Blessings through Trials

I listened to this song and it really touched me...click on the link below...

What if your blessings come through raindrops?



 

Happy, Healthy and Hospitable

Hello,

I wanted to share with you how quickly life can change, and this time it has been for the better.

I have experienced a wonderful time with my children and have thoroughly enjoyed being with them and have also enjoyed that they have been getting along better with one another.

God knows just when I need encouragement and lately I've been feeling I'm at the end of my rope at times and he has been carrying me when I just couldn't even get up and muddle through.

I am feeling so blessed to have this bit of sunshine in the midst of what has been a difficult period of time in my life.  I am not sure how long it will last and I understand that some of the issues that I am facing as a mom have not changed, but I am thankful for this time of peacefulness and God's comfort and the blessing of really enjoying my children.

My daughter was home for spring break and now my son is home on his spring break.  The sounds of laughter and happy chatting has replaced arguing and other unwelcome behavior.

I have seen the doctor for some persistent headaches.  I was getting pretty painful headaches every day.  They have lessened in their intensity and frequency and for that I am thankful.

I have a funny story to share with you.  First I will preface this by saying that I STRUGGLE WITH BEING HOSPITABLE...especially when I am talking about inviting people over to break bread with us (enjoy a meal).

I have always felt inadequate to host company here because I know how crazy and loud our family can be, how ill-equipped I feel as a cook, how small our house is in some ways for a family of our size, nevermind inviting more people over to add to the mix, etc.  The list could go on and on. (excuses, excuses)

I'm not sure if you remember or not but recently God has been placing on my heart the need to be more hospitable and I read that book Practicing Hospitality: The Joy of Serving Others .

I have shared a lot of what I learned with my husband, who is always supportive of most everything that I share with him.

I had read the book last month and still have not scheduled anyone to come and share a meal with us.  My husband was just saying a couple nights ago...why haven't we invited anyone over yet for a meal?  I told him that I would soon...well....

We had an appointment with our life insurance agent scheduled for 7:00 Monday night.  We have not seen our agent for about 20 years.  She ended up showing up at our house over 1 1/2 hours early (before my husband was even home from work) and stated that she was going to just sit in her car in our driveway and "work" from her car.  (side note--we live in New England--very cold outside) She told me over her cell phone not to worry about her being out there and to just eat and do what we needed to do to settle the family before she came in.

I told her to please come in and share a meal with us.  I had actually made a crock of beef vegetable soup and had a couple loaves of country Italian bread.

It hit me so funny that I have been putting off, probably out of fear and worried about stretching my comfort zone, inviting someone over here and God would not have any more of my procrastination.  He forced the issue by placing someone in my driveway with no place to go but in our home and at our table.

We ended up having a wonderful time.  She shared with us that she has recently become a Christian.  She was on fire for the Lord.  It is wonderful being around a "new" Christian.  She shared with us how the Lord has allowed her to leave some things in her life behind that were huge trials for her before she became a Christian.   What a blessing for the Lord to give you the strength and peace to overcome.    

I am so thankful that the Lord brought her into our lives and our home.  The door has been opened here and I am looking forward to many more meals with friends/strangers.  

Blessings to you, my friends and thank you for the thoughts and prayers...

     

Difficult Year all Around--Caleb's Birthday Included

I feel like I've been such a downer lately with some of my posts.  To be brutally honest this year (last twelve months) has been one of the most difficult years of my life.

I never thought that I would not have one of my children here on earth to hold and watch grow up with the rest of his siblings.   To visit a cemetery instead of a school or baseball field.  To have that child die on my "watch" still stings and cuts deep into my heart.

I never knew how difficult it is to have your children grow up and move away.

I never knew how difficult the hands are that can be dealt in the life of being a parent to a teenager (with trials) and how deep the pain because the love is even deeper.

I never knew how much chronic pain can affect my mood and how quickly I can share my pain with those around me by how I react to those I love the most.

February 26th was Caleb's sixth birthday, although he was not here to celebrate.  He is in Heaven.  I am thankful that I know that he is there, but I can't help feeling sad and overwhelmed at times that he never even saw his second birthday.

I read once somewhere..."There is nowhere to put all of the pain".  I agree.  It seems to be spilling out lately...

You keep him in perfect peace whose mind is stayed on You, because he trusts in You. Isaiah 26:3

I am going to keep trying to keep my focus on sweet Jesus...so the earthly does not continue to overwhelm.  

Ten Things--Including books, scrapbooking, renovations and potty training!

1.  I am 45 years old and have just purchased my first pair of progressive lens glasses.  I was a little frustrated when I first put them on because it seems to be more fuzziness than clarity.  I put them on for about 1 minute at home after I purchased them and then packed them away for almost two weeks.  I finally got them out today (who wants to waste the cost of a pair of these!) and have been wearing them all day.

