My Dad's wall...

I nearly jumped when Dad spoke softly from his bed. He woke up and saw me tip-toeing around as I worked on my surprise for him and he was greatly pleased.
Stealthily I had moved around his apartment while his oxygen machine hid the noises of movement, and his peaceful roar told me I was being successful. I was nearly finished when I heard his voice.
"That looks really good."
My plan started when I found this terrific black iron wrought TREE.

Dad's devotional tools...

You see, Dad has 74 descendants and loves each one of us dearly. His fatherly dedicated heart causes him to spend a couple of hours each morning flipping through his pile of 3x5 prayer cards. On the top of each card sits one of our names and then, items of needs Dad has heard require the Savior's attention. He used to spend these hours with our mom, but since 2006, has faithfully carried on this task alone.
And we are so blessed.
I wanted a way to show him our understanding of why his life has been so blessed and how that blessing has overspilled into our lives.
We have had wonderful lives of safety, blessings too numerous to count, and family ties strong enough to pull us through many storms of change. His faithfulness gave us confidence, strength, love, kindness, and so much more to grace our memories and building tools for our adult lives.
At the sight of the wall hanging, a plan formulated.
This morning, my plan was ready for display. I used my Cricut to shape the calligraphy letters in black vinyl forming the verse I've heard him quote often, and now would display his life's walk with its words.

Once awakened, Dad coached me through the pasting of the final letters. "A little to the left, no...too far. How about moving that a little higher"...and so on! Finally, I stepped back to see my work, smiled at him as he read it aloud. "You know, that's my favorite verse. I didn't know it was my favorite until I just read it aloud and see it displayed so boldly. It would have been the first verse to come to my mind if anyone asked for my favorite verse." 

He is so pleased with his new wall decor. I like it too.
It tells what God does with the faithful man who delights in the Law of the Lord and seeks to please his God.
My dad did this, and now, in his elderly years, his foundation is rooted deep and rich in resources of wisdom. Many enjoy visiting with him and are honored by the many stories of God's miracles touching his life in small unmistakable ways. His favorite story, filled with emotion, is the day he surrendered to the call of God and in faith, took steps in preparing to be a pastor. His prayer yielded his heart to God, but claiming another promise, declared God would have to provide the needs for his growing family.
Now, at 89+ years, he smirks in pleasure and boasts of God's goodness in every area of his life. And each one of his descendants is his walking testimony of God's provisional faithfulness.
"He shall be like a tree, planted by the rivers of water..." 
That's our Dad!

PS. The little red heart was made by a sweet little grand daughter and has hung on the wall faithfully reminding Dad of how much he is loved. Thanks, Megan!