touch point – Jesus is for the Wounded

Garden Art Comes Home, Part 1

By AMG Julie

Little did I know when Bethany wrote her colorful article on Garden Art in the June issue of Across the Fence (publication of the Master Gardeners of Allen County, Indiana, of which I am Editor) that I would soon receive an unexpected gift of my own!

About 5 years ago I decided to send a letter to the owner of my childhood home. There was a unique piece of garden art in the backyard placed there over a dozen years ago by my now deceased Mom. Is it still there? If it is and you find that you no longer want it, would you kindly let me know? I didn’t hear anything and never drove by the house during that time to see if it was still there, visible from the street. Life went on until I got a surprise phone call on Friday, June 5, 2020.

I found your letter in the back of a bathroom cabinet when I was remodeling a few months ago. I have the metal piece sitting outside against the house in the backyard if you want it. I figured it would be meaningful to someone. Give me a call if you do . . .

I was in shock! Holy cow! Mark J had removed the garden gate from the garden “hill” on the side of the house, concrete and all, and had it neatly secured with pavers against the red bricks of the old house. I talked to my husband (always up for a driving adventure), thought about it overnight. And then I got really excited! I called Mark on Saturday and said YES! We’ll come get it!

My childhood home is in Warren, Michigan. I had moved away in 1983 after college to the Chicagoland area then again north of Fort Wayne in 2007. Favorite plants made the journey here as well. But I never would have expected that this prized possession of the original garden master in my life would come home too. I called my brother right away and had some fun reminiscing about our garden projects with our mother over the years. I sent him photos of the garden gate on Saturday when Mark forwarded them to me. Plans were coming together to drive up to Michigan on Sunday to pick up our new found treasure and have a quick visit with my brother and his family as well.

The visit never happened. Or at least not yet. Twenty-six minutes before Mike would have received the photos that I sent by text, he went into a medical crisis that would end his life. He never saw the photos. We did not drive to Michigan that weekend. I never saw my brother alive again . . .

The meaningfulness of this experience and simple piece of garden art is now greater than ever before. Mike made his gateway to heaven the very day after our Mom’s garden gate came back into our lives. When this time of mourning has passed, my beloved and I will make our way to Michigan for a Memorial Service and retrieval of a memorable artifact from my personal heritage. It’s a little thing in the scheme of life yet I’ll bet that I’m not the only one out there with meaningful touch points in his or her garden beds that reflect your own stories as well.

I’d love to hear them. JJ

Dr. David Jeremiah, life beyond amazing, tour, Fort Wayne, coliseum, event, Christian, Blackhawk Church, believer, inspiration

My husband, Steve, and I recently attended Dr. David Jeremiah’s A Life Beyond Amazing event in our town. I enjoyed Dr. Jeremiah’s presentations: first to get acquainted with his family life then his message on enduring life’s challenges as unto the Lord. However I must say that the fundraising prayer by one of his staff was tacky! The music was loud, motivating, and moving. Overall I must say that it felt good to be worshiping and learning in the company of fellow believers in Jesus Christ again.

I really wanted to meet Dr. Jeremiah after the event. No problemmo as just one of about 10,000 people in attendance, right? Very carefully we made our way to show center from the nosebleed section of the Allen County War Memorial Coliseum. My balance was a bit off from the sensory overload from many directions as I still battle Chronic Inflammatory Response Syndrome. Nonetheless, I was a woman on a mission and soon found ourselves in front of the stage talking to the gifted musicians still lingering around. I complimented Dr. Jeremiah’s granddaughter who sang in the worship team and asked where I might find her grandfather? “He had to leave for a fundraising dinner,” was all she said. I was disappointed but understood. Fort Wayne, Indiana was the starting place for Dr. Jeremiah’s ministry and many members of the church he had founded here were in attendance; surely there were special activities going on to which Steve and I were not invited!

We tried to find some restrooms that were not swamped by the crowds still leaving the arena. Having been there for shows many times before, when we headed down an open hallway where some smaller meeting rooms were located. We encountered the vocalists again and saw a meeting room bustling with people just before we found our destination. The hallways were virtually empty except for a few late-comers headed to what looked like a reception. Then just before I turned to go into the lady’s room, I saw him! Dr. Jeremiah was walking with his wife headed for that same room and it was becoming clear that we had just passed the room where his post-event activities were to take place.

This was my moment and I stepped up to it. I walked up to Dr. David Jeremiah with my arm outstretched to shake his hand. He accepted it and looked into my eyes briefly as I said what I had rehearsed in my mind ever since I had expressed a desire to go to the event days beforehand. It went something like this:

Hi. My name is Julie ____. Several years ago you gave a message that included the teaching that God’s man in the middle of God’s will, will not perish until the Lord God ordains it. I wanted to tell you how much that message has meant to me as I have battled a serious illness with seizures every day for the past 5 years. Thank you. Keep doing what you are doing!

His spoke words that followed mine as I finished the sentence from his audio tape, as if he had just given the message yesterday and not over 10 years ago! He thanked me and quickly continued to his destination with his wife. I continued to my own destination with a sense of wonder and amazement. That moment was ordained by God for sure, just for me, just for him.

My spirit was calm and full as I thought about all that had transpired over the past 2 1/2 hours. Steve and I drove home lightly chatting along the way, mostly quietly in our own thoughts. I would be very sick with convulsive episodes within the hour of returning home and showering. My senses were completely overloaded from the loud music, close proximity to other people, and the effects of some new treatment ramping up. For the first time I did not feel traumatized by the serious illness that I have been selected to endure. My own words provided the comfort I needed to get through the darkness of the night.

God’s woman, in the middle of God’s will, will not perish until the Lord God ordains it. He has a plan and purpose for our lives even in the midst of suffering. And should I finish well, the tasks before me no matter how difficult, there may be reward someday but first there certainly will be a closeness to my Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, that transcends my understanding. I want that. And touch points in life like these will help me to craft my own life beyond amazing.

I’m up for that.