Yesterday was my mom’s (Lynn’s) birthday, and it came to me to share this story about how God was real in our lives two years after she had passed on to heaven. That was twelve years ago.
It was then that I was clearing out her home that would become my grandmother’s place to live for a while. As I was slowly going though every piece in my mom’s former dwelling, I came across these necklaces that she had made. They were made of wooden pieces and the cross on each of them from glued popsicle-type sticks. She had used what she had and painted onto each necklace. She had made about 50 necklaces, maybe more.
I knew that she had made them for children who were underprivileged. Even though I went ahead and donated, gave away, or repurposed many of her home pieces, it did not seem the time to give away these necklaces. They waited in a drawer in my home, and I did not think about them until one unexpected night when I got a stirring in my heart to send them about two years later.
I was invited to a going away party for someone whom I had recently met. She was about to go to live in India on a mission journey where she and her husband would share about Christ and live as Christ in the community there. I had met her through someone else that I had recently met when God helped me to take a step of faith after He had stirred in my heart about washing feet in prison. (That story about the foot washing is for another time to share about God’s goodness.)
When I felt that like God was stirring in my heart/soul at the going away party, I asked her if she would be interested in taking the necklaces with her to give to the children there. She said yes. This felt completely right, but this is the kicker… I knew that my mom had wanted children to have the necklaces, but what I did not know until after is that she had wanted them to go to the children IN INDIA!
When I shared with my aunt that they were being given to the children in India, she said well that is where Lynn had wanted them to go. I did not know that, but God knew that. He got them there at the right time. He opened doors for that. Looking back, it was through a few ways of following His lead. For a period, it was for them to lay dormant, then it was to follow a “crazy” prompting in my heart, and then He enlivened a stirring to say when it was time. Then after, He confirmed that it was truly Him. I believe that He had honored my mom’s heart and hands. She did not have much in material things, but these little necklaces that she made were made with love, hope.
P.S. I kept one of the necklaces, and this is a picture of it.
“…being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus.” Philippians 1:6
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