THE GODWINK EFFECT

Dear Reader:

Some of you might have seen the interview between Hoda and Kathi Lee on their show yesterday with Squire Rushnell and his wife Louise DuArt…authors of this (most recent) tenth book in the GodWink series. (*Lisa Register did and immediately emailed me the interview because she said she knew I would be interested. Thank you Lisa…I am and want to share some new information about this popular series of books.)

 I watch the Kathi Lee and Hoda show only sporadically…but have been fortunate to have seen a couple of interviews with Squire Rushnell where he shared a GodWink story with them.

What makes this book different is that Rushnell and his wife took time to reflect on the past ten years since the first GodWink book was written (When God Winks) and they realized a pattern formation that had not come to their attention earlier.

They have discovered that the term GodWink is synonymous with answered prayer and even more importantly…GodWinks are never isolated…like a pebble thrown into water…a GodWink has a rippled effect on others beside the one(s) who first observed it and, most importantly, recognized it for what it is…an answered prayer.

 I paused myself during this part of the interview and thought…they are right. GodWinks are never isolated to just one person. I thought back to two weeks ago when I first discovered the pink seeds of happiness Honey had made for Rutledge’s revealing…she had also made some blue seeds of happiness. (They were all given out at Rutledge’s revealing four years ago.. but I had kept the pink ones in a bag in the guest bedroom dresser drawer.) Two more boys followed Rutledge so the pink seeds of happiness stayed in the dark corner of the drawer.And then right before the revealing I find them while on my “mission” to clean out stuff.

*Some of you who voted for a girl said it was my discovery of the pink seeds of happiness, a “GodWink” you mentioned, that persuaded you to go pink in your prediction. ( Of 38 participants…four went boy and the rest (34) went girl…great work blog readers…thanks for all the fun!)

Then came the next GodWink with Mandy, Carrie, and Eva Cate when the pink petals (off the crepe myrtle tree) started falling into the pool just hours before the revealing. Everyone thought it was a GodWink too. Rushnell and his wife are right…like seeds of happiness GodWinks spread to other people connecting us together.

*On a personal note…I realize now that I spent far too much of my life oblivious to GodWinks…or Divine Interventions. They had been there all the time…but it took the presence of “little c” to open my eyes, heart, and soul to the everyday interventions taking place around me. The whispers were coming, first softly, then louder, but I simply hadn’t been listening. Then, one day, with a very ambiguous future looming over me, I suddenly began to see the guideposts pointing the way… where I once had been lost.

An example of the contagious nature of GodWinks was shared as one of the true stories from Rushnell and DuArt’s latest book.

*Here is an excerpt from a newspaper article on the incident.

Dying single mother with terminal cancer whose nurse agreed to raise her son spent the best ‘five months of her life’ with the family who has since embraced her child after her passing

A single mother who was battling terminal cancer spent the ‘best five months of her life’ living with the family who ended up taking in her son after she passed away.

Two years ago, 45-year-old Tricia Somers from Pennsylvania, a single mom with no family,  who was diagnosed with terminal liver cancer, found help in the most unlikely of places.

After learning she did not have long to live, she asked her nurse Tricia Seaman if she would raise her then eight-year-old son Wesley after she passed away.

(In what would become a heartwarming story shared by Squire Rushnell, the author of the Godwinks book series, Somers and Wesley ended up moving in with the Seamans after Somers’ health deteriorated.)

She later said it was the best five months of her life… her last five months.

The Seamans have since adopted and embraced Wesley, who is now 10 years old, according to Today. Tricia Seaman had been praying for another child to complete their family but was told medically she couldn’t have another child… when, as a nurse, she was assigned to Tricia Somers case and room…the GodWink was answered for both women. GodWinks connect people to people. We are all connected!

………………………………..

I think perhaps GodWinks might also be synonymous with daily mini-miracles that affect several people at the same time. That has surely been my experience to date.

Some more good news…coming this Christmas Hallmark is going to start showing a movie series based on the true stories in the GodWink collection. Kathi Lee Gifford will co-produce, host the program, and also act in some of the episodes.

When God Winks at You (Hallmark Movies & Mysteries)

 
“This is about true stories demonstrating that God communicates with us, making incredible things happen in our lives every single day. As you read the riveting accounts of everyday and famous people – you will begin to recognize that God winks in your own life, both past and present. Through these tangible signposts from God, we receive personalized messages that reassure us, stop us from worrying, chart our path in life and help us keep the faith.”

*Rushnell added that the term GodWink is now being accepted as a term recognized in dictionaries due to the popularity and interest in the GodWink personal stories…ordinary people and celebrities.

So until tomorrow….

“Today is my favorite day”  Winnie the Pooh

*Several of you asked about the status of the oak tree, sung about in Vikki’s song, wondering if it had been cut down or damaged. Lee and Vikki  both replied to my question on  its latest status… to tell me it was still standing. Lee added: ” That oak tree is too big and old to cut without going through lots of red tape. It is, however, overlooking a parking lot now.” (That’s sad…it was a beautiful lot.)

*I would like to provide you with a link to Kaitlyn’s latest post…she has taken time to write down a type of personal guide for having a wedding, doing it basically yourself, and keeping it reasonably priced so there is money to share an adventure with your best friend and love…that you just married. (*Lots of good ideas on how to pull off a memorable wedding on a budget.)

I asked Kaitlyn for her link because I thought this information could be quite helpful for others, perhaps even one or more of the blog readers…mothers, fathers of the bride and groom and/or the bride/groom themselves… to get ideas on how to make it all come together. Thank you Kaitlyn! Excellent job!

Re: Link

 

 

 

About Becky Dingle

I was born a Tarheel but ended up a Sandlapper. My grandparents were cotton farmers in Laurens, South Carolina and it was in my grandmother’s house that my love of storytelling began beside an old Franklin stove. When I graduated from Laurens High School, I attended Erskine College (Due West of what?) and would later get my Masters Degree in Education/Social Studies from Charleston Southern. I am presently an adjunct professor/clinical supervisor at CSU and have also taught at the College of Charleston. For 28 years I taught Social Studies through storytelling. My philosophy matched Rudyard Kipling’s quote: “If history were taught in the form of stories, it would never be forgotten.” Today I still spread this message through workshops and presentations throughout the state. The secret of success in teaching social studies is always in the story. I want to keep learning and being surprised by life…it is the greatest teacher. Like Kermit said, “When you’re green you grow, when you’re ripe you rot.”
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4 Responses to THE GODWINK EFFECT

  1. Bill Dingle says:

    Good word, Becky. I have been telling folks that come to Icthus for going on 28 years that Jesus is a 24/ 7/365;366 on leap year JESUS. Meaning that He is speaking to us every day, throughout the day, if we will put on our “God receptors “. At any given time, there are cell, TV, radio, etc. signals passing through the place we are. Unless we have the right receptor, we have no idea what message /information is available to us.

    LOVE you! So happy for Walsh and Mollie. Blessings!
    TRUSTING JESUS,
    Bill
    Proverbs 3:5-6
    http://www.icthusministries.com

    • Becky Dingle says:

      My life has changed completely since experiencing my own GodWinks…and as you say, simply being open to His channel, His voice…that is patiently guiding us through our lives is the key to a fulfilling life. (With that said, let me again reiterate…God does have a sense of humor when He keeps sending us the answer we don’t want over and over again until it finally dawns on us that we are heading in the wrong direction but God is trying to re-channel us in His.)

  2. bcparkison says:

    Yes…He is there in every breeze,every leaf that flutters and every smile that come our way. Thank you .

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