| Romans 15:13 – “May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.” |
My paternal grandmother Hattie was an amazing woman. She lived a very hard life on a farm with no running water and only a woodburning stove for heat until she was in her 80’s. She was a small woman – probably around 5 feet tall – but I rarely ever saw her just sitting and doing nothing. From the day she married my grandfather, she was busy from before dawn until way after sunset: working in the garden, cooking or cleaning, helping my grandfather with chores, and later taking care of their two children (my dad and his sister Leora.)
Tragedy struck the family when Leora died at age 17 from pneumonia after a very short illness. In going through some of her old things, I learned that my grandmother struggled for many years after Leora’s death, but eventually she found peace. My grandfather died just after his 90th birthday, and my grandmother lived another seven years in a retirement center. I never once heard her complain or wish that her life had been different. She continued to read her Bible, prayed for me and was a comfort to me when I was going through challenges of my own. Her quiet voice was warm with encouragement and faith that God would carry me through my dark times, just as he had for her. She never lost her joy or peace and set such a good example for me, right up until she went to heaven at age 93.
Prayer: Lord, thank you for the Godly example of our ancestors. Thank you for Hattie and all she taught me about faith and love and joy. Help me to be that kind of example to others.
– Betty Gossell
