You never know when a kind word or gesture will make a difference

I am in awe of my husband.

Yes, he's a great husband and he's a wonderful father.

But most importantly, he is a godly man.

He takes his job(s) seriously, whether he is providing for his family or is performing therapy on a patient.

He also takes God's instructions seriously and is one of the most compassionate people I know.
Even in his first job out of PT school, he often had patients cooking for him or giving him vegetables from their gardens. I can't tell you how many dozens of homemade tamales we ate because of his sweet patients.

He also did home health care, and sometimes he would be the only person coming to that home each week. He might also have been the only person to listen to that person or encourage them as well.

More than once he's had elderly women cry when he's had to discharge them, because they enjoyed visiting with him so much.

Today, my husband and I went to the viewing of a man that A got to know through physical therapy for this man's wife. Though this man had a few health issues, his wife was the one who really needed someone to take care of her.

Sadly, he died in his sleep early Friday morning.

I had met this couple before and visited with them a few times. They were precious. You could tell that they loved each other very much. The wife told me one time with a smile on her face, "He takes very good care of me."

She was right.

Today we visited and hugged and listened and shook hands and met the other siblings. (We knew one daughter already fairly well.)

What amazed me was the encouragement that many of the family members had for my husband. They had never personally met him until today, but his name was mentioned many times by his parents.

One daughter thanked me for coming and with tears in her eyes told me that her father loved my husband more than we realize.

What a testimony!

I know my husband does not speak kindly to his patients to impress them or spend a little extra time listening to them because he wants to look good.

He has a heart of compassion, and it's a heart that I love and admire.

Matthew 25:40 "Then those 'sheep' are going to say, 'Master, what are you talking about? When did we ever see you hungry and feed you, thirsty and give you a drink? And when did we ever see you sick or in prison and come to you?' Then the King will say, 'I'm telling the solemn truth: Whenever you did one of these things to someone overlooked or ignored, that was me—you did it to me.' The Message

Originally posted February 2009 @ Mom in Transition