This post is for those who have not already read My Precious Life. It is Chapter Twenty-Nine, The Way I See It, in its entirety. It is about laying down our lives for our friends.

I need to persevere in promoting my book if it is to become a best seller some day. So here is Chapter Twenty-Nine

The Way I See It

A Lesson in Laying Down Your Life

Greater love has no one than this, that he lay down his life for his friends. (John 15:13)

The way I see it, this doesn’t mean that you trade places with the guy tied to a railway track with an oncoming locomotive barreling down on him, or with Jesus on the cross.

In 2004, I worked three days a week at the Canadian Bible Society book store. It was a part-time job that I loved, and had done for close to five years after my forced retirement from the Mustard Seed Gift Shop. It was a perfect match for my spiritual beliefs, retail background, and love of books.

Volunteering at Providence Health Care Centre every Tuesday morning was another activity I loved. A dedicated man and wife team conducted a hymn sing for the residents of the long-term care facility there. My responsibility was to help bring the people to the hymn sing, turn pages for them if they were unable, and just generally encourage them to sing along. Again, it fitted perfectly with my love of music, and a closeness I felt with the older generation, (of which I am one).

Lunch or coffee with friends or family was also a weekly occurrence. At church, I was a member of the Worship Committee, and sang in the choir.

That life gradually changed when Jerry was diagnosed with Parkinson’s Disease in 2000. It wasn’t debilitating until symptoms of dementia became noticeable in 2002. A once strong and active man became a victim of the dreaded disease known as Alzheimer’s.

In January, 2004, it was obvious that he could never be left alone again, and my life took on a whole new dimension. God had given me an awesome responsibility as Jerry’s full-time caregiver, and in order to carry it out, I was forced to give up my part-time job and the volunteer work I loved so much. Church, choir, and committees were put on a back burner until only God knew when. Likewise, all social activities became painfully few and far between as the task at hand took its toll on the life I once knew.

I had, in fact, laid down my life for my friend. That’s the way I see it.

“….whoever loses his life for my sake will find it.” (Matthew 10:39)

My Precious Life is available in E-book, soft cover, hard cover, and can be purchased online at Amazon.com, Amazon.ca, Amazon.uk, Barnes and Noble, Westbow Press, and numerous online book stores as well as your local book stores.

Thank you for persevering with my perseverence!