Drug Dealing

I was in for a shock when I picked up one of Dean's medicines today from the pharmacy. I'm used to checking to see if they filled the right medicine and the right dosage, and am usually pleased with their attention to those details. But I never expected to have the wrong NAME on the bottle. In other words, to have someone else's medicine instead of Dean's!

They were extremely embarrassed when I called them about it when I got home. They checked the other person's bag and immediately saw their mistake. With all the many, many prescriptions I have had filled for Dean and I the last ten years, I suppose I can forgive them this one slip. Even if it was rather major. How can I do this, I asked myself today? I could have made a major stink and demanded some recourse from the pharmacist himself.

As a caregiver of a man with dementia though, I am in the business of forgiving multiple times daily. Nothing heroic about it. I've just had lots of practice. But I've seen other caregivers struggle with it. Even those who seemingly loved their spouse at one time find themselves unable to forgive and deal with the verbal abuse that spews out on a regular basis.

I know the difference has to be the Lord. Only He can forgive and provide us with the necessary love in our hearts to forgive, as He forgives. "Forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors." The Lord expects us to forgive the way He does.

Whether it's for one big mistake over ten years or for dozens of little "boo-boos" throughout the day, only God can give us the ability to love enough to forgive the way He does. Thank you, Jesus.

Shame on the Proofreader

My overriding thought today is a mistake I made a few weeks ago in an email. I'm a proofreader, so am embarrassed that this one got by me. I sent someone my address, but typed the house number wrong. Consequently, to make a long story short, some books that were sent to me a couple of weeks ago got lost and had to be reshipped and I got them after the holidays instead of before. I was hoping these books I edited would be nice Christmas gifts.

As it turned out though, this is probably better timing for them, as people I have given them to will be more likely to read them now than during the rush of the holiday season. It's the type of book that will be a spiritual blessing to the reader, so I'm anxious that it gets in the right hands at the right time.

I can't believe I mistyped one number in that email and it made such a difference in when these books would get in the hands of people I know. But God is in control of even the smallest events in our lives. Everything happens for a purpose. Praise Him for making me type a 7, instead of a 6 that day, and then NOT catching the error! It has made all the difference.