Christmas - part 2.

Tomorrow we leave to spend some time with Laurie, Stephen and Kasey. It's been nearly 5 months since we've seen them and I just know that Kasey is a big boy now...after all, he's nearly two. :) Bags are all packed and we'll be ready to roll in the morning, dropping Lilly off at the kennel on the way to the airport. I still have some "battle scars" from the hospital but all in all I feel pretty good. Thankfully, we sent all their gifts out about 10 days ago to save some luggage space. I can't tell you exactly what this trip means to Ron and I - only that we are so thankful that we can make it there. Next year, we just might spend Christmas with Laurie and Stephen and Kasey if they can't make it home. Scott and Tina and the kids count on us to be here, yet we are needed by our other kids too - and sometimes we want to be there with them. It will be a good decision I think.
So, I may not be around for a week or so. Laurie has a computer but we will be doing a lot of day trips and ~ as so many of my other blogger friends do, it's ok to take a leave, right?
In the meantime, please keep praying for our troops. They have so much responsibility and are spread pretty thin. May God keep them strong and with a spirit of courage...for He does not give us a spirit of fear.
WOOO HOOOO....gonna see my soldiers...and our little man.
May God bless your New Year with His peace and grace.
Love,
Sue

Tidings of Comfort and Joy!!

Merry Christmas everyone!!
It's difficult to put into words what happened last night when I went to church. Though Ron is not a churchgoer (but is not without faith), I don't usually attend church by myself on Christmas eve - usually Scott and Tina and the kids attend with me. Last year - for the first time ever - all of us were there since Laurie, Stephen and Kasey were also home for the holidays. It was an awesome experience to have Laurie bring Kasey up to the choir loft in the balcony so that he could meet my fellow choir members. I joined my family in the pew after the choir's anthem and before long, Kasey was crawling across laps to get to Grandma.
Tina now attends a non denominational church - which is good too because her sister attends that same church and it's good for them to worship together. Tina's family situation isn't too good since she has no communication with her parents and oldest sister.
On Friday when I got home from the hospital, I left our Pastor a message that I was home, but that I would probably miss Christmas eve services. He prayed for me in church yesterday morning. But last night, busy as the day had been (well, for me it seemed a bit busy because I did a few things around the house and went on an outing to the drugstore with Ron) I needed to attend worship. Alone was ok - Christmas eve and Silent Night by candlelight...cannot have one with out the other.
So when I walked into the church narthex last night, so many people asked me how I was feeling...and it was so comforting. And when Pastor Garry and his wife Joanne walked out of his office, their hugs of true Christian love and affection were like a balm to my soul. Not that I haven't felt that warmth before, but with the events of this past week, it's good to feel that Christian love in a hug after knowing their prayers had done so much as well.
The sanctuary was beautiful, the service uplifting and full of the promise of the Christ child, and the love that God rained down on earth so long ago. As I looked around, I began to realize that "Christmas and Easter" worshippers are nearly a thing of the past in our church home. There were lots of new faces as the families and friends of our regular members joined in for worship. I saw two ladies who are ill with cancer and who heard the same message of hope. Ill as they are, their faces reflected the serenity of God's love at work in their lives.
Alone? How could I have thought that I would be alone?
Amidst the greenery, in the sharing of the holy supper, the sharing of the peace....and in the singing of Silent Night as we held our lit votives I was surrounded by family.
And the tidings of comfort and joy that I received last night is what I wish for you today. For those with loved ones far away, and for our military wherever they serve...God bless you for your sacrifice for it is our Armed Forces who help to give us our freedom to worship as we choose.
May the peace of the Christ child be with them - and with you.
Blessed holidays to you all, and love...
Sue

Listen - and then let Him do the rest.

