Brighten Your Day

I am the kind of person who goes out of the way to miss hitting turtles that are crossing the road. In addition to that, I will stop to move them out of the way and rescue them if they are injured. I had recently resumed going to church after ignoring God for about 30 years and actually felt closer to God than I had as a child, raised in church.

Well, one day I stopped to rescue a turtle with a particularly nasty wound to his/her shell, about half of one side of the shell was gone. I didn't have much hope for this little guy but I took it home anyway. Did I mention that in the ensuing years of my life, I was a registered Nurse and worked in The ICU for about 20 years. I mention this to explain that I know "sick" and I recognize "dying". I had become attached to the little guy but was in despair because I knew his chances were very slim and there was nothing I could do. One morning when I checked the turtle, I knew he was dying. His color had gone from normal army green to a sickly grey and all his limbs and head were extended and limp, he would be dead within minutes. This broke my heart. I sat down with the turtle on the floor beside me , closed my eyes and prayed. My prayer was that God would take his life and put him out of his misery since I knew he could not survive. I even cried for the little guy. When I opened my eyes after maybe one minute, he was looking at me, standing and acting like a normal turtle again and his color was normal!! To my eyes and heart, this was truly a miracle! The wound was still there but I knew that God was in control and that He would take special care of this very blessed turtle. God uses the tiny, insignificant and lowly to show us his love and mercy. He watches our hearts for that perfect moment to reveal to us much he loves us. he is watching for those teachable moments in all of us...Don't miss yours.