This week was really rough, at the beginning of the week, my parents house was auctioned off on the courthouse steps. My youngest son celebrated his thirteenth birthday, without his Grandmother. It has been tough on the whole family.
Not just losing Mom, but not knowing the truth about how she died. Knowing that she spent her last hours in such a terrible place as Hendersonville Health and Rehabilitation.
Today, I was going through my old emails and found one from my Mother. It was dated November 3 2010, Mom died on November 3, 2011. I am sharing it here. There is a prayer at the end of the email, please take a moment to read down to the end. I will do my best to say this prayer each morning.
The
Quilt Hole
As I faced my Maker at
the last judgment, I knelt before the
Lord along with all the other souls.
Before each of us laid our
lives like the squares of a quilt
in many piles; an angel sat before each of us sewing
our quilt squares
together into a tapestry that is our life.
But as my angel took each
piece of cloth off the pile, I
noticed how ragged and empty each of my squares
was. They were filled
with giant holes. Each square was labeled
with a part of my life that
had been difficult, the challenges and temptations I
was faced with in
every day life. I saw hardships that I endured,
which were the largest
holes of all.
I glanced around me.
Nobody else had such squares. Other
than a tiny hole here and there, the other
As I faced my Maker at
the last judgment, I knelt before the
Lord along with all the other souls.
Before each of us laid our
lives like the squares of a quilt
in many piles; an angel sat before each of us sewing
our quilt squares
together into a tapestry that is our life.
But as my angel took each
piece of cloth off the pile, I
noticed how ragged and empty each of my squares
was. They were filled
with giant holes. Each square was labeled
with a part of my life that
had been difficult, the challenges and temptations I
was faced with in
every day life. I saw hardships that I endured,
which were the largest
holes of all.
I glanced around me.
Nobody else had such squares. Other
than a tiny hole here and there, the other
Tapestries
were filled with
rich color and the bright hues of worldly
fortune. I gazed upon my own
life and was disheartened.
My angel was sewing the ragged
rich color and the bright hues of worldly
fortune. I gazed upon my own
life and was disheartened.
My angel was sewing the ragged
pieces
of cloth together,
threadbare and empty, like binding air.
Finally the time came when
each life was to be displayed, held
up to the light, the scrutiny of truth. The
others rose; each in turn,
holding up their tapestries. So filled their
lives had been. My angel
threadbare and empty, like binding air.
Finally the time came when
each life was to be displayed, held
up to the light, the scrutiny of truth. The
others rose; each in turn,
holding up their tapestries. So filled their
lives had been. My angel
looked
upon me and nodded for me to rise.
My
gaze dropped to the ground
in shame. I hadn't had all the
earthly fortunes. I
had love in my life andin shame. I hadn't had all the
laughter. But there had
also been trials of illness and wealth, and false
accusations that took
from me my world, as I knew it. I had to start
over many times. I
often struggled with the temptation to quit, only to
somehow muster the
strength to pick up and begin again. I spent
many nights on my knees in
prayer, asking for help and guidance in my life.
I had often been held
up to ridicule, which I endured painfully, each time
offering it up to
the Father in hopes that I would not melt within my
skin beneath the
judgmental gaze of those who unfairly judged me.
And now, I had to face the
truth. My life was what it was,
and I had to accept it for what it was.
I rose and slowly lifted the
combined squares of my life to
the light.
An awe-filled gasp filled the
air. I gazed around at the
others who stared at me with wide eyes.
Then, I looked upon the
tapestry before me. Light flooded the
many holes, creating an image, the face of
Christ. Then our Lord stood
before me, with warmth and love in His eyes. He
said, 'Every time you
gave over your life to Me, it became My life, My
hardships, and My
struggles.
Each point of light in your
life is when you stepped aside and
let Me shine through, until there was more of Me than
there was of you.'
May all our quilts be
threadbare and worn, allowing Christ to shine through!
God determines who walks into
your life...it's up to you to
decide who you let walk away, who you let stay and who
you refuse to let go.'
God is all you need.
Father, bless all my family
and friends in whatever it is that
you know they may need this day! And may their
life be full of your
peace, prosperity and power as he/she seeks to have a
closer relationship with you. Amen.
