I'll Be There

I Wrote this on May 5, 2001

I was sitting in church Sunday morning, thinking about and praying for my parents. I realize that in my mind now they are Mom/Dad. As I grew up they used to separate, Mom and Dad. They were separate in their lives, in their activities, in their interests. And even sometimes they were separated from each other.

Now in their 60's they are together. I can't imagine one without the other. They depend on each other. My prayers for them come together. I place them both in God's hands. My concerns are for both of them. As I pray, one of my Mom's favorite songs in being sung, "Jesus, there is something about that name". My tears start to flow. And I leave the church as the sermon is beginning.

I want to talk to God on my own. So I head for the lake. I plan to sit on a hill and watch the water. I will pray for Mom/Dad. I know God will meet me there.

When I arrive at Nelson Park I get my pen and paper to take with me. (It's easier to keep talking to God as I write.) Then I go look for the right spot. I want a spot away from everyone on a hill over looking the water. I walk to a tree and the thought comes, "No, not this one." I continue on to another tree a few yards away and still the thought comes "No, not this one." Next I even try a picnic table. "No, not here", the thought says, "I need to be sitting against a tree." So to a third tree I go. And this one feels just right. I sit on the ground against the tree. There I start my prayers for Mom/Dad. I tell God how inadequate I am to take care of my Mom/Dad. How it worries me to see the decline of their health. I let the tears flow. It is what I need to do.

And Then...God said, "I love you. I was waiting for you. I'll be there." How amazing God is to me. How did God speak to me? How did I know this? It was there in the form of a 4 leaf clover. Yes, a 4 leaf clover. I am always looking for 4 leaf clovers. As a child I learned this special past time from my Dad. When I was waiting for the man of my dreams I looked for 4 leaf clovers. And he came. And we married. As we looked for a new home I looked for 4 leaf clovers in the yards of the homes we looked at. I had a feeling my home would show itself with this special token. And it did. We have lived here for 25 years now.

And now as I ask God for guidance He showed me that He was listening and He was waiting for me. As I left the church God must have been saying to my heart "Go and I'll be there." He had a special place waiting just for me. And a special way of letting me know "I care for you." Each time I almost stopped at the wrong place God would lead me to another spot until I was where He wanted me to be. Seeing that 4 leaf clover I immediately knew God was there. Amid my tears there was now also laughter. How thankful I was to have been lead to a spot away from other people as I cried and laughed each time I looked at that 4 leaf clover.

As I got ready to leave I picked my 4 leaf clover. And then God reassured me that He is with my Mom and Dad for nestled there together were two more 4 leaf clovers, one for my Mom and one for my Dad. I looked to see if there were more but there weren't. These three 4 leaf clovers were meant just for us.

I got the release that I needed and a sign that everything really is in God's hands. He let me know "I'll be there" anytime that I need Him.