[whitecane] Wednesday Devotionals: SOUL FILLING

From: "John Sherrer" <john@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
To: <dwightj1@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>, <whitecane@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
Date: Thu, 3 Oct 2013 11:30:21 -0400

Dear Ones:

We are all under so much pressure and dealing with adverse circumstances that
sometimes we forget what life is really about. I hope this devotional reminds
you as it does me. Blessings SandyC

SOUL FILLING

“Then those sheep are going to say, ‘Master, what are you talking about? When
did we ever see you hungry and feed you, thirsty and give you a drink? And when
did we ever see you sick or in prison and come to you?’ Then the King will say,
‘I’m telling the solemn truth: Whenever you did one of these things to someone
overlooked or ignored, that was me—you did it to me.” Matthew 25:20 MSG

Monday night I attended a book/video study at a small group with some of the
ladies in my church. We watch the video and then break up into small groups
and talk about a list of questions. One of the questions asked started me to
thinking. It basically asked what in our lives have we lost that has left an
empty space. We shared very different answers. I was surprised at my own
answer, which is why I have been thinking a lot about it.

I miss my patients. It’s been almost two years since I left nursing to take
care of Bruce. I know this is where God has placed me, but I still have an
empty space in my heart. I didn’t realize this until I started going through
some of my old writing journals. I want to share one of the stories with you
and I think you will see what I miss most. I wrote this one in October of 1998.
It was titled Blest to be a Blessing.

When I met Steve, he had only one kidney and a severe kidney infection which
required IV antibiotics at home. He lived in a dirty little trailer and was
obviously very poor. Both he and his wife worked at unskilled labor jobs. They
had a beautiful little son. Steve was only 32 years old and had undergone
numerous surgeries, but maintained a sweet, joyful attitude. He was kind,
well-mannered and considerate of others. I bonded with him immediately. He
reminded me of Bruce – a good ole boy without airs; and my poverty stricken
uncle, who was always being taken advantage by the world.

He lived quite a distance from me. On Sunday I drove the long drive out to
restart his IV and give him his infusion. When I went out to leave, I noticed
my car had a flat tire. Steve went to his old, beat up car and pulled out a can
of fix-a-flat. He insisted on following me out to make sure it would hold. If
not, he was prepared to put my spare tire on. He followed me a good 10 miles
before deciding I was safe to keep going the rest of the way to the interstate.

I thanked him and told him that he was my angel today and gave him a big hug.
He said that he had been called a lot of things, but never an angel! I knew he
probably didn’t have money for gas and offered to pay him for following me. He
would not hear of it. As I watched him in my rear view window, I prayed and
asked God to bless him for his kind heart.

On Friday night I got a call from Steve. He was at the Walmart near my house
and his IV had gone bad. He wondered if I could come and restart it before he
headed back home. Now, I wasn’t too excited about changing out an IV in the
Walmart parking lot, so I gave him directions to my house. This is a “no, no”
in home health, but I knew I had nothing to fear from Steve. When he drove out
of the driveway I wondered if his old car would make it home.

The next morning, I was sitting on the front porch when my eyes seemed to fix
on the old Dodge van that had been parked in my driveway since Bruce got his
truck. The Holy Spirit spoke to me and told me to give the van to Steve. I
instantly started questioning whether it really was God. “He won’t want that
old van. It may not even run. It’s been sitting there for two years.” But the
prompting was so strong that I gave in and went to ask Bruce about it. He
thought it was a great idea. He said there wasn’t much wrong with the van and
if it would help Steve, we should give it to him.

I called Steve and he couldn’t believe that I wanted to give the van to him. He
had seen it in the driveway when he was at my house. I told him that I wasn’t
sure what condition it was in, but that didn’t dampen his excitement one bit.
He had shared that he wanted to be a photographer and shown me some of his
pictures when I was at his house. The van would be perfect for carrying his
photo equipment since it had no side or back windows.

He came a week later and picked up the van with a car lift. He had a good
friend who is a mechanic and works on Dodge automobiles – coincidence? I don’t
think so. He got the van running with only minor repairs. When I discharged him
from home health, he told me that he drove it the day before and that “it
drives like a dream.” His father had left him the photo cameras and equipment
when he died and Steve had no way to start his business until now.

I was so filled with joy that I could hardly stand it. God answered my prayer
to bless him and because He is so good, He allowed me to be a part of the
blessing. It is so much greater to give than to receive. It’s so good to be
blessed so that you can be a blessing to someone else.

I have journals full of such stories and I have written and sent out many
devotionals like this. I was blessed far beyond what I gave in my nursing. The
reason there is a void there is because nursing was more than a job for me. It
was my ministry to sick and needy people. God used me over and over again to
bless others and in doing so I felt like my life really mattered. I know it
matters and that Bruce needs me to take care of him, so I fill the empty spot
with the love of Jesus to give out to others in whatever way the Holy Spirit
leads me.

So, wherever you’re at and whatever you are doing; do it with love. Then, you
will be a blessing to others regardless of where you are or what you do.

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[whitecane] Wednesday Devotionals: SOUL FILLING

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