what a treat . . .

My son surprised me today with a quick stop by the house.

He had to come into the city for a supply run and took the time to come home for a quick minute.

While making a sandwich for lunch he talked... and talked... and talked.

It was such a delight to hear him talk about the things that are filling his thoughts.

God is so very real to him ~ I am deeply grateful.

celebrating life . . .

Have you given any thought to the kind of legacy you're in the process of leaving behind? Whether we are aware of it or not, we are each creating some kind of legacy that will be left behind when we die.

Today we celebrated the life of a man who was well-loved and "finished well". He was the most godly man that I know and the afternoon was filled with stories of how he impacted lives all across the world. He was generous, loving, faithful and lived his life with integrity. The legacy that he has left behind for his kids & grandkids is incredible.

That has left me wondering... what kind of legacy am I creating for my kids? Will others be able to say of me that I "finished well"? that I was a woman after God's own heart? Those are my deepest desires and today provided me with yet another opportunity to reflect & re-evaluate.

Thanks John for your example of faith ~ for your wise words of guidance ~ for being a man of God ~ for your role model ~ for having a lasting impact on my life.

what do you do . . .

when there's nothing you can do?

Praying seems so . . . easy to offer and yet it certainly doesn't feel like it's really helping to ease the burden . . .

I drove to the airport yesterday evening to pick up a dear friend. She had flown here to be with her mother-in-law. Her FIL had just yesterday been placed in hospice care and . . . well, I just feel so helpless. Their journey is so hard ~ and there's no guarantee when God will hear their heart's desperate cry to release him from his pain & suffering. Saying goodbye is so very hard. How do you ever prepare yourself for this?

Platitudes are so easy to come by... yes, it's wonderful to know that he is headed for heaven and we are so very thankful for that, but it's hard to face and say the final farewell.

And so I sit here with tears welling up and I hardly know how to bear the pain...

but then I think of my dear friend and her family and realize that if it's this hard for me, it must be nearly unbearable for them. . .

and in my state of helplessness, I pray ~ for that is all I can do at this moment.