Category: Timing

Not All Was Lost

My husband and I were desirous and looking forward to attending the homecomings of two returned missionaries. They were the first of our son’s (himself being almost 3/4 of the way through his mission) group of friends to return home after serving a two year mission for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and we were awaiting word as to when they would be taking place in their respective home wards. Time got away and I heard nothing until one day while in dialogue with a friend at church, I learned that they had already happened. I was bummed to hear the news that we had missed their homecoming talks.

Later that same afternoon, our family was attending a meeting at church. As we were preparing to exit the building, I looked down the hall and I saw one of our son’s friends in the foyer. It was a joyous reunion! As I was talking to him, the other returned missionary came out of the chapel. And shortly thereafter another one of our son’s friends also came out of the chapel into the foyer. Being able to talk to and see these two returned missionaries and the other friend of our son’s was an incredible experience!

When hours earlier I was sad that I had missed their homecomings, it was a tender mercy that here they both were in our building and we crossed paths and saw each other at that very moment in the foyer as we were preparing to leave the building and they were entering their meeting that was about to begin. It was awesome!

When have you been disappointed that you missed a missionary homecoming, a friend or loved one’s birthday party, baby shower, graduation, wedding, etc. and the circumstances and timing of crossing paths with them later was remarkable, replacing the sadness of wanting to have attended their special occasion to the joy that not all was lost and you were now seeing and spending one-on-one time with them?

tendermercym♥ments~jld

“How have you noticed Heavenly Father’s awareness and mindfulness of you today?”

*If you would like to receive an email when new posts are published, please send your name and email address to tendermercymoments@gmail.com.*

Catching Spills

After making chili for a church function, I was unsure how I was going to transport it as I was concerned about it spilling in the car on the floor and the seats. I had a few minutes to figure it out before we needed to leave to be on time. As I asked my husband what we could do, he had a brilliant idea to put the crock pot inside a medium sized stock pot. It fit perfectly and if there was any spilling, it would be in the stock pot rather than in the car on the floor or the seats. It was a tender mercy that in a moment when I was trying to find a quick solution, my husband was standing nearby and thought of one right away. It was an ingenious solution.

When have you been on a time crunch trying to figure out a solution to a concern and it came by way of someone standing close by you?

tendermercym♥ments~jld

“How have you noticed Heavenly Father’s awareness and mindfulness of you today?”

*If you would like to receive an email when new posts are published, please send your name and email address to tendermercymoments@gmail.com.*

I Know We Have Them, But Where?

Fall is a fun time of year. There are pumpkin patches, apple orchards, apple cider, pumpkin cookies, pumpkin carving, corn mazes, trick-or-treating, chili cook offs and so many more fun activities to do together as a family.

When my husband was preparing dinner, he had a thought to make caramel apples. He went to the fridge and pulled out the apples and as he began washing and prepping them, he asked me if we had any caramels. I was certain we had caramels. As I looked in the pantry, I found a bag that had only two remaining caramels. I was hopeful and confident that we had more packages, but I did not know exactly where. As I was trying to recall where I have kept them in the past and feeling overwhelmed about checking in multiple places, it was a tender mercy that they were in the first place that came to my mind.

In addition to having the ingredients to make the caramel apples, it was also a tender mercy that as it had been raining all day long, we did not have any extra-curricular activities in the evening. As a mom, driving kids to and fro on bad weather days is stressful and not wanting to go out, it was a tender mercy that on this night we were able to enjoy the comforts of staying in and the fall season eating delicious, juicy, sweet caramel apples.

When has it come to your mind where something you knew you had was located? And, when has the timing aligned nicely that on a bad weather day when you did not want to go out, your evening was free and you were able to enjoy the comforts of staying home spending quality time with family?

tendermercym♥ments~jld

“How have you noticed Heavenly Father’s awareness and mindfulness of you today?”

*If you would like to receive an email when new posts are published, please send your name and email address to tendermercymoments@gmail.com.*
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Read Now, Listen Later

When taking my car in to get the oil changed and the tires rotated, I was told that the wait time would be an hour and a half. I came prepared knowing that there would be a wait time. I wasn’t sure for how long so I brought reading material with me and things that I could listen to while I was waiting. I had a lot of good things that I wanted to accomplish and do in that timeframe, one was adding to my blog and two was listening to podcasts that were inspirational, uplifting, and educational.