I have found that although half the things that I look at seem fuzzy still, my head is not throbbing like I thought that it might by now and I'm praying that at some point I will adjust and know "where to look" through the lens for the appropriate distance that I'm trying to see.

2.  Valentine's Day is just around the corner and I came across this great idea on Facebook and I've adapted it for my children/friends

I printed out what the verses actually said so that I could enclose them in a card or something similar if I wanted to.




(That only took me about 30 minutes to figure out how to put those pictures into this blog post after having to turn the pictures to the correct view--I'm not very computer literate and my kids aren't here to help!)

3.  I finished the book Unglued from my previous post and it was very good.  I have now started reading Practicing Hospitality  

If you click on the title above it will give you a detailed description of the book.  I am really enjoying it and I see more house guests in my future.  I struggle with hosting people in my home and am hoping to get some great Biblical advice and encouragement.

4.  We are expecting a big snow storm starting at some point on Friday, I believe.  About 12-18 inches is expected.  We have not received that much snow this winter, but the temperatures have really kept our pellet stove humming along.

5.  I am headed to a scrapbooking crop next Saturday and am looking forward to getting about 100 pages completed.  I use a power sort system from Creative Memories, which helps me to organize my pages beforehand and therefore I'm able to get a lot done.  I look forward to seeing my friends for about 6 hours while my hubby watches the kiddos :)

6.  My husband is going to be replacing our tub enclosure/faucets, etc.  We only have one bathroom (with our only shower/tub) in it.  I will have to take pictures of before and after the great event.  It hasn't been replaced in a long time and is a funky shade of blue.  We have mold issues with the enclosure and will be very thankful when my hubby is able to complete the job.  The faucet is so old that the faucet is corroded and the water runs out the bottom of the faucet.

We (mostly my hubby) has renovated almost every room in our home and has renovated the rest of the bathroom, but knew that this was going to be a huge and inconvenient job so he put it off until it cannot be ignored.

7.  As I previously posted, I had been on Weight Watchers and had lost about 19 pounds and then I let myself go when I was going through a particularly stressful time at the end of November and thereafter.

I have now gained some of the weight back and don't look forward to seeing what the scale says on Saturday when my husband wants to go back to Weight Watchers again.  Let's refer back to number 4 above about the snow storm...Maybe we will be snowed in and won't be able to make the meeting...hmmmm...

8.  My daughter, who is away at college, has been living in a beautiful big house on a peninsula overlooking the ocean.  The agreement was, when she agreed to move in, that she would get free rent and in return she would be a "presence" in the home for the homeowner who is well into her 80s.  Rebecca would help the woman if she needed help and was a companion to her as they enjoyed watching Wheel of Fortune and Jeopardy and that series on PBS Downtown Abbey.

I was so saddened to hear from Rebecca last week that the woman had a sudden medical emergency (after Rebecca had left for college for the day) and the woman called the ambulance and ended up dying shortly after she had emergency surgery.  Rebecca was so saddened to find out that her friend did not make it.  

Rebecca is now alone in the home, but it is located in a close community where the owners in the area keep a close eye on one another and it seems as though it will work out till the end of the semester that Rebecca will stay there.  Also, one of the woman's daughters is local and stops in a couple times a week to check on Rebecca and the house.  They have treated her so kindly and are even continuing the keep the cleaning lady coming so that Rebecca still won't have to clean!

9.  A big event in our home is that Elisabeth is now potty trained!  Believe me, it is a BIG event!  She was not easy to train and I thought for a while there that she would be in diapers for another couple of years, at least lol.

She is a joy to me (if she wasn't here I would be alone all day while the others are in school).  She is such a "girl" as she has to change her outfits at least 5-6 times a day, which usually include a tutu and cowboy boots.     She also cut her own hair the other day.  I saw some curls in the trash and she told me that Alex (in college) and then Nate (in school) had done it.  Little stinker.

10.  This is the month of Caleb's birthday.  He would be six years old.  I can't even imagine him as a school boy and find it difficult to realize that the day set apart for him (February 26th) won't be celebrated at his school with a birthday hat and cupcakes.  Instead we will remember him as the 17 month old who never saw his second birthday.  Life sometimes seems cruel as time marches on without any regards to my grief.

I did read somewhere, and I am paraphrasing here, "As time passes we are getting closer together again".  How reassuring that I will be reunited with [Caleb and my Heavenly Father] and I am one year closer to that date as his birthday rolls around again.

Please know that I will do everything within my power here on earth to take the love that I have for you Caleb and share it with the children that God has placed in my life...my own or otherwise, for all children are created by God and He loves them all.  It is easy to get caught up in my grief sometimes, but I must remember that Caleb couldn't be happier right now and my job here on earth is to show others the love of Christ while I'm able to do so...

That being said, I love you more than ever Caleb and I look forward to the day the I get to hold you again.  You are a treasure in Heaven and I long to be with you again.

Blessing to you all,  Thanks if you read this whole post.
With Hope,
Cheryl

Are You a Despairing Parent...Do You Come Unglued?

