My dear friend S is having a hard time. Her father has cancer, and it looks to not be healing. Things are getting worse instead of better. I think of her and pray for her when I run, when I have a moment of silence to myself, and last night as I tossed and turned in my bed (I think due to the excessive soda/ caffeine I drank yesterday) I prayed for her and her father.
I think that is one of the hardest things to go through in this life, watching someone you love hurt and go through pain. Watching someone you love so much fade away. As I thought of this, and of her, I thought of a song that I absolutely love. I hope the lyrics to "Blessings" by Laura Story not only help her, but help anyone that is going through a hard time.
Let me explain why I picked this song:
1. She wrote this song as her husband was going through a cancer situation himself. She wasn't sure if her husband was going to pull through.
2. There's a part in this song that talks about "a thousand sleepless nights is what it takes to know you're near" and every time I heard that part of the song I thought it was directed towards me because at that time... I was hitting a thousand sleepless nights with Asher! :) I needed those words because I was TIRED and worn out. I was on my last leg!
3. Once he started sleeping I got past that part of the song and heard some more of the lyrics. At the end of the song it talks about how when bad things happen we are reminded that we are not HOME, and it also reminds us that we need God. If everything went perfect in our lives, we would never seek HIM for our guidance. We would never lean on Him for strength.We would never yearn for HEAVEN! We would be content in where we are. But God knows this place is bananas, and nothing even close to the amazing place He has in store for us. We got through these disasters to make us stronger, and so that one day we can encourage, empathize, and love on someone going through that same situation later. God knows what He's doing. God is here for you. He is the same yesterday, today, and always.
I hope this song encourages you as much as it encourages me. Please share it. Go on Youtube and listen to it. Download it on itunes or whatever. Pray it.
Blessings
By: Laura Story
We pray for blessings, we pray for peace
Comfort for family, protection while we sleep
We pray for healing, for prosperity
We pray for Your mighty hand to ease our suffering
All the while, You hear each spoken need
Yet love us way too much to give us lesser things
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?
We pray for wisdom, Your voice to hear
We cry in anger when we cannot feel You near
We doubt Your goodness, we doubt Your love
As if every promise from Your Word is not enough
And all the while You hear each desperate plea
And long that we'd have faith to believe
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?
And what if trials of this life
Are Your mercies in disguise
When friends betray us, when darkness seems to win
We know the pain reminds this heart
That this is not, this is not our home
It's not our home
Cause what if Your blessings come through raindrops
What if Your healing comes through tears?
And what if a thousand sleepless nights
Are what it takes to know You’re near?
What if my greatest disappointments
Or the aching of this life
Is the revealing of a greater thirst
This world can’t satisfy?
And what if trials of this life
The rain, the storms, the hardest nights
Are Your mercies in disguise?
Wednesday, July 20, 2011
Sunday, July 17, 2011
How do you know!?!?
Many people wonder how you know you have or will marry the right person. How do you know it's right? How do you know you should get married.... I don't even begin to try to explain that to people because I don't know....
But here is how I know:
Tonight Husband and I were hanging out with the youth group and doing some sweet SNL fun things. At one point a girl and I said the SAME thing at the SAME time..
"Ginx" I blurted out! "YOU OWE ME A SODA!" (in my day that was the payment for such offense).
Then she started saying weird rhymes like:
"The ginx machine isn't working so turn around and give me a quarter" (but when she said it.. there was some sort of rhyme to it). Then she said another one.
I looked at her and said... "quit rhyming at me and know that you owe me a soda." Then my husband blurts out: "QUIT WITH THE RAP!" (he was saying it to girl who was rhyming... instead of quit with the CRAP he said quit with the RAP because she was rhyming). This sent Husband and I into some deep laughter. It was hilarious. As I gazed around the room... I noticed that we were the only ones who thought this was as funny as it truly was. Everyone else thought we were a bit looney.
THAT is how I know!
Blessings!
But here is how I know:
Tonight Husband and I were hanging out with the youth group and doing some sweet SNL fun things. At one point a girl and I said the SAME thing at the SAME time..
"Ginx" I blurted out! "YOU OWE ME A SODA!" (in my day that was the payment for such offense).
Then she started saying weird rhymes like:
"The ginx machine isn't working so turn around and give me a quarter" (but when she said it.. there was some sort of rhyme to it). Then she said another one.
I looked at her and said... "quit rhyming at me and know that you owe me a soda." Then my husband blurts out: "QUIT WITH THE RAP!" (he was saying it to girl who was rhyming... instead of quit with the CRAP he said quit with the RAP because she was rhyming). This sent Husband and I into some deep laughter. It was hilarious. As I gazed around the room... I noticed that we were the only ones who thought this was as funny as it truly was. Everyone else thought we were a bit looney.
THAT is how I know!
Blessings!
Saturday, July 2, 2011
Family...
So you can ask anyone... I don't really LOVE nature...
For Example:
If you ask Husband, he will tell you countless stories of times I've screamed in terror of a spider or bug (of any size) crawling around. OR the times when he wasn't around to save me from those horrible things that I cupped them for him to kill later.
OR
You can ask my house mom in Australia of the countless times I would scream bloody murder because a spider was around (I never knew which one could ultimately bite me and claim my life... there are tons of killing animals in Australia). This ultimately led her to leaving a can of some pretty sweet bug killer on my bed side table....