While I was listening to a podcast, I had an impression and a prompting that during that time period I could better use my time by reading from the scriptures. Recently, our Prophet, President Russell M. Nelson shared with and invited and encouraged the women of our church, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints to read The Book Of Mormon before the end of the year.  I have chosen to follow that counsel.

Finding time to read is challenging. I am on the go constantly running errands, picking up my kids, and doing different activities. Sitting down is not something I do a lot of, however, during this hour and a half the impression came to read my scriptures. I immediately put away the podcast that I was halfway through and chose and elected to read my scriptures. It was awesome!

I had maybe 30 minutes at that point in time, and anything is something that I wouldn’t have normally. I felt it was a wonderful tender mercy to have that impression and prompting to read my scriptures then rather than listen to the podcast because the podcast could be listened to while in the car driving and when I’m walking around and taking care of dishes, laundry and such. It was fantastic—a wonderful tender mercy to have that time allotted to be able to read from the scriptures!

When have you felt impressed to use your time differently and it ended up being a better, more efficient way for you to accomplish your desired goals?

tendermercym♥ments~jld

“How have you noticed Heavenly Father’s awareness and mindfulness of you today?”

**If you would like to receive an email when new posts are published, please send your name and email address to tendermercymoments@gmail.com.**

Oranges

For days my allergies were really bad. I was a mess. I was miserable. One morning, I was wanting Vitamin C. What I really wanted was orange juice or an orange. The closest thing that I knew we had were lemons. I squeezed some lemon juice in a cup of water and hoped it would help. Later, I noticed after one of my children made their own lunch that they had an orange on their plate. I excitedly expressed, “we have oranges?!” I was amazed! Seeing the orange on my child’s plate drew me to the fridge to see that we had more. What a tender mercy and a huge blessing to discover in this way, that what I wanted most we had.

When have you been grateful to realize and learn through someone else that what you really wanted and needed you already had— perhaps it was similar to the orange or maybe it was a skill or talent, strength, confidence, etc?

tendermercym♥ments~jld

“How have you noticed Heavenly Father’s awareness and mindfulness of you today?”

**To receive an email when new posts are published, please send your name and email address to tendermercymoments@gmail.com**

Candy Canes

For a week, I was in a fog when my allergies were intense. One morning I woke up to a sore throat. It was a tender mercy that I had mini candy canes in my pantry closet. The peppermint oil was very soothing. I had one candy cane in the morning and it started working right away. Following another one in the evening and the morning after, my sore throat was gone. Although my allergies continued for days beyond, I no longer had the sore throat. I was grateful I had candy canes in stock when I needed something that would soothe my sore throat.

When have you had an unconventional item on hand that quickly soothed an ailment?

tendermercym♥ments~jld

“How have you noticed Heavenly Father’s awareness and mindfulness of you today?”

**If you would like to receive an email when new posts are published, please send your name and email address to tendermercymoments@gmail.com.**

Late Start

It was a particularly rough morning when carpool plans changed last minute. One of our children did not have a ride unless they left with me 15 minutes earlier than their usual departure time, lessening their time to get ready. As I waited on them, leaving several minutes later than I had planned to take one of our other children to school, who arrived 3 minutes before their bell rang, further delays occurred as frustrations arose resulting in what I thought would be a definite tardy for the child whose carpool plans had been altered.

I did not want them to be late. I prayed they would be on time, but the closer it got to the start time, it became apparent they would inevitably be late. Minutes after we arrived and I dropped them off, I received a message from them that on that day it was a late start. Instead of being late, they were early. I was grateful!

My prayer was answered in a different way than my specific plea that we would make it through the lights and turn arrows in a timely manner and traffic would be light. The traffic and intersection lights were not on our side and when I saw that there was no way to get there any sooner but to patiently wait it out, it was a huge blessing and tender mercy when I learned about the late start.

