome job! We took our time reading scripture together which was so fun. God's Words means everything to us. It is our guide in this life. It finally stopped raining, so we got out. It was good to be outside at a special place that meant so much to us. We stood there looking over the valley, hugging each other and holding hands. It was just so special and the sight was beautiful.  We talked on and on, sharing together, just the two of us. God brought us together again. It was so beautiful to be there with her, truly beautiful. There is so much love between my friend and I. We got out the book that was special to us and sat down on a wooden beam. We took turns reading this book. She read a page, I read a page. Earlier in the year, my wonderful friend suggested that I get this book, she knew that by my reading the story, it would help me know how special I was  and it would help me to realize and believe it myself. Reading the book together was so much fun and relaxing. I always feel like I can be myself with my friend. When we were done reading, we walked back to the car. I suddenly had the urge to do something. Something I've wanted to do for a long time. I wanted to tell my friend something that I didn't want to say over the phone. They were to important to me. I looked at her and she looked at me. We took hold of one another hands. I had a difficult year dealing with something personal and many times I was very sad. My dear friend, like many of my other friends, stood by me and helped me through times that were painful. She was there for me even if it was only over the phone. She offered up many prayers for me and loved me through the difficult moments. I wanted to thank her in person and tell her how very grateful I was for her friendship and for her love. A lot of things were said between us. I was so blessed to be able to tell my friend how I felt in person. We hugged. What I said meant so much to my dear friend. After that, we went to find the path we hiked once before. We had so much fun on our little hike. We talked about anything and everything. We talked about how our prayer life was going and how we could strengthen that life. She paid me a very nice compliment. She said that she liked it when I offered her my advice on things. I never  put her down. That is something I never want to do because she means so much to me; I mean so much to her. We were praying that we would find some violets like we did last time we hiked this path. We lucked out, there were some. So we picked them. My friend smiled at me and told me to give her the violets. She said she had an idea. She wanted to make me something. She wouldn't tell me what she wanted to make. She wanted to surprise me. I had a feeling that whatever it is, it would be made with much love.  Her wanting to make me something made me feel special. We were having a most wonderful time just being together. There was so much love between us just like there always is when we're together. It was getting dark so we headed back to her place. We played our song a couple of times and listened to other songs as well. When we got back to her place and got ready for a good night sleep, we said some night prayers together. We hugged tenderly, she thanked me for a very wonderful, very special night and kissed me. I thanked her too. We whispered I love yous and I drifted off to sleep thanking God for the very special gift He had given me. That was a very special night my friend and I will never forget. We thank you God for this very special blessing.
               

In The Quiet

Do you have someone who loves you beyond words? Do they think 

that you are very, very special? They hold you close in their heart. Well,

I have. Someone cares so much for me. This person feels the same for

me as I for them. We are so open about how we feel for each other.

Once, we said how much we cared without using any words. We just

looked at one another. We just sat there in the quiet. A lot was said in 

that moment or two. The love that was all around us was so beautiful. 

Then, we embraced in the quiet. Then, the whispering of the words "I 

love you" were finally heard.... in the quiet.

   

To Spend Some Time

     Through our getting to know one another, we found out that we both love nature. We both love being outside in the world that God created. The beauty of God's scenery is so precious to us. My friend loves to go swimming, hiking, camping  and anything that has to do with the wilderness. I love to do all those things too. We started talking about doing one of these things together before graduating from the university. How special it would be. Just the two of us perhaps. Or with a group of friends, we didn't care, as long as we got to do it. As time went on, we became busy and forgot our plan. The last month of our college career, somehow we started to spend a little more time together. Maybe cause we had the same fears in common. We both loved the school a lot, many special memories. One day, we reminded each other of our plan of spending time in the wilderness. We wanted to spend some special time together before school ended. Time was running short. We both agreed that it would be the perfect time to do just that. My friend had an idea of what we could do, but she could not tell me. She wanted it to be a surprise. I would tease her about it, but still she would not tell me. When the day came to have our little date, she borrowed her friend's truck and we were off.  I still didn't know where we were going. My friend told me to hold on and be patient. I got excited. We first went to the mall and got ice cream. We took the ice cream with us as we traveled to where we were going. It was a nice ride past sceneries of wilderness and open fields, along the winding roads. My mind began to wonder and I had a feeling, hers did too. My mind always wonder whenever I go to the wilderness country. The drive felt like it went on and on, but we didn't mind. We finally arrived at the park. We grabbed our ice cream and sat on the grass overlooking a valley. It was a beautiful sight. We chatted on and on about anything and everything eating our ice cream. I read her a poem I wrote for her. It was my graduation gift to her. She loved it. We laid back, gazing up at the clouds in the sky. I was happy to be there and with my wonderful friend. After awhile we headed back to the truck, she was telling me about a path she hiked with some friends once. I wondered if we had time for some hiking even if we went on a little hike. We had to be home at a certain time. She said that we had some time left, so we went to find the path. As we walked a long, we ran into a lady fishing and asked if she caught something. She didn't catch anything. She said she was bored that day so she thought she would go fishing. We wished her a good day and walked on. My friend got some hiking sticks for us. We walked on and on, talking on and on. It was wonderful being there with my friend, just grand. We came to a small pond and there we stayed for a while. We talked about my friend's plans to be a teacher and somehow we got onto the subject of favorite children's stories from when we were little children and I told my friend that I knew 'Twas The Night Before Christmas by heart. She wanted me to tell it to her. So in the middle of May, hiking back from the pond, I told my dear friend the story of 'Twas The Night Before Christmas. I felt silly, but it was fun. The whole afternoon was fun. We looked at the pretty flowers that were a long the path and picked some to have as a memory. I'm pressing some in my Bible. It was a joy to watch her face light up as she looked at the flowers. We hopped back in the truck with the flowers in our hands. I couldn't help laughing with joy from remembering the afternoon. On the way back home we listened to an Amy Grant tape. We loved this one song so much that we played it over and over. We fell in love with it, so it became our song. We sang along with the words, and I must say, we sounded pretty good. The afternoon that I spent with my friend in the wilderness was so wonderful. I will always hold that day as a precious memory.

