I absolutely love sharing our Memorial Box stories.  When God told the Isrealites to build a stone memorial in a certain spot to remind them of His faithfulness, He did that for many reasons….

1.  He knew just how forgetful they were!

2.  He knew that when they remembered His past acts, they would know He would come through again.

3.  It would build their faith. 

4.  It would build their children’s faith.

5.  It would build their children’s children’s faith.

6.  It would build our faith, as we remember.

7.  It sets an example for all of us about remembering His faithfulness presently in our lives.

And so it is when I share our Memorial Box Monday stories.

I have mentioned this before, but really. Seriously.  Truly.  

There have been some pretty awful moments in our lives, that the Lord has said, “What’s in your Memorial Box?”  Now the thing is, not all situations have turned out just like we planned.  But we have seen God’s faithful and loving fingertips all through them!!  He loves us that much!

Can you imagine if God just had allowed us to come into relationship with us, and then left us high and dry?  Oh.my.  How would we function?  But we have a living and real God who wants to interact with us daily.  He wants us to trust Him. He wants us to lean on Him.  He wants us to remember not just who He is, but what He is.  He is completely faithful.  Always has been.  Always will be.  He is the strongest protector – unfathomable to Hollywood!  He is the provider with endless resources.  He is the strong tower.  He is the only refuge worth running to! 

And Amy Murphy, sure did laugh when I read your comment on the last post…you have a very valid point, but gonna’ go for it anyway…. 

This Memorial Box story goes back to just about 15-1/2 years ago.  Graham was a tiny baby.  He was about 6 weeks old.  Emma was 19 months old. 

Two babies {really} and one of them newborn.  We were busy and life was filled with wonderful memories.  Just 3-1/2 weeks before Dw had celebrated his 40th birthday.  His friends had shown up at our home and blindfolded him.  They then threw him {almost literally} in the back of a car.  They drove him all over creation and finally ended up at an undisclosed location.  

They then pushed him into a wheelchair and ushered him into a wonderful surprise party thrown just for his 40th.  They had an IV for him.  They had black balloons.  Presents were hemorrhoid ointments and Depends.  It was such fun!

Just four weeks later I had gotten up early to do a little yard saleing.  I took Emmy with me.  We went to a few and headed home to get everyone fed and ready for the day.

As I opened the front door and stepped inside with Emma in my arms I heard Dw’s voice call from the back family room, “Take the baby.  Someone take the baby.”  His voice was frantic.  I dropped Emma and ran for the back room.  I still feel panicky as I recall that moment.  I knew something was tragically wrong….

As I rounded the corner into the family room there was Dw, on his knees, Graham in his hands, reaching Graham’s tiny little body into the air.  Dw had not known I had just come in the door.  But as I looked for that split second, I realized there was something very wrong with my husband.  

I said, “Dw, Dw, what’s wrong?”  He said, “The room is going dark.”  I could see in his eyes the strangest look I had ever seen a human have.  He said the room shrunk into a narrow visual field.  I lifted Graham from him.   Something was wrong.  

I really can’t remember what happened next, but do know that eventually Dw and I tried to get him upstairs to get dressed.  I said, “I think I better take you to the hospital.”  His right side was not cooperating at all.  

Somehow we managed to get out to the van.  I gathered the kids and put them in the car.  Abigail was eleven and Tyler was eight. I knew very few people and didn’t want to try to figure out who to call in this new city.

I drove him to Matthews Presbyterian and went inside with him. I told them the situation and gave them a pager we owned.  I said, “Please page me when you need me or if he needs me.”  I drove around and around that parking lot, trying to keep the kids settled. They were anxious as they also knew something was really wrong.  It was sooo stressful!

I finally called an older couple from church and asked if they could watch the kids. I drove home and met them.  Graham, who I was nursing , stayed with me.

Before long the hospital realized that Dw needed to be transferred to Presbyterian in uptown Charlotte. They transported by ambulance.  It was surreal.  Just weeks before we had celebrated his 40 years and all of a sudden our lives were changing rapidly.

I remember late at night driving home with teeny Graham thinking about it all. We were far from Buffalo, where our family and close friends lived.  I felt such vulnerability .  They didn’t exactly know yet what was wrong with Dw either…but were wondering if he might have even had a  small stroke?

I couldn’t imagine being a widow.  I was only 37.   The reality of what could have been hit hard as I drove home late that night from the hospital.  The couple left.  I thanked them profusely.

I went up to the laundry closet to put a load of wash in. I think I was in shock.  I couldn’t even think.   I wondered who would watch them tomorrow. What if the hospital called in the middle of the night and needed me?  Really.  It was so scary.

As I was putting clothes in the washer, all of a sudden, something banged into my bee-hind…I whipped around and there was a fellow senior pastor’s wife, Shari Bankhead.  She had a little flower in her hand and something like, “There’s coffee, there’s tea, but how about me?”

Unbeknownst to me, word had traveled all over the United States about Dw.   Shari, my dear friend, had traveled down late at night to be with me and the kids.  She said,  “I’m here in case you need to go to the hospital in the middle of the night.”  I cried.  What a precious friend.

 Before long a very nasty lady called our home. She attended our church and she said some very yuky stuff to me about Dw’s prognosis.  That day Shari and another set of precious friends {Greg and Teri Laskowski – they were on our staff} decided that Teri and Greg would move in with me until Dw came home.   They would care for the kids AND always answer my phone in case that yuky lady called again.

As I look back on that season of our lives, I am forever grateful for caring friends who sacrificially ministered to us.  They surely will have giant jewels in their crown for the love they showed us!!

Over the next several days it was decided that Dw had suffered a TIA.  His feeling eventually returned on his right side. He came home, but was exhausted beyond anything.  He slept large amounts of the day.  He was so weak.

Finally my soul mate and sweet husband, Dw, returned to normal….but there’s more to the story….and that will, Lord willing, be my next Memorial Box Monday post.

As far as that lady from church?  She really was nasty. What she said was cruel. She didn’t like us pastoring there.  She wanted us gone {and was hoping his illness would leave permanent damage}.   Seriously, can you believe the audacity of people sometimes?  A few months after Dw’s hospitalization, she up and left our church.

We summed up her leaving in two simple words:   Blessed Subtraction. =)

Please link your story below.  If you are unsure how or what to do, please read this.  Can’t wait to read your stories….they will encourage me today!!

If you just saw the Mcklinky all messed up – so glad I checked the post after publishing….who knows what happened with that!! So here it is fixed!!