Saturday, July 23, 2011

Moments...

So some of these moments that I have with the kids are great and other moments not so great. Of course that is just like any times with kids...but when you don't have someone to share the load with...it's hard to appreciate the great moments and only linger on the not so great moments. I wonder if that is the way God feels about us. I wonder if God and the Son (even though I know they are the same person) sit up in Heaven and say...alright you know that mom, Katrina, how do you think she is doing on her own? Well I think she has her good moments but I mostly remember the bad moments. That also brings to mind about what Max Lucado said in his UpWord e-mail he sent out on Friday. I won't share the whole thing with you...but some excerpts.
"When a potter bakes a pot, he checks its solidity by pulling it out of the oven and thumping it. If it “sings,” it’s ready. If it “thuds,” it’s placed back in the oven.

Late-night phone calls. Grouchy teacher. Grumpy moms. Burnt meals. Flat tires. You’ve-got-to-be-kidding deadlines. Those are thumps. Thumps are those irritating inconveniences that trigger the worst in us. They catch us off guard. Flat-footed. They aren’t big enough to be crises, but if you get enough of them, watch out! Traffic jams. Long lines. Empty mailboxes. Dirty clothes on the floor. Even as I write this, I’m being thumped. Because of interruptions, it has taken me almost two hours to write these two paragraphs. Thump. Thump. Thump.

How do I respond? Do I sing? Or do I thud?

Jesus said that out of the nature of the heart a man speaks (Luke 6:45). There’s nothing like a good thump to reveal the nature of a heart. The true character of a person is seen not in momentary heroics but in the thump-packed humdrum of day-to-day living.

If you have a tendency to thud more than you sing, take heart.

The true character of a person is seen not in momentary heroics but in the thump-packed humdrum of day-to day living.

There is hope for us “thudders”:
1. Begin by thanking God for thumps. I don’t mean a half-hearted thank-you. I mean a rejoicing, jumping-for-joy thank-you from the bottom of your heart (James 1:2). Chances are that God is doing the thumping. And he’s doing it for your own good. So every thump is a reminder that God is molding you (Heb. 12:5–8).

2. Learn from each thump. Face up to the fact that you are not “thump-proof.” You are going to be tested from now on. You might as well learn from the thumps—you can’t avoid them. Look upon each inconvenience as an opportunity to develop patience and persistence. Each thump will help you or hurt you, depending on how you use it.

3. Be aware of “thump-slump” times. Know your pressure periods. For me Mondays are infamous for causing thump-slumps. Fridays can be just as bad. For all of us, there are times during the week when we can anticipate an unusual amount of thumping. The best way to handle thump-slump times? Head on. Bolster yourself with extra prayer, and don’t give up.Shaped by God

Remember, no thump is disastrous. All thumps work for good if we are loving and obeying God.


From Shaped by God (original title: On the Anvil)
Copyright (Tyndale House, 1985, 2002) Max Lucado"


During this time...it's hard for me. I know other people have it a whole lot worse (thinking of my friends and family who have their loved ones in the military, or their loved ones are no longer with them, etc) but this time that Rick is away...is really trying on me. So I'm asking for some prayer from my blog readers out there...

*Z is almost 3 and pushing almost EVERY limit in his little life. Although he is being a really good big brother, sharing toys and loving on Aspen every day. He actually got into my nail polish and then proceeded to get it all over his knee...here he is "trying" to get it off him and onto my toes while he's eating a banana that he "climbed" up onto the counter to get!

*Aspen had a low grade fever last night and then this morning it got up to 103. I don't see any sign of new teeth coming but she's also not letting me get a good look/feel. With medicine the temp has come down to normal limits. Here she is after the medicine.

*If you haven't heard about it recently...but the weather in the midwest has been hot & humid! I'm SO glad that this is my LAST SUMMER in IOWA! I guess the prayer request is the stamina to be able to get out of the house (so Z doesn't drive me too crazy) and to do something that is fun for all of us!

*I have still been having incredible bone and joint pain...all the test that are coming back are within normal limits however I'm just having horrible pain and I do believe I have high pain tolerance. So I'm hoping to get into a specialist here pretty soon. On another note, I'm getting a freckle/mole removed...it's been not looking the same for a little bit so that is getting taken care of on Tuesday and then we will wait to see what (if anything) is the problem with it.

*Also Rick asked for prayers too...with being away, he ends up struggling with "forces" (I won't go into all the details) but just pray for him to stay focused on why he is away and focused on WHO gave him the gift to be a doctor. (Talking about Jesus)


Alright...now to add some pics (because they really help make the blog more personal) and then for me to make it look pretty...cause that is pleasing to the eye. :) Thanks for reading, I hope you have a great weekend...and if you have any prayer request for me please leave them in a comment section!

2 comments:

  1. Rick the Husband7/23/2011 8:15 PM

    I have been praying for you and thinking about you Katrina! I love you so much!

    ReplyDelete
  2. Is Aspen's fever better? In our experience, sometimes a stubborn high fever is a symptom of infection: ears, throat, or UTI (that one esp, it's hard to see any other symptoms besides the fever in kids), so if it doesn't go away like a virus would, and is higher than teething would be, I'd think about checking for those types of infections. Hope she's feeling better soon! Sorry to hear about your joint pain too, though. That's got to be disconcerting when they don't know what's causing it! Keep us posted, we'll be thinking of you!

    ReplyDelete

I'm loving your comments and appreciate them! After all if you don't comment how can I make this blog better for my readers! God bless you and have a GREAT day!