Memorial Box Monday

Thursday I was running around doing errands. Walgreens was having a sale on Purex soap and I had coupons that made it free (I love that this story starts out with coupons lol). My local Walgreens was out of the Purex. I decided to go to a Walgreens that I had only been to one other time out in Flint. I went in and got 10 bottles (for under $2!) and then came out with the laundry soap and Savannah & Kenny with me.
As I opened up the back hatch of the car a woman in a older car pulled in behind me. I was in a parking space and she was in the middle of the lane and stopped behind me. Her window was down and she started to tell me how cute my kids were, I kept loading my bags in the car and smiled and said thanks. Then, the lady kept fumbling around for words and in between them kept gushing about how beautiful the kids were and how much Kenny looked like her son.As she did this "something" told me "She is on empty and needs gas money."
Now, as that thought went thru my head many others did too. I am not going to lie and tell you I never once thought that maybe she was trying to hustle me for money. But, I chose to not let that feeling over take me.
Finally, she pulled out pictures of her kids and told me, "As you can see I am pregnant. I live up north of here and I was sent down to Hurley to have them check out my baby's heart because they said he has two holes in his heart. I am on empty and I don't have any money to get home. Can I show you my driver's license or something...I really am not making this up to get money, I really don't have any and see...I am on E."
Here I am. At a store I never go to. In a area I never go to. And on top of it I have $10 cash in my purse and I NEVER CARRY CASH.
As soon as she uttered the words "hole in his heart" my mind flashed to the day Ben and I drove to a hospital to have Kobe's heart looked at while he was still inside me because the doctor said that there maybe something wrong with his heart.
As she said she had no money and needed gas I flashed back to the days that Ben and I lived in Wixom and I drove an old car and had no money. Praise the Lord, I never had to ask for gas money from a stranger but we have seen what it is like to be that broke.
I looked at her and smiled and said, "God must have wanted you to have this money because I never come here and I NEVER have cash."
With tears in her eyes the lady thanked me...but didn't drive away. She started to pour her heart out to me. She asked if my kids were adopted and I said, "No, they are my foster kids". She then went on to tell me a laundry list of events that had landed her own kids in foster care at one time, it appeared that she has them back now. As she strung her story together I felt like God shoved me towards her and said "ASK HER IF YOU CAN PRAY WITH HER!"
So, mid way thru her story I said, "Can I pray for you? With you right now, for you baby?" and crying she said "Yes, please do and for guidance for me".
There in the Walgreens' parking lot I grabbed the hand of a woman I had never met and prayed for God to heal her baby and to guide her and help her. After I was done she pulled me in thru her window and hugged me and thanked me and told me she loved me. She told me she was proud of me for being so young and taking care of kids that aren't mine. She told me that the way Kenny looks at me is just priceless.
I headed to my car, and turned one last time and said "Don't forget what God did! Don't forget He put me here for you." She smiled and said she wouldn't and drove away.

I don't know how to explain it, but I felt like God had sent me a loud and clear message thru her. That HE hasn't forgot about me. That even though I have been so sad lately about how things are looking for Savannah, HE still wants to use me. I have been struggling so much with feeling like God isn't hearing me or paying attention to what is going on. I have felt failure so heavy on my shoulders lately it is almost unbearable.I know I have no control over what is going on. I know this isn't about me, but it hurts so bad some times. As much as that lady may have "needed gas money", trust me, I needed to see God much more than she needed that gas money.


****Look at what the verse for today was on my blog:
“[The God of All Comfort] Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our troubles, so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves have received from God.” (2 Corinthians 1:3-4)