It was a good thing I did not throw out what appeared to be an out of place object for it was not what I thought it was. In fact, it was meant to remain right in the very place I saw it.
During a citywide stay home order for a designated period of time to stabilize the momentum of any community spread of the coronavirus, on a bright and beautiful day following a prior solid day of spring showers, one of my children along with other children and families in our neighborhood and throughout other communities joined in doing a fun outdoor, social distance activity in front of their own homes.
As I enjoyed watching my child’s creativity and drawing techniques while they did sidewalk chalk art at the same time I was soaking up the sunshine and appreciating the clear blue skies all the while listening to a podcast, I observed what I thought was a rock in close proximity to where my child was working.
To me, it was an eyesore and out of place. I wanted to clear it out of the way and toss it into the street where it was better suited to be. However, I felt for whatever reason impressed to just leave it. So, I did. But again, as I continued to see it as I watching my child draw, it was bugging me. Once more, I wanted to go over, pick it up, and remove it. Yet, the same impression came to leave it be.
A couple of minutes later my child picked it up and used it for their chalk art. What looked like a rock to me was actually a piece of chalk, the main contour color they were using. Had I thrown it out, they would not have had that particular piece. It was a tender mercy and a good thing that though I wanted to toss the rock look-alike into the street, I felt impressed to just leave it alone.
When have you resisted the urge to toss away what you observed to be an out of place object which in actuality was not what you thought it was, but an essential object meant to be left right in the very place you saw it?
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.
During a moment I was relaxing after an afternoon of running errands, suddenly, out of the blue, I received a prompting to look for my credit card. After searching intently and not being able to find it, I was willing to accept it was gone gone and ready to outright cancel my card.
Initially, I was taken aback by the prompting as I was so certain I knew exactly the whereabouts of my card. As a matter of fact, in the moment I received the prompting, I could clearly visualize myself standing outside of my car upon my return home from getting gas and grocery shopping with the card in my right hand along with my phone and purchase receipts.
Once inside the house, I placed everything that was in my hand onto a table before going back out to the car for the groceries. However, when I approached the table after receiving the prompting, apparently my recollection of what actually took place was inaccurate. The card was not where I thought I had left it. Up until I had received the prompting, I had been completely oblivious that the card was even missing.
Immediately, I began thinking of everywhere I had been since coming home and, one by one, I backtracked to each of those places. As I came up empty-handed after repeatedly checking each location multiple times, I then considered the possibility that the card was not even in the house.
My thoughts took me back to the grocery store. I wondered if perhaps after placing my credit card temporarily in the same back pant pocket as my phone while checking out, that when I removed my phone as I was getting into my car, the card may have fallen out in the parking lot. When I called the store and asked someone in customer service if anyone had turned it in, I was told no.
With each dead end, I then convinced myself of another scenario. I firmly believed that when I removed everything from my back pants pockets as I was getting into the car at the grocery store to leave for home, I placed my credit card in my lap. And then when I stopped at our mailbox along the way, it for sure fell from my lap onto the street as I stepped out of the car to get our mail. I was one hundred percent set that was what actually happened with the card, unfortunately, when I drove back to the mailbox and looked around, it was not there.
At this point, I had no idea where it could be or what happened to it. I determined that finding my credit card was a lost cause. I resigned to the fact that my credit card was gone gone and I was more than ready to cancel it. Even though I knew that by doing so, it would entail waiting several days before a new credit card arrived to which I would not be able to make any necessary purchases until then and all online payment accounts associated with the card would need to be updated, it was a tender mercy that if I were to cancel the card, I had enough groceries to last our family a little while and my car had a full tank of gas.
And yet, at the same time, although I had retraced my steps several times to no avail, I was still hopeful I would find my credit card so I kept looking more thoroughly in every place I had already checked throughout the house as well as inside the car.
After nonstop looking and not finding it, just before I was prepared to move forward, fully willing to accept it was gone gone and cancel the card, I again went out to the car and slid the driver’s seat back to search the floor one more time. When I again came up empty-handed, I decided to offer a prayer.
