Prayerful Pondering

by Pat Luffman Rowland

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I don’t remember a time I didn’t believe in God or know that Jesus was His Son and our Savior, but I made my profession of faith and was baptized at age 12. I’ll never forget the experience of understanding I was the Lord’s! The sun became ten times brighter and it was as if I could hear angels singing. It was a supremely joyful moment. And I can still “see” my immersion baptism in the small Baptist church as if I were looking on. With certainty and gratitude, I can declare that God has never failed me, even though I have failed Him many times over. God has blessed me with family and friends, opportunities and health, freedom and education. He has been ever faithful and I look forward to the day when I can bow at the feet of Jesus and thank Him for His unconditional love that has made all the difference. I have an undergraduate degree in Healthcare Consumer Relations and a master’s in Religious Studies. In 1990, I received the designation of Fellow with the National Society of Patient Representation and Consumer Affairs of the American Hospital Association. I worked for 27 years in healthcare, retiring as Corporate Director of Patient Affairs with Methodist Healthcare in Memphis, TN in 1998. A major part of my career was teaching about patient concerns and needs, their rights, and ethical matters of healthcare. I taught through writing, as well as speaking from coast to coast. For several years, I authored a byline, Patient Perspective, for a healthcare journal. Other publications include Tennessee Hospital Association newsletter, Marketing Perspective, nursing and pharmacy newsletters. I received a writing award from the American Hospital Association in 1990. There are three things in my life that I count the most rewarding: my work with the mentally challenged from 1978-1983, my healthcare days establishing and directing patient advocacy for a large healthcare system, and my present work as a reading tutor. Most of my writings at present are devotional in nature. Devotional publications include Upper Room, Presbyterian Daily, and on my church website, www.famemphis.net. I am retired and live in a suburb of Memphis with my cat Chloe. My daughter and son-in-law, Kristi and Mark Hearn, live in Georgia and are the delights of my heart. Additionally, I am blessed with a spiritual family, Son (Tim) and Hien-Anh (Hannah) Le, their children, Rachel, Rebecca, and Esther, and Hannah’s mother, Phuong Hong. I am active in my church, First Assembly Memphis, and tutor second graders at First Assembly Christian School (FACS).

Author: Pat Luffman Rowland

  • Blessed to Learn from Adversity

    As a former Air Force nurse who specialized in public health and disaster response, I’ve been impressed and reassured by our government’s guidance during the coronavirus pandemic. 

  • Our Pandemic and Personal Decisions

    There sure are lots of opinions on what not to do and where not to go with the corona virus pandemic. It seems we have a war of words and wisdom. 

  • Dr. Emory House

    Every hospital has a code they use over the intercom when calling a CPR team to a patient or visitor who has stopped breathing or whose heart has stopped beating.  The Methodist Hospital code was (and I believe still is) ‘Dr. Emory House.’ On occasion . . . .

  • A Man and His Dog

    It was a volunteer that told me about a patient who came into our hospital suddenly and didn’t have time to make arrangements for his dog’s care.

  • Looking Back at a Memorable Patient

    There’s so much bad news today, I thought a little sharing of personal heroes might be in order. During the years I worked for Methodist Healthcare (1983-1998), my primary responsibilities were to patient concerns, patient rights, and medical ethics. I got to know some terrific individuals and wrote about many of them.

  • Voices That Teach

    In the mid-1980s, I was drawn to the teachings of a Catholic priest, Henri J. Nouwen, and a Trappist monk, Thomas Merton. Merton’s book, No Man Is an Island, became my handbook of sorts. I read it over and over, highlighting, underlining, and making notes in the margins. He communicated in to-the-point statements on human…

  • Peaceful Sleep

    Peaceful Sleep

    Do you have trouble falling to sleep? Do you replay all the day’s woes? Do you angst over children or parents or other loved ones?

  • Resting in God’s Peace

    It isn’t that some people are born stronger than others, but that they have made the decision to let go of their circumstances and trust God–to rest in Him.

  • What the Heart Sees

    What the Heart Sees

    I believe the mentally challenged have been given the gift to know who loves them.

  • The Problem with Assuming

    A few Sundays ago, a fellow church member, Rob Stacey, talked to our Sunday school class about judging a person based on his outward appearance.