Category: encouragement

Goodness & Mercy

Posted on by admin

Psalm 23:6   Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life…

As I sit reflecting on the last few years, my mind is drawn to the fact of it being the first week of May once again and my heart overflows with gratitude to God for his faithfulness. 

If you’ve known me for any length of time, you may remember hearing me continually prattle on about my barrage of health issues, surgeries, hospitalizations and long periods at home which is a trial in and of itself for this social bird.  

While I will probably always question grief’s affect on my body, I also acknowledge how amazingly God created us.  Sometimes we will not have answers to life’s tough questions (health issues, death, grief, loss…) on this side of eternity. 

As I entered 2017, I could not have imagined the journey of the next months and years. This exact time of May in 2018 found me hospitalized with mysterious symptoms that ended up being staph infection and an antibiotic resistant sinus infection that had gone septic. I remember slipping into a nearly unconscious state as my temperature skyrocketed.  All I wanted was cool for my burning head, but also warmth for the rest of me which was trembling with cold.  My words no longer came out even though my mind was actively trying to make them.   

I remember my friend Connie standing vigil at my bed, covering me with prayers.  

Those prayers, followed by her reassuring touch on my hand jolted me back to reality. My doctor, who did not make rounds at the hospital any longer, was there, out of breath from having dashed over from his office across town.  He has told me multiple times since how he thought I was gone.  It’s kinda scary to think about when you hear it that way. But, that’s God and his faithfulness protecting my very life for some reason.

My daughters brought a hairband and lipgloss to the hospital
Got to go home if i agreed to IV antibiotics!
Ended up on major meds, steroids and anitbiotics for over a year! So thankful for healing!

I’ve not always been sure about his plan, as my health has continued to be temperamental.  But as I’ve continued to cling to faith I have truly experienced his goodness and mercy time and time again. 

Fast forward to 2019 which once again found my still recovering self in undesirable health related circumstances.  Biopsies with unknown results, strange tumors, and the inability to continue the work I love, did not deter God from being faithful.  

I still stand in awe at how he used a new radiology tech to lead to the discovery of the tumor on my thyroid which had actually begun to, unbeknownst to me, affect my swallowing. I am thankful for his goodness in allowing the end results to be good.

In the current quarantine of 2020, He continues to show his goodness.  While my nature would normally tend towards fear, He has stayed close reassuring me with his presence and meeting all of our needs in sometimes unexpected ways.  It seems fear dominates daily life, especially on social media.  I ran a small experiment on myself recently and found my anxiety and depression levels much lower the days I stayed off of social media and abstained from watching the news.  

It’s not rocket science people! 

I love Ann’s reminders and clung to this when I wasn’t sure how life was going to end up!

God has gifted us with his word which admonishes us many times to not be afraid. 

And while each of us copes differently, I am thankful for encouragement from friends who help me focus on God’s daily goodness and mercy.  My hope and prayer is that I can portray his goodness and care to those around me! 

Psalm 23 

1 The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want.

2 He maketh me to lie down in green pastures: he leadeth me beside the still waters.

3 He restoreth my soul: he leadeth me in the paths of righteousness for his name’s sake.

4 Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil: for thou art with me; thy rod and thy staff they comfort me.

5 Thou preparest a table before me in the presence of mine enemies: thou anointest my head with oil; my cup runneth over.

6 Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life: and I will dwell in the house of the Lord for ever.

Ice Cream & Flat Tires – A Quarantine Field Trip

Posted on by admin

Therefore do not be anxious about tomorrow, for tomorrow will be anxious for itself. Sufficient for the day is its own trouble. Matthew 6:34

We recently acquired an old dilapidated 1978 semi trailer we want to use for storage for an upcoming family project.  This past Saturday was designated as pickup day. The day dawned bright and clear, a happy upgrade from the dreary skies and snow of the week prior. I offered Hunter the chance to ride with Lowell in the semi on the trek to Sumner, a town about 100 miles away. He declined, which was how I had secretly hoped his response to be. I joined Lowell in the small bouncy passenger seat of the semi he borrowed from work, both excited and nervous at what the day would bring. 

Upon arrival at our destination, the true condition of our purchase met our eyes. Several hours and much frustration later plus me learning more about tires than I cared to, we ever so slowly crept out the dusty farm drive with our slightly precarious newest belonging in tow.  Had it been my choice, we would have gone home and returned the next weekend with a truck load of tools and supplies to make our purchase road safe. I happen, however, to be married to Mr. Fixit himself and his choice was to take the scenic route home and hope for the best. I located a tire shop that had just closed 15 minutes prior who agreed to sell us a used tire just in case.  

