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Stories Inspiring

I was on my way to the mountains to visit The Homestead about four years ago to soak up the scenery and cleanse my soul. It’s a ritual that is like pressing a reset button in my life. The scenery is so beautiful.

While driving, I got the urge to stop in a small town to go a dollar store to buy some colored writing tablets. These tablets inspire me and the colors seem to be able to pull the words out of me.
I got off at the Lexington exit and saw a Dollar Tree Store. I had never shopped there and didn’t know if I would find the tablets that I love there. I almost decided to keep driving and go to the next exit, but instead, stopped for lunch and then went to the store. I did find some pretty writing tablets and was eager to get back on the road to get to The Homestead.
When I went to pay for them, I realized I had left my cash at home and only had $8 on me. I had credit cards thankfully and my purchase came to $7.28. That was ironic because of what happened next.
As I was pulling out of the parking lot approaching the stop sign, there stood a woman holding a sign that said, “Stranded – need money to get back to Michigan.” I read her sign and briefly our eyes met. I drove off, but instantly I knew that THIS was the real reason that I was prompted to get off at that exit.
I went to the nearest gas station and explained to the attendant that I wanted to help the lady just down the street who was stranded. I would charge the gas to my credit card, give her the receipt, and he was to accept the receipt and give her the gas.
He tried to discourage me, saying that somebody had a similar sign on a camper a couple of days before. But that didn’t matter to me. I was sure in my heart that I was the person who was supposed to help this woman. I would rather be counted as an angel in the eyes of God than a fool in the eyes of the gas attendant.
Besides, many many years ago in the cold of winter I passed by a lady without a coat. The still small voice said “give her your coat.” I only had one winter coat myself, but I did have an all weather coat at home. I kept going, but once inside I knew it had to be God nudging me to do this and I decided to do it. I was only in the building for a few minutes but when I came out she was no where to be found. I felt awful. I made the decision then and there that I would always honor that still small voice

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Just Do The Right Thing

Stories Inspiring
Talking to a co-worker at the hospital on the administration floor, I noticed a perplexed Hispanic woman who was obviously lost. We rushed to the woman and stated “Can we help you?” However, the woman, who was out of breath, could only speak to us in Spanish. Neither my co-worker nor I could speak any Spanish; however, somehow my friend asked, “You need to go to the Eye Center?” and the woman nodded yes.
We were so happy. We thought we had communicated with the woman in distress. (In reality, we should have known that the Hispanic woman could not have understood “You need to go to the Eye Center” as it was obvious to us from the beginning that she could not communicate in English.) I volunteered to take her to the Eye Clinic, located about 200 yards away on a different level.
 As we were walking to the Eye Center, the woman was trying vehemently to tell me something. I thought she was trying to thank me for helping her; however, as we got into the elevator I quickly knew that was the furthest thing from her mind.
As the elevator started to descend, I noticed the woman leaning on another woman, screaming and apparently becoming sick. People in the elevator quickly started asking, “Are you OK? What’s the matter?” However, I knew the answer to those questions. She was obviously petrified of elevators! Now, I knew, that instead of what I initially thought was her thanking me for sho wing her the way to the Eye Clinic, she was frantically trying to find the way to the stairs. Suddenly, I pressed the button for the next floor and we quickly exited from the elevator. She said, “Gracias,” [Spanish for thank you–living in Texas, even I knew that term]. However, my mind raced to another problem: how was she going to get to the Eye Center, or did she now even want to get to the Eye Center?
I asked, “Eye Center?” while pointing to my eyes. She quickly replied, “No, No, No . . Bambinos [babies].” I thought she meant the Children’s Hospital (located in another section of the hospital) but this time I wanted to make sure. 
I looked with her for a bilingual employee, and that interpreter told me that she wanted to visit her 5 year old niece, Mary Gonzales, who was sick and on the ninth floor of the Children’s Hospital.
Now I knew where she wanted to go, but I also knew she wanted to take the stairs. That meant going down six flights of stairs in one section of the hospital and up nine flights of stairs in another section of the hospital. I found the stairs and we descended all the way to the first level. I then went with her past the cafeteria so she could begin her ascent up the nine flights of stairs in the Children’s Hospital. However, as we approached the stairwell door, it hit me: some floors in the Children’s Hospital have locked stairwells from the inside (to prevent kidnappings). That meant I would have to accompany her all the way up nine flights to make sure that she had access on nine.

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Our Counselor

Afrikaanse Artikels

“But the Counselor, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in My name, will teach you all things and will remind you of everything I have said to you.” John 14:26 I was driving down the interstate feeling discouraged from an appointment I had just had. A former employee’s

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Joymag

I survived a brain aneurysm

Publications

JoymagAt 10pm on the evening of 20 January
2002, I woke up with a light headache. Not thinking much of it, I walked to the
bathroom and took two tablets. When I returned to bed, my husband Kevin
suggested we pray. Soon after praying I felt an electric wave, combined with a
pounding headache, flashing through my body – from the crown of my head all the
way down to my back. I was shivering from the shock and just waited for the
next wave to hit me. Kevin continued to pray and comfort me as I lay there
crying…

Eventually I went to sleep and got up
the next morning thinking nothing of the night before. Though I didn’t really
have a headache, every time I closed my eyes it felt like seasand behind them.
Two days after my late night experience, I went to the doctor. She diagnosed a
headache spasm and sent me for physio. When that failed to relieve the
headaches, she referred me to the hospital for tests. The specialists did a
lumber-puncture, found blood on the brain and booked me for an emergency
angiogram.

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