January 29 - Part II

Sitting with my family opening gifts and my son gives me a homemade birthday card.  It was oddly heavy.  As I opened it, I knew that this day was blessed with significance, love, and faith. 

 

"Thank you Lord for putting your Trust in me.  Thank you for my amazing wife and children.  Thank you for the opportunity to lead my family." 

January 29 - Looking for a miracle

It took all day, but I knew that He would leave a penny for me somewhere.  I had the opportunity to meet an individual that The Lord put into my life.  I invited a few guys to join me to meet an inspiring young man who was diagnosed with Stage IV Cancer.  It was a chance meeting a few nights earlier at Elevation Church, a simple follow up phone call to discuss his prayer request, and coffee a few days later. 

We heard the story of a young evangelist speaker who is dealing with a life changing diagnosis.  We heard the story of a young Christian man who is at peace with where he is in his Christian walk, and he knows that he is "looking for a miracle".  His hair still intact after 3 rounds of chemo and his Spirit strong.  Then, right as we were praying a healing prayer over him....he began praying for us!!  Prayed for our families, who he had never met; prayed for our lives and careers, that he didn't know much about. 
A true birthday gift to sit with an inspirational person and discuss God's love for us. 

I had been thinking about this meeting all morning and on my way home, I had to stop at Lowe's and pick up a few things.  Just as I was getting out of my truck, I thought, "Lord, I haven't seen a penny today and was looking for a reminder that you were in my life today."  Three steps towards the store...there it was!!

 

 "Lord, thank you for the opportunity to meet an inspirational Christian man walking a life that has been blessed and is being challenged. Challenged with a disease, and challenged to continually show others the power of prayer.   Lord, thank you for my family and for this birthday.  I am honored that you put your Trust in me and put me in places to constantly see your love and Trust you." 

January 19th

It was a beautiful Saturday.  My son's birthday was coming up and the weather was unseasonably mild.  Then my cell phone rang and it was a work call.  A crew leader was hysterically talking about pine needles, trucks and 485.  Sounded strange, but it sounded as if he said the truck and the pine needles were in the middle of the highway.  So off I went. 

Sure enough, the trailer had tipped over as the truck was coming down the on-ramp.  As I pulled up, the trailer was on its side, pine needles everywhere, 3 state troopers, highway emergency unit, and some shaken up employees.  The traffic was backed up for a few miles and the interstate was reduced to only one lane.  Then the police shut the on-ramp as well to clean things up. 
The driver of the truck said that the weight shifted and as he was coming around the curve, he felt the trailer start to shake then he looked in his mirror and saw the trailer on its side behind him.  A hundred bales of needles strewn everywhere and everything was a mess.  But with the chaos that was around, there was one message common with everyone.  No one was injured. 
The state trooper said it.  The IMAP highway safety guys said it.  The driver said it.  No one was injured.  It could have been catastrophic, but it wasn't. 
As everyone was cleaning up, the trailer flipped back upright, the on-ramp opened back up, and everyone getting back to their busy days, and there it was.  I looked down on the side of 485, right on the shoulder, next to years of debris and trash, there was a reminder from you Lord.  The Penny just stared at me as much as to say "give thanks for the workers, give thanks for the police, give thanks no one was injured, and just give thanks for Him." 
I picked up the penny, said a small prayer for thankfulness and safety, and went back to our busy Saturday afternoon.  Thank you Lord for putting this say back in perspective.  Amen. 

January 14, 2013

Gray and cloudy day.  Very mild weather for January.  

In a shopping center parking lot.  Looked down next to the curb and mixed with the dirt and leaves was a dull penny.  As I was worried about a work event and an issue with a client, I was reminded that I do have His trust.  Said a small prayer for peace and calmness in a stressful moment.  Gave a thanksgiving for my job, my health, and my family. 

The Story of The Penny

Here is the original story that this blog was based on.  I had heard it years ago and have had the dream that one day I would start a blog to document every one of my stories when I find a penny.  I hope you enjoy the stories and I hope that you share yours here.

http://www.frtommylane.com/stories/trust/in_God_we_trust.htm

Several years ago, a friend of mine and her husband were invited to spend the weekend at the husband’s employer’s home. My friend, Arlene, was nervous about the weekend. The boss was very wealthy, with a fine home on the waterway, and cars costing more than her house.

The first day and evening went well, and Arlene was delighted to have this rare glimpse into how the very wealthy live. The husband’s employer was quite generous as a host, and took them to the finest restaurants. Arlene knew she would never have the opportunity to indulge in this kind of extravagance again, so she as enjoying herself immensely.

As the three of them were about to enter an exclusive restaurant that evening, the boss was walking slightly ahead of Arlene and her husband. He stopped suddenly, looking down on the pavement for a long, silent moment.

Arlene wondered if she was supposed to pass him. There was nothing on the ground except a single darkened penny that someone had dropped, and a few cigarette butts. Still silent, the man reached down and picked up the penny.

He held it up and smiled, then put it in his pocket as if he had found a great treasure. How absurd! What need did this man have for a single penny?

Why would he even take the time to stop and pick it up?

Throughout dinner, the entire scene nagged at her. Finally, she could stand it no longer. She causally mentioned that her daughter once had a coin collection, and asked if the penny he had found had been of some value.

A smile crept across the man’s face as he reached into his pocket for the penny and held it out for her to see. She had seen many pennies before!

What was the point of this?

“Look at it.” He said. “Read what it says” She read the words “United States of America.”

“No, not that; read further.”

“One cent?” “No, keep reading.”

“In God we Trust?” “Yes!” “And?”

“And if I trust in God, the name of God is holy, even on a coin. Whenever I find a coin I see that inscription. It is written on every single United States coin, but we never seem to notice it! God drops a message right in front of me telling me to trust Him? Who am I to pass it by? When I see a coin, I pray, I stop to see if my trust IS in God at that moment. I pick the coin up as a response to God; that I do trust in Him. For a short time, at least, I cherish it as if it were gold. I think it is God’s way of starting a conversation with me. God is patient and pennies are plentiful!

When I was out shopping today, I found a penny on the sidewalk. I stopped and picked it up, and realized that I had been worrying and fretting in my mind about things I cannot change. I read the words, “In God We Trust,” and had to laugh. Yes, God, I get the message.

It seems that I have been finding an inordinate number of pennies in the last few months, but then, pennies are plentiful!

And God is patient...