I prayed that if the card was still in my possession I would come to know following the prayer exactly where to find it, otherwise, I would straightaway cancel it. Right after the prayer, I had a thought to look again on the floor in an area where many things have fallen through a slim, narrow gap between the driver seat and the middle console. It was a tender mercy that it was there I found my credit card.
When has your credit or debit card turned up missing and though you were willing to accept it was gone gone, before canceling the card, you found it?
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.
As the coronavirus pandemic has quickly altered the course of day-to-day living and many calendared events have been put on hold, it was a tender mercy I was able to finalize and get plans for a particular treatment that would take place incrementally over many months all squared away just in time prior to the office possibly closing their doors for, at the least, a couple of weeks.
At the beginning of the month, before the coronavirus outbreak, I scheduled a free consultation to go over the details of the treatment. The appointment was set for a Friday morning just over a couple of weeks away. With the rapid progression of the virus, two days prior to the appointment, I called the office questioning whether or not the schedule would hold and they confirmed the appointment.
The day before the appointment, I happened to be speaking with someone in an optometrist office and learned from them that starting on Monday they would sadly be closing their doors for two weeks as per CDC and local government recommendations and that others with like health practices were encouraged to do the same. Hearing this news and information was a tender mercy as it prepared me to be more deliberate in my decision that would come into play the next day.
Upon arriving at the appointment, I was surprised when I was stopped as soon as I opened the door and understandably required to have my temperature taken before being allowed to fully come inside the office. Though spring allergies were in full bloom and I was experiencing the impact, it was a tender mercy I did not have a temperature and was permitted to proceed with the appointment. In the office’s attempt to maintain a healthy environment for all their patients, the waiting room was empty as appointments were spread out to conform to social distancing practices.
At the completion of the consultation, I approved the treatment layout and was ready for it to begin. Before making a final decision on one specific payment plan, I wanted to confer with my husband first, however, he was on a business call at work and unable to be reached.
With the office closing mid-afternoon, just over an hour away and no guarantee they would be open for sure Monday morning, I wanted to have the payment and preliminary processes taken care of before leaving so treatment could begin as soon as possible rather than delayed for sometime later on down the road.
It was a tender mercy I was able to touch base with my husband within minutes and everything that was essential to get the ball rolling was all squared away just in time before the office closed for the day and prior to their possibly closing their doors for, at the least, a couple of weeks.
When have you come to know ahead of time about a possible delay in a procedure you preferred to have taken place sooner rather than later and you were able to get what needed to be done all squared away just in time prior to its potential postponement?
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.
It was a close call. The last batch of cookies I was baking almost burnt to a crisp when I stepped away for a time and completely forgot about them.
What would normally be a structured, planned out day gathering together with a congregation of families, just like that, due to an unprecedented turn of events, the day became very casual and laid back.
As Spring Break was coming to a close, I received word that not only would school be out for another week as a result of the coronavirus pandemic, but also that all church worship and other activities held in our church building would be cancelled for sometime to come.
With the hype of the virus spreading and crowds of people going to the store for supplies, it seemed a great opportunity to assess where our family stood with what food and nonfood items we had on hand.
As I organized our fridge to better see what all we had in it as well as to rearrange and place all fresh items in the back and any older food items to be used up first in the front, I came across a couple of ready-to-bake cookie packages to which the sell-by date on them had recently passed. Not wanting to waste what I considered was still good food, I baked up all the cookies.
Minutes after placing the last batch in the oven, per my desire to have myself and our children join my husband who was outside prepping our seasonal vegetable garden, I observed how much time remained till the cookies would be done and noted that I had plenty of time to help some before the timer went off.
I stepped away for what I intended would be only for about 15 minutes. But, as I became fully engrossed in planting seeds with the family, I lost track of time and completely forgot all about the cookies. And, being that I was outside, I unfortunately never heard the oven timer go off. However, it was a tender mercy a random thought reminded me that the cookies were still baking.
