Therefore we do not lose heart. Though outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day. 2 Corinthians 4:1
In tears, I threw my hands up in frustration as I sat at the eye doctor’s office, trying to put contact lenses onto my eyeballs for the first time. For more than thirty minutes, the woman worked with me without me having any success.
I left the doctor’s office embarrassed in both tears and defeat.
For a month, I practiced trying to put the set of trial lenses I was given onto my eyeballs, with no success. Occasionally, I’d get one contact in but need Tom to get it out. I unknowingly wore a lens for four days! It took a trip to the eye doctor to get it out! The goop forming in my eye was the clue there was a problem.
Eight-year-olds can put in contacts. Why can’t I?
I finally succumbed to the idea that it must be true—you can’t teach old dogs new tricks.
I’m sure the doctor was trying to make me feel better when he told me that contacts aren’t for everyone. As much as I wanted contact lenses to work for me, they just weren’t going to. So, instead, I got a new pair of glasses with none other than purple frame
The apostle Paul tells us not to lose heart; that though outwardly we are wasting away, inwardly we are being renewed day by day.
No matter how old we get or how much we fail, thankfully, the spiritual eyes God gives us will never fail.
“Surely the arm of the LORD is not too short to save”
Isaiah 59:1 NIV
Our son TJ and his bride, Lauren, were getting married. My husband, Tom, was privileged to get to do their ceremony. TJ and Lauren had chosen an intimate garden setting to say their vows and meshing their two families together. It was a hot and sunny day.
Even at the 11:00 a.m. ceremony, the sweltering heat had already arrived. The gazebo was tiered with layers of brick baking the three—a father, a son, and his bride.
While TJ was in the middle of reading his heartfelt, hand-written, emotional vows to Lauren, she staggered, went limp, fainted, and fell. The guests watched in horror, unable to get to her, as her head was heading for a direct hit on the bricks.
In milliseconds, I thought of how she could be injured. A gash, a concussion, or worse—a paralyzing injury. Undoubtedly, her fall would result, in minimum, a trip to the emergency room.
God intervened. In just the nick of time, my husband reached down and grabbed her wrist and was able to safely lay Lauren down. He’s always telling me he has quick, cat-like reflexes. Tom was hailed a hero for saving Lauren, but we know, it was the ARM OF THE LORD who saved her.
A father, a son, and a bride.
Our heavenly Father created marriage to be a metaphor of Christ’s relationship to the church. Just as TJ and Lauren made vows to always love and cherish one another, Jesus makes the same vow to His Church, the body of believers.. Are you passionate about Jesus? Have you given Him your heart? Do you call Him Bridegroom? If not, ask the ARM OF THE LORD to reach down and save you. His Arm is not too short to save.
“The LORD is my strength and song, And He has become my salvation.” Psalm 118:14 NASB
“The Lord gives you the bread of adversity and the water of affliction.” – Isaiah 30:20
I had a vision of an unopened package of saltine crackers floating on water. I thought of the words of Isaiah. “The Lord gives you the bread of adversity and the water of affliction.”
The week had been one of adversity for sure. I appreciated that God would give me a dream to reflect on His faithfulness.
The dream take-away: Saltine crackers symbolized Jesus as the Bread of Life, plus we are called the salt of the earth. (John 6:35, Matthew 5:13) The crackers floating on water–Jesus is called the Living Water. He says, “Whoever believes in me, as Scripture has said, rivers of living water will flow from within them.”—John 7:38.
I grabbed my Jesus Calling devotional, written by Sarah Young. The day’s devotion talked about being joyful amid adversity. God was speaking!
Excited that God was speaking, I wanted to go tell my husband. He was in his office with a friend. As I told my experience, his friend said, “God never talks to me like He does to you. I must not have what it takes to hear from God like you do.”
God speaks to each one of us in the language we best comprehend.
One of my friends once told me that she asked God why He didn’t speak to her as He does to me. And God answered her and said, “Joni is more hard-headed and stubborn. I have to do more to get her attention. I don’t need to do that with you.”
