A True Story of God's Provision (and a Prayer Request)

 "I will sing of the Lord's great love forever;

with my mouth I will make your faithfulness known

through all generations." -Psalm 89:1

Let me tell you a story--which ends with a prayer request. It's one of those stories of how God looks after us and paves the way before we know what we'll need.  

First we must go back to the summer of 2021, back in the days before my father had cancer. For some reason that summer, for no sensible reason at all, I decided that instead of booking us into a hotel during our annual New Year's trip to Charleston, I would splurge on an Airbnb. So I found an adorable house that was just a couple of blocks from my Dad's place--a really tough thing to find in his neighborhood.  I booked it for late December/early January.

Fast-forward to late December: my father had just been re-admitted to the hospital at MUSC, brutally sick with We Didn't Know What Yet, and the doctors were chasing it down while he went in and out of hospitals.  We went to Charleston a day early and stayed in a hotel, and our Airbnb host kindly let my family check in early the next day while I was running back and forth to the hospital.  In the course of our texts she mentioned that she'd just spent 10 days at MUSC as her husband had treatment for cancer. They're in their 40s with two young children.  And I thought, wow, do I ever know *that* situation.

So I told her about my husband and we bonded a bit, acknowledging what it is like to be a parent, to have a very sick spouse, and to feel the fear and loneliness those things can entail. 

My Dad kept getting sicker.

We had to stay longer, and she reached out to offer the place for more days.  I readily accepted.  The screened front porch had become a spot for me to really lay my worries and anxieties on God during early mornings. It was a soft place to land for us; I fell into bed thick with grief and exhaustion every night. It was so much better than a hotel. The house was beautifully-decorated, sparkling clean, and perfect for us. I knew that God had somehow orchestrated this in His wisdom and kindness.

When we decided to settle up she refused payment for the extra nights.  She wanted to help us like so many had helped her. I was humbled and touched by her kindness.

One time after that--in the late winter, I think--we exchanged quick texts saying One Day We Should Meet. We never followed through--life is busy!

Fast-forward to August, when I was in Charleston for a week taking care of my Dad during his second week of brain radiation.  I had to drive him all the way to Mount Pleasant--about a 20-minute commute from his neighborhood--to the radiation facility.  On that first day that I took him, we walked into the waiting room, and I looked at a woman sitting there, whom I'd never seen before in my life, and I just *knew*, and I said her name.  She looked up.

In the Charleston metro area there are over 800,000 people and she and I just *happened* to show up at the same office at the same time on the same day.

Yes. Wow. To say we were floored was an understatement.

At the end of the week she and I went out together to talk and share stories for a couple of hours.  Her husband's cancer, like my Dad's, is considered incurable. Since then, we've spent time praying for her family every night. 

Will you also pray for this sweet lady, and her family?  They are believers, she is solid in her knowledge that God takes care of things, but still: that is an excruciating road to walk, especially with young children.  

Thank you for praying!