A few days ago I was overly thinking about who would be the first person I would approach for a story of Gods grace and mercy to place on this blog. As I stressed I remembered what Brother Kenneth Herring had recently advised me to do concerning this blog. He told me to pray for and about it. So as I washed the dishes I thought how grateful I would be if the Lord would send me a story. It hadn't been more than an hour when He did just that. There was a knock at my door. It was Brother Lonnie Base. He had been working on our brick mailbox and had came to the door to deliver my mail. I thanked him and asked him how he was feeling. The week before he had been bitten by a brown recluse while working on my mailbox. He said that he was much better and as I glanced where the bite was there was only peeling skin. He told me how he had been bitten before and how the Lord had healed him over night. I then told him about this new blog of mine and would he be interested in sharing his healing with me. He said in a matter of fact way " yes, I have many stores and I'm not afraid to share what the Lord has done for me." The Lord had heard my feeble prayer and sent Brother Lonnie to my door. What a wonderful beginning for this site.
Brother Lonnie Base
I took my phone and walked up to the mailbox where Brother Lonnie was working. I put my phone on voice record and asked him if he minded having a chat with me about the wonderful things the Lord had done for him. He began telling me about the day his wife left him. He said he had been baptised a week when she left. I replied in a shocked voice "a week." Yes, a week was his reply. He continued telling me how at the time his daughter was only nine months old. He said that not long after that the Lord sent him a prophet. The Lord said to him that in not many days that He would give him his daughter to raise. Friends and family not being in this faith had advised him to get a lawyer. They told him that he was going to loose her. He told me that he just believed in what the Lord had promised him. He said that he had a dream about a lion that would roar. When this lion roared the people would run and those that ran were devoured by the lion. He said that in his dream he stood still. The lion would come near him and even open his mouth to swallow him and he remained still. The lion in his stillness drew back. Lonnie received paper from the court about the custody of his daughter. The papers gave him a date to show up in court. Lonnie's daughter was important to him but somehow he forgot about that date and he missed the custody hearing. The next set of papers he received was telling him that his wife had full custody of their daughter and that he was to pay child support. He remained still. He didn't run and try to plead the court. He believed still in what the Lord had spoken and shown him. Just a few days after receiving the last letter his wife brought his daughter over and asked him if he would watch her for a few days until she got back on her feet again. She never returned to pick up their daughter. The Lord had fulfilled his promise. He never had to fight one day in court for his daughter. He was proud to tell me how he now has three grandchildren and how the oldest of his daughters children was named Lonnie after him. I asked him how hard that must have been for his wife to have left only a week after he was baptised. How he must have known the consequences. Not once did his mind rest on what he didn't have. Instead he only spoke of the great and wonderful things that came from what appeared to be such a tragedy. Where others would run and be devoured he had the courage to stand and be tested. The courage and strength to believe and not question. The Lord is faithful.
Brother Lonnie shared with me a few more stories as we chatted over my mailbox. He told me of a time when he had to hold his teething daughter just so or she would cry. He nor she had hardly rested for three days. Tired and weary at 3 in the morning he went to the car to get some oil to anoint his teething daughter. As soon as his finger reached her gums she was relieved of her pain and instantly fell asleep. I made the comment about how he should have anointed her three days prior. We laughed and he said that he was amazed how the Lord could love us being that we are so stubborn. He said that he felt that the Lord must have withheld the thought to anoint her from him. All the same, if he had anointed her three days prior then the story would have been lost. The meaning not as great and the lesson not as memorable.
He shared with me one last story that really hit home. He had been bitten by a brown recluse about a year ago. The bite was on one of his fingers. He said that everyday it continued to get worse. His daughter visiting him didn't pray for him that day but instead that night when she returned home she anointed her finger same as his and prayed for healing. Lonnie said he felt that evening as though something had happened. That next morning his daughter called to ask about his finger. He told her that it began to improve probably about the time that she returned home. She shared with him how she had anointed her finger and prayed for the healing of his finger. I'm struck by the amazing fact of how close they are. How he felt that something was happening about the time that the prayer was going forth. How her finger became his. Beautiful just beautiful.
On this day my half built mailbox became a dinner table. I got to know one of my fellow brethren. I learned a little about him and he learned a little about me. I was shown an endearing spirit that has weathered many storms but chooses to see them not as storms but as a blessings. I'm thankful to the Lord to cause a set of circumstances that through the knocking over of our mailbox would allow me to meet and get to know this man who God had sent to my door.
Brother Lonnie shared with me a few more stories as we chatted over my mailbox. He told me of a time when he had to hold his teething daughter just so or she would cry. He nor she had hardly rested for three days. Tired and weary at 3 in the morning he went to the car to get some oil to anoint his teething daughter. As soon as his finger reached her gums she was relieved of her pain and instantly fell asleep. I made the comment about how he should have anointed her three days prior. We laughed and he said that he was amazed how the Lord could love us being that we are so stubborn. He said that he felt that the Lord must have withheld the thought to anoint her from him. All the same, if he had anointed her three days prior then the story would have been lost. The meaning not as great and the lesson not as memorable.
He shared with me one last story that really hit home. He had been bitten by a brown recluse about a year ago. The bite was on one of his fingers. He said that everyday it continued to get worse. His daughter visiting him didn't pray for him that day but instead that night when she returned home she anointed her finger same as his and prayed for healing. Lonnie said he felt that evening as though something had happened. That next morning his daughter called to ask about his finger. He told her that it began to improve probably about the time that she returned home. She shared with him how she had anointed her finger and prayed for the healing of his finger. I'm struck by the amazing fact of how close they are. How he felt that something was happening about the time that the prayer was going forth. How her finger became his. Beautiful just beautiful.
On this day my half built mailbox became a dinner table. I got to know one of my fellow brethren. I learned a little about him and he learned a little about me. I was shown an endearing spirit that has weathered many storms but chooses to see them not as storms but as a blessings. I'm thankful to the Lord to cause a set of circumstances that through the knocking over of our mailbox would allow me to meet and get to know this man who God had sent to my door.
My middle daughter Lillian Marie talking Poor Lonnie's ear off.
Lonnie had the kids put together a small little time capsule that he put in the top of the mailbox.
It's likely that because of the position of this mailbox that in the future someone will once again knock it over. When they do there will be a little treasure for them to find. Scotlyn Grace my littlest needed some help seeing the top where the treasure is now hidden.
I won't always have pictures to go with these posts but thankfully today I do.
1 comment:
Love this blog!! Enjoyed reading this story very much.
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