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February 3, 2021 by Karen Wingate 4 Comments

Along Unfamiliar Paths: 3 Promises God has Made to You

Along Unfamiliar Paths

“I will lead the blind by ways they have not known, along unfamiliar paths I will guide them; I will turn the darkness into light before them and make the rough places smooth. These are the things I will do; I will not forsake them.”

Isaiah 42:16 NIV

I totally get what Isaiah meant about unfamiliar paths.

In my younger, more foolish days, I loved to tell what I dubbed a “Helen Keller” joke. Here it is:

Q: How did Helen Keller’s parents punish her?

A: By rearranging the furniture.

I thought it was funny. My mother thought it was cruel. Well, yes, but you have to have a vision issue to fully appreciate the humor. I thought it was funny because it is so so true.

Acquaintances often commented that I functioned quite well as a legally blind person. They were shocked when I told them just how bad my vision was. I did do fine—as long as I was in familiar settings. If I got dumped into the unfamiliar or if my environment changed, obscuring what I already struggled to see, I was suddenly plunged into helplessness. That meant I had to ask for help. And people were surprised because they thought I was so self-sufficient.

(Was legally blind? Read my story here of how I gained new eyesight in midlife.)

I coped by memorizing my environment like a map. I depended on certain things always being in the same place. The salt is in the upper cupboard to the right of the stove, bottom shelf, left hand side. My hand reaches for it without my brain or my eyes needing to engage. The worst kindness would be to clean my house and put my clutter away for me. Don’t touch a thing! I need to remember where things are.

[Read more…]

Filed Under: What I Saw Today Tagged With: Christian living, devotional, low vision, pandemic, retirement, uncertainty

June 15, 2020 by Karen Wingate 1 Comment

COVID19 Shutdown: How to Minimize the Stress of the Unknown

COVID-19 Shutdown: Facing the Unkown

Travel is always easier when you take the trip with someone who’s been there before. That’s the part of the COVID19 shutdown and the ensuing economic decline that has rattled so many people. We’ve never been down this road before. We have no vaccine for COVID19. There’s a reason it’s called a novel virus. Novel means new and boy howdy, this one’s so new, it caught an entire medical community with moisture behind their ears.

[Read more…]

Filed Under: Grace on Parade, What I Saw Today Tagged With: COVID19, crisis, Ice Station Zebra, Jesus, pandemic, suffering

April 3, 2020 by Karen Wingate 1 Comment

Quarantine Scavenger Hunt: Choosing What To Look For

by Christine Wingate

Quarantine Scavenger Hunt: Choosing What To Look For

“Can I squeal for a sec?” I typed into my family’s long-running Facebook Messenger chat thread.

“I JUST SAW A CARDINAL!!!!!”

Now, spotting a cardinal might sound like a small, non-squeal-worthy thing. But for me, it was a novel, and therefore treasured, experience.

[Read more…]

Filed Under: What I Saw Today Tagged With: COVID-19, pandemic, quanatine, scavener hunt

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Meet Karen Wingate

Invite Karen Wingate to share with your church group at your next Women’s Ministry event the incredible story of how God gave her better vision than ever before. Contact her at karen@graceonparade.com [Continue …]

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"But thanks be to God, who always leads us in triumphal procession in Christ and through us spreads everywhere the fragrance of the knowledge of him."
- 2 Corinthians 2:14

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