My Good News

"Hi, Tracey...this is Martha.  The results from your biopsy are in and they are negative." As I hung up the phone, standing in the middle of our family vacation on a northern beach of Michigan's lower peninsula, I gave thanks.  I pray often that God use me mightily for His glory...not a prayer I say lightly or fearlessly.  When I had learned of the need for the biopsy, 10 days earlier, I spent some considerable time leaning on God, trusting His plan for me...praying for His will to be done and He be glorified throughout...praying for my family...and praying about potential decisions to come.  After receiving the results, I have to admit that I heaved a sigh of relief.

Each morning of our vacation, my husband and I spent some quiet time along the beach...reading, waiting for the world (and our kids) to wake up.  The day following the phone call, I returned to my prayers of thanks.  Then I was suddenly jarred in my gated community of self-absorption.  While I received good news,  someone else's wife, mom, grandmother, sister or daughter was receiving different news.  I wondered about the lady that I saw exit just before my appointment, having undergone the same procedure.  What news did her phone call convey?  I was humbled by the undeserved mercy...mercy that I did not have to take on such a big battle...at least not at this time with three daughters to raise.  But somewhere else, someone else was facing the battle.  And they didn't "deserve" such a diagnosis any more than I deserved freedom from the same diagnosis.  I prayed for them...for God's will to be done and He be glorified throughout...for their family as they face the mountain together, continuously adjusting to new "normals"...for the decisions she would have to make about her body.  And it really drove home the meaning of the famous quote, "There but for the grace of God, go I".

What good news have you received lately?  Perhaps, given this economy, you were able to keep your job while the desk next to yours was emptied of family pictures and Subway coupons.  Perhaps the mechanic called you with good news about only a minor repair being needed, while another customer was in for a financial shock.  Perhaps you've been blessed with another positive pregnancy test while a husband and wife grieve another childless month passing.  We should all remember that every car that passes and every house on our streets contain unique stories...stories with happy chapters...and with tragic chapters.  No one is immune from heartbreak or guaranteed good fortune.  Be thankful when things seem to be going your way...be thankful when the road seems to have gotten rocky because God can use it for good (as conveyed by Romans 8:28)...be empathetic when seeing others struggle...and avoid envy when seeing others enjoying  victories.  We are all sinners...each deserving of all of life's troubles and undeserving of its mercies.  

Ten Years Ago Today...

Ten years ago today, I got up early in the morning and spent some quality time on the treadmill, as my two toddlers slept upstairs.

Ten years ago today, I was scheduled to teach one of our preschool classes at our homeschool co-op.

Ten years ago today, I dropped the two year old off at my parents' house and picked up a friend's preschooler for the day's class.

Ten years ago today, I was getting materials together for the class I was to teach.

Ten years ago today, I bent down to grab some items and lost my breath.

Ten years ago today, I couldn't get my breath back.

Ten years ago today, a friend, with a critical care nursing background, checked my pulse and recommended that I be taken to the emergency room.

Ten years ago today, another friend volunteered to drive me to the hospital.

Ten years ago today, they checked my oxygen levels in the admitting area of the emergency room and took me back immediately.

Ten years ago today, as x-rays were taken and I was given breathing treatments,  I fully expected to go home that afternoon.

Ten years ago today, they discovered three blood clots in my left lung and immediately restricted me from any movement out of fear that one could dislodge, possibly being fatal.

Ten years ago today, while I had known I was married to a great guy, the curtain was completely pulled back to reveal the superhero that I call mine.

Ten years ago today, I learned how truly blessed we are by the many family members and friends in our life.

Ten years ago today, God's hand of protection was over me, preventing any trouble until I was amidst those that could help me and care for my children.

Ten years ago today, God showed me that I don't have the final say over plans for my life.

Ten years ago today, my relationship with Jesus matured...moving beyond one in which I only invested time into it when it was convenient, like a casual friendship... to one where I fully rely on Him.

Thank you, Heavenly Father, for the last ten years and the years to come.

Example

As my 11 year old daughter wrapped up her fourth and final year with the Upward cheerleading program at a local church, I was reminded of the importance of example.  Through the weeks of practice and performance, Rachael found herself assigned the spot that was front and center of the entire squad.  From this position, she only had one person that was in her line of vision...the head coach who had choreographed the routines and performed them the best.  Rachael couldn't see the younger members who may have been struggling to keep pace or the girls who may not have been giving their best effort, thus preventing Rachael from developing any excuse for cutting her own efforts some slack.  She could only see the best in the room.  The result?  At the last practice and performance, wanting to see what the spectators saw when they watched the squad perform their halftime dance, the coaches told the girls that they weren't going to dance with them.  But, if they got lost in the routine, to look to Rachael because she knew it.

I once heard a speaker say that example is not the main thing, it's the only thing.  And this recent experience gave me reason to pause and audit the list of those that I allow to influence and teach me in my various roles of a woman of faith, a wife, a mom, a teacher, a leader, a friend.  Who is in my line of vision as I practice and perform?  I am blessed by the people that God has placed in my life.  I am surrounded by wonderful examples in my family, friends, church and homeschool community.  But I also have to watch my influences when I'm not learning in the shadows of these people...what am I watching, what am I reading, who am I listening to?  Do I invite in any examples that allow me to lower my standards for myself (i.e. "well, at least I'm not that bad compared to...")? And, as I raise three young ladies, what example am I providing?  I'm certainly not perfect in all that I do, but what am I teaching in my response to those moments, too?

