Protection in God's Hands

Friday morning started off like any other morning. Breakfast to be made, school to prepare for. Along with the normal trappings of the day, I usually check my inbox. On Friday there was an email blast from Barbara Rainey of Family Life, entitled Mothers of Courage. That caught my attention. I want to be a courageous mom. Who doesn't?  I opened the email and began to read.
One sentence jumped off the page: The protection of our own lives and the lives of our children is best left in God's hands. As soon as I read it, my heart skipped a beat and it was as if the Spirit was telling me everything would be okay. "No Lord, please," I found myself whispering back at the thought of trouble befalling one of my kids. 
Little did I know that just a few hours later, my daughter's doctor would refer us to the emergency room to be checked for appendicitis. My little girl had developed a stomach ache right around breakfast that morning. There was no fever, not even by the time we hit the ER at 3 o'clock in the  afternoon. Her white blood count was only slightly elevated, and the resident on duty said she doubted we were dealing with appendicitis. "Everything has to be run past my boss, though" she explained. "She has the final word."
Shortly thereafter, an older lady introduced herself to us. She said that my little girl's symptoms weren't what they typically expect with appendicitis, but that they would do a CT Scan just to be sure, and to put our mind at ease.
The scan showed an abscess on the appendix that had broken open. Fluid appeared to be loose in the abdominal cavity. Bacteria infected fluid. By now, Haddey's temperature was 102. Surgery was scheduled for the next morning.
We were never able to get the fever down. She lay in bed Saturday morning, in and out of it, hot with a now 103 degree fever.
"Code Red" came the verbal alarm from the hallway outside my daughter's hospital room, "Code Red." The fire alarm had been sounded on the fourth floor. We were on the second floor. The nurse told everyone to go to their rooms and shut the doors. And wait. The Mothers of Courage message sounded in my heart as the fire alarm sounded in the hall. 
Isaiah 41:10 was the message of the Mothers of Courage article. "Fear thou not; for I am with thee: be not dismayed; for I am thy God: I will strengthen thee; yea, I will help thee; yea, I will uphold thee with the right hand of my righteousness."
For 20 minutes the alarm continued to sound. We didn't tell the children that 'Code Red' was hospital talk for a fire alarm. The adults sat in the room contemplating the situation, praying.
Fearful thoughts materialized. I couldn't move my child to safety at that moment. There was no way. Isaiah 41:10, "Fear thou not."
She was hooked up to all kinds of monitors and an IV, came another one.  ". . . for I am with thee."
The weather outside was cold. Probably in the 30's or so. How could I protect her from the cold? ". . . be not dismayed; for I am thy God."
Where would they send us? How would we get there? the thoughts continued. ". . . I will strengthen thee; yea, I will help thee."
Would she have to wait longer for surgery? Would her fever climb higher due to being transported? Would she make it? ". . . I will uphold thee with the right hand of my righteousness."
I rested in those words. I rested in the diagnosis. I rested in the fever. I rested in the fire alarm and in the operation which took place about an hour later.
Haddey sits downstairs right now, recovering.
Am I a courageous mom? I wouldn't really say so. But I am a thankful mom. A mom who serves a God who meets our every need before we even know we are going to have a need. It's true, the protection of our own lives and the lives of our children is best left in God's hands.

I Blew It!

Well, I blew that one, huh? So much for being more mindful in my writing. I was reading one of my favorite blogs earlier today. It's by Jeff Adams, my pastor. You can find it at KCBT.org. He wrote the most recent entry just to debrief over the recent loss of a friend.
You know, we all need to debrief, probably more frequently than we give ourselves the opportunity to do so.
Writing is a way that I debrief. Funny, but I didn't know how wonderfully relaxing it can be until just a few years ago. It's like the words float out of your head, down to the fingertips and then magically appear on screen (or paper) before you. When they are out from you, there is more space inside to allow for refilling, or refueling, if you will. I imagine it like exhaling on a frosty morning. The warm breath leaves your lungs/body, and escapes into the chill of the cold air. And there, all of a sudden, right in front of you, is a wispy white reminder drifting away. Same thing. Once that breath is gone from your body, there is now room for more. . .
I guess I am certainly talking to myself in that I don't take/make the time for refueling like I should. Progress takes time, and for those who know me, you know that patience isn't one of my strong suits! If there is a problem, there must be a solution, and the first one to the solution wins!
Too bad life isn't that easy. Life makes you go methodically through all of the steps, never shortcutting or missing one!
Well, on your way to progress, whatever that may look like in your life right now, please don't forget to relax a bit.

Whew!

Wow! Okay, that was difficult! Boy, it just goes to show you, that when you put your mind to start something, every obstacle possible pops up and tries to derail you!
I had started a blog - started being the operative word in that statement - some 18 months ago. It quickly went to the back burner because, well, you know, all of the other "more important" stuff that takes up our day to day lives. Like cooking three squares, (okay, so mine are sort of round most of the time, you know what I mean) and cleaning and laundry and home schooling and working and shopping. Do I have to go on? I'm making excuses. I love to write but I didn't make the time for this blog! Well, shame on me! Now that I set my mind to it, "wham-o!" I find out my old blog has been disabled, or something.
Now please understand, I wasn't raised on computers, so I'm self teaching here. I have managed to create this new blog, and I hope it doesn't self combust in the near future!
Why the new found interest in blogging? Well, I jumped on a teleconference last night featuring Kelly James Enger! I have read many of her books, and found her conference to be every bit as incredible as her written works! If you are interested in freelancing, you need to check into Kelly's website - if you already doing freelance work, then I'm sure you know about Kelly!
The call was great, and once again, she laid out a path through this business called freelance writing, and was just such an encouragement! 
Well, I've got to get going to one of those round meal things, but I'll be back! (Hopefully sooner than 18 months!)