As I quickly ran back inside to remove the cookies from the oven, I was prepared to see the entire batch almost burnt to a crisp, but it was a tender mercy that when the timer went off, the oven automatically turned off as well and the cookies were only slightly overcooked.
When have you completely forgotten about food you had in the oven as you became engrossed in another activity while it was baking, yet before it almost burnt to a crisp, a random thought reminded you of the food and upon your quick return to the oven, the food was only slightly overcooked?
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.
While participating in an outdoor adventure with my husband and children, one that I had never before done, I was a bit nervous from the start to the finish of our mountain biking experience, but I did not let it show. At one point along the way, as I made a jagged turn, slipped, and was unable to regain my footing before landing, I was determined and set on getting back up again after the fall and finishing the run.
A couple weeks prior, as Spring Break was approaching, our family came together to discuss and plan out what we wanted to do during that time. It was decided that we would each select one specific activity of our choosing that we would then all do together. Among the activities was an indoor waterpark, outdoor ropes course and zip line, escape room, drive-in-movie, and mountain biking.
I enjoy biking, leisure biking that is. However, mountain biking is a different kind of terrain for me to which I was partly apprehensive, but willing to give it a try. As I love being in nature, I figured if I kept my mind focused on that aspect and that alone, I would do just fine. It would not only offset my anxiety of riding an open chairlift to the top of the mountain, but also offset my anxiety while biking down a narrow, rocky trail with threatening edges and intense switchbacks along with other bikers, who by far were faster, more experienced and gutsy than myself.
While ascending uphill the first time around, I was unaware that there was a safety bar attached to the chairlift. It was a tender mercy when almost 3/4 of the way up, one of my children in a chairlift ahead of me noticed that I was riding unrestrained and made it known to me that there was a safety bar I could pull down in front of me. After I gently brought it down, I felt more secure and at greater ease while being high above the ground.
Once at the top of the mountain, of all the runs, I opted to time and again go down the singular green course that was marked as the easiest of them all. The first time downhill was a dry run. I was pleased that though it was a challenging course, for a beginner like me, it was doable. The second time downhill was my favorite. I was comfortable, felt relaxed and really enjoyed the ride. On my third time downhill, I missed staying up high along a berm going around a bend and turned too sharply into loose dirt within the mid and lower portion of the switchback. Being unable to steady myself, I slipped and fell.
Although I tried resisting the fall, my feet and bike had no traction. I was sliding sideways into base so to speak. Once I came to a solid stop, as I lifted myself back up on my feet and brushed off my pant legs, I could feel my right elbow, right knee, and the inner portion of my left foot start to sting.
Considering that I was wearing fitted pants and a fitted jacket, I felt it best to keep the sustained injuries covered and not expose the open sores to dirt and debris until I could properly care for them. It was not until we returned home that I observed the extent of my injuries. It was a tender mercy that though my leg was scuffed up just below my right knee, there was no bleeding, only the appearance of broken blood vessels and a visible, yet painless bruise, my right elbow had no scraps or marks whatsoever only a slightly tender internal bruise, and my inner left foot had nothing more than a tiny nick. It was a tender mercy that my having worn long pants and a long sleeve jacket not only served as a covering from exposure to the elements, but also as a protection from being more so injured.
Despite the fall, once I got back up, I was determined to finish the course and I was set on being able to round that same bend over and over again undeterred. It was a tender mercy I did not get stuck in a mental block and I was able to continue mountain biking the remainder of our four hour time at the bike park without again slipping and falling.
Even though the luster of riding casually and blissfully down the nature trail was somewhat lost after I fell and I became more cautious and deliberate as I maneuvered down the course, at times skimming one foot a top the ground as I came around the switchbacks to stay upright and not lose my balance, I strived to simultaneously soak up and take in as much as I could of the beauty around me.
When have you been somewhat nervous about trying something adventurous for the first time and though you fell down and got a little scraped up, you got back up again after a fall and finished the course multiple times over?
