| |
She knew anguish. Watching her husband of thirteen years eaten away with cancer broke her heart into pieces she thought would never heal. But she couldn’t stop living. Six children needed her. Strength evaporated into mourning and desperate cries for help. Who hears such heart-wrenching, wordless moans and understands?
She knew. He had walked with her for sixteen years and cradled her these past nine months as her husband collapsed into unconsciousness and, then, eternity. She remembered her husband singing hymns, even in a coma, and somehow the pain eased just a bit. She wiped the vision of his emaciated frame from her mind and recalled his strong, happy face. One nurse told her she’d never heard such beautiful sermons as the ones he preached from his deathbed: God’s work, God’s way?
Strength came again for a moment and she almost smiled, but she couldn’t stop praying. Six children needed her. What was she going to do? A single mother in Appalachia in the 1950’s had little hope and fewer choices: work and pray.
Her body grew weak with the burden of it all and she fell to her knees. The children slept, not hearing her cries, but God heard. Even her questions and wonderings, he understood and sent some whisper of peace to her broken spirit. It felt like a warm breeze rushing onto her soul, balm of healing and restoration. “All things work together for those who love the Lord and are called according to His purposes,” the Good Book said.
Her mind raced through countless possibilities of how God could take this moment, this pain, and turn it for her good? Impossible! She would work two jobs and make it! She would use his strength and love her children as two parents would. God had never failed her through her childhood, during the violence of her drunken father, and he would not fail her now.
Strength came again to her weakened frame and she stood, tears fresh on her cheeks but a smile clearly lightened her face. Gods work, God’s way.
She couldn’t see future years, when all her children would become God’s. She could not know that one son would be a preacher, like his daddy or one daughter would be a missionary nurse. She did not know how her great love and simple living, would impact thousands of people who crossed her path. She could not see that her granddaughter would write a tribute to her courageous spirit. She did not know, but God did.
|
Help Us Stop Plagiarism -
Nearly all works at PnP are original. However a few people choose to plagiarize.
To check, choose a phrase from the work, then either drag and drop to the search box or copy and paste.
click on search and works at Google will be shown which match. Just to be sure, please do this before
you recommend or rate the work highly...
|
 |
|
|
|
Select a Random Work
from Stories
|
|
Welcome !
