Skip to main content

When It Rains; It Pours

As the old saying goes, "when it rains, it pours." Friday Eric and I were supposed to pick up Eli from my in-laws house. However, Eric got a stomach virus that left him home in bed, my son in Paducah and me in Lexington. When it rains, it pours...right? Well, that was just the tip of the iceberg.

Many of you know the story of my family and some don't, so for the privacy of my loved ones I'll leave you with this picture.

For the past three years my family has stood in the midst of a mighty storm. Much like a hurricane the waves continue to pound, each one threatening to take us under, to drown us. But, Jesus is our rescuer, our life guard. Time and time again he has saved us from impending disaster.

As you may recall, my dad was in a very serious accident this past spring. This followed losing my grandfather in 2008, our family business in 2009, and our childhood home in 2010. Truly, "the Lord gives and takes away."

The accident left my dad with several broken fingers, two broken wrist, a broken pelvis and two torn rotator cuffs. It left my mom working full-time while being the primary caregiver of my wheelchair bound father. (for now)

The storm roared again this past weekend when my brother nearly lost his life. After having a stomach virus last week, he awoke to extreme chest pain early Saturday morning. Unable to breath, he rushed to the hospital where doctors discovered the viral infection and gotten into his blood stream and thus his heart.

The infection nearly caused him to go into cardiac arrest. He had a heart catheter procedure done yesterday and by the grace of God, there is no permanent damage. He will be weak for the next few weeks, but will recover fully!!!

When I look at my family and the past three years, I am reminded of the verse in James that says:

2 Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters,[a] whenever you face trials of many kinds, 3 because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance. 4 Let perseverance finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything.

Three years ago if you had asked me what I thought of that verse, it would said a canned "Christian" answer like, "Well, faith comes through trials. We must all learn to trust God."

All the while I would have thought. "That is insanely scary! But God loves me so I'll never have to go through that."

HAHA! I think God was laughing at me! The truth is that verse scarred the living daylights out of me. Plus, it was perplexing. I mean, who would would be happy to face adversity?

Well, three years into this storm, I get it!! There is beauty, peace and hope in that passage. For the record, joy is not in the pain. No, pain is pain.

Joy is learning to trust the Lord. It's in being with my brother and sister in the hospital room laughing at my dad doped up on meds. It's in taking strolls to the gift shop while the doctors were examining my brother. Joy is seeing my son bring a smile to my parent's face as they watch their son wheeled off to surgery. Joy is making two four hour trips to Lexington to be together while missing my sick husband in Bowling Green. Joy is laughing at the old man on the cardiac floor who fusses at the nurses. Joy is remembering the good times, holding hands through the bad, and looking forward to the future. Joy is learning to dance in the rain and seeing rainbow as the storm passes.

After the winds die down and the waves cease to crash, every hurricane is followed my portrait of peace as birds fly high in cloudless blue skies. The storm is nothing more than a memory. That day is coming. My family is going to walk out of this storm strong, beautiful and free.

Yes, we have lost much. But, we have also gained much. The Lord spared our lives on two occasions. He has allowed storms to blow our way, but he has held us in his hand throughout. He knows every tear we've cried. He's watched our hearts break, and he has felt our pain. He has drawn near our broke hearts, given rest to our weary souls, and been the cleft of protection in which we take refuge. He is our God and we are his people!!

Today I am considering pure joy to face many trails because I have come to love my family and my God in new ways. We covet your prayers as this storm continues pass and we praise God for his faithfulness to us again this past weekend!!

Comments

  1. Wow. I am praying for you and your family. Keep us updated and let us know if you need anything!

    ReplyDelete
  2. Jeff Crabtree's message Sunday could have been "made for you".....God is our rescuer. Your endurance is a great testimony.

    ReplyDelete

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

A New Decade

Happy 2020, everyone!  I know I'm a month and a half behind, but ya'll, January was brutal!  Not brutal in a tragic kind of way but in a "life will wear you out" kind of way. It started off with the flu...times three!  Eric, Ellie and I had Flu B and missed the first week back to school and work.  Then Eli was diagnosed with Flu A two weeks later.  Thankfully, my in-laws stepped in to help so that we didn't have to miss any more time at work. On top of the sickness, we listed our house for sale. The work it takes getting ready for market is just crazy. But we also have people coming in and out of our home at all hours and it's just kinda overwhelming. Plus, we are finalizing everything with the builder. In full transparency, working with the builder has been the easiest part! Maybe I'll do a little update on the whole building process later this week.  Now that the dust has settled on 2020, I'm going to try my very hardest to keep this litt

Mother's Day Memories

I hope everyone had a wonderful Mother's Day.  I want to start by saying that my heart and prayers go out to the "Mommies in Waiting" and to those who are missing their Momma on this special day.  You are not forgotten. We started Mother's Day at church with our crew, and we were lucky enough to be in the nursery.  We let Eli tag along, and he helped facility "Derby Races" around the table while the kids were on riding toys.  It was a hoot!  We also made cards for the mommies. We had some leftovers at home for lunch and then I spent some time laying out while Eric worked on the pool.  It was almost 90 degrees and the perfect way to relax on my special day! Eric made me a shrimp boil for dinner, and we took a family trip to Dairy Queen.  They also have presents coming later this week for me.  Basically, they are awesome!

Hit Me With Your Best Shot

Have I ever told you that Eli loves sports?  Ha!  I look back at him with baseballs and basketballs at 18 months old ,and it blows my mind that he's still so interested.   The thing is, he doesn't discriminate.  Baseball, basketball, football, soccer...you name it, we play it! Not only do we play sports all day, we also have to watch certain videos on Youtube.   We watch "Boys of Fall," while wearing a football helmet. We watch Alabama's "Cheap Seats,"  John Fogerty's"Centerfield," and Kenny Rogers,  "The Greatest" while holding a bat, carrying a ball, and wearing a batting helmet. And now, thanks to Space Jam, we have to listen to the movie sound track while shooting hoops!  That's a blast from the past! He hasn't found a song about soccer or golf...YET! And with all that playing, who has time to run inside for a potty break?  Not this boy! I never thought