ENOUGH

Again, thank you Angela for the meaningful emails which I receive from you. The following, titled enough, is just what each of us should be asking God for. He DOES supply all of our needs according to His riches in glory. It will remind us not to take anything that we have been given for granted. When we have too much we don’t appreciate that which we have. When we lack the necessities of life, life becomes difficult. God will meet our needs so that we do not become too lonely, too tired, too hungry, too poor, or too needy. He will never leave us nor forsake us when we believe in Him and in His promises. There is power in prayer, peace in His presence, and provision in His promises. As a believer, I have the faith to know that He will give me what I need, when I need it, and provide just the necessary amount at the time of my need… ENOUGH!

The following is a copy of the email which I received. It is worth sharing:
“Recently, I overheard a mother and daughter in their last moments together at the airport.. They had announced the departure. Standing near the security gate, they hugged, and the mother said, 'I love you, and I pray you enough.'

The daughter replied, 'Mom, our life together has been more than enough. Your love is all I ever needed. I pray you enough, too, Mom.'

They kissed, and the daughter left. The mother walked over to the window where I was seated. Standing there, I could see she wanted and needed to cry. I tried not to intrude on her privacy, but she welcomed me in by asking, 'Did you ever say good-bye to someone knowing it would be forever?'

Yes, I have,' I replied. 'Forgive me for asking, but why is this, a forever good-bye?'

'Well...I'm not as young as I once was; she lives so far away & has her own busy life. I have some challenges ahead, and the reality is - her next trip back will be for my funeral,' she said.

'When you were saying good-bye, I heard you say, 'I pray you enough.' May I ask what that means?'

She began to smile. 'That's a prayer that has been handed down from other generations. My parents used to say it to everyone.' She paused a moment and looked up as if trying to remember it in detail, and she smiled even more. 'When we said, 'I pray you enough,' we wanted the other person to have a life filled with just enough good things to sustain them.'

Then, turning toward me, she shared the following as if she were reciting it from memory:

I pray you enough sun to keep your attitude bright no matter how gray the day may appear..
I pray you enough rain to appreciate the sun even more.
I pray you enough happiness to keep your spirit alive and everlasting.
I pray you enough pain so that even the smallest of joys in life may appear bigger.
I pray you enough gain to satisfy you’re wanting.
I pray you enough loss to appreciate all that you possess.
I pray you enough hellos to get you through the final good-bye.

Then, she began to cry, and walked away.”

It is said, “It takes a minute to find a special person, an hour to appreciate them, a day to love them, but an entire life to forget them.”

I pray for each of us that we will have an awareness of special people, special moments, and special memories. I do not know who wrote the original words in this piece but I thank her for putting it down in writing to be passed on and shared. As we pray for and Bless others, we can carry on the tradition in our own lives by telling those we meet and those we love that we pray them ENOUGH.

As I read the above, I had my own memory of the time spent with my own mother during her last few weeks. Every night when I would leave her, lying so frail, in her hospital bed, I would say, “Ma, I will see you in the morning”. I did not know if I would see her again on this side of eternity, but if not, I did know that I would see her in the morning on the other side of eternity. This life is so fragile and temporary. I cannot imagine not having the hope of The Resurrection, the hope of living with my Lord and my loved ones throughout eternity. Another reassuring memory which I have been given is the memory of a vision which was related to me by Christa, my youngest daughter. A friend, Terry, sang “How Great Thou Art” at my Mom’s funeral service. As Christa listened to the hymn with her eyes closed, she could see her grandmother, my Mom, standing with the two sisters who she never met. Elisa was at Mom’s side with Baby Carrie in her arms. I knew that my girls were alright and so was my Mother. My parents suffered greatly after the deaths of our children and I knew that their reunion now would bring peace to them and give me a sense of comfort.

Thank you Lord for your peace and comfort and for always giving me just what I need.