When I wrote my last post on Monday night, I had no idea that 5 hours later I would be on a gurney in the ER, writhing in pain that had begun to bother me early Monday afternoon. How awesome God works - how He just tells you what you need to know and WHEN you need to know it. The pain was with me when I went to bed, and I had already decided that if it was still with me in the morning, I would call in sick and get myself to the Dr. The symptoms had been bothering me for a few weeks but like most people would, I chalked it up to stress.
I was able to sleep about an hour and a half Monday night but, when I woke up at 2 am - less than three hours after I went to bed, I asked Ron to take me to the hospital. After a series of tests and a CT scan, a very nice Dr. told me that I needed to be admitted - and while I won't go into detail, let me just say that all the surgeries and the c section I had over the years had left waaaay too much scar tissue and it very nicely decided to take over my small intestine and give me some terrific (NOT!!) complications. I am so seldom ill though, that I knew the pain was more than just a tummy ache. So, I had recognized the need to go to the hospital.
Thankfully, I was able to dodge surgery this time but it will happen again, and likely again. This was a most inconvenient time to be ill - haven't I been going on about the busy-ness of Christmas? And yet, as I laid in the hospital bed for four days, listening to the sounds of the hospital and being poked and pricked and having all sorts of tubes and things as company, the things of Christmas did not matter. The cookies that didn't get baked, the cards that didn't get sent, the last minute "stuff" just didn't matter. What matters most? Yet again, and as always, the Christ child. The One who was born so long ago to bring us everlasting life. And the One who brings us peace. It's not an easy thing to find peace in the sights and sounds of a hospital - unless that Peace has been your friend for a long. long time. There were many patients there who were far more ill than I - who don't have a prayer of being home for Christmas. Who may not be able to return home ever. On Wednesday, the staff had to move me from one room to another because they had brought a lady in who was what they called " a screamer." She was 87, in great misery and not able to be coherent or quiet. As I lay there listening to her moans, and to the sometimes rather rude comments to her by the staff (they thought she couldn't understand them), it didn't really matter whether I was moved or not - the sadness was in the situation this lady was in. From my new room that night - unable to sleep - the cries of that lady could be heard all around the floor. As well as far into the evening last night and into this morning. I pray that she once knew that Peace in her life - and that she will feel it again.
And when I left that place of healing today, I knew that the real healing had been done by God. The excellent medical staff were the vessel, He had done the healing.
Christians aren't supposed to be fearful - but He lets us use that fear for good sometimes in the middle of the night when you know something is wrong. It's then that He gives us the nudge to do what should be done~ and then He does the rest.
May He bless you.
Sue

Preparing for Jesus.

One week from now the gift wrapping will be history, and the kids gifts and toys will be scattered around the family room waiting for the inevitible moans about being too full from dinner but needing to get the kids home to bed. We'll make a thousand trips to Scott and Tina's car, stuff everything in around Veronica and Luke and send them on their way. This year, I will not have to go to work the day after Christmas so I will probably hit the pillow shortly after they leave and worry about the rest of the picking up in the morning. :)
Last night, we had our Christmas play at church - Too Too Busy - and it was about finding the real meaning of Christmas amidst all the preparation. It was a quick little play but the kids loved being part of it. The songs, the forgotten lines remembered just at the right moment with maybe a little bit of prompting, and the brief closing message from Pastor afterwards. It was a peaceful half hour that I was thankful to be part of as a Sunday School teacher - and I remembered all the Christmas plays my own children used to take part in.
The Gospel lesson yesterday was about John the Baptist preparing the way for Jesus. How do we prepare for a King? How did Mary prepare for Him? Mary was ready - she had put it all into God's hands.
I guess it's all a matter of the heart - we are either ready, or we aren't.
Some of us invite him by saying "Come Lord Jesus" or ask for more time by saying "oh not yet, there's too much to do!"
Wait a second - are we still talking about Christmas? I know several people who are very ill. Two of them are sisters in Christ - a few others are loved ones of friends or co-workers. My two sisters in Christ are faith filled and know that God has never left their side...and "Come Lord Jesus" are not frightening words for them to say. They are difficult words for those of us who love them, but words which hold hope as well.
Preparing for Jesus...wrapping gifts, planning a holiday meal, being "too too busy?"
Or just simply saying, "Come Lord Jesus" with a faith filled heart.
Yes, I like that greeting the best.
Blessings to you, my friends.
Sue

Tired feet!!

Well, Ron and I had an awesome date today. First we went to SEARS - I bought a blouse last week for Tina's sister and they forgot to remove the security device off the blouse and I didn't want to try taking it off the blouse because I know there is ink in those things. So they were very happy to use that special tool they have and I actually managed to get out of THAT store with out spending any more. We stopped to see Scott and Veronica for a little bit and there just happened to be some fresh chocolate chip cookies there which needed testing. Awesome. Veronica agreed.
Then we went to the largest mall in our area - just a little bit of shopping left to do but needed to go there because they have the only Discover store in our area. Many dollars - and about 6 miles of walking - later - we finally
got some dinner and made our last Christmas shopping stop - the liquor store for several bottles of wine. My girls that I supervise at work are all wine drinkers so they will be good with this when I place the tall snowflake bag on their desk next week.
I would say that this was our best shopping trip yet - simply because it was Saturday, it was our date, and the mall was packed with people. Some were smiling, others looked stressed, still others looked dazed and confused. S0mebody working in one of those kiosks stopped me and tried to sell me a $70 nail care kit. When I said that I would think about it and stop on my way back through the mall, he threw in what he thought would be the clincher - buy one, get one. No deal...and I always feel bad saying no, but had to (after all, they have bills to pay too). Just looking at the look on Ron's face as he waited for me..no deal was my only option. :)
So, here we are. Saturday night of the busiest shopping weekend of the year - we are home, watching network news (it's not good), and about to watch our Saturday night movies from Blockbuster.
Far away, much closer to the place where Jesus was born, our soldiers are
looking for the peace that baby boy brought to the world. And they will be the ones to help make that peace possible. The cost has been great - and will no doubt be greater still before the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan are over.
And tonight, my feet tired and sore from walking the mall, I think of the boots on the ground in the sand so far away, and also on the feet of our soldiers who serve in other nations - and on US soil protecting us. When do THEY rest? Soon, I hope. Very soon.
Blessings to your loved ones who serve and prayers for them as well as for those of us who wait.
Sue

Things remembered.