Her words are true. “Sin-ugly” seems too often to rear its ugly head in my life. My husband’s friend got to witness this first hand. As I was telling the two of them my vision and the way God was speaking, my husband interrupted me to show his friend some coupons asking if he wanted any of them. And so there it came…the sin-ugly.
Immediately, I reacted in a way that was embarrassing to me, my husband, and his friend. Adversity. Satan has a way of using those that we love the most to push our buttons, doesn’t he? Yet God’s Word says, “The Lord gives the bread of adversity and the water of affliction.”
Why? Why does God give us adversity and affliction?
The rest of Isiah 30:20 tells us…your teachers will be hidden no more; with your own eyes you will see them. Whether you turn to the right or the left, your ears will hear a voice behind you saying, “This is the way, walk in it.”
Adversity and affliction is to teach us the way in which we should walk.
A pastor opened his message with a story of young twin boys. Boys who were completely opposite of one another in personality and character. One was a pessimist, the other an optimist. With concern, the boys’ parents talked to a psychologist to ask how they might help their boys learn to discern matters with the right perspective. The psychologist suggested for the boys’ next birthday to shower the pessimist with all sorts of gifts, and for the optimist with merely a nicely wrap a large box of manure. It was a test to see if the twins would respond any differently.
Staying true to form, the pessimist complained about every gift he opened. Not the right color. The car didn’t go fast enough. And so on and so on. The optimist opened his gift and began laughing. He told his parents, “You can’t fool me. A box with this much manure has to have a pony in it.”
How many times do we look at our situations with the wrong perspective? God showed me in my dream last night that as of late, I’ve been acting like a pessimist full of complaints.
The Dream…
Scene One: Tom and I were standing in the kitchen of a new home my son had apparently just bought. The kitchen appeared to be three times larger than the size of our home. It was incredibly large, had all the newest, most high-tech appliances available, and was equipped with several cook tops. The countertops were oddly about a foot taller than standard height. I stood at the counter, complaining to my husband about the height. Why would our son buy this house? He doesn’t need a kitchen this size. And these countertops! He’s not a giant. Why would he want these?
Scene Two: We spent the night at the new home and woke to find our son had made and left the two of us a breakfast smorgasbord. He’d made bacon, eggs, sausage, biscuits and gravy, fruit, and smoothies—you name it—he had fixed it. Yet…I complained. Why did he make all this food? There is only the two of us. I can’t even reach the stove-top. I’ll have to get a ladder to fill my plate. And this mess! It’s going to take me all morning to clean it up.
In the dream, my husband responded in his typical fashion. It’s all right. I’ll fill your plate. I’ll get you what you want and help do whatever you need done.
Scene Three: I see my mother in the kitchen holding up a pair of aloe-infused socks. She said, “I came for these.” I remember thinking in the dream: Why would she go to her grandson’s home to get a pair of socks?
After that, I woke up.
Now you may think this is just a weird dream, but not me. I know how God points out my poor behavior. It’s often in dreams. Under the pressure I was under, I had become a person who began complaining about everything. I was complaining about one thing after another. So…God chose a sermon and a dream to show me my perspective was all wrong.
Analyzing the Dream
The house was not our son’s home. It represented God’s house. He dwells with those who abide in Him. Tom and my son were representing attributes of Jesus.
Our son is always doing more than what is necessary. For example, in his high school speech class, instead of just giving his speech, he dressed in costume. In college, not making the school’s baseball team, rather than just joining a league team, he formed a team. Instead of ordering team t-shirts, He went out and secured a sponsor to provide them. This is what God does. He goes above and beyond what is necessary to meet our needs.
Tom represented other attributes of Jesus: loving-kindness, a generous giving spirit, and one who is always willing to serve others.
The high countertop—the one out of reach—represents this journey that I am on with the Immanuel Quilt. Never in a million years would I have dreamed of being called into a traveling ministry or writing a book. Yet look what God has done. He’s made the impossible possible.
What about those socks? Well, they were special socks coated with aloe to soothe the feet. These are the kind of socks that create a sensation of a spa-like experience, which, of course, brings forth peace and tranquility.
Through a dream, I was allowed to see that I needed to change my perspective from that of a pessimist to that of an optimist and ask God to forgive me.
