Category: Stories I Share

If you followed my inheritance distribution—see here and here—you still haven’t met everyone. The last to arrive—and feast on pizza and ice cream—were brothers from the local hobby shop.

After the only child of my widowed uncle passed, my uncle turned to model trains as a diversion during his lonely, lonely days.

My last conversations with my uncle included his train set. Who would enjoy it?  He finally bequeathed it to a nephew, who took many cars and tracks.

The remainder of the set weighed on me. My husband called a local hobby shop in hopes of finding a taker. The employee who answered the phone said his brother would be interested. Coincidence?  He offered to pay what he could. We declined and only asked him not to take items to sale.

While we visited, we learned that these strangers were Believers, too.

We received a thank you text that included a promise that the brothers’ use of the materials would make Uncle Floyd proud.

So then, as we have opportunity, let us do good to everyone, and especially to those who are of the household of faith.

Galatians 6:10 (ESV)

January four years ago, my husband and I flew to Oklahoma to distribute my inheritance. (See here.) What we gave away was overshadowed by the unexpected experiences my inheritance allowed us to have.

The best came through a young boy. I was only told he was staying with my uncle’s friends, and an adult was sleeping on the sofa so the child could have a bed.

Whenever I found a stash of candy, I handed it to him and he passed it around. I thought that being the keeper of the candy would make the child’s day. What made his day was seeing my uncle’s washing machine.

My mother doesn’t have a washer.

The boy’s mother didn’t have a dryer either, but her son’s words provided her with both. The next day, his sixteen-year-old sister came with him to retrieve the appliances. One day, will they tell how God provided during a hard time? My husband and I already have.

I tell you, many will come from east and west and recline at table with Abraham, Issac, and Jacob, in the kingdom of heaven.

Matthew 8:11 (ESV)

My Uncle Floyd’s passing allowed me to experience an unexpected, unforgettable gathering of God’s people.

During January 2021, my husband and I flew to Oklahoma to finish a task my brother and I had started—distributing my Uncle Floyd’s possessions. I had inherited quality furniture and expensive medical equipment that would be costly to ship. Therefore, I called the man who drove my uncle to church.

The friend came with his wife, a young boy, his son, who was a deacon, and the son’s wife. They rented a truck and spent Sunday distributing goods among the needy. I urged them to take whatever they personally wanted.

The process lasted the entire afternoon. My husband and I dished ice cream into paper cups and distributed it with pizza we also found in Uncle Floyd’s freezer.  We were quite the lively, happy group of feasting strangers brought together by our relationship with a godly man and bonded together through Jesus.  That Sunday was a glimpse of heaven’s gathering.

With each move, my husband and I pray specifically about many aspects. Not only have our prayers been answered, but we have also received more than we asked.

Thirty-two years ago this week, my husband and I signed the contract for our current house. While it was being built, one night I prayed, “If someone is supposed to be my neighbor and is about to buy another house, please stop them.” I don’t know why that came to mind.

Our next-door neighbors moved in seven weeks after we did. Weeks later, Terri asked if I would run a mile with her in the evenings. She was preparing for her Marine physical fitness test. I agreed. It gave us both exercise and good conversations.

During one run, we discussed choosing our neighborhood. She said, “We were ready to sign a contract on a house in another subdivision. We decided to sign it at home and told the builder we would be back. On the way home, we saw this new development. After we stopped and toured the model houses, we tore up the first contract.”

Thrilled, I told her she was the answer to my prayer.