As I sit here in the office and think of all the things I have to do today and tomorrow and throughout the week to prepare for Monthly Mission Ministries trip to Florida and Georgia leaving Friday. I am also thinking of the things I need to complete for work, MMM, and the Appalachian Trail. On top of all of this I believe that I am almost clear of all my mucus and other cold weather classics that have attacked me over the last two weeks. So I thought that since God gave me to the world on this day 26 years ago that I could at least give a pint of myself back to Him and to someone He knows will need it. So as I left the office to go give blood I realized that I had not had anything to eat and in anticipation of passing out without any food on my stomach I stopped at my new favorite place to eat "Jimmy Johns." So as I walked in I remembered that I gave my last $30 cash to my sister as a Christmas gift so she could get her car out of the shop. I also remembered that I only have $8 or so in my checking account...so...what was I going to do. I figured I could transfer $10 of my $11 in savings to checking and cover this sandwich I needed to eat. When I get to the counter I started a conversation about how COLD and WINDY it is outside and they told me there names Lauren, Zamos, and Alex. She then said I had just earned a free sandwich. Now I am not sure how I managed to do this...but sure enough she gave me my sandwich and drink for free. So I proceeded to thank them and hope that God would bless them because they don't know what this would mean to me. So as I left I thanked God for the free sandwich and drink and that he knows my heart.
After leaving Jimmy John's I went to Coliseum Drive to the American Red Cross to donate blood. As I sat in the car and ate half the sandwich as to prepare myself for losing a pint of blood. I thought..."how wonderful is our God!" Soon after signing in at the Red Cross my name was called by a nurse named Darlean. As she first started checking me into the system, making sure my address was still the same and all my information correct. I told her that all my mail was still going to my brothers house because I was living at the church I worked for and this is were our conversation really started.
She proceeded to tell me that it was fantastic to see a young man working for Christ...but over the years she had lost faith because of all the circumstances life has thrown at her and her family. Her husband had just survived his third heart attack which steams from stress of unemployment even though he has a masters degree in business, stress of not providing for his family, stress of his deterioration of health, development of type 1 diabetes, and knowing that he went from $150,000 a year to $0. As Darlean continued to prick my finger and test my blood pressure she continued about her daughter who is 22 and just got out of rehab and has been clean for half a year. Her daughter has a daughter of her own who is 4 and Darlean and her husband are helping to raise. Darlean and her husband also have a 14 year old son. She said "it is very hard to keep the faith when you keep asking God for a break and it never comes even though I know that there are people worse off than us." I told her "just keep praying to God and than when the time is right he will reward our faithfulness." I proceeded to tell her what had happened to me at Jimmy John's and that God works even when we least expect it. "God has not left you, He is near, just call on Him and love Him"
As she told me that my blood pressure and heart rate were perfect...she said my stress level must be non-existant. I said "I am only one person, I can only control one person and that is ME. And half the time I can't even control me. So for me to get stressed out about factors I can not control would yield no good." So as she left the room for me to fill out my questions I skipped one because I was not sure if Mussinex contained Tyonal in it. So when she came back I told her that I am just getting over a sickness of two weeks and she said that I would not be able to give today. But she believed God had sent me to her for a reason.
Please Pray for Darlean, Scott, Brittany, Brandon, and Jada...also pray for Lauren, Zamos, and Alex...it is funny how God has us all connected, even when we don't connect the dots.
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