MIDWEEK

When I was a child, my mother would collect coins wherever she could find them – between couch cushions or on the sidewalk. We didn’t have a lot of money, but she would always keep an eye out for “spare” change. When she had collected enough, she would take me and my sisters to the store to buy us a candy bar or some other small treat.

Some claim that we remember only ten to twenty percent of what we read or hear. Others debate that estimate, saying it isn’t that simple. Numerous variables need to be considered, and recall can be much higher. Ask me to recite even a small portion of what I read and heard this past week, and I’ll stand by the estimate.

As a child, I frustrated my mother by waiting until Saturday night to remember I had several verses to memorize for Sunday school the following morning. Now, Mom and I recite Scripture together daily. The “Helper” Jesus spoke of gives Mom high recall even though she suffers from dementia.

My cancer journey took me to some extreme lows. I remember sitting on my back porch surrounded by the beauty that is my 8 1/2-acre property complete with a pool, hot tub and fire pit, wallowing in fear and suffering. Even though His blessings were all around me, my human nature was focused only on what I felt.