I'm so grateful for Rachael's experience.  It taught her to always seek the best when learning something new.  She also learned that she will be called upon to be an example and leader.  I'm also grateful for the refresher course it has provided me on the importance of example.  My hope and prayer is that I can always be mindful of whom I am watching to learn the "routine" of my roles...and that my daughters, and anyone else who has me in their line of vision, can look to me when they forget the next move in the performance, because I know it.

They Are Watching Us

The six-year-old created her own laptop...complete with keyboard and Pinterest page.  She made sure that I noticed that she "pinned" a dancing heart in the upper left hand corner.

SNOW DAY!!!

Snow has been pretty sparse in Michigan this winter...and, to be honest, I've been totally fine with it.  But as today's winter weather warning winds down, I have to admit it's been a pretty cool (pun intended) day!

As homeschoolers, "snow day" doesn't mean a break from schoolwork  But the kids did sprint outside between subjects to build up their toboggan run off the deck as the snow continued to fall.  When the Hero was done with work (thankfully he worked from home today), we all gathered together to enjoy "Mr. Popper's Penguins".  And we were blessed with the arrival of these snow birds.

 
They were first named Mr. and Mrs. Snowbird...then they were just called Dad and Mom.

Eve Has Nothing On Me

I was reading the daily page from a devotional book given to me by a dear friend..."A Cup of Comfort: A Women of the Bible Devotional".  And it was about Eve.

Eve is such an interesting historical figure to consider.  I often waffle on my feelings about her.  I honor...or, maybe, the correct term is envy...her privilege of a close, intimate, personal relationship with the Creator in the setting of the Garden of Eden.  I respect her as the first wife, the first mom, and all the other experiences that I share in common with her that she had to weather first, without the benefit of her own mom, sister or a best girlfriend on whom to lean.   And when I consider all that happens in the world today as a result of the fall of man at the foot of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, I get mad at her.  Because she succumbed to the temptation presented by Satan, in the form of a serpent, to know as much as God, the door was opened for sin, sadness, hunger, illness, death, poverty, greed and any other ugly thing you can imagine to enter the world (Genesis 1-3). And as a twenty-first century armchair quarterback, I may boldly claim at times that, if faced with the same opportunity, I wouldn't have made the same choice.

Give me a break...

Eve lived in the perfect place...had a perfect marriage...a perfect life.  And yet she still wanted what she didn't have.  Eve has nothing on me.

I can look at my perfectly comfy and warm home, furnished to the brim with many modern conveniences, and wish that I had a new living room set.  I can look at my closet filled with clothes...many I'm not even wearing at this very moment...and claim I have nothing to wear.  I can type away on my laptop right now...and wish that I had a newer computer with a faster processor or more memory.  I can take advantage of social media platforms...that are FREE to me...to keep in touch with loved ones, and get mad when it doesn't work like I expect it too. I can snap pictures on my camera, forgetting how excited I was to have it at one time...only recognizing what it can not do.  I fall into the trap of looking at what I don't have, rather than focusing on what God has so mercifully provided for me.

There are a few lessons in the life of Eve for me.  The first is to be content with what God has provided for me.  The Bible instructs us to be content (Hebrews 13:5). It doesn't mean that we can't have nice things...but that can't be where our joyfulness rests.  The second is to obey God (Acts 5:29).  He instructed Eve, with her husband, to leave that tree alone.  When we disobey God, bad things happen.  The third is to not judge (Matthew 7:1-2).  If God had cast me in the role of Eve, my life and choices are evidence that I probably would not have made any different choices than she had.  And, even given the benefit of Eve's experience...that disobedience of God leads to bad happenings...I still manage to find many creative ways to disobey Him.  Just a few ways in which my waywardness is evident... it's on full display when I judge others...when I choose impatience and anger as a response...when I set my heart on worldly things rather than the heavenly...when I turn away from those in need....when I audit my actions/words/thoughts against man's measure instead of God's...and the list could go on and on.

So...when I am caring for a sick child...when I am mourning the death of a loved one...when I am angry at the injustice so prevalent in this modern world...when I mentally berate Eve for those troubles she brought onto women specifically...perhaps I need to focus a little less on Eve and her actions which made these troubles possible...and focus instead on how my own actions continue to give these troubles life.  

E-motion Sickness

During our weekday lunches, it is not unusual for the kids to throw a DVD on for our viewing pleasure.  It will often be a DVD recorded at our homeschool group's talent show or maybe a play.  Today's choice was something that I haven't seen in almost 5 years...when I burned it for my daughter.  It is a collection of videos and pics taken by my daughters, their cousins and friends in 2007 using my eldest's video camera.  While there were certainly plenty of moments when I needed a motion sickness remedy due to the filming method of the videographer...there were times I experienced E-motion sickness too...a real roller coaster ride between joy for my many blessings...and sadness over the times forgotten...and laughing at the girls' antics...and disbelief over the haste with which time flies.  

As I sat there, I saw my toddler sitting at the dinner table making farm animal noises at her sister's prompting.  There was a long video of the girls touring the Detroit Zoo's reptile house with their dad...all voices, shoes and reptile habitats.  There was loads of video from my kids' annual trip to Torch Lake with their grandparents and cousins that summer...and some featuring the eldest's karate class.  I sat watching them...mesmerized by these young faces, toothless smiles, diaper-padded bottoms.  And a special treat...a video featuring my grandma (affectionately known as Granny) who went to meet Jesus face-to-face two years ago this month.  

What a special treat this was today...and I didn't even know it was coming when I started my day!  This collection is something that I will forever...and ever...treasure.  Here's just a sampling...you may want to make sure you are sitting down...or at least have a view of the horizon...and a tissue for me.

All three girls playing Ring-Around-The-Rosie

Filming herself practicing her cartwheels

Look at her artwork...on her legs.

Love her hat!

Granny