Today I left work early to meet Ron for an appointment he had. We couldn't decide where to have dinner afterward, but Ron finally thought of a place and I followed his truck as we began driving through familiar territory - the town where I grew up. Everything looked so different, but I still remember when the quiet two lane road we lived on became a four lane main thoroughfare. Eventually, we passed the house I grew up in.
A large white colonial home with a u-shaped driveway and the covered breeezeway dad had built from the ground up which connected the side door of the house to the oversized two car garage, it didn't look quite the same. There were no welcoming lights in the window - it was getting dark, but the family who now lives there was probably still scattered about at their jobs, or school, or errands. My mom was a stay at home mom so she always put the lights on at the first sign of darkness so that Dad, or us kids, wouldn't come home to a dark house. Of course when mom was home, the house was NEVER dark - lights or not - because she was the sunshine in our family.
I noticed a basketball hoop on a pole on the lawn in front of the garage so I guess there are children - or maybe teenagers - living there.
Going 50 mph on a busy 4 lane highway requires any sightseeing to be, at most, a quick glance as you drive by. But the things remembered in that glance can be so wonderful - and bittersweet. I remember the last time Ron and I and Scott were there. Mom and Dad were all but totally packed for their move to Florida, and as I went from room to room ( the bedroom where I had slept for all the years of my childhood, my parents' bedroom with the heavy mahogany bedroom set, the bathroom where my mom gave us countless baths, scrubbing our dirty knees and elbows and faces). There was the kitchen, and the family room (we used to call it the breakfast room because mom and dad put the kitchen table out there so we could sit in the warm sunshine as we ate our breakfast and watched mom make our lunches at the kitchen counter. Eventually the table went back out to the kitchen and the room became a family room of sorts where mom and dad had their before dinner drink after dad got home from work every evening. I remember walking out of the house for the last time...not wanting to leave this place that had been home to me since I was a year old.
I think it's probably how Laurie felt when she walked out the door for basic training - a hard step for us, not knowing then just how much our lives would change. Nearly 9 years later, how blessed we have been through it all. I pray that during all the time that she has been away - especially when she was in the sand - that she has been able to think of home and been comforted with the things she remembers.
In 2000, Scott left home as well as he found his first apartment. It was time and it was exciting for him, but it was difficult at the same time
For Ron and I it meant an empty nest.
My friend at work said to me the other day that things seem so different now - her sons are now both in college - the holidays are just not the same.
I can identify, can you?
But things remembered - makes you want to keep up the traditions - or begin new ones. In a couple of years, if God's plan is in accordance to ours, Ron and I will walk out of this house where our own children spent their childhood and begin a new life in a new place. This house - which has been "home" for so long - will perhaps someday be the destination of an afternoon drive for our own children.
And I wonder...what will they tell their children...what will be their things remembered?
Wishing you peaceful days of preparation for God's Son.
Sue

Crunch Time!!


Star of Hope

You know, every year I say that the last two weeks before Christmas are NOT going to be crazy. Ok, sure. So, two weekends remain before Christmas weekend. I WILL be done (she says convincingly). Today Ron and I have our usual Saturday date, but we're rearranging the schedule a bit. Instead of visting at Scott and Tina's house first, we will do our shopping and errands first and then head over there about 3:30. Veronica is going to dinner with us and doing an overnight at Nana and Papa's house. I can't wait - she is such a cutie. So I need to do a few things here first - like hide all the gifts that are wrapped and stacked in the family room so little eyes won't light up when Veronica walks in. Tomorrow we will have Veronica for the day and then Luke will be here for the evening as well because Scott and Tina have a Christmas party to go to.
I am excited about all of this - last night at our union's Christmas party, as I enjoyed the good food and the music and the chance to catch up with old friends who work at the university, I was looking forward to the busy-ness of the weekend. It's a laid back kind of busy-ness, nothing that absolutely HAS to be done, and that's what I love about it.
And yet, even in the busyness, there are always the thoughts of those who can't be home for Christmas. Not just the military in harm's way, but those who serve in other countries - and here on home soil - who can't get leave to come home. As a kid, when we went to church on Christmas eve, there was a young couple - they had been going together for ages. He was a soldier and couldn't always be home for the holidays. But when he could be, I remember that he had his uniform on, his girl on his arm and a look on his face that spoke total joy and peace. Oh that this look could be more present on Christmas eve nowadays.
That is my prayer - that no matter how busy we get, or who we miss, may we remember that God gave us His Son so that we would have great joy in all things. That our faith would grow in the serenity of a new born child - and that our hope would be constant.
I'm going shopping today (again) to get all the little gifts that I usually don't get 'til the last minute. (that's when the crunch time becomes panic time so I will try to avoid that this year).
My friends - it's going to be a busy one today - no doubt for you too. For those of you whose hearts aren't quite "into Christmas" this year because someone you love won't be there on Christmas morning, please remember that the BEST Christmas gift is something God gave us more than 2000 years ago. A gift that doesn't change, no matter how much the world changes around us.
Thanks for stopping in during crunch time.
Blessings,
Sue