I recently came across a book titled "Divine Prayers for Despairing Parents" by Susanne Scheppmann.  I have started reading it.  

Publishers Description:  Real-life stories throughout the book give hope to the praying parent. Written by a mother who lived through her own prodigal years and then those of her child, Divine Prayers for Despairing Parents will enable the despairing parent to establish a new type of spiritual authority in the life of the wandering child through the power of prayer.

A collection of 180 devotions and prepared biblical prayers, Divine Prayers for Despairing Parents puts into words the desperate whispers of the soul.  

I am really feeling a sense of peace about things that are out of my control and things that I can't change about the past.  The book has also encouraged me and pointed out how the Bible equips us to do what the Lord requires when it comes to teaching/leading our children.  

Of course this feeling of peace ebbs and flows more drastically according to life's circumstances when I'm not immersed in God's Word.

A quote on a friend's Facebook wall says it all...

“Here, then, is the real problem of our negligence. We fail in our duty to study God's Word not so much because it is difficult to understand, not so much because it is dull and boring, but because it is work. Our problem is not a lack of intelligence or a lack of passion. Our problem is that we are lazy. ” ― R.C. Sproul  

Another book that I purchased and am going to try to read soon is called "Unglued" by Lysa TerKeurst.

Product Description

In her bestseller Made to Crave, Bible-teacher Lysa TerKeurst shared her struggles with what went into her mouth and how her food choices were based on her emotions. Now in Unglued: Making Wise Choices in the Midst of Raw Emotions, she focuses on what comes out in her speech. Sharing from her own experience, Lysa observes how many women hold their feelings inside, until circumstances reach a crisis and we explode, speaking in anger and saying words we'll regret later. In a very real way, we can come unglued and lose control of our emotions.

But there is hope for women who desire healing for their emotions. Without offering pat answers or simple solutions, Lysa brings insight to help women resolve conflict in healthy ways and improve communication with those whom you're in close relationship. Discover what it means to "renew your mind" in Biblical and practical ways.

I find that with problems that come up in my family I have a tendency to get sad or angry and then react to the crisis in an emotionally charged state.  That really isn't a healthy way of resolving any problems.  I have found that if my child upsets me by being disrespectful, etc. (which usually causes me to be sad) it causes my husband's "protection instinct" for his wife (me) to kick in and the situation becomes even more emotionally charged.  I have been trying to separate my emotions from my reactions.  That is not an easy thing to do.  I am hoping that with God's help from his Word and prayer and with a little godly wisdom from the book "Unglued" this is totally possible  not just temporarily, but on into the future with other children or people that will "stretch" me.  

Blessings to you and your families.  Another year is coming to a close...A great time for new beginnings.  

Be alert and of sober mind. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour. ⁹ Resist him, standing firm in the faith  1 Peter 5: 8-9

Trials

I'm learning that as I grow older the Lord is orchestrating things in my life that I never would have chosen for myself.  I am being humbled by the trials that I have had to face and am really struggling at times.

I'm not really sure what God wants me to do at times in these trials and I question whether I have done enough in the past or if I could have done more to prevent some of my trials.

I am sure of some things though.

God sees me in my trials and comforts me.

Sometimes it is in the form of God's Word coming alive to me.  I find that when I am in the midst of a great trial I am drawn to the Bible more desperately than ever before.

God hears my pleas of mercy and my cries in prayer and comforts me as only He can in seemingly insurmountable afflictions.

God uses people on this earth...both Christians and non-Christians to offer an ear, hand, heart to help me bear the weight of my trials.

When one has borne the grief of losing a son and other trials present themselves it is as though you are thrust into another sort of grief.  It is a grief concerning the loss of something that you thought would play out a certain way in your life, the way that God (in a perfect world) would have liked things to have turned out, and somehow it was not meant to be that simple.

Draw close to God and he will draw near to you.  True words.

As a song "He Knows My Name" from Tommy Walker wrote states...

He knows my name.
He hears me when I call.
He knows each tear that falls.
And He hears me when I call.
--------------------------------
You have seen me tossing and turning through the night.  You have collected all my tears and preserved them in your bottle!  You have recorded every one in your book.  Psalm 56:8

May my eyes always be open Lord...

And Elisha prayed, “Open his eyes, Lord, so that he may see.” Then the Lord opened the servant’s eyes, and he looked and saw the hills full of horses and chariots of fire all around Elisha.   2 Kings 6:17

Please Lord help me and my family through our trials and help me to glorify You through my life.  Make this mess beautiful somehow...only the way You can...

Waters, Rivers, Fire and Flames

When you pass through the waters, I will be with you;
and when you pass through the rivers, they will not sweep over you.
When you walk through the fire, you will not be burned;
the flames will not set you ablaze.
Isaiah 43:2

What a great verse to meditate on while going through trials.  What wonderful reassurance from our Lord Jesus.