OR
You can ask my former students from St. John about the time I told them about the killer PRAYING MANTIS! It was hugging my water bottle.... and looking at me with KILL in its eyes. So much so that I hit it out of the garage (with a tennis racket) so that I would no longer be threatened with such a bug! They are super duper dangerous... (not really... I just really hate all bugs that much, and truly feel my life is at risk with them alive near me).
But what I hate more than bugs are BIRDS (can I get an AMEN from someone on this one? Wichita friend L I know I can get one from you... we've been to the zoo together). Anyway... they are super scary. They have weird eyes. They poop on EVERYTHING. They swoop at your face/head. AND they are super dirty! Anyway... They are horrible... why am I telling you all this? So I can set the stage for the real story:
REAL STORY:
During our week in Mexico we came back to a dove/pigeon (Husband looked it up and turns out they are pretty much the same, but pigeons are bigger... and they don't live in the country... beings that I don't know what ours is... or if we are in the CITY or COUNTRY... I went with dove/pigeon) in our hanging planter. Now... the plant was dead (go figure.. we suck at plants) but there was a nesting bird. At first.. I was annoyed (I hate birds). Then as time went on.. I thought about how the plant was never coming back... so we might as well just let the bird have it's babies. As time has gone on... we've watched this mom perch on her little eggs day in and day out.
Fast forward to the present weekend... crazy me thought we should get to a house project since it's been a while since we've done one, and since we have no guests coming we had lots of time. So we decided to resurface our deck (that is a whole other blog discussion!) Anyway... We had to move (temporarily) the planter to paint behind it and clean and sand it. So when we lowered it down off of its appointed hanger we were happily surprised to see one baby had hatched and the other egg was so darn small and cute! I actually felt a bit responsible for it... Even though I had nothing to do with it at all. I felt like an aunt to these little guys. So we painted and returned the planter. Now... I've heard if the mom can smell people on their eggs they will not return to the nest... So I was a bit concerned that the mom would not return to the remaining egg and baby. This would be sad at the expense of my already dead plant, and the time I've vested in watching this mom do her thing... Plus.. it's a bird that I've come to kinda love (just don't fly at my head or poop on my deck sister).
All day long today I've been keeping my eyes peeled at that planter to make sure she would return. Don't worry.. She did. The other baby has hatched and mom is proudly perched over them! As much as I hate birds, I found myself full vested in this family! Hope to get pictures for you to see how cute they are! :)
For Example:
If you ask Husband, he will tell you countless stories of times I've screamed in terror of a spider or bug (of any size) crawling around. OR the times when he wasn't around to save me from those horrible things that I cupped them for him to kill later.
OR
You can ask my house mom in Australia of the countless times I would scream bloody murder because a spider was around (I never knew which one could ultimately bite me and claim my life... there are tons of killing animals in Australia). This ultimately led her to leaving a can of some pretty sweet bug killer on my bed side table....
OR
You can ask my former students from St. John about the time I told them about the killer PRAYING MANTIS! It was hugging my water bottle.... and looking at me with KILL in its eyes. So much so that I hit it out of the garage (with a tennis racket) so that I would no longer be threatened with such a bug! They are super duper dangerous... (not really... I just really hate all bugs that much, and truly feel my life is at risk with them alive near me).
But what I hate more than bugs are BIRDS (can I get an AMEN from someone on this one? Wichita friend L I know I can get one from you... we've been to the zoo together). Anyway... they are super scary. They have weird eyes. They poop on EVERYTHING. They swoop at your face/head. AND they are super dirty! Anyway... They are horrible... why am I telling you all this? So I can set the stage for the real story:
REAL STORY:
During our week in Mexico we came back to a dove/pigeon (Husband looked it up and turns out they are pretty much the same, but pigeons are bigger... and they don't live in the country... beings that I don't know what ours is... or if we are in the CITY or COUNTRY... I went with dove/pigeon) in our hanging planter. Now... the plant was dead (go figure.. we suck at plants) but there was a nesting bird. At first.. I was annoyed (I hate birds). Then as time went on.. I thought about how the plant was never coming back... so we might as well just let the bird have it's babies. As time has gone on... we've watched this mom perch on her little eggs day in and day out.
Fast forward to the present weekend... crazy me thought we should get to a house project since it's been a while since we've done one, and since we have no guests coming we had lots of time. So we decided to resurface our deck (that is a whole other blog discussion!) Anyway... We had to move (temporarily) the planter to paint behind it and clean and sand it. So when we lowered it down off of its appointed hanger we were happily surprised to see one baby had hatched and the other egg was so darn small and cute! I actually felt a bit responsible for it... Even though I had nothing to do with it at all. I felt like an aunt to these little guys. So we painted and returned the planter. Now... I've heard if the mom can smell people on their eggs they will not return to the nest... So I was a bit concerned that the mom would not return to the remaining egg and baby. This would be sad at the expense of my already dead plant, and the time I've vested in watching this mom do her thing... Plus.. it's a bird that I've come to kinda love (just don't fly at my head or poop on my deck sister).
All day long today I've been keeping my eyes peeled at that planter to make sure she would return. Don't worry.. She did. The other baby has hatched and mom is proudly perched over them! As much as I hate birds, I found myself full vested in this family! Hope to get pictures for you to see how cute they are! :)
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