80

Before

For almost four years I tried every remedy I could think of to get rid of a very irritated spot on the inside of my thumb.  OTC lotions, prescription creams, essential oils.  Sometimes it looked as though it was starting to heal, but never beyond this point.

After

One day I was surprised to notice an unexpected change. Whether it was the effect of a new hand cream I was using or not I'll never know, but within a couple of weeks it had completely disappeared. 

79

My miracle geranium that got resurrected from the one small stem with a couple of unaffected leaves on it that I managed to salvage after the stinkbugs destroyed the rest of the plant several years ago, had been growing and flourishing until I brought it in from the balcony for the winter this year. 

Usually it does as well on the window sill as it does outside, but this time, its leaves started falling off, and all the buds dried up and died.  I couldn't figure out what happened.

Even though it looked like a goner, I kept watering it, always careful not to touch it lest even more leaves fall off. And then, suddenly, when I least expected it, new buds started to appear and it started thriving again.  A good reminder to never give up, because nothing is impossible with God.

78

The shin bones my friend gave me to make bone broth with turned out to have a lot of meat attached to them, which resulted in an even richer tasting soup.

77

Very grateful that I did not fall or break a leg as my foot got tangled up in the straps of my knapsack when I hastily got up to answer a knock at the prayer room door at church.

76

Felt led to buy an adult coloring book and colored pencils for a friend, and carried it around with me to church for a couple of weeks in hopes I would see her, but I didn't--not until this evening at a group I went to.  As it turned out, the timing couldn't have been better, and was surely engineered by the Lord who knew today would be her birthday, and this would be the only gift she would get. 

75

Couldn't find the label that belonged in the first tab of this notebook, and couldn't remember what it would have been, but I kept feeling prompted to look in the box I had taken it out of, so I finally did, and there it was--"God's Grace."

74

Made a meal for one of our church members today, and took the address and directions to my car with the first load, but when I came down with the rest of the meal, I couldn't find it.

I was running late, so I didn't want to take time to look it all up again, and prayed that I would find her house without my slip of paper.  (I had been there once before several weeks earlier.)

When I got to where I thought it was, but wasn't 100% sure, her two boys came running out to the car, which let me know that I was in the right place.  And then later, I got an e-mail from their mom, saying that it was the best shepherd's pie they had ever had, and the boys loved it.

73

Met a young man in my building who saw me coming home from church carrying my board testimony. He wanted to read what it said. I told him about our board testimony service, and how he could watch it on Livestream.  I also invited him to come visit our church some time, and when I told him what church it was, he said he had been on the construction crew of its new building. He put the church's app on his phone, and said he was going to watch the service on Livestream right away.  Lord speak to his heart, overwhelm him with an outpouring of your love and grace, and draw him back to you if he has strayed.

72

Discovered that I can do data entry on my new computer while sitting on my bed with my back propped up and my feet up, and besides being much more comfy than sitting at my desk, it also goes much faster as I don't have to keep leaning forward after each entry to check off my tally sheet.

71

Went to the crafts store to return magnets I purchased that were too big.  Was going to buy more of the smaller ones and use the 40% off coupon they had given me with my original purchase. The cashier said the coupon wasn't good until tomorrow, so I went to put the package I was going to get back and buy a smaller one instead.  On the way to the rack, I saw a floor person standing there, and half kiddingly mentioned I couldn't believe I had driven all the way here from my town just to use a coupon that wasn't good until tomorrow. He told me they had online specials every day, and took time to look up what today's special was on his cell phone. It turned out to be 50%, which was even better, and he then had the cashier scan it off his phone so I wouldn't have to try and find it on mine.

68-70

"And let us not be weary in well doing: for in due 
season we shall reap, if we faint not."
(Galatians 6:9)


Not that this has anything to do with well doing (I don't think), but after over three years of never ever getting any of my shots on the 365Project Popular Page--no matter how many "favorites" they received--three in a row just made it.

67

Surprise e-mail from someone who found my photo blog by chance, left a nice comment about how it had blessed her, and shared the link to it on her blog.

63-66

My out of town friend's visit was filled with glimpses of God's grace.

For starters, it was nice to have someone to do things with for a whole week.

Then the day we went to Harpers Ferry, it was cloudy and breezy, which made the heat and humidity bearable, plus we also got to do a lot of sitting on the tour, which enabled me to be able to keep up with my her without my back hurting much.

While we were on the shuttle from the parking lot to the park, I saw the heron my Harpers Ferry friend had been posting pictures of on Facebook, and when my daughter met us and was driving us back to the parking lot, the heron was still there, so she pulled over, and I was able to get some nice pictures of it.

The day we had planned our outing to Blue Ridge Conservation Center, the forecast was for rain and thunderstorms, but even though the sky looked threatening when we set out, it cleared and became blue while we walked along the trail, and once again, I was able to keep up with my friend, there was a nice breeze that made the heat and humidity bearable, and it didn't start raining until long after we got home.

