Monday, January 5, 2009

Dennis has slept the day away.  He has taken very little pain medication today and has rested well, staying in bed all day.  He is unhappy with all the hours "wasted away" in bed, but knows that is exactly what his body needs right now.  Sometimes, he just needs to be reminded of that!  Megan was ill all night, so she and I got no sleep.  However, she slept the day away and feels much better this evening.  I am praying for a good night's sleep tonight.  Pray that we all get some rest.  We were blessed, yet again, with a wonderful meal provided by friends who desired to show their love and support.  Thank you all who have seen to it that we are well fed!  This has been such a blessing to us!  

As Dennis struggles to be patient, allowing himself time to rest and heal, I have so desired for life to return to "normal"--a life of serving the Lord, loving each other and others, and enjoying lifes' journey with my best friend and the love of my life!  Tonight, as I write this, I realize our lives will never return to "normal"-- as we had once known it.  On December 6th at 9:00 pm, our lives changed forever!  Many lives have been changed forever!  We will NEVER be the same again.  But, Praise the Lord for this!  At this point, we have choices to make.  We can choose to live lives of self-pity, hatred, and unforgiveness-- withdrawing to living lives of self-preservation and for ourselves, OR we can choose to "Rejoice in the Lord always" and believe that God will use the circumstances of our lives to develop and grow in us the ability to love greater and to serve Him more zealously.  Phil 4:4-8 goes on to encourage us to "let our gentleness be evident to all.  The Lord is near."

We are told to "not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present our requests to God."  And I love this promise..."And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard our hearts and minds in Christ Jesus."  So this evening, once again I will choose to think about those things that are "noble, right, pure, lovely, admirable, excellent, and praiseworthy."  Knowing what God's Word says and putting it into practice is not always easy to do, and it definitely requires us to step outside our "comfort zones."  BUT, we are finding that there is no other place we would rather be!  Is this road easy?No!  Paul shows us in Philippians that our inner attitudes do not have to reflect our outward circumstances.  We can believe in Christ, work hard for the kingdom, face difficulties in our lives, and yet choose to have right hearts and attitudes, trusting God to bring good out of our trials and hard times.  We must choose to rejoice, not in the fact that Dennis' was attacked, but that God is in control and working in our lives to grow us, and allowing us the great privilege of giving ALL credit and glory to Him.  God is most definitely "transcending all understanding" through the events of the last 4 weeks--exceeding ALL expectations in every way!  How can we possibly not get excited and be encouraged to keep pressing on and looking to God for tomorrow?  Through the events of December 6th, may we all be more in love with our Creator, more committed and motivated to live for Him, and possess a deeper passion for people everywhere.  

"May the Lord Jesus Christ himself and God our Father, who loved us and by his grace gave us eternal encouragement and good hope, encourage your hearts and strengthen you in every good deed and word."  (2 Thes. 2:16)  

Mendy