11- 4-10-2023 His hand in our Life & Missionary work
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Hello family,
I wanted to share with you a journal entry I wrote this week of an experience that left me full of gratitude. We all have these types of experiences from time to time, but I feel very grateful for the timing of this one. It just strengthens my testimony that our Heavenly Father is keenly aware of each one of us.
Invitation: Look for ways to see His hand in your life
Miracles 4/6/23
I’m writing this down today so I don’t forget any of the details. It feels a little mind boggling, but perhaps that is just saying something about my faith. The prophet said to expect miracles, but as you see them unfold so clearly, it still leaves you in awe. I know one thing for certain, that He hears and answers prayers and really is just waiting for us to ask (seek) for His guiding hand.
I will try to capture the detail, but what I can’t capture in words is the overwhelming feeling of His all encompassing awareness of each of us.
This past few days since General Conference, I have been thinking of President Nelson’s invitation for us to consider ways we can express gratitude to our Heavenly Father. I have been prayerful about this. One thing I have been impressed to pray for is more missionary opportunities to share the Gospel, and that this one way I can express my love and gratitude to Him. I am always looking for ways to bring up gospel conversations with Emma at work, and regularly share messages and invitations with Salvador and his family, but I want to do more. This has been the focus of my prayers. Last night we took the youth to The Living Christ production put on by the Meridian North Stake. They do a really neat still life depiction of The Last Supper with actors holding still in character for five to ten minutes at a time while the biblical story is being narrated with word and song. On leaving I took a photo of the flyer and thought I would share it with Emma at work the next day, and send it again to Salvador as we took his family with us to see it last year.
Here is the miracle!
It started this morning. I saw my phone was ringing while I was getting ready for work. I didn’t recognize the number, so I didn’t answer it at the time and was waiting for a voicemail. No message was left, but I received a text shortly there after saying that they accidentally “pocket” dialed my number. It was from a patient I saw a few weeks ago when I needed to call in a prescription in for them.
Later during my work day I was in my office checking my messages on my cell phone and accidentally dialed the same number. Come to find out just minutes earlier this same lady called the office phone number wanting to schedule an appointment because she was having a toothache. We had an opening come available in the schedule for this afternoon. We had a good laugh on the phone that we each had dialed each other by accident on the same day. When she arrived at the office I went into the room to see her. She was smiling and with a strong Spanish accent said she received some good news earlier in the day, and since then the pain in her tooth had subsided. I looked over her x-rays and explained a possible reason for her discomfort. I asked her what the good news was that she had received. She said it was a long story, but I insisted I had time to hear it.
She went on telling me about her oldest son, and how he had a terrible PTSD incident when he was 16 years old where he saw one of his friends being shot in the face with a shotgun. They were living in L.A. at the time, and after that incident her son went to a dark place for many years. Drugs, homelessness, jail, and everything in between left this poor mom heartbroken and worried for her son. Now, at 36 yrs old, her son has begun to have hope again in his life. This mother has a strong belief in Christ, and kept teaching her son to look to Jesus Christ for healing. She testified to him and to me that if we put God first in our lives, all else will work out. I agreed with her.
The young man married, and has slowly been getting back on his feet. He’s been able to get a property management job which has been a huge blessing because a job has been difficult with a criminal record. My patient had just learned earlier in the day that her son had received a 2nd property to manage, and she knew the Lord was blessing him. This is why she was so happy today. I thanked her for sharing.
I then asked her what her plans were for Easter. She mentioned getting together with her children, but most of them are not “believers” so she was trying to find something Easter related that wouldn’t be too “preachy”. She then said, and I quote, “I’m thinking of doing something with the family to represent The Last Supper with my kids.” My mouth dropped open, and I told her I had just been to see The Living Christ last night and that it had a powerful Easter message where The Last Supper was portrayed. It was a seamless, perfect transition. I didn’t even have to ask her for her cell number because she accidentally called me on it earlier in the day. I simply shared the photo I had taken on my phone the night before and told her it was a very comfortable, no pressure Easter message she could share with her family.
Even if you tried to chalk this experience up to coincidence (no way), you can’t explain away the feeling of the Spirit I felt. I went back into my office and had a simple prayer of gratitude. Gratitude that I can see His hand working in my life. Gratitude that He hears and answers our prayers. Gratitude for His willingness to allow us to participate in His work. I love Him for all of it.
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