So off we started.  

My job was to keep an eye on my side of the trailer via the rear view mirror.  As I observed from my bouncy post, I envisioned pieces of black rubber exploding onto the country roadside and the flashes of the DOT officer vehicles coming to apprehend us for being unsafe citizens. 

Despite my apprehension, the trip continued splendidly.  Farmers out in their fields, families out on walks and new blooms on the trees along with the greenest grass I have seen this season filled our view.  Because our speed couldn’t get too high, we noticed many things we’d otherwise have been speeding along too fast to see. 

We found the most delightful ice cream shop, a cute little mom and pop place called Tootsies.  The smell of grilled burgers wafted out the windows as we placed our order off a menu the size of Texas.  As we waited on burgers, Lowell found another little mom and pop hardware where he procured some more tools for our small stash.  

I don’t think I have ever been so relieved to see our driveway.  Both of us sighed in relief at having made the trek safely with our arrival time being only about 5 hours later than we had expected. 

Later as I pondered the day, I was suddenly overcome with emotion at the fun day I had had with just my hubby.  It was both spontaneously fun and nerve wracking, anxiety producing and entertaining.  

Life has been kind of like that lately. 

I have fluctuated back and forth from enjoying the uninterrupted time with my family to wishing they could leave me in quiet for just an hour. I have loved not having to get up and ready for work but still spend portions of each day freaking out at the lack of income. 

Quarantine has been a gift.  

Perspective seems to be the only thing we can currently control. 

I’m exceedingly grateful for God’s gifts, like rides home on the scenic route.  He has ways to calm our worry and remind us of the beauty in the world around us!

He is good.

Is my arm to short?

Posted on by admin

Like many of yours I am sure, my last few weeks have been among the oddest in my life.  The Covid 19 quarantine has put a giant kibosh on life as we knew it. 

I welcomed the uninterrupted days with open arms.  No place to be. No schedule to mind except the normal meals, cleaning and making sure the laundry is done before dad gets home. 

As the time has continued however, I have gotten anxious, antsy, restless. Since all of my employment is on hold, my mind has been in overdrive, filling in the blanks with the most horrible possibilities. 

I started the year with the goal of reading all the way through the Bible again and a few weeks back came through Numbers.  

One verse jumped out at me and keeps coming back to mind often since.  

Numbers 11:23  “The Lord answered Moses, Is the Lord’s arm too short?” ……

 I’ve gone back several times and read through the story again. The children of Israel had just come through some pretty amazing stuff. Not only had God parted the water for them to walk through and escape from their enemy, the mighty Egyptians, He had also decided to show them he was with them in visible ways by putting a cloud down over the tabernacle to guide them.  At night it looked like fire. How’s that?? He also rained down their breakfast, lunch and dinner straight from heaven. 

Somehow though the people got grumpy at their diet, their surroundings and life in general and decided it’d be better to grumble and beg for what they didn’t have.  Verse 1 says they complained about their hardships in the hearing of the Lord. He got pretty unhappy and sent fire down to devour the loudest grumbler. 

Do you think they learned their lesson?  

Nope!

The grumps and dissatisfaction continue.  

We want meat, they cried.  “If only we were back in Egypt”…Give me a break people!  I mean really??!!

Moses invites God into discussion.  God informs him of his plans to give the people more meat then they can fathom, so much so in fact, they will vomit at the very thought of eating more. 

At this point, Moses responds probably similarly to how I’d think.  

But Moses said, “Here I am among six hundred thousand men on foot, and you say, ‘I will give them meat to eat for a whole month!’  Would they have enough if flocks and herds were slaughtered for them? Would they have enough if all the fish in the sea were caught for them?”

It is here God responds with the verse that keeps coming to my mind.

“Is my arm too short?”

And with that he literally rains down meat in the form of quail falling from the sky. 

We all know the answer.  We can all agree that God will take care of us. 

But do we flesh that out by how we live? 

We all have needs.  

Financial hardship. 

Emotional baggage. 

Loneliness. 

The list could go on.

When times of adversity and trial come, is our faith strong enough to keep believing in the God who continually cares for each of us daily just as he did for the grumpy Children of Israel? 