Breath of Heaven.

On Sunday night, after our Congregational Christmas Potluck, we had a special worship service at church - it's the "hanging of the greens" service which commemorates the beginning of two things - the new church year and the beginning of Advent.
The sanctuary looks so beautiful - wreaths on all the windows, pine garlands adorning the walls, the Christmas trees. We do this to prepare for Jesus' birth - to welcome Him with praise and thankgiving.
And so, the special service is wonderful - music, special Scripture readings and a thoughtful homily. At this point, I'm going to ask you to recall a post I wrote back in the summer about a young woman - a daughter of our congregation who gave birth to a Downs Syndrome baby with some serious health problems. God has brought them through it all and the baby is doing well. Anyway, this young woman - Emily - sings as beautifully as a lark. She and her husband and his family are very active in a music ministry in their own church, but it's been difficult for them to participate in this ministry with the baby's health problems.
On Sunday night, we were gifted to have them take part in the service. And Emily sang Breath of Heaven - otherwise known as Mary's Song. It's lyrics are meant to be Mary speaking to God - asking Him to be with her on the road He is asking her to travel by giving birth to His Son. The words are spoken from a mother's heart - fear for what is ahead, darkness
lit only by His love. In her clear and wonderful voice, Emily sang with her whole heart - and anyone who knows what God has asked her to bear, could only hear her accceptance and her faith. It was so poignant - and so beautiful. I wouldn't have ever had the strength to sing that song - but God knew that she did. It was a blessing to all who were there - and though my eyes welled with tears, the smile on my face won out because of the beauty of the moment. There were no questions from Emily - no "Why us Lord?" Just a heartfelt and faith filled song. And it was like feeling A Breath of Heaven.
Mary and Emily - two young moms born two thousand years apart. They were asked to bear great burdens.
And yet ~ their faith was much greater than the burden.

Blessings,
Sue

Paint me a picture!

I love when someone paints a mental picture for me - well at least if it's a GOOD mental picture. Yesterday in her email, Laurie gave me a beautiful image to think about. Laurie leaves for work a lot earlier than Stephen does so Stephen drops Kasey off at daycare. But when Kasey hears that his mommy is up and about and getting ready for work, he likes to get up and spend a little bit of time with her. Laurie painted me a picture yesterday of a little boy in his feet pajamas drinking milk from a sippie cup as his mom got ready for work. Sometimes he jibber jabbers as he follows her, but other times he crawls into bed with Daddy and falls asleep for a little while longer. As I sat at my computer reading Laurie's email, I wanted so much to be there to see that picture in person. But, until we get there after Christmas, the mental picture will keep me smiling, just thankful for the fact that my daughter has a happy home and a little boy who follows her around in feet pajamas in the early hours of the morning, slugging down his milk. (Milk, juice, water...Kasey is a slugger - the term sippie cup is an oxymoron for him - no sips for him :).

Of course, we sometimes paint our own mental pictures. For the families of military personnel, it's very easy to let our imagination get the best of us and conger up a mental image that just sort of captures our worry about it all. It's a normal thing to do, (I can tell you that from experience) but it's not a good thing. All we need is to see a bad news report out of the sand. We provide the rest of the picture.

Besides Kasey's picture above, there is another picture that I like to think about. The Lord's capable and loving hands. He holds us all - comforts us when we worry, loves us even when we have a hard time trusting Him and His will. Whenever I worry about things that I can't do anything about, I try to remember that it's all too big for me - and that the Lord is waiting for me to put it in His hands. And not take it back.

Today, this weekend, each moment of every day, picture his outstretched hands. It's a comforting image, isn't it?

God bless our troops wherever they may be serving. Our picture of you is courage, and strength, and all that is good.

Perhaps God's Word in Phillippians 4 gives us the best advice...

"Finally, brothers, whatever things are true, whatever things are honorable, whatever things are just, whatever things are pure, whatever things are lovely, whatever things are of good report; if there is any virtue, and if there is any praise, think about these things."

God bless your day and thanks for stopping by,

Sue