62

My granddaughter posted to Facebook that her records at the hospital were incorrect when she went in for her surgery this morning.  There was no record of her allergies, nor of the fact that she had a pacemaker.

I had already prayed for her, but after reading her post I prayed again and asked for the Lord to protect her and keep her safe from any harm, and to guide the hands and intellect of the surgeon and everyone else in attendance.  As I was praying, I saw Jesus bending over this granddaughter and performing the surgery himself.

It wasn't long before my daughter sent out a group text letting us know that the surgery was over, had been much shorter than anticipated, and that the results were looking good.  Thank you, Jesus!

61

Got stuck in traffic behind an accident on my way to the doctor. Then when traffic started moving again, I made a wrong turn and wound up getting lost.  I called the office to ask if I should come in anyway, or just reschedule.  They told me to come in, and I arrived 20 minutes late. It all worked out perfectly though because the person scheduled after me had come in really early, and so they got to go first.

60

Was going to buy a Windows 8 upgrade for my computer, and a new hard drive to be able to do the conversion required by the company I work for, but decided, on the spur of the moment, to call my manager first and ask him if he thought it would be more cost effective to go ahead and do this or to buy a cheap new computer. Good thing I called first, because come to find out my XP computer cannot be upgraded.

59

Couldn't decide what to serve some out of town friends who were coming for lunch on Friday.  Then I got a call from someone who had a truckload of surplus food he had picked up and was looking to give away.  Decision made--spaghetti, french rolls, and blueberry cobbler.


Loaded up my car with blueberries, yellow squash, artisan bread and rolls, eggplant, peppers, turkey roast, chicken wings--enough to share with several neighbors and friends, and still have enough to stock my own refrigerator and freezer.

One neighbor gave me some cans of tomato sauce to use in my spaghetti sauce, and another neighbor gave me some milk for a blueberry muffins recipe I wanted to try, so I didn't have to go out and buy these missing ingredients.  Then I made such a large batch of spaghetti sauce, there was more than enough to share.
 

 In order to free up space in my freezer, I posted an offer on Freecycle for a very large box of turkey bacon that I knew I wouldn't use, and a young lady responded almost immediately.  As it turned out, she just happened to be the daughter of the man who had called me about the surplus food he was giving away.  Does God have a sense of humor or what?

58

I've been feeling so down about myself lately, and feeling as though all I do is say and do the wrong things and turn people away, and that I've even turned a neighbor I've been trying to reach out to away, by coming across as pushy and meddlesome, like for going down to the office where she and the other tenants from her building had been evacuated during the fire, and then asking the firemen to help carry her daughter to the apartment for her so she could have free hands to put her daughter's wheelchair back into the trunk of her car.  I thought I was annoying her with all my "checking in" on her texts and that's why she hadn't responded about the keyboard I wanted to give her for the kids.  I felt sure she didn't want it, but just didn't know how to let me know in a nice way.  But God's timing is perfect.  Just when I was in the midst of my darkest moments, she texted me to say the kids would love to have it if it wasn't too late,  and also to thank me for being there for them during the fire and helping calm her and the kids down.

57

From the time we picked seats at the Cafe on Saturday and were surprised to find we were sitting practically next to each other, to the time some of us went up to  the front of the sanctuary after the last service tonight to say goodbye to members of the team who had come to conduct the revival, I kept bumping into a church member who had offended me, everywhere I turned. It had to be a God thing devised to heal any bad feelings I might still be harboring,  because by the end of the evening, I actually felt genuine warmth and camaraderie towards her, and could sense the Lord smiling down on me.  

56

Couldn't figure out how to put a new dust bag in my vacuum cleaner.  I knew my neighbor could help me, but she's hardly ever here anymore.  However, as I was on my down the stairs this afternoon, the front door opened, and she walked in.  A Divine appointment for sure.

55

When I got home from tonight's revival session, there was a text message from my daughter telling me that my grandson was home, as well as two beautiful and encouraging messages on Facebook from the lady I had met at Harpers Ferry.  One in particular, that was a response to my Mothers Day post brought tears to my eyes and an overwhelming sense of God's love. 

54

Tonight's message about cultivating a humble heart, the story of Naaman (2 Kings 5:1-19), and how the greatest trials can become stepping stones to the greatest blessings when we surrender all, gave me so much hope and a new way to pray for my two grandchildren facing heavy issues. When I went into the prayer room to pray for them, I had an overwhelming sense of God being in control and that everything would be all right.

53

Because of an unintentional detour on the way to the parking lot at Harper's Ferry, got to meet a special lady who showed me a nest of bald eagles.

52

Very inspired by this autobiography of Oswald Chambers (Abandoned to God) that a neighbor loaned me.

51

"He knows, He loves, He cares, nothing this truth can dim, 
He gives His very best to those who leave the choice with 
Him." --  (Source Unknown)

Unexpected book reviews on Amazon written by two friends, and a request from one of them to review it on her blog. Truly my biggest blessings come when I'm not looking for them or trying to make them happen. 

