FAMILY.....NO MATTER HOW LONG.....

I just returned from a quick and unexpected trip to visit family in North Carolina. My uncle, who is 92 years old, is very ill. He was in the hospital, and without going into unneccesary detail, he is now on hospice care. We heard from our cousin who told us he might not last very much longer. So I made plans with my sister and her daughter to go and see him. We just hoped we could be there in time to see him. We haven't seen this part of our family for many years, due to sickness in our immediate families and the inability to be away from home. It's a 9 hour drive for my sister, 12 to 13 hours for me. So we decided to drive down together; I would go to Pennsylvania, and then the three of us would drive together the rest of the way. I left at 11:00 p.m. Wednesday night and got to PA in just over 4 hours, 2:15 a.m. TIRED. I went inside and went to sleep. We got up in the morning and took our time getting on the road as my niece had a physical therapy appointment that day. We picked her up at 11:00 a.m. and were on our way. The trip down was fun and we laughed a lot. We stopped for gas and went to a Cracker Barrel store in Virginia. We found everything funny, including how many products had my name on them. Jo, (my sister), bought me a mug and coaster, just in case I forget that I am Virginia. But nobody calls me that. When we got to the house, it was like we had never been apart. But for me, it had been 17 years since I'd seen them. They don't travel due to their business, and we have other issues here that prevent me from being far away from home. (You can't understand it if you don't live it.) We were welcomed with open arms, hugs, kisses, laughter and love. Our uncle was sleeping a lot of the time, but when he was awake he was his same funny and wise cracking self. It was wonderful. My aunt, who is 91, told story after story of when she and our mother were young, how she has been married for 72 years, how big Grandaddy was, and lots of other things. Grandaddy was her grandfather, and was 6'4" tall and about 300 pounds. I remember one time when I was little, we had a pair of his pants. My parents put my brother Al in one pant leg, my sister Pat in the other, and me straddled over the middle. There was lots of room left over. When Jo and I had decided to go south and when we would leave, I knew I needed to talk with my uncle about Jesus. I didn't know what I would say, or when , or how he would respond, but God put this on my heart. The first day there I was able to spend lots of time with him, and I asked him if I could pray for him. He said, "Yes,I would love that." So I did. He held my hand, and placed his other hand on that same arm, and rested in this way while I prayed for healing, peace, rest, that he would know the love of God, that angels would fill his room, and that the peace of God would fill their home. He went to sleep. I stayed and prayed over him for a long time. The next day, we had the opportunity to go out for a ride around their property. They own HORSE HEAVEN FARM, a place for retired horses to spend the rest of their lives. They opened it in 1987. It's a beautiful place with rolling hills, lots of trees, fences separating pastures, and of couse, horses. Later, we spent some time with some of the horses, just because they're beautiful and we love to fuss over them. Before we went back in the house, I was chatting with my cousin and she asked me if I would be able to talk with her dad about Jesus. I said that was one of the reasons I wanted to get down there quickly; I wanted to do just that. I just love it when God stops by and confirms His plans when we don't expect it at all. We went back inside and my uncle was awake. I was able to sit with him again, to listen to his stories, his philoshophies, his wisdom, and his jokes. If you don't pay attention, you might not be able to tell the difference... And I talked with him about heaven and about Jesus. I asked him at one point if he loved Jesus, and he said, "Yes, I do." We talked some more and I asked him if I could pray for him. He said, "Yes, please do." So I did, and he held my hand, and I placed the other carefully on his side where he has pain. I prayed for him and sang a little, and he relaxed and went to sleep after a little while. I kept praying until I felt the Presence of the Lord release me, and then went in the other room to sit and enjoy the conversations and some dinner with the family. It was like we had always been together like this, not separated by years and distance. We joked and laughed and told stories. We poked fun at each other. How I wish it could be this way all the time! But I am so thankful for what we have. FAMILY. No matter how long. God stopped by and knit us together with His love and kindness, and we loved every bit of it.