God's Love

Meg- Maybe words can describe somethings, but today I feel like they can't. Fletch and I agree that what happened only happens to other people, heard in storybooks with surprises and happy endings.
How God orchestrates things to the smallest detail, is spellbinding. How every angle is covered and purposeful. Deliberatly incorporating many people, each with a story so deeply personal and moving, and never realizing the affect it could have on someone else.
Church today was different, because the first story was that of our Paster and his wife. Right before church they rushed to the ER,because something was not right with his wife. Therefore our church would not have the normal time period filled with a message. Inpromptto it was decided instead that it would be a time to share God's love through different people's testimonies and encouragements. So there was an open mike.
Fletch was squirming in his chair and was extremely uncomfortable with the thoughts whirling through his head.
This is where the second story starts. Immediately when it was asked to share about God's love, Fletch thought about his Mom. I think I could hear his heart pounding as battled whether or not to go up to the mike. He told Aaron and I that he didn't know if he should go up or not.
By the nudging of the Spirit for sure, he found his way up to the mike.
He spoke of how his parents were loving Christ and pregant with a third baby. He shared how his Dad had come home from the hospital alone. How his faith and walk with God grew because the church loved him and carried him and his two boys through such a devasting time. The role of the church is to love and carry one another, that was Fletch's point.
I've never seen Fletch so openly emotional in front of so many people. With having a baby of our own, he put himself in his dad's shoes, things seemed more real, more devastaing, and I know God used this moment to do a lot of healing from the hurt Fletch has known and not known he's endured from loosing his Mom.
Just before Fletch sat down, another man came up and asked him to say his name.
And this is where the third story begins.
After church was dismissed Fletch was immediatly tapped on the shoulder by a woman we didn't know. She asked him what his Mom's name was, he said, "Nancy", and she began to sob. She had recognized the story, and Fletch sharing his last name was the clincher. This woman, Diana was one of the nurses caring for Nancy the day she died. She was there for everything. When she finished saying that, it was as if the world momentarily paused, until that fact sunk in. Emotion was unleashed as Fletcher broke down being held in the arms of this woman. Dry eyes were not to be seen within a few foot radius of where we were. Anyone that knew what was going on was in tears.
Diana said she nearly fell out of her seat when she was sitting in church and put the two together. She explained that she and the other nurses were so dramatically affected by that experience, not only because it was absolutely devasting but because of Fletch's Dad. The love he had for his wife, the words he used to describe her, and the peace he had throughout the day. Diana knew the names of all the nurses, the doctor, and explained to Fletch the exact reason his Mom died. Which, up until this point, Fletch only had a vaque explaination of. Diana was not a Christian then, but briefly explained that this was part of her story to knowing Christ.

For Fletch, it is like a part of the mystery and detail of his Mom's story is being unveiled. Even better, is how God used something aweful in all of these stories to bring something good. Clarification to Fletch, the Church loving Fletch's Dad and him being strengthend in his faith, life in eternity for Diana, and the opportunity to even share about his mom- to meet Diana, because of our Pastor's wife (she is ok).
Healing for Fletch his brother and his dad. Twenty-two years later after Nancy's story ended and healing seemed to take place.. its all opening back up. For a greater reason? To be sure.