Glitches with the website forced me to call my domain provider for support. What a blessing the call turned out to be!
When the customer service gal pulled up the website, seeing a photo of the Immanuel Quilt, she exclaimed, “Oh my gosh! I know about this quilt!”
Curious, I asked how she knew of the Immanuel Quilt. After all, when you call for support, you have no idea what state or even country your help is coming from. She told me her grandmother, who lives in California, told her about the Immanuel Quilt. A friend had told her grandmother of it, and then in turn, she passed the story on to her granddaughter -in Massachusetts!
I asked her to tell me what she had heard about the quilt, and she proceeded to tell me exactly what it is. What a blessing to learn that from coast-to-coast people are talking about the Immanuel Quilt.
Who will you be sharing the story of the Immanuel Quilt with?
“We will not hide these truths from our children; we will tell the next generation about the glorious deed of the LORD, about his power and his mighty wonders.” -Psalm 78:4 NLT
The sound on my phone went off alerting me to an incoming text. Checking my phone, the message was from Damon. It read: Pray for me.
Damon is a young man that my son Ty met in college. They’ve been friends ever since. A year ago Damon asked if I would be willing to text him a Bible verse each day. This request came after we’d both been to the baby shower hosted for Ty and his wife, Tina. We were both seated at the same table and a conversation began. He told me about his job and I told him about the Immanuel Quilt Ministry.
Soon Damon signed up to receive daily verses and devotions from an app on his phone. I stopped sending daily Scripture to him then, but we continued to check in with one another via his preferred method of communication-texting. Damon is good about periodically sending me messages. This year he was the first one to send me a Happy Mother’s Day message.
Damon had gone out the night before drinking and the guilt and shame was weighing on him. I didn’t know exactly what to pray. Which Name of Jesus was I to call on? Our texting messages went as follows:
Me: Damon have you ever accepted Jesus as your Lord and Savior? If yes, the Lord loves you and forgives you. There is no need for anxiety or guilt when you confess these things to Jesus. Tell me do you need the Peace of God to remind you of His love for you, or are you in need of the Savior because you’ve never given your life to Him?
Damon: I need the Savior.
I’ve shared His Story with the Immanuel Quilt many times, yet I still feel unqualified to lead someone to Jesus. I immediately walked into the other room where my husband Tom was and handed him my phone and said, “Here, take over.” He told me no. Damon trusted me. It was me he had formed a relationship with, me that he trusted. And it was me that needed to present him the opportunity to invite Jesus into his life. Praying first for the Spirit to help me, I grabbed my quilt notes and started typing my next message.
Me: Romans 10:9 says, “If you confess with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart God raised him from the dead you will be saved. Do you believe what John 3:16 says? “For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.”
Damon: Yes. I believe.
After months of receiving the Word of God, the Spirit was convicting Damon of his sin. And just like that, Damon’s texted response saved his soul for life eternal. I was given the privilege to lead a young man to Christ-via a text message! Through Christ-another name was written down in heaven!
Preach the word; be prepared in season and out of season; correct, rebuke and encourage–with great patience and careful instruction. 2 Timothy 4:2
The turn I made onto the familiar county road I have made many, many times. This time however, felt different. Memories flooded my thoughts returning me to my childhood and to a commitment I had made to my Father just six months earlier. I could feel myself trying to hold back the tears of both joy and sadness welling up in my eyes.
So much of my life is rooted along this road; the foundation of my heritage began on this road. My parent’s home, the home where I grew up is on this road. I went through twelve years of school on this road. I went to church on this road. I visited cousins, aunts and uncles and Grandma Pell on this road. Tom and I were married in Grandma’s church seen from this road. As husband and wife we lived on this road; first next to my parents, and then next to Tom’s parents…two places, same road. Our boys spent their earliest years on this road with the privilege of being within a short walk or bicycle ride to their grandparents. So many memories.
It had been in the Fall Dad had given me a purple dress that had belonged to Grandma. The dress was more than forty years old. I try to wear purple whenever I share the Immanuel Quilt and at every presentation I mention the Godly influence Grandma had on my life. Dad and I reminisced about the times the entire Pell clan would get together at her house, which was often.
