Overseas Life Good-bye Blessings.

 Living overseas I'm sure molded my life in more ways than I can comprehend, however some I recognize. 

My medical experiences and living overseas away from family shaped a couple intentional practices in my life. 

I've witnessed countless times how suddenly, unexpectedly life can change due to an accident or sudden medical crisis.

None of us know what the next minutes, days, weeks may hold.

Living hours of travel and a few airplane rides from most of our family make it even more possible that each good-bye could be the last in this life.

So one practice we do as a family is good-bye blessings. 

Before we part for a while we pray over our kids and often my folks also participate. 

We pray around the room over each one.

This precious time I pray my children will remember, and I wish my grandparents had blessed me in this way. 

While I know they prayed for me I don't remember specific times of prayer.

I remember on LaGonave when I would introduce a different or new way of doing something in the hospital that I would tell myself that if one of 10 ideas made a lasting difference I was doing OK. 

Change is hard.

Until someone does what you advised on their own,  you really can't know if they really agree with you or if they changed because you are their boss, parent, just to please you, or some other reason...

Therefore my heart was warmed greatly to hear that at the end of Anna's Christmas visit with my folks, while Eli visited us in Zambia, she requested the good-bye blessing prayer. She gets it!!!

The night before she headed off to Rwanda we gathered in my folk's living room for a pray-around over her, as well as Eli and Fritz.

Special, blessed, holy moments.

Occasionally these are not good-bye blessings but transition blessing prayers at significant points in life like graduations, job changes, end/start of school year... pivotal points in life. 

A second practice that I've been intentional about, the last few years, is sitting down and writing a letter to my parents, Cory, and the kids. 

I point out the things I see in them, what I appreciate, review key memories, lessons I've learned from each, my prayers for them, and a bit of advice here and there. 

I want to gift tangible evidence of my love for them. 

If I am suddenly called to my heavenly home without a chance for one last prayer, hug or 'I love you to the outer edge of the universe and back...' they will know how I feel about them.

Or     if the Lord calls one of them, I'll know I tried to share a bit of how blessed I am by the great gift  the Lord bestowed upon my life by adding them to my tribe.

So if you want to cause blessing ripples to those in your life: pray good-bye or pivotal-point blessing prayers.

In person, over the phone, video call, text...reach out and bless. You'll also be blessed. 

Write a letter of affirmation. Mail it. Leave it in a suitcase or on a pillow. Or read it to the person before handing it over! 

Time may be short.

“The LORD bless you and keep you; the LORD make His face shine on you and be gracious to you.”