Tonight was prayer group. Earlier this week I talked to Pastora Ruth about the fact that I had made a promise to a friend to pray for him, but I hadn't followed through with my promise. I think I expected others to want to pray for him, as I had seen them pray for others in the past. When they didn't seem to care about my friend I became discouraged. I should have never given up, but I did. There was a lot of guilt on my behalf for not keeping my promise to my friend and also for not following through with something I believe God called me to do.
Pastor Ruth seemed to understand without much explanation. She told me it is never too late and she said she would support me by praying for him too. So tonight at the prayer group she asked me to explain the story of my friend Garth.
Garth is battling cancer for the 4th time. Some of you may have heard of him as the Napkin Notes Dad. Garth has written a note on a napkin for his daughter every day since kindergarten. When he was diagnosed with cancer he made a promise to have a napkin for her every day until she graduated from high school. So he wrote one for every day. But those are set aside and as he continues to fight for his life, he writes a new one. He has a book that came out at Christmas called "Napkin Notes". It was printed in 18 languages! Garth and his daughter have been on the Today Show, Rachel Ray, Dr. Oz, Ted Talks and more - some more than once.
Growing up, Garth lived 2 miles away from me in the next village over. When we were in high school I seriously believed that he would be president of the United States. I heard him say one day that he wanted to be, and I never doubted his ability. He is that kind of guy.
But God had a different calling for Garth. Now that is very clear. God called Garth to teach other parents how to connect with their kids. And he does that well. Garth and I agree it is a more important job than being the president of the United States.
We had an AWESOME time of prayer for Garth. Pastora Ruth said that she would like to be the one to pray for him. The Holy Spirit filled that room powerfully and we prayed hard for a long time. It was beautiful.
On the way home I stopped and picked up Chinese food. Fany has family visiting unexpectedly because her sister's husband's grandmother died. I don't really understand why they are staying here, but I don't need to know. I just know that Fany has been feeding three extra mouths for the past few days and bringing me a meal if I am not already at her house when they eat. So I was happy when God put the idea into my mind to stop and get Chinese food on the way home from my prayer group. I called her and told her not to eat until I got home because I would bring food. She sounded relieved, which made me even happier that the thought came to my mind.
We had a nice dinner. Everyone was grateful and the good thing about Chinese food here is that you can feed a million people without spending a million bucks. By the time dinner was done everyone was exhausted, some having stayed up all night last night to bury the grandmother, so I cleared out.
I sent a message to the lady I would like to serve with today. The last time I called she said she wants to meet with me but she is busy and she will call me when she is free. That was over a week ago, so I sent a message just to be sure she has my phone number.
And, the best news is last. I was chatting with Fabricio on Facebook tonight. He asked if I heard the good news. Clara is doing so well that she no longer needs blood donated. She will stay in the hospital for observation this weekend and if all stays on track, she will be released next week! I talked to Karla three times today, but somehow she forgot to mention that to me. :) I was so caught up in how well Karla sounded that I told her to hug her mom and tell her hello, but I didn't ask how Clara was doing! (Karla is spending her days teaching kindergarten and her nights at the hospital and she is still smiling and laughing and in great spirits. God is keeping her very strong, like her Mom.)
So there is my good news for the night! Clara should be at home by next week, God willing.
