Finding Grace: Maurice

 Sometimes we find God's grace in the most unusual circumstances. Enter Maurice. When we were in the beginning stages of care giving for my parents we used to go to their favorite diner after church on Sundays. Around 2011 we were sitting in their favorite booth. In walked a tall, suited gentleman who was/is the spitting image of Morgan Freeman the actor. He walked up to the table and shook our hands. My parents were acquainted with him and my husband and I were almost sure he was a preacher. We found out he lived in the same neighborhood as we did. My husband later saved his life once ( another story for another time).

Fast forward to May 2022. Life has been complicated and sometimes arduous, most especially with the advent of  the issues in our current world. God has been giving me that scripture " I will never leave thee nor forsake thee (Hebrews 13:5) It is a running theme and I could not seem to escape it. Well, I didn't want to escape from such a quote worthy verse, I wanted to fully ingest it, eat it up, believe it until it was truly part of me. My faith was waning a bit (a LOT) and I was weary. I needed a haircut, which is my therapy. Is it yours? Out of the blue my hairdresser called (she's never done that before) and said didn't I think I ought to get a haircut before I started chopping on it myself. I told her "Too late" but I would love to come in.

The hairdresser is on the other side of town. A huge drive with many perilous pitfalls. Remember, I am a small town girl living in a city that has outgrown the name: Small Town. My husband drove me to the appointment, and we decided afterward to visit our old neighborhood. 

We drove past Maurice's house which is at the entrance of the neighborhood. Yep, there was his old Lincoln, a car past its time, but forever in his heart with its associations to his deceased wife. We drove around the whole neighborhood and made the full circle. On our way out we neared Maurice's house. We noticed the garage door was open. As we approached, there sat Maurice looking just like he did all those years ago. My husband stopped the truck and got out to greet him. Maurice, ever the gentleman, came up to our truck. I opened the door and he took my hand. The first words out of his mouth were "Isn't God good! He will never leave thee nor forsake thee". Then he said he had just turned 89 on April 29, and while he had a few health issues he was doing well, and America was still the greatest place on the earth to live! We made our small talk and ended with promises to visit him soon.

We barely got back on the road when my eyes started leaking salty tears. In one day God reminded me that He is indeed good and will never leave me or forsake me.

God has been urging me to write again. So here I am. I just wanted to tell you that it doesn't matter if you live in a mansion or reside in your car, God will never leave you or forsake you. It's in His Book, and He never lies. 

So this is the finding grace part of my little Finding Grace, Going Mobile blog. I hope to write again soon now that I am semi-retired. 

Remember, God is Good, All the Time.

Take care,

Theresa