I just wanted to be alone.  I left my phone on the table, making sure I would not be disturbed by modern conveniences.  Grabbing the umbrella by the door, I put on my boots and called for the dog.  As we walked through the pouring rain in our back field, I started to pray.

My dad had faced a series of health issues over the past year.  Most recently he had gone in for a bone biopsy.  It was taking longer for the results than we were originally told, and everyone’s anxiety was increasing.  There is only so many times you can hear a loved one talk about “when I’m gone,” before you break, and I had reached my limit.

I prayed that it wouldn’t be bone cancer.  I prayed it would be something manageable.  I prayed for a few more years with my Daddy.  I prayed for a sign.

The rain was still coming down in buckets when I reached the tree-line that borders our back field.  As the tears streamed down my face something made me look up.  That’s when I saw it.

The most beautiful rainbow I had ever seen.  

It was a complete rainbow, seeming to stretch from behind our neighbor’s house all the way across the sky to a field down the way.  The colors were bright and vivid against the gloomy sky.  Not only that, but there was a second, slightly lighter rainbow above it.  A double rainbow.

I fell to my knees, in awe of how beautiful it was.  I could not take my eyes from it.

Unlike so many rainbows that vanish as soon as you see them, this one lasted a long, long time.  And I knew in my heart that I was meant to see it.  It was my sign.  And like that, my fears were gone.  I still didn’t know the results of that biopsy, but I knew there was hope.  And I knew I wasn’t alone.

You may also like:

• My Journey to Forgiveness
• How to Explain the Miracle of Jesus Forgiving Sin
• Simple Resurrection Garden for Lent

The post Finding Hope in the Storm first appeared on There's Just One Mommy.

There are thousands of stories where prayer has brought healing as well.  Not just emotional healing, but even physical.  A quick search will find you many stories where people who supposedly had no chance to survive are here because the prayers of their loved ones.

So what has brought me to this topic for today’s Thankful Thursday?  My nephew.  Lego-man was born with hypoplastic right heart syndrome.  Essentially he was born with half a heart.  There was a lot of prayer going on at the time, and he made it through three different heart surgeries before he was even three.  I believe that it is the power of prayer that has not only given his family strength but has healed him physically as well.  Incredibly he will be starting high school next year.

Last night Lego-man gave everyone quite a scare.  Without going into a bunch of detail he’s had a stomach bug lately and his heart was doing some pretty freaky things.  He was taken to the hospital via ambulance, and thankfully he is home today.  Maybe it was just muscle spasms due to being sick?  All I know is we were all praying hard last night.  And prayer is a powerful thing, and for that I am thankful.

The post Thankful Thursday-The Power of Prayer first appeared on There's Just One Mommy.