When have you prayed specifically for what you thought would help you arrive somewhere on time and when that didn’t happen and you resigned to the fact that you were going to be late, you learn that your prayer was answered in a different way and you ended up being punctual after all?

tendermercym♥ments~jld

“How have you noticed Heavenly Father’s awareness and mindfulness of you today?”

To receive an email when new posts are published, please send your email address to tendermercymoments@gmail.com

Buckeyes

Going out of the house with glasses on has its drawbacks. As they often slip down my nose and are smudgy, I am not able to see things as clearly as when I’m wearing my contacts. However, this particular weekend, it was rainy and humid and I didn’t feel like wearing my contacts. While venturing to the grocery store with my husband early one evening, I felt so out of it. It seemed later than it actually was due to the time of year and it getting darker sooner. I was walking around in a daze without the same focus and concentration I would have wearing my contacts. Those who wear contacts and glasses, can you relate? I wanted to be in and out as quickly as possible and not being able to see well made that goal a bit difficult.

Although for the most part we were getting staple foods that remain the same week to week, I thought about one of my children wanting to make Buckeyes. I decided we might as well pick up those ingredients also while we were at the store. Not knowing what was needed, I called my kids and asked them what items I should buy. They were not certain and had not yet looked up a recipe. All I knew was that Buckeyes have peanut butter and chocolate.

As I was in the baking aisle, I picked up some powdered sugar and shortly after, I saw a friend. As we were chitchatting and saying hello, I mentioned to her my child’s desire to make Buckeyes. She shared that she had just come across a Buckeye recipe that looked good. She found the recipe on her phone and texted it to me. Fabulous! Superb! Amazing! The recipe was for Buckeyes, more specifically, Buckeye brownies. I was awed and grateful. The fact that she had a recipe she was able to pull up fairly quickly because she had recently come across it herself was incredible! And, that I saw her when I did. Wow!

When have you received just what you needed/wanted at the very time you needed/wanted it because you opened your mouth and mentioned to someone else your desires and they had exactly what you were needing/wanting?

tendermercym♥ments~jld

“How have you noticed Heavenly Father’s awareness and mindfulness of you today?”

Handy Paper Towels

When a family member’s sparkling flavored water fizzed over when they were opening it, another family member was quick to come over with a bundle of paper towels to assist with the cleanup. I was extremely grateful for the thoughtfulness of the one cheerfully and willingly helping, all on their own.

And, later as evening came and lights were turned off, while heading to our bedroom, I saw something scurry in front of me. I quickly reached for a light switch to turn the lights back on and noticed a teeny tiny lizard that was moving fast across our hardwood floors in the direction of our carpeted bedroom.

I wanted to catch it before it entered the room as there was no guarantee I would be able to see it if it blended in with the carpet. When I called out, two family members were behind me with paper towels to swoop up the lizard before it got any further. As I was keeping an eye on its location and did not have anything to catch it with nor was I wanting to stomp on it, I was grateful they came right away with paper towels in hand.

When have you been grateful to have paper towels close by to grab or they were handed to you when you needed them?

tendermercym♥ments~jld

“How have you noticed Heavenly Father’s awareness and mindfulness of you today?”

Timing Was Perfect

One evening as I was preheating the oven to begin dinner, my husband called and shared that he expected it was going to be a late night at work. I changed up the meal plan for our kids and I and held off preparing it until later. As the food finished cooking, my husband came through the door, arriving home earlier than either of us had anticipated. We were both very happy! The timing was perfect.

Then the next day, I was out all morning into the early afternoon and prior to picking up our kids from school, I stopped at a new restaurant that I had wanted to check out, most particularly because I had a coupon for BOGO Free burrito that was ending that day.  While watching the burritos being made, my husband called and asked if I was interested in joining him for a late lunch. I had a big smile on my face and said absolutely! The timing was ideal. I had lunch for him and for me and we were able to enjoy time together! So awesome!

When have you been overjoyed when a loved one or friend showed up at the perfect time to join you for a meal?

tendermercym♥ments~jld

“How have you noticed Heavenly Father’s awareness and mindfulness of you today?”