50

On a whim, I stopped in at the Appalachian Readiness store on my way to deliver books elsewhere, the owner was very happy to take a couple on consignment.

49

Couldn't find my keys when my friend dropped me off after a dinner we had been to.  I thought maybe they had fallen out of my bag while I was getting it out of the back of her car, but she had driven off by then and I didn't have any phone numbers with me--or my cell phone--so I walked up to my apartment wondering what to do, and hoping maybe if I dumped out the contents of the bag they would miraculously appear.  When I got to my door, the keys were in the knocker. By the grace of God, they were found by someone who knew who they belonged too.  Maybe the neighbor I had been talking to while waiting for my friend to pick me up?  I must have dropped them when I was putting the mail in my bag, or perhaps left them dangling in the keyhole of the mailbox?

48

For the very first time in  almost three years, one of my pictures made it to the 365Project Popular Page.

47

One of the ravens was in the courtyard, and flitting from building to building, making sounds I've only read about but never heard. A soft tok-tok-tok, and something that sounded like an imitation of another bird.

46

Went to the grocery store to make an even exchange, and wound up getting $4 and change back. When I told the lady at the customer service desk that I wasn't owed any money, she was very insistent that I was.

45

Although I wasn't able to see the blood moon this morning because of the clouds, I saw the biggest, brightest, most amazing rainbow I have ever seen.  It seemed to encircle the whole sky.

44

"In everything give thanks; for this is 
God's will for you in Christ Jesus."
(1 Thessalonians 5:18)

 At first I was really upset that my computer browsers are no longer supported by several video clip sources and I can't open the links to them. However, this grievance turned out to have a silver lining in that I can now play Words With Friends without having to waste time waiting for the pesky ads to finish playing that pop up between each game.

43

One of the guys who work at the AT&T store gave me his old Galaxy S5 case, which is just like the one I had been admiring on his Note-4 phone, and had added to my Amazon wish list.

42

After wanting a smart phone for so long so badly, the urgency faded, and I became resigned to not having one.  It was okay.  And then, when having one was no longer an issue, the impossible happened.  I made enough money this past pay period to be able to buy one outright.

41

Was going to pay one of my credit card bills over the phone today, but couldn't get through.  At first I was really frustrated, but then I realized if I had paid it, I wouldn't have had enough left in my account to pay some other bills that were due.  The credit card bill isn't due until next week, and by then I'll have my paycheck from work.  So it all worked out for the best, keeping me from having to tap into my overdraft protection.  Thank you, Jesus!

40

"Let no debt remain outstanding, except the
continuing debt to love one another."
(Romans 13:8a)

What seemed like an impossibility in the natural, was not impossible for God.  Today I paid off my last loan and am completely debt free.

39

Some friends and family who I thought never read my Facebook posts as they never acknowledge any of them, surprised me by "liking" the one about the quality award I got from the company I work for. Another reminder not to jump to conclusions.

38

"...go down to the lake and throw in a line. Open
the mouth of the first fish you catch, and you will 
find a large silver coin. Take it and pay the tax 
for both of us." -- (Matthew 17:27)

When I finished filling out my tax return last night, I was dismayed to see that instead of a refund, l owed the IRS $106.  Today, a friend came over and asked me if I would be willing to accept a gift she felt the Lord wanted her to give me.  It was a small bag of money she had been adding to each time she was blessed in some way. When I totaled it all up, it came to $114.50, and the above Scripture popped into mind.

37

A friend expressed disappointment at the lack of traffic in response to the second part of a two-part blog interview she had done of me and my books. I too was disappointed and discouraged at this news, but she said she was going to share the link on Facebook to see if that would help. Apparently it did, because today she told me it had led to a significant increase in traffic and a very definite show of interest.

36

Missed the ice skating I wanted to watch today because I had the time wrong.  However, when I flipped through the channels to see what else might be on, I came across another ice skating special on a channel I haven't been able to get for years.

35

Had been upset with a friend for not bringing me home the care package she promised from a community dinner I was supposed to help serve at, but then couldn't go to, and I was even more upset when she told me about how much food had been left over. Then I got upset at myself for being so upset, and prayed that the Lord would help me get rid of my ugly thoughts.  Not long after that prayer, my daughter called to see if I'd like some of her leftover Pate Chinoise (a favorite dish), brought it over, and we had a nice visit.

34

What I thought was going to be a work-related conference call turned out to be my manager, the company president, and a couple of HR and PR folks on the other end, congratulating me for being the recipient of the 2014 Agent Quality Award, and telling me to expect delivery of something special they had ordered for me that should arrive at my door within a couple of days.

33

Got a beautiful uplifting e-mail from an old friend today, telling me how much she has enjoyed looking at my photos, how blessed she has been by my It Is Written book, and how much she treasures our friendship. It couldn't have come at a better time. God knew how much I needed some words of acknowledgement, and used her to so graciously provide them, as well as give my flagging self esteem a boost.