Wednesday, February 12, 2020

Beauty of Kindness...

How is your February going?  Ours has been all over the place - but this morning was a total treasure.  One of my girls and I went to mass, it was pouring rain.  We are not Catholic, but I attended Catholic school growing up and find the mass to be so peaceful and beautiful.  So one morning (ish) a week one of my girls and I pack ourselves off to mass.

Anyhow, this morning my girl and I headed to mass in a total downpour.  We arrived and were only there for about ten minutes when I realized this was going to be a morning that we needed to leave due to medical issues.  So we packed up her chair and we headed back to the car.  In walking was a beautiful lady, with a big smile on her face.  She offered me the use of her umbrella, I declined.  I did not want her to have to stand in the rain and wait on me and I did not want to make her late(r) for the mass.  But guess what?  She followed me and put her umbrella over my head (probably getting wet herself), stood there while I was helping my girl into the car, walked around to behind the car with me and held the umbrella over me while I loaded her chair into the car, and then walked me to the driver's side.  We exchanged names and she hugged me - the kind of hug that just lets you know you are loved, and then said she really hoped we had a better day today.  I was so incredibly touched that she inconvenienced herself to bless us.

I got in the car and I told my daughter - that is a great example of Christ's love in action.  God very much wants us to be His feet and hands in the world, He sent His Son as a tiny baby to serve us, to save us, to draw us closer to Him.  He has called us to serve others, I am so thankful that He gave me such a beautiful picture of that today.

Wednesday, February 5, 2020

Unpredictability of life...


Last week this little guy started having seizures.  

Again.

And they just kept coming, until he clustered, and then went into status which then landed us in the pet ER in the middle of last Wednesday night.  Did you know that they have doggie ICU?  I didn't, but they do.  Arendale was a patient there until we brought him home on Friday, only to have to go back to the vet late Saturday.  


Last week was awful.
We are wiped.out.


This is on top of everything else that we have constantly going on.
It feels too much.  I want to cry and scream and say, "This is NOT fair!!!"



I feel like Buddy here, staring at a closed door, totally confused.  Why is this door closed?


It should be open, it is usually open, it is not open...why isn't it open???
Life is supposed to be easier, isn't it?  

The funny thing about that is, I can't find that promise anywhere in Scripture.  All I can find is the promise that I am supposed to take heart.  No matter what happens - pet drama, plumbing issues, chronic health conditions, a re-torn ACL...all of it - 

He knows.  

He sees.  

He hears.


Romans 5:3-5 New International Version (NIV)

Not only so, but we also glory in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope. And hope does not put us to shame, because God’s love has been poured out into our hearts through the Holy Spirit, who has been given to us.