My Aunt Kakie was a wonderful woman with a giving and
loving heart. She was my Mom’s only
sister, the wife of a strong and confident, yet very giving man, my uncle
Anthony, and the mother of four lovely girls, with numerous grandchildren and
great grandchild who will joyfully carry on the Lano family traditions. Through the years I have countless memories
of all the family gatherings, softball games, Christmas videos, friendly arguments
over the Giants and Dodgers (as my
cousins were die-hard Dodger fans and our family were Giants fans!) that we
shared with her family. I also have fond
remembrances as an adult, when my Aunt and I and my wife would share things about
the Lord. I am confident that she is
sitting next to Jesus right now along with Uncle Anthony, my Mom and my
grandparents… and if I know them, it is most likely a noisy gathering as they share
a large Italian meal, laugh and keep saying “Mangia!
Mangia!” (ie; eat, eat!)
Yesterday morning was also a difficult time as I was experiencing
strong feelings of concern and a certain degree of helplessness over my wife’s
declining desire to eat. But you know? The Lord knows exactly what we need when we
need it! After I had gotten her ready
for the day, she and I sat at the kitchen table and participated in the live
stream of the 3rd Sunday morning service at the church where my daughter
and her husband attend in Oklahoma. At
one point after the praise and worship service the Pastor was up in front
talking and he shared about a youth gathering and paint ball activity that they
had at his and his wife’s home in the country near Broken Arrow. Then he put up a picture on the screen of a
group photo of the event. As I looked
over the group, my heart jumped as I saw JoAnna and Jeremiah standing on one
end of the group picture. As part of the
Youth leadership team, they had participated in the event.
I jumped up from my seat and pointed to their image and
yelled to Piper, “There’s JoAnna and
Jeremiah!” I don’t know why, but
that image some 1800 miles away from our house of an event that had taken place
on the previous day just made my day! It
was like we were suddenly all together doing one of the things that we enjoy
most, working with youth in the local church!
I texted JoAnna later in the morning to let her know that we had seen
the photo and she related about the “blast”
they had at the activity and also that the Pastor’s wife had asked about us as
she was aware that we have been viewing their services online!
The church had a guest speaker yesterday and the message
he gave was precisely what I needed to hear to get my heart and soul re-adjusted
and refocused on the answers in the Word rather than on the difficult times
that my wife has temporarily been experiencing.
Once again… Isn’t God good! He’s always there and always knows what we
need. My old favorite and always
reliable verse in Philippians 4:19 comes to mind at times like this. Here the Apostle Paul confidently declares
that “My God shall supply ALL your need according to his riches
in glory by Christ Jesus.” (KJV) Whether
it be a picture sent electronically over the internet to brighten your day, a
direct word from the Lord, a phone call from a friend, or any other seemingly
unrelated experience, the Lord WILL always
meet your need if you believe Him for it!
I finally did find some scripture this morning that
brought me into the depths of God’s love for me today. It was in Psalm 128 where the Lord assured me
that my wife “will certainly eat what
your own hands have provided.”
(verse 2 – God’s Word ©). Then He
went on to comfort me as He accurately described my wife, her life and her
relationship to me and our kids through verse three.
I walked out of the study later in the morning with a hop
in my step, peace in my heart and without a headache! I reached out to Him and Him reciprocated
through His Word with a word just for me… and He’ll do the same for you,
whenever you need it! Give it a
shot. It will be the best energy boost
you’ve ever had! Have a great day. Stay in tune to His Word, and keep asking
yourself… “What am I expecting today?”
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