June 23

My sinuses are so, so bad right now, as in "I can't pass air through my nose" bad. So I would like to express my gratitude for all who are involved in the making of tissues and Vaseline, both of which are comfort-makers at the moment. But that's not the true topic of this entry.

In reality, I want to share a little about my friend, who I'll call Sam. Sam hasn't had a particularly easy go of it in life, but she doesn't complain much nor does she expect anything from anyone. She keeps her nose to the grindstone and works hard six days a week. (And sometimes on the seventh, too.)

When Sam had an accident last week that totaled out her car, she was understandably upset. She wasn't injured, but was very worried about how she'd manage moving forward, since she owns her own small business and operates on a very tight margin.

Anyway, I didn't talk to Sam for a few days since we were down in So Cal, but when I saw her this morning, she had an amazing tale to tell. Last week we calculated what she'd need in order to pay off the loan on her old car and that figure was about $5000 more than she assumed she'd get, but the insurance company gave her a valuation that was only $200 less than she owed on the old loan. She was stunned and happy, but still had to figure out how she'd get a down payment for another car. And then, while she was on the phone with another friend who asked about her week, Sam shared what had happened, and her friend immediately sent her $10,000 as a gift to help out. Sam was, again, stunned. And she was still stunned this morning while telling me how she'd purchased a new car yesterday thanks to that gift and the insurance company's generous valuation.

I half-laughed as I mused "you're in better financial shape now than we you were before the accident." And it's actually true. 

Although Sam in on the fence about whether or not she believes that God exists, I'm repeatedly flabbergasted by how I see Him working in her life through blessings that are just too crazy to explain in purely human terms. And I so love seeing those miracles roll out.