Posted by Sometimes in the midst of stressful days, God leaves fingerprints of His presence around us. I often pray that I will have eyes to see the signs of His love and a heart that will respond.
Life is complicated these days with concerns and decisions about my 96 year old mother-in-law’s care and her decline with Alzheimer’s, and our own health concerns, and job searching.
My husband, Jeff, and I know that God is good and that He will lead and provide and guide us. But emotions and discouragement can still press in on us and we sometimes need to take turns pointing the other to God and His faithfulness.
So, I’m feeling especially blessed by what I like to think of as a visual reminder of God’s provision.
Jeff gave me a dozen roses on Valentine’s Day. I threw most of them out quite awhile ago. But I’d taken one from the bouquet to enjoy on my desk. And though it had also died a few weeks ago, I kept thinking it still looked pretty nice as a dried flower so I left it on my desk.
Finally, this week I noticed the head was tilting over and thought I should probably just throw it out. But then I noticed something. Tiny green leaves were budding out of the stem of the dead rose. I’d never seen such a thing before!
I’ve continued to watch, with some fascination, as the leaves keep growing. I even looked it up on-line to discover that this kind of thing does occasionally happen.
And maybe it’s just a fluke. But I’m choosing to believe it is a sign from my Abba Father. A sign that God is with us. And that He can do anything He chooses to.
He can give us grace and strength and wisdom to care for Jeff’s mom. He can provide for us when we have no employment. Or He can send us a great job!
He can give us shelter in the storm, joy in affliction, and contentment in poverty. Or He can calm the storm, take away the affliction, and bless us with abundance!
One of the last clear things my mama said was about two weeks before she passed away with Alzheimer’s. She said, “God is here. He is bigger.”
And I love that! God is with us. And He is bigger. He can solve or cure any problem that we have. Or He can give us the grace and strength to get through it.
The leaves growing on the dead rose branch remind me of these truths. These tiny leaves are like God’s fingerprints of love and make me smile.
What fingerprints has He sent you lately? I’d love to hear your story!
“Let your mercy, O Lord, be upon us, just as we hope in You.” Psalm 33:22 (NKJV)
God's Grace and Life's Challenges 
Just perfectly perfect and what I needed to read on this day…Helping a sister with Dementia ,early stages, makes me feel angry and guilty st the same time…I know that you understand..thank you!
Dear Friend-Whom-I-Have-Never-Met,
I have read your blog for many months, and you have helped me gain perspective on my father’s Alzheimer’s (early late stage at this point) and learn spiritual lessons along the way. My parents suddenly moved in with us at Christmas time when my mother fell and broke her hip. While we had planned that they would move in this spring, the transition ended up being abrupt, traumatic and at times more than we could humanly bear. My in-laws are also struggling with Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s/stroke recovery at this same time. As you pointed out yesterday, there are so many little things which point to God’s presence and merciful, sovereign rule.
For Christmas, a friend gave me a calendar diary, and because I wanted to find a way to worship God and be grateful to Him, I asked Him to help me “see” the fingerprints each day and then have recorded them in a sentence or key words. Names of people – meals provided, texts received at “just the right time,” cards received – are written down as well as things like bluebirds that showed up earlier than usual at the feeder and keep coming back, answers to desperate prayers, a doctor’s kindness, strangers comments of encouragement, and thoughts from Scripture/sermons are all ways I have seen the evidence of His presence. Because God raised Christ from the dead, His joy can be our strength and He can and will meet ALL our needs! Thank you for writing and sharing your insights – yesterday’s entry: chermor/fingerprints.