The clan included nine children and twenty-four grandchildren. Each Sunday whoever would be celebrating a birthday in the upcoming week was invited to Grandma’s house for Sunday dinner, usually fried chicken. The Pell’s gathered on all major holidays and Grandma’s birthday. Additionally, most of us would show up on Sunday evenings in the summer months for home-made ice cream. The “mixture” was made with lots of eggs. Grandma raised chickens – hence the reason for fried chicken and home-made ice cream. My uncles would sit on the screened-in porch each taking a turn at cranking the handle on the freezer to make the ice cream. My cousins and I would catch fire-flies, play tag, or enjoy watching the pigs woller in the mud while we waited for it to be ready to eat. I loved the time playing with my cousins.
Both Dad and I missed those days. I suggested to him that we plan a get together in honor of Grandma; a birthday celebration on what would be her 119th birthday, if she were still alive. He loved the idea and was excited to get everyone together for something other than a funeral. We had already seen so many family members pass away. We hoped we wouldn’t lose anyone else before the day that was dubbed as a “Pell Thing.”
Driving up the familiar road to Grandma’s place I still pass the homes of nine relatives. I noticed each one had freshly mown lawns seemingly in respect to honor Grandma’s special day. I was filled with joy at belonging to such a large and loving family. I was grateful for everyone along this road that had taught me the lessons that shaped me into the person that I am today.
The joyful tears turned to sadness remembering how excited Dad was for this day. He would not be joining us for the “Pell Thing” he had looked so forward to. He had not waited. Instead he was celebrating with Grandma.
It seemed fitting to hold the celebration on the grounds of what was known as the “old place”, part of the farm on which my grandparents lived. The long dirt lane to the “old place” has been topped with gravel. The old barn and log home that used to be there are long gone. Instead these days one can sit on the porch of a newer barn overlooking the pond that still belongs to a Pell. Some may even be able to smell mushrooms popping up in the woods nearby. It is only the railroad tracks separating the property of the old place from the cemetery where Dad and my relatives are buried.
Before my grandparents purchased this farm, they rented it from a relative that my dad was named after, Dr. Glenn Jay Pell. The home in which they lived was actually on the opposite side of the road and south of the lane to the “old place”. It is where my cousin lives now.
It was a beautiful clear, sunny, warm day with a gentle blowing breeze; a perfect day to celebrate Grandma. Many showed up, young and old. Even great-great grandchildren came that she never got to meet. One cute four year old was disappointed it was a party without dancing. Perhaps I should have played Chris Tomlin’s upbeat song, “God’s Great Dance Floor.” Miss Brynn, I believe your Great-Great Grandma was dancing on God’s great dance floor in heaven with your fun-loving Grandpa and my dad, your Great Uncle Jay.
In honor of Grandma I wore her favorite purple dress to the “Pell Thing”. We carried in the foods we remembered her fixing in our childhood…fried chicken, mashed potatoes and noodles. The celebration wasn’t complete without a piece of her signature Angel Food cake she made for nearly every birthday celebration. Of course we had some good ole’ fashioned home-made ice cream to finish off the meal.
God instructs parents to train their children in the way they should go (Proverbs 22:6). Jesus says, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life” (John 14:6). This is the way Grandma taught her children and grandchildren. She told of His power and the wonders He has done (Psalm 78:4). We have a responsibility to pass on the same truth and proclaim the Name of Jesus to the next generation. (Psalm 79:13)
This well-traveled familiar road is symbolic for me. It was the road that kept me on the straight and narrow path where every stop had someone showing me the right way. God had plans for me that I could not have understood then. It is now I can see the significance to that familiar road.
Someday all our bodies will reside on the other side of the track. It will then be too late to share life’s most valuable lessons with our family. The time is now to impress the love of family and the love of the Lord into their hearts.
I am so grateful for the extended family and the amount of time we spent together. I wished my children could experience the bond of a large and loving extended family. I had made a commitment to Dad to get everyone together to celebrate Grandma’s birthday and I was determined to follow through. It would be an afternoon for my boys to experience. As I write these words my memories wrap around the day Dad and I had planned together and once again the tears begin to flow.