Or do we slap him in the face by doubting he can take care of us? 

Take courage today!  God is not in quarantine and will continue to care faithfully for you!

7 ways to help a grieving parent

Posted on by admin

 Recently someone asked me if I had any advice on walking with a friend who had lost a child. While I do not profess to be an expert, I can share some things that have been helpful to us in our journey. 

**Please bear in mind these are my list.  Everyone else’s list will be unique to them. 

#7. Allow them to grieve on their own timetable. 

Sometimes we think grief follows certain steps and is then done.  Not true. Never hurry someone along in the journey.

#6. Show up with practical gifts.

 In the early weeks and months, comfort food is vital.  Take a freezer meal. Give a gift card to their favorite restaurant.  Offer to eat with them but give them the right to refuse. Offering to help with errands or to do lists is also a big one. My sweet friend Laura contacted my clients for me and brought deo and a change of clothes to the hospital.  Other friends cleaned the house and weeded the garden. 

#5. Remember this is not about you at all. 

While their loss may deeply affect you, it is theirs. Your need for things to be done a certain way for your own healing or closure does not trump their needs. EVER.  

#4. If they have other children,  love on them.

Often remaining children, in addition to being extremely traumatized may feel guilty at still being alive. Seeing them for who God created them to be and ministering to them in that way can be so life giving in the darkest time.  Take age appropriate gifts. Offer a day trip to the zoo or museum or offer to pay for the family to go. A sweet friend actually paid for our family to go on a “griefcation”, which was super meaningful to our whole family!

#3.  Don’t be afraid to be with them. 

Often people tend to shy away from people who are grieving out of the fear they will do or say the wrong things. Be sensitive to what they may be feeling and if you feel like you may have done or said something inappropriate, apologize and go on. But PLEASE keep showing up. 

#2.  Understand that your friend will never be the same. 

Loss of any kind, but especially the unnatural loss of a child, alters the course of life forever.  Comments like “I’m so glad to see the old you” can cause a load of unnecessary pain. 

#1.  Remember their person – especially birthdays and angel-versaries. 

While this may not be of the same importance to everyone who has lost, most people I’ve spoken to, appreciate others remembering. It may mean you put it as a repeat date in your google calendar.

Remembering is such a gift…

I’d love to hear from you!  What has been most helpful in the journey called grief?

Wrestling Alone

Posted on by admin

“So Jacob was left alone and a man wrestled with him till daybreak.  Genesis 32:24 NIV”

We all know what it’s like to be alone. 

A spouse leaves.  A child dies. Friendships separate. A move happens. Pain sets in.  Grief, for what is lost, permeates the deepest crevices of our souls. 

We wonder if God has left too. 

When our 3 year old daughter died suddenly, my faith was shaken to the core.  Having been a Christian my whole life, I was shocked by the questions of unbelief and doubt that flitted through my mind.

One hot summer day, I sat weeping by her grave.  I looked up at the clear blue sky and asked God, if he existed, to show me that he and Heaven were real. In that grief stricken moment of feeling so lost and alone, I longed for simple reassurance that I would indeed see my daughter again, because at that instant, I really didn’t know. 

Through tears, my eyes focused on a wilted rose left from the delicate pink casket spray.  Someone had stuck its long stem into the dirt right where I sat. I began tugging gently on the ugly, dead stem.  Up, up it came. As the last part of brown cleared the clods of dirt, a tiny, fresh green leaf unfurled its beauty.  With heaving sobs, I realized the significance of God’s answer to me at that very second. He calmed my weary soul, sending his message through a single dead flower that wasn’t so dead after all.  

Jacob knew about being alone. 

He’d met God while on the run from Esau. He had zero family near, was unsure of his future, and had no place to sleep except a pile of stones he used as a pillow.  

Soon after, his life changed.  God’s blessing and abundance became evident.  Returning to his homeland meant facing fears of how Esau would respond. The night before the big reunion, Jacob heard Esau was headed his way with a band of 400 men.  He sent presents for Esau, his 4 wives, and his passel of youngins ahead, then stayed alone at the spot where, unbeknownst to him, he would meet God once more. All night he wrestled with what the Bible refers to as “a man”.  At daybreak, Jacob begged the man to bless him before he left. 

God did.  

Jacob named the place Peniel, saying “it is because I saw God face to face and yet my life was spared”. 