      

Dove of Love

I have a question all the time, who is your hero? I am always amazed at what I hear people say. A movie star or someone in politics. Sometimes, I am shocked to hear to hear why. So, who is your hero, you want to ask me. You will be surprise when I answer. A white dove is my hero. You see, this dove is the most powerful source I know. He is the third person of the Holy Trinity. The dove also known as the Holy Spirit has done many great things in my life. I have seen Him moved the biggest mountains and also calmed my weary soul. He given me the power that a child of God need to survive this journey. He given me great comfort when I needed it. He given me that I can only imagined having. He's given me the gift that can be found in the unconditional love of a friend. This dove have guarded me from harm's way and rocked me gently to sleep. Because of this dove I have knowledge of my Redeemer and Savior.  I know of the one who loves me the most. I have felt the breath of love and of God. I am blessed to be freed from sin and death. I can live on, even after my death, from this earthly life into my everlasting life in Heaven. This dove of love is teaching me that I am not perfect and to love myself anyway because He loves me so. I remember sitting in a chair in church and having people pray over me and this very warm feeling came over me. It felt like a wing enfolding me with the most tender love I have ever known. And I knew it had to be the dove of love.                                                                                                                                

Mom's Little Sunshine

I have a secret to tell. My Mom calls me Sunshine. I was always her
Sunshine. When I was little, I was called Mom's little Sunshine. I could
always make a day bright for her. It could be real dark and cold out, still
Mom had her sunshine. Mom could have a rotten day, but still there was
Sunshine. Mom would take her little Sunshine out and play or she would
sit somewhere and cuddle and snuggle with her Sunshine and it would
always be a fun time. Now that I am older I am still Mom's Sunshine. I will
always be Mom's Sunshine. Mom will always love her little Sunshine.

My Prayer of Trust

Oh Father God in Heaven, how I thank You for my ability to trust You 
everyday now. Its been a long time coming. I feel free because of that
trust. Its so easy to say "O.K. God, I need Your help right now. It is in
Your hands." Life is so good. I am so good. I'm beautiful. Even though
it is so easy, I still need the grace to trust You. I'm trusting You with
every little thing. Every little thing I need, every little thing I want, every
little thing I have. A friend wrote me once that the Lord is taking care of
us + we just need to live day by day. What good advice You gave me 
through my friend. Sometimes, it takes all I have to trust You, when my
heart is breaking or when I have a lot of things coming up, many new 
adventures that are important for my future. When something should be
working but for some reason it doesn't and frustration takes over. Am I
going to be alright financially. That's when You provide for me. When I
feel like I just barely hanging on, I get on my knees and beg You to help
me, ask You to be with me through the hard times. When I feel I need to
tell You I'm not doing too good and tears begin to fall. That's when I seem
to feel You so close to me telling me to hang on, that You'll get me through.
That's when I know You are right beside me holding me by the hand. I need
more trust and faith in You during these times. I need to remember that You
love me so much, that You are not going to let anything You don't want to
happen to me. You are my Savior, You are always saving me. You are my
Redeemer, You brought my place in Heaven. You are my Father, You are
always loving me. I love you Father God and today, I am trusting in You.   

Trying To Rely On God

Right now I am trying my hardest to rely on God. This 
really is not easy at this time and space. Although I don't
feel like He loves me, I know He does. I know He wants the
best for me, but the best is not so clear for me. I walk
around with a heavy heart that doesn't seems to heal. Don't
give up I tell myself all the time, don't give up. Cry out His
name, hope in His name, He hears you and He will help you.
Know that He is your strength even though you can't feel
it. He is your comfort, seek His face. He loves you very much,
and He is there for you. He will stand by you. Trust and rely
on God, at least try to.

More Stories From My Book

The Little One in the Picture

In my Grandmother's brag book, there is this cute picture.
A little one wrapped in a light airy blanket. the tiny thing is
sound asleep in her crib upstairs in Mom's and Daddy's room.
She is about 2 months old in the picture and it was taken in
August. You can see her tiny little hands curled up, she's
sleeping on her tummy. You can see one little ear and the
outline of the side of a closed eye and little mouth. There is
a stuff toy in the corner of the crib just waiting for play time.
The little one was sick, but she appears to be healthy and at
peace in dream land. The little one in the picture is Vicky.
  

Be Gentle With Yourself

O soul, please be gentle with yourself
Don't be so rough
Jesus isn't tough on you
So why be tough with yourself?
It's not so bad that He can't
Handle this.
Why must you torture yourself?
Leave that alone
Please love yourself
O soul, be gentle
With yourself

VLC  2/15/19