Hello ,
As I sat and held the gnarled hand of my father throughout the night, I watched the seconds turn into minutes, the minutes turn into hours, and the moments slowly faded past. 8 years ago today my father turned 86, and was spending the last days of his life in hospice in the living room of my parents home. My sister and I took turns feeding him, attending to his needs, and holding his hand at the edge of the hospital bed. (That's a picture of
him attached to this e-mail).
Somehow, it didn't seem like life had properly prepared me for what I was going through, but then again, maybe there isn't a proper way to ready yourself for saying good-bye to the man that you hoped you would someday be like when you grew up. I'm not ashamed to say that I spent a great deal of time thinking,
remembering, and weeping at the bedside of my dad.
His body was tired, but with everything in me I didn't want to let him go. I thought about the things in life that I should have done for him...and didn't. I pondered all the words that I should have spoken to him, but those words were now somehow stuck in my throat.
It was during these moments that an incredible thought came to me; "With God's help, I will never let this happen again." I resolved that night beside my father's bed, that never again would I NOT share how much I cared about people, or how important they are to me. I asked God to help me keep that resolution to openly
share how much I want people to know Jesus Christ as their friend and Savior.
I have a good number of people that receive this devotional everyday. If you're reading this message today, let me be completely candid with you. I care about you. I really do. I may not even know you personally, but God does, and He thinks
you're very special. You're special to Him, and you're special to me.
I want to make an offer to each one reading this e-Devotional. In 2017, you may have a concern in your life that you need prayer for. Please don't hesitate to ask me to pray about it. You don't even have to tell me what it's about if you don't wish
to. Just drop me a line and say, "Pastor Mike, I need some prayer." I'll pray. It's as simple as that.
Thank-you for the opportunity to serve you through this daily e-Devotional. The fact that you open it and read it is such a blessing to me.
Have a great day and God bless!