Dad’s favorite hymn was “Precious Memories.” My childhood was filled with them. Maybe you didn’t belong to a loving family as I did and have trouble conjuring up any good memories. If you are feeling unloved… it is a lie. Jesus loves YOU! He loves you so much He died for you and He wants to make you part of His family. Those who believe in Jesus Christ become a Child God — a member of God’s family.
The “Pell Thing” was a family reunion. I am certain that all the good memories of the past cannot compare to the glorious reunion that awaits us. If we truly value our families, we will share more than the precious memories of the past…we will share the Hope of the future.
Knowing our eternity will be spent with God is reason to dance.
Dad was always calling to check in and would usually have some funny story to share with me. I couldn’t wait to hear what story he might have about some purple dress. I knew that he certainly had not gone shopping to buy me one. Shopping was not his thing, unless he was buying the newest electronic gadget.
The purple dress had belonged to my Grandma Pell. It was her favorite color, thus, her favorite dress. She had worn it to have her picture taken in 1977 for her 80th birthday.
Dad told me that Grandma’s dress had been found in my aunt’s closet after her death. My aunt’s family thought I might like to have it.
Why did they think I would want a nearly forty-year-old dress?
I knew why, and I was thrilled that they had thought of me.
Grandma holds a very special place in my heart. She was a Godly woman who taught by example. My family lived with her for nearly a year when I was just five years old. I can see how her wise and faithful obedience affected a very impressionable little girl – me.
Every evening, she would let me have a bowl of ice cream, but the rule was that I had to sit at the table to eat it. While I was enjoying the ice cream, she would sit with me, reading her Bible, and then she would pray. She would pray for each of her nine children and twenty-four grandchildren and anyone else who came to her mind. I witnessed this pattern night after night.
Grandma would take me to church with her and also to Ladies Aid. The Ladies Aid would meet at the church and spend the day quilting. They would let me pull the needle up and down through the layers of colorful fabrics. With Grandma, I always felt special.
Purple is the primary color of the Immanuel Quilt. I try to wear purple whenever I travel about to share His Story in this unique quilt. How could my cousins have known this? They had not been to a presentation. They could not have known I mention Grandma and the influence she had on my life most times I speak.
The idea to make the Immanuel Quilt did not start with a dream. God delivered it in a dream. It was quite clear that He wanted me to have a “traveling” ministry. Yet, He knows I have a severe fear of traveling. He was asking for my trusting, radical obedience.
Accepting this call would leave a legacy of truth for my grandchildren, like Grandma had left for me, as to what God can do through the obedience of the faithful. I was encouraged to move forward in obedience at the remembrance of Grandma’s own faith and trust.
The purple dress turned out to be the perfect color of purple – that of the quilt.
The purple dress turned out to be the perfect size – my size.
The purple dress, however, was not the perfect style. It looked old, and I looked like an old lady in it.
Nevertheless, I really wanted to wear Grandma’s dress when sharing the quilt. It would be like she was with me, and she would have loved it. But there was no way I was wearing a dress that made me look older! Surely, Grandma would understand. So, I refashioned, up-styled, and tweaked it a bit.
The purple dress has been transformed, made into something new
Dad never got to see me in his mother’s purple dress. He died shortly after it was given to me. He has now been transformed and made new. In his last hours, I asked that when he got to heaven, he let Grandma know I would be wearing her purple dress. I believe they are both pleased, looking down and smiling.
I will be honored to wear Grandma’s purple dress to Immanuel Quilt presentations. It is a way for me to thank her for the role she had in helping transform me into the person I have become.
My first day out wearing my newly, restyled purple dress was to the hair salon. I removed my coat and the stylist said, “What an adorable dress!”
“You like the dress? Well, do I have a story for you!”
And so, Grandma’s legacy and the story of her purple dress continues.
Can you imagine what Christmas in heaven is like? I am excited Dad is finding out.
Dad won’t be spending Christmas at home with Mom and the rest of the family this year. God called Dad to be with Him.
Dad’s most beloved attribute was his quick-witted sense of humor. It was a gift. He regularly showed his family and friends how important they were to him with phone calls or visits. He cared about people and they knew it. Our Father in heaven shows those he loves how much he cares about them too.
