Remind her she is loved

In 2005, I had been married to my high school sweetheart for 10yrs. 

In 2005, Hurricane Rita left us without power for 3wks.

In 2005, we found out that we would be adding baby number 4 to our family....and it would be pink. 

In 2005, Hurricane Katrina rocked the US gulf coast on a disastrous scale. 

In 2005, I received one of the most devastating phone calls in all my adult years. 

It was a Sunday morning. As preschool director with a worship leading husband, we were no doubt......perpetually late. There. I said it. We were always late. This particular morning though, we were zooming right along, ready to walk out the door - are you ready for it? - EARLY. Tada! It was then that the phone rang. 

Having experienced only one other call on a Sunday morning, the morning my Papaw went Home, I felt a twinge of panic. It was my best friend calling at such an odd hour. 
I recognized her voice on the other end but could tell that she had been crying. All that I could make out was, "They can't find daddy....." followed by sobs & indistinguishable noises. Then her dear husband took the phone. He relayed what she had not been able to. There had been a boating incident, her daddy was overboard, & a search for him had begun. 

Perhaps in one of my most regretted moments, I didn't go to her then. I went on to church, after being assured that they were going to meet with her brother & sister and that he would call me as soon as they knew something. But that morning I couldn't think about anything else. My best friend. Her hero. My heart sank. 

The few days that followed were absolutely gut wrenching. I did go to her. Sat with her. Cried with her. Waited for him to call & say he was ok. But that call would never come. The news that followed was even harder to bear. He was gone; He was Home. 

I felt so helpless to say something that would ease her pain. I had no words. As I cried myself to sleep the next few days, all I found myself pleading, "God, remind her that she is loved...." It was all that I had. 

At the visitation she & her siblings were surrounded by people that loved & cared for them. So many so that I couldn't even edge close to her, nor did I think the two of us could handle it that night. As we began to make our way to the door, having not been able to hug her, I whispered in her husband's ear, "Remind her she is loved. I will be here when all these people are gone." I remember him squeezing me extra tight as if he knew what I was trying to say.

And so a lifetime of praying that very thing began. If you've ever asked me to pray for you, your friend or loved one, know that I've cried those bitter tears & uttered the same thing.....

When she's overwhelmed & doesn't understand, God, remind her that she is loved.

When she's saying goodbye for the very last time, Lord, remind her that she is loved. 

When she's sitting in that hospital room, holding her baby tight, God, remind her that she is loved. 

When the test results come back with the sting of bad news, Lord, remind her that she is loved. 

When the sickness the cure causes overwhelms her being, Father please, remind her that she is loved. 

When addiction takes hold & he loses his way, Lord, remind him that he is loved. 

When he walks out the door & doesn't look back, God, remind her that she is loved. 

When she lays both of her brothers to rest, Lord, remind her that she is loved. 

When she's standing at my backdoor with her whole life ahead of her, before she even knows Your name, remind her that she is loved. 

When ends don't meet
When hits keep coming
When storms keep raging
Lord, remind them that they are treasured by You. Remind them of Your faithfulness & goodness. Remind them that You hold them in the palm of Your hand & You see them there, in that crushing pain. Remind them that they are loved.

May your unfailing love be with us, Lord,
even as we put our hope in you. Psalm 33:22