The Nancy I am referring to is not myself, I am referring to my mother-in-law who also happens share the same as my own. I don't actually call her Nancy, I call her Mom, but since I call more than one woman by the name of mom for the sake of clarity when I say mom you'll know I mean Nancy, as in my mother-in-law, Nancy Roberts. Wow...that was a really long run on sentence.
Anyways...
Ken told me yesterday that while I was at school his mother called feeling down and needing a little encouragement. While talking to Ken I was reminded of a blog I read when I was also feeling discouraged, weak, and unsure if I was up for the challenges of life that lay ahead of me.
Mom, I was thinking of you and wanted to share this post with you. The following are not my words, but used with permission from Sunshine Promises -a gifted blogger, who uses her talent and life experiences to express the feelings of a tender mothers heart. You can visit her blog and read the entire post
HERE.
The story is as follows...
During the Mormon Migration, many companies of Pioneers made the long and arduous trek from the Midwest to Utah. Many of those Saints started the journey after leaving everything they owned in foreign lands and making the long and expensive journey to the United States. The end result? Too many started the journey destitute and had to travel in "less than desirable" conditions. Many of those immigrants came by handcart.
One of the handcart companies was the Willie and Martin Handcart company. Quite recently, their story was beautifully depicted in the movie "17 Miracles." Many stories could be told of their faith, testimony, heartache and sacrifice but - for this post - this one will have to suffice.
After surviving starvation, exhaustion, bone chilling conditions and being overshadowed by the Spirit of Death, a young girl found herself among the survivors when the rescuers came from the Salt Lake Valley. Her hopes, however, were soon squelched when it was announced that the younger folk would still be asked to walk the remainder of the trek to allow for room in the wagons for the older and more feeble Saints. After hearing this, the girl and a friend made the decision to try and keep up with the wagons just in case there became room available onboard. They did so and - sure enough - they were soon asked by a man if they wanted to get on the wagon.
So, at this point, can you imagine what they were feeling? Relief, Gratitude, Hope that this nightmare would all be over. Right? That's what one would rightfully assume. Well . . .
As the Driver reached down for the girls, he asked them to hold on to the wagon. At that same moment, he signaled to his horses to speed up. Soon, the girls found themselves sprinting alongside the wagon, trying to run fast enough to not get trampled. In that instant, the girl thought to herself, "This is CERTAINLY the meanest man in the world! How COULD he do this to us after all we've been through!"
And then the teaching moment.
When she thought she couldn't go a step more, the gentleman stopped the wagon, pulled the girls onboard and continued on to the Salt Lake Valley. The Method to his Madness? The girls were nearly frozen to death and he knew that - in order to survive the voyage onboard - they would need to warm up their bodies through a brisk run. In essence, what appeared to be torture was the very thing that saved their lives.
How many of us have experienced this? We find ourselves in difficult circumstances that demand us to run faster than we have strength. We are exhausted, heartbroken, and wonder if a God in Heaven is even aware of our plight.
And then the wagon speeds up.
We start sprinting and taking deeper strides than we thought we were capable. Our lungs are burning, feeling ready to burst, and hot tears are spilling down our cheeks as we feel our bodies begin to shut down.
And then the wagon slows.
We are hypothetically pulled into the Lord's wagon. Is the voyage over? No. But a Loving Father in Heaven knows we have reached our breaking point. There IS relief. And He is our Driver.
When time, experience and perspective give us the hindsight that only God can give, we believe that it will be moments such as this that WILL in fact save us. For it is IN these moments that we have learned the strength we can have through God. That with Him, nothing IS impossible and that our faith can in fact withstand even the darkest of times.
And that - in the end - we are saved by the Wagon Sprint.
Mom, I love you. I know you can do anything the Lord calls you to do. He will strengthen and bless you. We are proud of you and dad for your willingness to serve Him. You will be in our prayers. I have no doubt that you are equal to this task. I also have know doubt that it will be a blessing in your life, and the lives of your children & grand-children, even more than you can imagine. We love you!
Love, The Other Nancy