I can only imagine that when Grandma and Grandpa greeted him into heaven he had some quick-witted remark that had them thinking, “That’s our Jay!”
My grandparents took their nine children to church. Grandma was a woman of true faith. Dad was considered the mischievous child so he would have to sit between my grandparents. I understand Grandpa would put his arm around dad pinching his ear if he acted out. Dad came to view church as a place where he got in trouble and he stopped attending as soon as he could. Perhaps you can relate.
Knowing Grandma’s faith though, I am confident she never ceased praying for any of her children. The Lord promises if we train up a child in the way he should go, when he is old he will not depart from it. (Proverbs 22:6) If you are parent still praying for your child, don’t dismay, God is faithful.
Nearly thirty years after Dad had left the church Grandma would see that undoubtedly petitioned prayer for Dad answered. One Sunday, Dad, his brothers, sisters, and their spouses, in honor of Grandma, went to church with her. Dad had thought it may have been after the death of his brother, Doyne. If that was the case Dad would have been 45 years old. The Book of Daniel was being taught. Dad found learning of Christ’s return interesting and he wanted to know more. He wondered how the story would end. So, he went back the next week, and the next.
Weeks later Dad had learned much more of the story. An invitation to accept Christ was given. Dad knew God was calling him to surrender his life to Him, but like many people do, Dad ignored it.
I am so thankful Dad’s story did not end there. He had been running from the Way, Truth and Life his parents had raised him for too long. Later, that very evening, Dad accepted Jesus as his Lord and Savior.
Physically over the years Dad had good days and bad, but overall, he was worn out. He suffered his first heart attack at the age of 50. He later suffered another heart attack plus a couple of strokes. He never expected to live 29 years beyond that first heart attack.
The morning of his death, and the day before, Dad was feeling good. He was being playful and joking with Mom. Along with his good looks, these were the characteristics that had caused her to fall in love with him more than 57 years earlier.
Around noon Mom left to attend a meeting. At 4:00 Dad told my sister in a phone conversation he had a bad headache. Forty minutes later when Mom returned home he told her the same thing. Those were his last words. After speaking them he became unresponsive. He had suffered a brain bleeding stroke and would leave us in a little more than 13 hours.
God tells us that there is a time to be born and a time to die. (Ecclesiastes 3:2) By God’s mercy and grace the final chapter of Dad’s earthly story ended with him entering the happily ever after life – an eternal life with Jesus.
In what I believe was a God-planned engagement, I was going to be sharing the Immanuel Quilt in Fort Wayne that day. I was excited my husband, Tom, was finally getting to attend one of the quilt presentations. I prayed God would send him someone to pray with at the luncheon. I wanted him to experience a blessing. That prayer was answered.
A woman was troubled because her husband did not know the Lord. Little did Tom know when he was praying for her 79 year old husband named Glenn to come to know the Lord, God was preparing to take my 79 year old father, Glenn, home to heaven in just a few short hours. It was an unknown double prayer.
It could very well be Tom’s prayer offered for Glenn at 1:30 p.m., was the time Dad’s threatening headache developed. Dad needed an intercessor and God chose Tom. I believe it was for the purpose to let Dad know he was not alone, and in hindsight, to let us see God had planned it.
Tom and I had just finished a class days earlier that taught how to communicate with the dying. Even though I had sensed an urgency to complete the class, I would not have guessed the urgency would be so I could apply what I had learned in my own father’s final hours. We were able to provide the words that I believe comforted Dad.
Dad has met Jesus face to face. He would want his family and friends to know their life story can have a happy ending. The happy ending is dependent upon accepting the free Gift of God, Jesus Christ.
The greatest Christmas will be our first one spent with Jesus. It is a gift we all have an opportunity to receive and experience now. Won’t you receive it today? Make sure your story has a Happily Ever After Ending.
God’s presence with us is one of His greatest presents to us.
“For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. ~ John 3:16
“If you confess with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead you will be saved.” ~ Romans 10:9
“…you yourselves are God’s temple and God’s Spirit lives within you.” ~ 1 Corinthians 3:16
