On a Journey: God's Miracles are sometimes years in the making!

One week ago tonight my father walked away from his home and went missing.

Writing that statement still seems strange. My father is 86 years old and lives next to my brother in a small cottage in the hills of Sonora. After my step-mother passed away, he moved west to live near his family. Although he has been demonstrating some dementia, we were fairly confident that he would be able to live just steps from my brother for a few more years.

Last Saturday evening however, everything changed. At 5:30 p.m., while my brother and sister in law sat in their home, he walked away from his home. Leaving all the lights on, there was no sign that anything was different. At 6:00 p.m. a neighbor called my brother to let him know he had seen my dad walking down the dark two lane road towards town. My brother and sister-in-law immediately got in the car and went looking. He was gone.

The Sheriff and Search and Rescue spent the next 6+ hours looking through the hills and fields near my brother's home. Nothing....At about 12:30 a.m. an older couple who were driving home from a visit out of town, stopped to ask the Sheriff what was going on. They shared the story of my father with the couple and in what would seem an unbelievable twist, the couple said they had picked him up hours earlier and driven him to a neighboring town about an hour away! When they got to the town, they dropped him off at a Best Western and he checked in there for the night. We found him! With the help of the Sheriff, my brother was able to pick up my father and bring him home. WOW - what a miracle!

As excited as we were that dad was found, everything changed from that moment on. Sunday I got in the car and headed north to make some decisions about how to find 24 hour care for my dad. We didn't even know where to start, but Monday morning my brother, father, and I began touring possible locations. We didn't know what we were doing, and it was overwhelming. Yet, we knew my dad could not be alone.

While visiting one location, we ran into an Azusa Pacific University alum Melody Roberson, who is a Social Worker in the area. This is the person I stayed with when I visited APU as a high school senior and she and her husband were in school with Doug and I. They even have a freshmen at APU this year. Later that evening I called her to ask questions about the process. She was the gift in a moment of crisis! She talked us through our options, made phone calls to get us appointments and connections for the following day, and provided an amazing listening ear as we talked through our fears and questions.

Tuesday morning we woke up not knowing the full extent of Melody's help. When we arrived at one of the possible assisted living locations that morning, my brother and I were overcome with peace that this was where dad was to be. The miracle continued as we were told that we could bring my father that afternoon and move him in. WOW, in less than 24 hours God had given us peace about a place for our father and He had brought a true angel our way to help guide us.

There is SO much to tell in this story but I fear this blog will get longer than people are willing to read. But I have to share a little more. You see, last year when my father had an illness Melody talked to my brother and sister in law and helped them process paperwork for Medical for my dad. We had no idea that decision would also provide the resources needed for my dad to be in this assisted living situation. Another miracle!

Amazing how God works isn't it? That 29 years ago I would stay in a dorm room with the same person who would walk alongside us so many years later. That the processes my brother and sister in law took just months ago in completing paperwork would provide the resources needed for dad to be in a wonderful environment. God is good!

It would be remiss of me to not say that it was difficult to move my dad. However, there is such a peace about where he is, it is hard to focus on that. He has a wonderful roommate, social worker, and nursing staff with him. He is also close to my brother and others who can stop and see him regularly.

I fear my words lack in conveying all the amazing pieces of the story. But for today, I am thankful for God's protection, grace, and provision. God gave us a miracle and my greatest responsibility is to proclaim all He has done! To God be the Glory!

Give praise to the LORD, proclaim his name;

make known among the nations what he has done.

Psalms 105:1

Attached are a few pictures of my dads new home...