Reminders (03/24/2025)

It was the towel on top in my drawer. I pulled it out to use and saw the ribbon and the words “Fight like a girl.” I smiled. I love it when I get reminders of how the LORD has been with me and of the gifts the LORD has given me. I’m an adult sufferer of ADHD, I believe. My mind can go a hundred miles an hour with several white knuckle turns and then there it is – a word or a symbol. And suddenly I am still for a moment – remembering.

And I do remember the journey. I remember the fear. I remember the tests. I remember the diagnosis. I remember my husband’s unbelievable presence and patience. I remember the doctors. I remember the multiple surgeries. And I remember that through it all, I was never alone. And I think of all the women who have walked this walk as well, not all of them as fortunate as me. I say a prayer for them and for those around them. I also say a prayer for me that I will never forget the experience nor the lessons it taught me.

I love reminders of the LORD’s love revealed through His power and presence at work in my life. I love reminders that call me back to parts of the journey so I can savor the LORD’s loving care. It’s why I have that towel. It’s why I carry a pocket cross daily. I need reminders on bad days; I need reminders on good days. I need reminders that I do not go alone. The LORD is with me. And the LORD has sent others to accompany me along the way.

I think of the popular poem from years ago about the man on a walk who questions why the LORD wasn’t there – there was only one set of footprints. The answer was that the LORD was there – carrying the man. How many times in my life the LORD carried me! I need reminders. I suspect the LORD has carried us all for a bit even though we may not realize it.

Today is my daughter’s birthday. Today, as I celebrate her life and the gift she is to me and to our family and to friends, I thank the LORD for His power and presence at work in her life from the very beginning. I recognize that she has had much to deal with through the years, but the LORD has blessed her abundantly and all of us through her. She is another reminder to me of the LORD’s loving power and presence.

Reminders help me. I can forget. I can think I’m doing this alone. I can think I am doing it by myself. I need reminders not just for my humility – no – I need them for my hope. We can do a great deal in life during difficult circumstances but we need hope. And reminders like my towel assure me I have cause for hope.

Until tomorrow, let us all love well.