Every Friday a lovely lady named Kate hosts a community of bloggers for Five Minute Friday. One word prompt, set your timer for five minutes, and write (and resist the urge to edit).
This week’s word prompt is … left.
Sometimes I feel pretty lost and helpless when it comes to helping my brother navigate life’s road in his frail body. His life has taken a couple of medical detours: cancer, complications of diabetes, and vascular dementia, resulting in living a life confined to a wheelchair in a nursing home.

Right now, I feel like I’m on a bumpy road of paperwork related to redetermining his Medicaid status. I have spent the vast majority of today digging through paperwork and the calendar feature of my phone as I try to come up with answers to the who, what, when, why and where questions on the lengthy MADR form (Medicaid Disability Redetermination Report).
I’m slowly filling in the blanks, but there seems to be quite a bit left to do and there is a looming deadline just a little down the road. Getting to my destination on time seems impossible.
I keep Brad’s most important medical documentation in a binder. As I pulled the binder off of the shelf, I was reminded of this truth that I had put on the cover of the binder almost 10 years ago.

How big is this problem on a scale of one to God?
Suddenly, what I was dealing with in the present didn’t feel quite as overwhelming. Each page I turned reminded me that in every decision along life’s way, God provided light for the next step I needed to take in order to make sure Brad’s needs were met. At every intersection, God had provided the wisdom, the people, and the resources I needed.
One thing is for certain. The God who led me in the miles I’ve already traveled isn’t going to leave or forsake me on the road ahead.
What a great job you are doing for your brother. i pray that the answers for the rest of the form fall into place easily.I pray that your brother’s spirit will remain strong, in spite of his difficulties. God bless you both.
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Thank you for your prayers, Letitia…and for your kind encouragement.
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My husband sat down with me for a bit on Saturday and helped me wade through some of the questions I needed to answer. I think I just have one more task to do before mailing off the paperwork. Thank you for your encouragement and your prayers.
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I am so sorry to hear about your brother’s declining help and all of the red tape you have to go through to get his disability assistance. But you are right. Jesus is with you and with your brother. He promises never to leave you nor forsake you. Never. I find comfort in His Word, in hymns and in prayer when I am struggling.
Terri FMF #9
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Yes, our best comfort comes from the Word and in the music that is centered around His Word. During the time I was caring for my sweet momma (Alzheimer’s) I created a Spotify playlist with songs of comfort. I keep adding new songs to that list and have been blessed and comforted by it many times over. Thank you for the sweet encouragement.
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I am sorry. I forgot to proofread. In my comment I meant to say I am sorry to hear about your beother’s declining health.
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No worries…my eyes read “health”. Yes, too often, I do my best proofreading after I hit “send.” Have a blessed and beautiful day!
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What a lovely reminder for us all! I need one on my binders! I pray for clarity for your work in filling out all that paperwork for the care of your dear brother. Blessing to you both. FMF friend…
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Amen, Cindie. You are a wonderful sister to Brad!
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Thanks for hugging me with your words, dear Pam.
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Health issues and endless red tape – what a discouraging combination! But it sounds like you are doing a wonderful job and that God is faithfully guiding you through. Praying for you and for your brother. Visiting from FMF#4
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oh, it’s so good you had the foresight to put a binder together. (god’s plan eh?) so that you can help your brother more effectively. FMF12
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It has been helpful on many occasions. My husband scans the documents and saves them on the computer for me, but I find searching through hard copies for what I need to be more helpful than scrolling through file names.
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Thank you for this, Cindie. You are making a big commitment for your brother.
On another note, this Five Minute Friday may interest me. I’ve signed up, so you may see some stuff from time to time.
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