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.
Although I acknowledged a clear, yet minuscule thought that entered my mind, I quickly reasoned why not to act on it, essentially, ignoring a subtle prompting.
While on a mini vacation, one evening as I opened a ziplock bag to remove one of many alike loose and unpackaged bathroom items from it before placing the bag securely winged underneath one on my arms momentarily to occupy my hands with something else real quick, I had a subtle prompting to seal the bag closed. I reasoned why not to as I was pretty certain I would not drop it, therefore, I ignored the subtle prompting.
Well, what do you know, sure enough, the bag in fact, without initially realizing it, had slipped out from under my arm. And everything that was in the bag fell out onto an unsanitary floor. As such, non of the items were now useable, at least per my OCD mindset I did not feel comfortable using something that had touched an unclean surface. Therefore, I tossed all of the contents completely emptied from the bag into a trash can.
I was so upset and disappointed in myself that I had ignored the subtle prompting, especially being that it was such a simple thing to just seal the bag before placing it under my arm. In the moment I removed my focus from the bag and placed it elsewhere, without my awareness the bag slipped out from under my arm.
Even though I was very frustrated with myself, it was a tender mercy I had also fortunately brought with me several more of the somewhat similar item, individually packaged. And though I was not happy about resorting to what I had brought as a backup, nonetheless, it was a tender mercy I was not without having them with me.
In addition, as I have many times wondered and asked myself whether I recognize if I have truly received a prompting or not, contemplating on this experience, it was a tender mercy I was able to see that I indeed received a subtle prompting to which I actively and consciously ignored. When the subtle prompting came, I acknowledged it, had a brief conversation with myself in my mind and confident I would not let the bag fall, I opted to not act on the prompting resulting in the loss.
When have you ignored a subtle prompting to act on doing something so simple and as a result the loss of a useful product occurred, yet fortunately, you had another somewhat similar item to use in its place?
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.
Typically I would be bummed if I missed an important deadline, however, recently when I did just that, missed an important deadline, I was not bothered.
For months now, occasionally here and there, I have mentioned to our family about an opportunity taking place during a general timeframe for a couple of family members to participate in an event that is held multiple times during the year. However, a strong interest had not been expressed fully by them, therefore, I felt no urgency or pressure to look into registering them for it. Ironically, the day I felt impressed to look into the details of when the closest upcoming one would take place and the timing of when to register, the deadline had just ended the day prior.
Considering that I would normally be bummed and disappointed if I had missed an important deadline, it was quite uncharacteristic of me to have felt so at ease and not bothered at all about missing the registration deadline. As the family members had not been set on any one of the available dates in particular, per se, I was not stressed or anxious in the least. Though, as I casually shared with one of them that the general timeframe I had brought up from time to time, now only a little more than a month away, was at this point completely out of the question, they were surprised that I had not looked into registering them sooner as I am not a usual procrastinator and often speak to giving oneself a cushion when planning things out. But, for whatever reason, I had not felt compelled or inclined to look into it any sooner than on the day that I did.
Despite the closest date being no longer a possibility, so I thought, as I continued to look into further information about the event, it was a tender mercy I saw that the window to register for the upcoming one was still open albeit a late registration fee would be added to the admission ticket. In looking at the other dates for the event happening a couple more times later on in the year, it turned out that the date to which I just missed the registration deadline by less than 24 hours was the most ideal date of them all. Oddly, as cost-conscious as I am, I was okay and comfortable with paying the late fee.
When have you missed an important deadline to register for an event and then learned that the registration was still open for a late fee to which you were willing to pay?
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.
When an opportunity arose to help someone in need, what trumped my actions was the thought, “somebody else will do it, right?”
As I was briefly browsing Facebook posts, I saw a friend’s request asking for any resources that could help them with a specific challenge they were facing. When looking through the already provided suggestions in the comments, even though I did not see the resource I would recommend, I did not quickly respond, in fact, I did not respond at all.
