In a visit with a new hospice patient yesterday, I asked if would like me to sing her an old hymn. She responded, "I heard you could sing." I responded by saying, "Well, I do like to sing. Is there a particular hymn you'd like to hear or would you like me to choose?" She said that she couldn't think of one right then.
So, I paused for a moment while a few songs began to come to mind and then "In The Garden" came to the forefront. As I began to sing, I could see her eyes soften and begin to tear. A gentle smile made its way to her lips and her head began to nod as I continued singing.
When I came to the last note, she looked up at me and said, "That was the first song I ever learned to play on the piano, and the only one I can play by heart. We both felt a little awed by the choice made, sensing the Spirit of God in the choice.
Who can say for sure if the Spirit planted that song in my heart at that moment? It may have been just a lucky guess, though I doubt it. But one thing I know is that the Spirit was among us in that moment as we connected in spirit with this hymn that brought two strangers together for "Where two or three gather in my name, there am I with them" (Matt 18:20).
As we concluded the visit in prayer, holding hands and praising God, there was no doubt that that elderly widow and this aging chaplain were together, bound by the one and same Spirit of God. It is amazing the good that God can do through such little things as opening your heart and sharing a hymn. We were both blessed in that moment.
Say, do you suppose you might have a moment today to connect with someone in spirit making use of the binding power of God's Holy Spirit? A song, a prayer, a kind word...? Jus' Ask'n.
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