Where does my help come from?

I am humbled.

I am grateful.

And, I am in awe of the rich, rich blessing of faithful friends & family that the Lord has bestowed upon my family. Thank you, Lord, for your faithfulness, for your mercy, & for your grace!

As most of you know, my dad & I started our trek to move me to Washington, D.C., a week ago Saturday. What a sweet time it was for me to spend with my daddy! But, as we were driving across Tennessee, unbeknownst to either of us, Dad had a stroke.

But, here's the thing--because of the omniscient & sovereign God we serve, Dad is having some of the best care in one of the best facilities during a time of rehabilitation like this. Mom is able to be there with him without having to wear herself out driving back & forth to Snyder. And, though it might be hard on the girls & I, we know God is true to His promises, & He will not leave nor forsake us.

I'm here to tell you--the power of prayer is as evident to me now as it has ever been.

Everyone kept calling, texting, & "facebooking" me talking about how hard & terrifying it must have been & how proud they were of me for taking care of Dad. Please hear me when I say I'm SO grateful & SO thankful for the sweet words of encouragement, but also hear me when I say it had NOTHING to do with me.

The moment I entered the E.R., I had quickly text two of my "Prayer Warriors" to start praying. With only a minimal level of yelling & slight threatening on my part (ha!), Dad was quickly placed in an examination room. The Lord has had His sovereign hand in every aspect of the whole situation. We were given a phenomenal doctor & though many tears of uncertainty were shed, we knew that HIS grace was sufficient.

And, I KNOW it was because of the prayers that began the moment we entered the ER.

The outpouring of love, prayers & blessings from our family & friends is almost unfathomable. We had complete strangers visiting Dad's room praying over him & reassuring us of the unsurpassing peace of our God. We were constantly getting calls & messages of people praying for us. Thank you, each one of you, for approaching the throne of grace on our behalf! We have been truly humbled.

For me, my heart was touched the most when one of my dad's friends flew out to Tennessee to continue the trip with me. I pray the Lord blesses him & his family a hundred-fold for the love & support they've shown my family. I wish I was a better writer & could better put in to words the gratefulness I feel in my heart. :)

Dad is progressing more & more everyday, and if you ask me, Mom's enjoying the vacation (though I KNOW she misses her students AND could probably stand to have something more comfy than that slim fold-out bed at the hospital!!).

I'm settling well in Alexandria, Virginia, & will start work next week.

There's a passage that I want to share--I turned it over and over again in my mind as I was standing in the ER waiting for Dad to get a room, and continue to reflect on it as the days pass. I hope you find the overwhelming peace through it as I have:


I lift up my eyes to the mountains--where does my help come from?
My help comes from the Lord, the Maker of heaven & earth.

He will not let your foot slip--he who watches over you will not slumber; indeed, he who watches over Israel will neither slumber nor sleep.

The LORD watches over you--the LORD is your shade at your right hand; the sun will not harm you by day, nor the moon by night.

The Lord will keep you from all harm--He will watch over your life; the LORD will watch over your coming & going both now & forevermore.

Psalm 121