I questioned if my recommended resource was even all that applicable to their particular situation and where I did not have the direct source link to post it in the comments right then, I opted to pass up the opportunity to add my suggestion, reasoning that somebody else will do it, right?
It was not long after I saw a follow-up post from this friend where they had compiled a list of all the references they had received so as to share them with others who may be interested as well. It was a tender mercy that though I hedged providing a resource, I was happy to see that my suggestion, which I was grateful was given to my friend by someone else, was on the list.
Several days later, I once again saw a request from another friend, friend B, reaching out on a community page seeking to find a consultant with a specific network marketing company for to purchase desired products from them and at that very same time I had a friend, friend C, who happened to be hosting an online party selling the very goods my friend B was wanting to get. Neither of them knew each other.
At first I postponed doing anything and sat back for a number of days thinking once again, somebody else will do it, right? I was certain that either somebody else would respond to my friend B’s request guiding them to a consultant or that surely a consultant would see their message and respond to it. However, after a few days passed, I reached out to my friend B to see if they were still looking for a consultant and when I shared with them about the friend who was hosting the online party, friend B was interested in being connected with friend C.
I had not been in contact with my friend hosting the party in years and was unsure if the cell number I had for them was still their number. As I felt uncomfortable texting them in the event it was not their number anymore, I felt it safer to call the number instead. After a few rings, it was a tender mercy my friend C picked up and we had a wonderful conversation catching up with one another. And, it was a tender mercy that I was able to help both friends and connect them with each other.
When have you hedged helping a friend out thinking somebody else will do it and sure enough somebody else did as well as when have you been able to connect two of your friends together who did not know one another and each had something that could help the other?
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.
Whenever the quality of food comes into question, I naturally lean towards following this commonly sound advice, “when in doubt, throw it out”.
On this cold, cold winter day, I was looking forward to making a friend’s homemade chili recipe for dinner, a very simple and easy recipe that is my go-to on days like today:
1 lb ground beef
1/4 to a whole chopped onion (if desired). If using dried onions, reconstitute first.
1 package taco flavoring
1 16 oz can corn
1 16 oz can kidney bean
1 28 oz can diced tomato
1 15 oz can tomato sauce
Brown meat and cook onion, then add rest of recipe, simmer 20-25 min.
Earlier in the week as I went grocery shopping with my children, whom one of them, all on their own, made a list of healthy food choices they desired for school lunches and family dinners and took on the shopping, all on their own, with me by their side, it was awesome that included among the ingredients was hamburger.
In an interest to have warm comfort food on this brrr of a night, I asked my child if I could use the hamburger they originally intended for a different meal to make the delicious chili and they were on board.
In preparing to cook the meat that had been in the fridge for a few days, after opening the tied grocery bag to get to the produce bag that had the packaged tube of hamburger inside, I pulled out a knife from a knife block to slice apart the packaged hamburger across the middle lengthwise.
Before cutting into the packaging, I noticed a small hole in the wrapping. I was concerned that the hamburger may be bad. I began to question whether I should cook the meat or not. The phrase, “when in doubt, throw it out” surfaced to the forefront of my mind, but then I considered the possibility that perhaps I incidentally nicked the outer plastic covering with the knife as I had it up against the tube while looking away briefly.
As I contemplated what I should do, throw the meat out or cook it, I decided that once I split open the tube, if the meat was red and looked fresh then it was good to use and if it was a tainted grey or a faded brown in color, it was bad and I would throw it out in a heartbeat. It was not worth my or my family’s physical health to cook up ten dollars of meat if it was bad.
As all I had to go off of at this point was the fact that there was a hole in the packaging, a repeated question I kept tossing back and forth in my mind was whether it was there at the time of purchase or did it come about by me. In trying to discern between which of the two considerations was the actual case, I felt more so confident it was the later.
As I began slicing the package open, I stopped to check the expiration date and was relieved it was still a couple days away. Once I had the tube open, it was a happy sight and a tender mercy to see that all of the meat was red and looked fresh.
