I am constantly reminded by my amazing creator of how wonderfully blessed I am with the small things. Don't get me wrong I have been blessed with plenty of big things too, I mean I woke up to another day, kind of a Big Thing! About a month and a half ago I found out some of my dearest friends were moving. He works in Raleigh and she has decided to stay home and take care of the kids, who are 1 and 4, so living close to Winston is quite a treck for him twice a day, and seriously what young dad wants to put off the inevitable come-home-run-and-hug-dad routine any longer than he has to? So, they put their house on the market.
Every summer they go to visit family in Chicago and ask me to house sit and watch their pets. This year, being no different from the rest, I went over to hang out with them one afternoon when school was out of the summer and she broke the news to me. As devestated as I was I kept my composure and reminded myself this is what is best for their family. Well, yesterday, I went to go get their house key and my list of instructions, which hasn't changed in the four years I have been house sitting, but it was a little longer this year because of the house being on the market. I thought I'll get home from work, sleep, then go over get the key and my list and head to the library to write my paper for class.
Yea right, I got over there a little after 4:00 and ended up staying until they left around 9:30 for the long drive up north. I played with their oldest daughter, we both love our time together, the younger daughter still isn't too sure of me at times so she likes to stay kinda close to mom. I love their little girls like they are my own and have sincerely been so blessed to be a part of seeing them from when the mom was pregnant to now as they are growing up to be quite the little princesses, I'm not biased. :)
This week has been especially hard with the death of Allison, who I wrote about in my last blog, and another precious woman of faith from the church I grew up in, not only for me but for many in my community. So I am taking the little things like getting to spend my afternoon being with a beautiful child, instead of writing a paper (don't worry I finished it) and getting to see her grow and learn more and more as a blessing, and a reminder that God is whispering to me praise me in the hard times and I will surely bless with the good times! I sure and being Held.
Blessings to all,
Rebecca
Verse(s) of the Day: Ecclesiastes 3:1-8 For everything there is a season, and a time for every matter under heaven: a time to be born, and a time to die;a time to plant, and a time to pluck up what is planted; a time to kill, and a time to heal;a time to break down, and a time to build up; a time to weep, and a time to laugh;a time to mourn, and a time to dance; a time to cast away stones, and a time to gather stones together;a time to embrace, and a time to refrain from embracing; a time to seek, and a time to lose;a time to keep, and a time to cast away; a time to tear, and a time to sew;a time to keep silence, and a time to speak; a time to love, and a time to hate;a time for war, and a time for peace.
Thursday, July 21, 2011
Monday, July 18, 2011
Healing comes through Tears
I feel like all of my blogs have slight depressing tones, so be forewarned tonight that is not going to change.
I got a text from my mom today to call her at work, which is never a good thing. So when I woke up and called mom, she told me a 17 year old from our church died this morning. Allison has had quite the battle with lung cancer and after a double lung transplant on January 25. God just did not see it fit for her small body to be healed on earth, instead He took her home this morning at 1030. Allison had so much life left to live, is what so many people would say, but we are not the Maker of Time so she lived for every moment that God had set for her to be on this earth.
The death of someone who is so young, for many of us, is such a sad thing and for me it is no different. There are so many times when someone who has had cancer or been very ill for a long time passes away and the first question for me, honestly, is WHY? Why did this person have to die? Why, God, are you allowing this person's family to suffer? Why did you choose for me to live and not them?
Recently, I heard a sermon (listen to the sermon) on 'WHY'. The series was called 'Stuff We Don't Know'. The pastor spoke on the verse Isaiah 55:8 "For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, declares the LORD." He talked about how the way we think is not even close to the way God does. For me, it is like the child's toy where you have the shape and the toy, where you have to match the shape with the toy. We are like the square and God is the circle no matter how many different ways we can try to put the square toy in the circle shape it won't fit, but we can try to study the shape and learn to know, as best we can, the ins and outs of the shape of the circle, just like we can learn more about God from His word.
One day we will understand, but it may not be here on earth. Imagine if God thought like we did, we would all always get what we wanted, when we wanted... too much chaos for me! I am so thankful, not always during the circumstance but in the end I am, that God doesn't think like I do.
So, as Laura Story (singer/songwriter) would say:
Cause what if Your blessings come through raindrops?
What if Your healing comes through tears
What if a thousand sleepless nights
Are what it takes to know You’re near?
What if trials of this life
Are Your mercies in disguise?
Verse(s) of the Day: Isaiah 55: 8-9 For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, declares the LORD. For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts.
I got a text from my mom today to call her at work, which is never a good thing. So when I woke up and called mom, she told me a 17 year old from our church died this morning. Allison has had quite the battle with lung cancer and after a double lung transplant on January 25. God just did not see it fit for her small body to be healed on earth, instead He took her home this morning at 1030. Allison had so much life left to live, is what so many people would say, but we are not the Maker of Time so she lived for every moment that God had set for her to be on this earth.
The death of someone who is so young, for many of us, is such a sad thing and for me it is no different. There are so many times when someone who has had cancer or been very ill for a long time passes away and the first question for me, honestly, is WHY? Why did this person have to die? Why, God, are you allowing this person's family to suffer? Why did you choose for me to live and not them?
