Even In An Ice Storm

"...and the glory of the Lord shone round about them..." Luke 2:9

A Little of This and That

First and most important, Eli is home! Many thanks for those of you who prayed for him and for his family. They are most grateful. And they got to go home with a Project Linus quilt so if you're one of those who work on that project they are doubly thankful. If you'd like to see another picture (or a thousand eventually) of Eli you can check out his mother's blog - Colorado Belle.

We also have another new blogger out there who is definitely going to be worth adding to your reader. Remember the post I had the other day about the view from the bathroom window? That came from Kim, one of my Sunday School teachers and a good friend. Kim and her husband have four children of their own and they also foster other children so you can bet her stories will be laced with laughter, and probably with a tad bit of chaos. Her blog is Momma To Many. She also quilts ya'll though I have no idea when she can find the time. She'd love to have you visit!

And last, but not least, stomach viruses are gifts from Satan. I woke up yesterday morning at 5 a.m. and for most of the day kept the trash can beside the bed, in my hand, or in front of me in the bathroom. :( My sister and I have a running joke - I pray that God will let me die before her and she prays that God will let her die before me because we don't either one want to face living without the other. I love my sister - can you tell? Anyway, yesterday somewhere in the midst of the horribleness I sent her a text message and said, "God has picked me to die first!" Since I'm here typing this post you can tell He didn't but I sure wanted Him to! It's nearly 4 a.m. the next day and I guess I slept so much yesterday I don't' need any more because I'm wide awake.

Sweatshirt Sermon #1

Several years ago I went on a girl’s trip to the beach for spring break.  While we were there it turned cold and, naturally, all I had with me were beach clothes…capris, bathing suit with a nice roomy cover-up to cover up all the bulges, a couple pair of sandals, etc.  I’m sure you’ve all probably figured out by now that I’m very cold natured (I told my  husband today that my gynecologist yesterday said it was imperative to my health that our thermostat be turned to 71° at all times in the winter but he didn’t believe me, can’t imagine why).  That meant a trip to the tourist traps to buy a sweatshirt.  Hey, don’t ever pass up a chance to buy a good sweatshirt! 

I found a great sweatshirt at the first store we went into.  It’s white, a pullover with a hood and a place to put your hands to keep them warm, and it’s long.  I bought a big size because I wanted lots of room.  In red letters across the front it says LIFEGUARD.  I thought it was hilarious because I don’t swim a lick.  :)  I’m terrified of water over my head.  I’ve taken swimming lessons 5 or 6 times…as an adult!  The last time I took them I actually jumped into the deep end of the pool, swam across (not very far), treaded water for 60 seconds, and swam back.  So technically I guess I know how to swim.  But the problem is that when in the water I panic and can’t remember that I know how to do the stroke that would get me to the side so I sink like a rock. 

If you think about it there’s a great lesson in that sweatshirt.  A Lifeguard on the beach is scanning an area filled with people.  He’s trying to see everyone but face it, if the beach is full, what are the chances that he will see someone who’s gone too far out and is in trouble?  The person in the water has got to do something to bring the Lifeguard’s attention to himself – wave his hands, yell, scream.  If he doesn’t ask for help he might not get any.

But aren’t we sometimes too stubborn to ask for help when we need it?  If you’re facing something hard in your life it helps to have lots of people praying but do you ask for prayer?  If you wake up to a flat tire the first morning of a new Bible study do you call a friend for a ride or just say, “oh well, maybe I’ll go next time.”  If you promised to bake 12 dozen cookies for tomorrow’s school party and you’re exhausted after work do you ask a friend to help?  If you’re struggling with a  moral issue do you go to a trusted Christian friend and confess what you’re thinking and ask for Godly wisdom? 

Asking for help is worse than getting a tooth pulled…for me.  And why is that?  It’s all about pride, and I don’t want to be prideful.  It’s all about arrogance, and I don’t want to be arrogant. 

Am I the only one who has trouble asking for help?

Better!

Eli's getting better....but he couldn't go home yet. :( His oxygen level just isn't where they want it to be when they take that tube off and let him breathe without it. But isn't he too cute in his pajamas? Thanks so much for your prayers.

Would You Pray For Baby Eli Again?

Back in September I told you about Baby Eli who was born while I was in Colorado in late September. Then in early October I came back and told you that Eli was born without a thyroid gland and asked you to pray for him. As you can see from the picture above he has done just great. His sweet mama has just started a blog and some of your have been reading the Colorado Belle. Well today Baby Eli is in the hospital. Yesterday he slept all day long and we all know babies don't sleep all day long unless they're sick. His eyes are red and runny and his nose is stopped up so his mama took him to the doctor. They promptly put him in the hospital and said he has RSV and bronchitis. I know his parents are frantic because I know babies can scare us to death, and especially first babies. Would you please say a prayer for Eli? And for his parents?

This One's For You Kim

On Sunday one of my Sunday School teachers (Hi Kim) told us about being in her bathroom getting dressed one morning, having a power surge (yes, now the whole world knows) and opening the bathroom window to cool off. Kim is the mother of four children and also fosters two babies. You heard me - six children. And she teaches Sunday School. And she....you name it, she does it. She's sort of like the Energizer Bunny. I digress...but then most of my stories are just a succession of digressions. Is that a word? Back to my story.

She leaned out the window and looked to the left. She saw the side wall of the brick house next door. She looked to the right. She saw some woods, thick enough that she couldn't see beyond them. And she thought, "What if this was all the world I could see?"

And God said, "It is all the world you can see. It's all of my world you can see...it's all of my plans you can see." Remember the verse from Isaiah 55:8 "your ways are not my ways and your thoughts are not my thoughts". His world is so big, so wonderful, so beautiful; but all we can see is our little corner. His plan for us is so big.....but all we see is this tiny little piece that we live in right now. If all we could see is what we see from our bathroom window just think about all of this huge world we'd be missing. And imagine - the world He has planned for us is every bit that big and bigger....and bigger still. And more beautiful. And more peaceful. And more....

When your world seems to be closing in, or your day has been a bust from the moment you got up, or your best friend has lost 10 pounds and you've gained 15, or your husband doesn't appreciate you and your children ignore you, or you spilled a Diet Dr. Pepper right smack dab in the middle of the kitchen floor you just mopped and waxed, or that bully down the street was mean to your baby and you've got to go talk to his mother - again, remember this. This is just one tiny little piece of a big picture. This is the view out of the bathroom window. The whole world is just beyond.