People Who Have Changed My Life

My neighbor and friend, Lurenda, lost her little girl, Olivia about a week after her birth. Olivia was born very premature. Today would have been Olivia's third birthday. In honor and memory of her, Lurenda asked her friends to share someone who has made a difference in our lives in the same way that Olivia touched so many lives in her short life. I cannot think of any one person in particular that stands out above anyone else so here are my thoughts on this Friday morning.

My college roommate Meredith, a new mommy herself! She would not remember this but sometime our junior year, I was struggling with a relationship and she calmly looked me in the eye and asked if he was a Christian. I could not answer. She then said "Renie, can you imagine him not being with you in paradise?" While it took me a few more years to act on her sisterly love for me, I did finally make the break and the result was meeting....

My husband, Philip. I guess most wives would say that their husbands have had a lasting impression on them and for good reason. My husband, Philip, accepted me for who I was, warts and all. I remember that deep talk every couple has when they lay it all out on the table, with pure honesty. As I finished sharing my sordid past, he shared his and it was virtually spotless. I felt so ashamed and fearful. How could this wonderful man love me? He looked deeply in my eyes and simply said that I was his love, that I was to be his bride, forgiven and washed pure, just as Christ loved the Church. I have never felt such a powerful rush of emotions as that moment, in Kentucky, nine years ago.

And of course, my children. No one, especially me, could have imagined me loving my calling as a mother as much as I do. Each morning, I thank God for these little blessings and how much they depend on and adore me and my husband. They are living proof that God programmed us to desire love from one another and to love Him.

Dear sweet Olivia, thank you for the opportunity to reflect on people in our lives that have made us be better people because of their unconditional love for us.