Have you ever had one of those days that you just knew was completely orchestrated by God, from the very beginning? Not that all days aren’t. But on occasion, there are times when you absolutely know you are in the right place at the right time to receive a blessing especially from Him.
I had one of those days on Saturday. And I want to tell you about it.
The story begins several years ago, with a group of amazing women (and Steve). A group of friends with one main thing in common…..homeschooling. And through years of sharing, praying, encouraging, struggling, hoping, and loving, become a family. And as we all know, when one member of the family suffers, we all do. This is definitely how the Five in a Row family operates.
Within the FIAR family is a kind, devoted momma, named Fran. When Fran joined the family, she was beginning to homeschool her preschool daughter, Emma. We soon found out that Fran had recently been on another journey….the journey to beat breast cancer. She was at the time cancer-free and loving life. Everyone fell in love with her devotion to Jesus, her devotion to her husband Ed, and her devotion to Emma. She soon became devoted to her new family as well, and they to her.
About a year ago, Fran’s family welcomed a new member, Eden. Eden was a precious little 4 year old, with special needs, but her greatest need of all was for a family. And now she had one…..that devoted mommy became her mommy, too. And equally as in love with her, her new daddy and big sister. There were also 3 grown brothers to love on her.
Soon after Eden’s adoption became final, and 4 1/2 years since Fran had been told she was cancer-free, the unimaginable happened. The cancer was back….and it had returned with a vengeance. In just 3 months, it took the life of this precious momma.
As you can imagine, her family was devastated. Both of them. Most of her FIAR family had never even met her, but they loved her and her Ed, Emma, and Eden. In our own grief, we needed a way to comfort them.
And so began the quilting project.
This wouldn’t be the first time the FIAR family had made quilts for a suffering family after loss. There have been several in the past few years. Losses of mommies, losses of precious baby boys and girls. But like I said before, when one member of a family suffers, the rest do, too. Creating a tangible, meaningful, heartfelt gift is cathartic for everyone involved. It would be no different in Fran’s case.
So Christy spear-headed the quilting project this time. Many wonderful ladies contributed quilt squares, materials, batting, and money to help. Christy found amazing women who volunteered to piece and quilt 3 quilts. With loving hearts, women who were not previously a part of the family became a part. They prayed, and cried, and were themselves touched by the story of Fran merely by working on quilts for her husband and girls.
Which brings me to Saturday. Because Fran lived near me, and Christy is not too far away, I was given the precious privilege of going with Christy and her daughter, Kaity, to deliver the quilts to Ed and the girls.
I’ll be honest, I was a little nervous. I had met Ed and knew he was a sweet, sensitive man. And Emma is so young, I wasn’t sure she would understand what we were doing. But we covered the day in prayer and made the drive to their home. I’ll link to a blog post from Christy, so you can read more of the details of the visit and how Christy was affected by Saturday. There’s no need for me to repeat all of that.
But what is necessary for me to say is that this was surely one of those moments that God orchestrated completely, not just to bless and provide comfort for Ed and the girls, but also to reach into the heart of 2 women and a teenager and change us. I would venture a guess, the same happened for Ed, too. And sweet Emma. Fran would have cried. The rest of us sure did. I have no idea if people in heaven have a clue about what’s going on down here on earth. But I hope Fran saw it.
The grace, humility, love, and warmth I experienced on Saturday is unmatched in my lifetime. Jesus was there. His presence was palpable. That nervousness I felt was quickly replaced by peace. Peace that passes understanding.
I will never be the same.
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