An Email to my Thursday Ladies

The Lord is doing a good work and, bear with me, I've just got to preach it to somebody! 

(Can I get an "Amen sister!")

Turn in your bibles to Nehemiah 8:10. 

Now Nehemiah and Ezra and the Levites had just read God's law aloud to the Israelites. It had been forgotten for generations and, when they heard it, they were all convicted for the first time in their lives. They heard about a holy, holy ("he's not a tame lion") God and were weeping because their hearts were broken by conviction and repentance. 

So, everybody pull out the sackcloth and ashes, right?

No! God calls for rejoicing!

"And Nehemiah, who was the governor, and Ezra the priest and scribe, and the Levites who taught the people said to all the people, “This day is holy to the Lord your God; do not mourn or weep.” For all the people wept as they heard the words of the Law.
"Then he said to them, “Go your way. Eat the fat and drink sweet wine and send portions to anyone who has nothing ready, for this day is holy to our Lord. And do not be grieved, for the joy of the Lord is your strength.”
"So the Levites calmed all the people, saying, “Be quiet, for this day is holy; do not be grieved.” And all the people went their way to eat and drink and to send portions and to make great rejoicing, because they had understood the words that were declared to them." (Nehemiah 8:9-12 ESV)

Amazing, isn't it? I am amazed. :) God will never let us go, and for that I am so thankful. He keeps on us until we see and understand. Then, once we do, he gives us a command to rejoice! Rejoice before this holy God who has worked the miracle of salvation and then made us holy! 

God is just stunning. 

Love you all! :) 

"Oh my goodness gracious..."

That's what my 3 year old said today. "Oh my goodness gracious" echoed from the many times that he has heard me say it. He said it while coming down the hall for breakfast and my husband and I simultaneously looked at each other and laughed.

My eldest has been entertaining us with some really great and clever remarks recently. While eating yogurt, he told his utensils: "Sorry Fork, this is a job for Spoon." He also has become very proficient in the use of the words "because" and "why". Most often he uses them together. And asks again after every explanation which leads to quite a string of information. Until finally, I have to say the much used Mommy Sentence "Because I said so."

And my second born has been entertaining us in an even more frightening way. He is quite the daredevil and has no fear. He isn't afraid of high slides, or climbing the monkey bars (not that he can, but he tries), nor is he afraid of swimming. When dunked under water he comes up spluttering and laughing.

I love them. :)

Patien(ce)t

The rail-thin old man leans forward, the ugly, faded patient gown falling off of one shoulder. His face curls up as he grimaces and forcefully states, "Git out o' my face. I'm walkin' out o' 'ere."

Gently laying her hand on his shoulder, praying for patience and clarity in the mind of her patient, the ICU nurse reminds the man of his recent surgery and the need to remain seated. Seeing that she is making headway and the man was calming down, she removes her hand and sits down on the bed across from his chair.

The nurse puts her best smile on and, adding a soft southern tone, she asks the patient if he would like a television brought into the room. She smiles and apologizes that they don't have a television and explains that the ICU doesn't usually have patients with entertainment needs. Still smiling, she waits for his reply.

The old man leans forward, and with just as much force as before, "I am tired o' yur voice." After this statement, he shuts his mouth in a firm, hard line.

The nurse takes a moment to take that comment in. Raising an eyebrow and reminding herself that he probably didn't mean it, she gets up still smiling and half-sarcastically states, "Well, that's the
easiest problem to solve!" And she walks out of the room to the desk behind the glass windows, praying he doesn't try to stand up or Houdini out of his restraints in the moments her back is turned.

She sits at the desk and takes a moment to breathe. Looking down at the notepads, charts and pens which lay scattered on the desk, she runs through her mind the events of the day. A trifle discouraged, she looks at the computer and finds this as the verse of the day:

"God is not unjust; he will not forget your work and the love you have shown him as you have helped his people and continue to help them."

-Hebrews 6:10

The fog is lifted, the message of encouragement is received and, like a dove finding a resting place, her thoughts become still and peace is found.

The nurse smiles. Her Father was just waiting for her to look up, to see the kindness in His eyes.


***

Written back in 2007, when I was a Real Nurse. :)

“Do you not care that we are perishing!?”

How frequently do I panic.

I’m tired, a day hasn’t gone well, the children are fussy, I have a fight with my husband - and I panic! God, don’t you care? 

His response - “Peace! Be still!” to the wind and the waves. 

And even the wind and sea obey him! (v. 41.) How amazing, how incredible - how revealing! 

And my panic is meaningless... no, not meaningless, because he cares - but rather, moot - a purely academic debate. He, who calms the storm, has control over my life and has allowed these tempests in my life for His sovereign purpose. 

This, is what faith in God looks like. This, is what sanctification is made up of. Tempest and trusting, child-like, in His grace. 

And leaving the crowd, they took him with them in the boat, just as he was. And other boats were with him. And a great windstorm arose, and the waves were breaking into the boat, so that the boat was already filling. But he was in the stern, asleep on the cushion. And they woke him and said to him, "Teacher, do you not care that we are perishing?" And he awoke and rebuked the wind and said to the sea, "Peace! Be still!" And the wind ceased, and there was a great calm. He said to them, "Why are you so afraid? Have you still no faith?" And they were filled with great fear and said to one another, "Who then is this, that even the wind and the sea obey him?" Mark 4: 36-31 

Re-purposing Adult Scarves to Child Sized Scarves

I needed some quick scarves for my boys, so I pulled two of my own out of the closet and "repurposed" them! 

Folding them in half, length-wise, I crocheted the two layers together with a contrasting color around the border, leaving a section at the top in a single layer, so the end could be looped through. 

As you can see, I folded the scarf in half, began at the "Y" on the left side, crocheted a single layer around the top loop of the scarf, then joined both sides to create a double-layer all the way down and back up until I reached the approximate length and split to one layer to create a loop on the top. 

(Single crochet with a 7mm (US K) hook)

Now I have choke-free scarves for both of my boys! Much better than wrapping a scarf around and hoping that one brother doesn't drag the other down the hall by the end of it, these scarves resist tightening around the neck, preventing strangulation.

G loves his! 

It stayed on his neck for nearly an hour, and then I only took it off so I could feed him breakfast.

And now I have room in the closet to knit more scarves! ... ;)

Enjoy!