Time and again, I automatically when in doubt, throw it out, however, on this occasion, it was a tender mercy I felt a peaceful calm that the meat was just fine. It did not feel good to throw it out. What felt good was to cook it and eat it.
Upon cooking the chili, even though doubt creeped in all the while I was browning the hamburger and the chili was simmering, I was able to over and over again not allow my thoughts of doubt to take over and to stay aligned with the stillness of the peace and assurance I felt that the hamburger was just fine and that our family would not be harmed by eating it. We thoroughly enjoyed the yummy chili and we did not get sick.
When have you questioned the quality of food you were about to prepare to serve yourself and others and though the phrase “when in doubt, throw it out” was considered, you felt a peaceful calm the food was just fine and no one got sick from eating it?
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 have been struggling with something that is really hard. I have been struggling with writing.
Why is writing so hard for me? Even though I’ve been blogging for two years now, (my first published post) writing for me has not gotten any easier, if anything it seems to have become more difficult. Why do I blog? Because I have tender mercy moment experiences that I have felt strongly impressed and guided to share with others and the means I have felt impressed to do it is through a blog.
I definitely appreciate and value each finished blog post, however, what it takes to get to that point is super hard, hours of editing so that my description of my experiences are concise, cohesive, and coherent. Though it takes me a long time to come to a place that I feel comfortable publishing most post entries, I am pleased with the end result, albeit imperfect.
As I have been struggling a great deal writing out my tender mercy moments, it has been a tremendous tender mercy that I have received divine help.
For days now, despite there being no shortage of tender mercy moments, personal and sacred in nature, I have experienced a lull in not having a tender mercy moment I felt impressed to blog about publicly and considered that maybe my time and season after two years of blogging was coming to an end.
While being in this unusual space of abeyance, it was a tender mercy an impression to post an earlier published entry entered my mind. As I wondered which entry I should repost, it was another tender mercy that of all of my published posts, I was drawn to one in particular from a year and half ago. I don’t know the reason why it was that specific one other than I felt an assurance that it would touch and bless at least one reader.
Although it felt strange to repost an earlier entry, at the same time it felt right. Ironically, after reposting it, I began listening to a Virtual Couch Podcast episode by Tony Overbay in which it so happened the episode I selected was one he originally recorded eight or nine months earlier and was replaying it for the reason that the relevancy of the message was applicable just as much today as it was back when it was first recorded and there were now new listeners to his podcast whom may not have heard the episode when it first came out, me being one of them.
In addition to that amazing tender mercy, I then recalled how grateful I have been when Jordan Page of funcheaporfree.com has reposted her grandma’s banana bread recipe here and there on her blog. As both Tony and Jordan have been sharing content online for much longer than I, knowing that they too repost prior entries to their site was a comforting tender mercy.
On this day, it was another tender mercy as a family member reached out to me asking about something they hoped I could send to them, that while looking for it, I came across a book on a shelf in our home that I didn’t even know we had from a class one of our children had taken some time ago entitled, “Mindful Writing”.
As I browsed through the first chapter, it was a tender mercy I felt additional comfort when I came across several sentences by the author, Brian Jackson, relaying the struggle and challenge it is to write, “Learning to be a good writer is a lifelong process that will challenge you in every new rhetorical situation. I’m still learning how to write, after thirty-five years of doing it and fifteen years of teaching it.” … “Writing—and I ain’t tellin’ you anything new here—is hard. It’s a challenging task.” … “As I said, I’ve been writing and studying writing for a long time, and I still struggle to get my writing where I want it to be.”
Why did his words bring me comfort? Because for the past two years of blogging I’ve been waiting for my weakness in writing to become a strength and realizing that other writers struggle with writing too was comforting.
When have you been struggling with something that is really hard, waiting for the day when you’ll master it, only to realize and find comfort that others with seemingly more experience than you in a similar discipline struggle too?
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.
