"It rains on the just and on the unjust" (Matthew 5:45) and like so many other American families, we got wet this month.

We were notified without warning that, due to cutbacks in the state budget, the group home where our severely autistic granddaughter lives would be closing in 30 days.

Millie, the other girls in her home and the more than 400 families awaiting residence in special needs housing are facing a potentially disastrous situation. 

What a comfort it was to have my prayer partner wrap her arms around me, share my burden and join me in urgent petition before the throne of God on behalf of these children.

What thankful joy we experienced when God heard our cries and, by His grace and the diligent, dogged persistence of my daughter, Millie found favor before men and was given a place in another home. Our prayers now are for God's grace as Millie makes the transition from one home to another.

Change! may be a dream come true for millions, but, in the world of an autistic teen, change is not a dream  it is a nightmare. New home, new staff, new housemates, new bus driver, routes, sights and sounds will all conspire to alienate, confound, confuse and upset Millie.

Without a doubt, we are all in for a rough ride and have no assurance this situation will remain unchanged for the foreseeable future. I pray God will place a hedge of protection around Millie and her housemates to safely facilitate their adjusting to new surroundings and routines. 

What blessed assurance it is knowing The Good Shepherd has promised to go before them and prepare their way.

With less than 30 days notice to complete the transition my daughter, a full time law student, and I have been scrambling to assemble this pitfall-laden jigsaw puzzle!

Since the Olympics all things Chinese have been favorites of Millie so we have decided on an Asian theme for her room. Easier said than done!

We spent days looking for Asian-style bed linens and accessories with little or no luck. We seemed to reach a dead end! But after sharing our dilemma with friends, our worries stopped.

One friend volunteered to create pillow shams and a bed cover from oriental fabric.

Another has offered us the use of their home along with her artistic prowess and still another will house, plant and animal sit while we are away refurbishing her new home.

All these friends have busy if not busier lives than ours, yet each is somehow managing to rearrange their schedule and help us with our immediate need.

God never promised life would be problem free, but He has promised to see us through the valleys and never leave us on our own to deal with life's troubles.

I believe one of the ways He fulfills that promise is with a little help from our friends. I pray I will be the kind of friend others have been to me and I thank God for the precious gift of friendship.