Recently, I heard a sermon (listen to the sermon) on 'WHY'. The series was called 'Stuff We Don't Know'. The pastor spoke on the verse Isaiah 55:8 "For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, declares the LORD." He talked about how the way we think is not even close to the way God does. For me, it is like the child's toy where you have the shape and the toy, where you have to match the shape with the toy. We are like the square and God is the circle no matter how many different ways we can try to put the square toy in the circle shape it won't fit, but we can try to study the shape and learn to know, as best we can, the ins and outs of the shape of the circle, just like we can learn more about God from His word.
One day we will understand, but it may not be here on earth. Imagine if God thought like we did, we would all always get what we wanted, when we wanted... too much chaos for me! I am so thankful, not always during the circumstance but in the end I am, that God doesn't think like I do.
So, as Laura Story (singer/songwriter) would say:
Cause what if Your blessings come through raindrops?
What if Your healing comes through tears
What if a thousand sleepless nights
Are what it takes to know You’re near?
What if trials of this life
Are Your mercies in disguise?
Verse(s) of the Day: Isaiah 55: 8-9 For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, declares the LORD. For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts.
Saturday, July 16, 2011
Everyday is a struggle
Every single day I feel like I struggle with something. Some days it starts in the morning with little things like not wanting to get out of bed, because I couldn't seem to want to make myself go to bed the night before, and other days it is getting bad news about something, or just something not going the way that I wanted it to and yet sometimes I am just in a bad mood. It's kind of funny though if you think about it... all of those things begin with an "I statement", this is not a psychology moment. If I truly began my day the way I have been called to (Luke 9:23) this would not be a problem.
I was thinking about this earlier today about how much, the past several months or so I have seemed to face one struggle after another. Yet still, God has proven himself over and over and over again in my life. The mere fact that I can sit here and write this is a miracle. God has blessed me time and time again with his mercies and I still let the overwhelming feelings of these situations get to me.
I went with my parents and the children's pastor from church to another couple from the church's home because they were working on some details with a car. We ended up staying and talking for several hours. I, honestly, just wanted to go to get out of the house, but I am so glad I went. This couple was talking about how they met and how the Lord has really blessed them and then she said you know what, 37 years from tomorrow is when we met. I was amazed at how God has really blessed them because they have been so faithful through the good AND the bad. I want that. Not just because they are blessed but because they are so truly and genuinely happy.
The children's pastor was talking about getting ready with his wife and two small children to pick up and move to Niger, Africa to be missionaries with SIMAIR as one of their pilots. Then the conversation moved to my desire to be a missionary. This is not a secret that I have wanted to do this for a while, but it has been a long time since I have really been excited about being called to the mission field, a bit of a harsh reality for me. Something about the conversation really got me excited again. I am ready to focus on the ministry that God has laid out for me, wherever it may be on the mission field. So, needless to say I was very glad that I went and was able to really be surrounded by friends and love in such a warm Christian environment.
So as this week is coming to an end and I have to say I am ready to face the struggles this next week, and the week after, and so on head on because honestly if I didn't have the struggle the good times, when they come, wouldn't be so wonderful. I may not always feel this way in the moment, but in the end the hard times are what make the good times so great and I truly thank God for them.
Blessings,
Rebecca
Verse(s) of the Day: Lamentations 3:22-23 The steadfast love of the LORD never ceases; his mercies never come to an end; they are new every morning; great is your faithfulness.
I was thinking about this earlier today about how much, the past several months or so I have seemed to face one struggle after another. Yet still, God has proven himself over and over and over again in my life. The mere fact that I can sit here and write this is a miracle. God has blessed me time and time again with his mercies and I still let the overwhelming feelings of these situations get to me.
I went with my parents and the children's pastor from church to another couple from the church's home because they were working on some details with a car. We ended up staying and talking for several hours. I, honestly, just wanted to go to get out of the house, but I am so glad I went. This couple was talking about how they met and how the Lord has really blessed them and then she said you know what, 37 years from tomorrow is when we met. I was amazed at how God has really blessed them because they have been so faithful through the good AND the bad. I want that. Not just because they are blessed but because they are so truly and genuinely happy.
The children's pastor was talking about getting ready with his wife and two small children to pick up and move to Niger, Africa to be missionaries with SIMAIR as one of their pilots. Then the conversation moved to my desire to be a missionary. This is not a secret that I have wanted to do this for a while, but it has been a long time since I have really been excited about being called to the mission field, a bit of a harsh reality for me. Something about the conversation really got me excited again. I am ready to focus on the ministry that God has laid out for me, wherever it may be on the mission field. So, needless to say I was very glad that I went and was able to really be surrounded by friends and love in such a warm Christian environment.
So as this week is coming to an end and I have to say I am ready to face the struggles this next week, and the week after, and so on head on because honestly if I didn't have the struggle the good times, when they come, wouldn't be so wonderful. I may not always feel this way in the moment, but in the end the hard times are what make the good times so great and I truly thank God for them.
Blessings,
Rebecca
Verse(s) of the Day: Lamentations 3:22-23 The steadfast love of the LORD never ceases; his mercies never come to an end; they are new every morning; great is your faithfulness.
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