Through our ongoing grief, I have found odd comfort in wrestling with God.  After all, He created me, mind and intellect. He knows my questions before I ask them.  His shoulders are big enough to carry the weight of my inquiries. Sometimes He answers in colossal, magnificent ways. Other times he gently brings me face to face with seemingly insignificant, dead flowers.

Enough

Posted on by admin

I’ve been there a bunch lately.

In that place I call “the corner”.
It’s that uncomfortable state of being.  Many of us find ourselves at there, some more then others. 

If we’re honest.

I beat my self up there.

“Crazy” happens there and the “yucky ugly” comparison of me versus others who are perceived to have reached those gargantuan places full of perfection I can never hope to attain to.

There’s also the “what ifs” section of the corner.  It’s the place where every idiosyncrasy of my spontaneous nature is dissected and abhorred.

What if I’d been more rigid in my education style?  Maybe my kid would read better?

What if I’d been more watchful? Maybe I’d still be mom to 4 living children instead of 3 and 1 angel.

Lots of my friends have been there too recently, in the corner.

They stress and fret and stew and live really hard and sometimes very yucky day to day existences.

They wonder, as do I, about who they are.  Really are.

They wonder if they are worthy.

They wonder if they are loved.

They wonder if they are enough.

And they wonder if they can make it though one more day of pain.

I once read a home school mama’s book called “Teaching from Rest”.
Now let me tell you, I don’t get much reading time.  I enjoy reading but my current pace eliminates time for meaningful reading. But this book was short and I devoured it.  Every single line. It was what I needed at that moment.
It gave me the much needed reminder that rest is ok…and really actually needed…and that the crazy we subject ourselves to with the lists of activities and responsibilities (not to mention the beating ourselves up time)  we immerse ourselves in, while though they may be good are not always for our best.
It did not grant me a license to be lazy, mind you, but to re evaluate my priorities with the Best Yes philosophy that has turned my life upside down. (Go read Lysa Terkhurst’s the Best Yes if you haven’t yet…)
This also motivated me to re investigate the truths of the Bible and how they apply to my day to day.

Here’s my most recent list (since I’m all about lists…)

*We are LOVED. 
Ephesians 2:4 – 7 says “But God being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which He loves us, even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ…

*We are VALUED.
Matthew 10:31 says Fear not, therefore; You are of more value then many sparrows.

*We are PRECIOUS.
Isaiah 43:4 says Because you are precious in my eyes, and honored, and I love you, I give men in return for you, peoples in exchange for your life.

*We can make it through the tough.
Isaiah 41:10 reassures us of this..”Fear not, for I am with you; Be no dismayed for I am thy God.  I will strengthen you, I will help you…

* We are ENOUGH.
2 Peter 1:3 says “His divine power has granted to us all things that pertain to life and godliness..”
and then there’s this one…Ephesians 2:10 – For YOU are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works…”

How’s that for value?

If you like me and many others I love, struggle with who you are, let me shout to you from my corner that YOU ARE ENOUGH!

Fat, thin, short, tall, smart, not so smart, introvert, extrovert….You are loved by your creator.  YOU ARE ENOUGH!

So much has happened recently that has reinforced these truths.
I’m finding that so many of my beliefs center around my wrong thought processes and me not valuing who God created me to be.

Not that I need to take pride in wrong ways, but God talks much of our value in his word so there has to be truth to that somewhere right?!

I ran into someone, who in my mind is somewhat of a celebrity.  She bounces around in memories of my childhood.  She has also reached pinnacles of success I feel are never going to be my destiny.  (how’s that for the yucky comparison monster?) My first reaction at meeting her again had me shaking in my boots.  “She’ll never remember me…country mouse I be…” But as fate would have it, God reminded me of my value. I considered running the other direction or acting like I was busy when she entered the room.  But there she came, straight into “my corner”..and she remembered ME!  and had the same recollection of memories.  I’d have missed a great conversation if I’d stayed stuck in my corner, worrying and devaluing God’s handiwork.
Now, I’m not saying that her remembering me gives me value, but for me it is a reminder of who I am…I AM ENOUGH!

Casting Crowns has a song I love called Voice of Truth.  Take a minute to listen. Let the truth wash over you.

And if you are facing a “climbing out of boat onto the crashing waves” time in your space called life, take hope and remember…YOU ARE ENOUGH!



He is enough!



           

Walking Each Other Home (Valentine Giveaway)

Posted on by admin

It’s Valentine’s week again.  

As I consider the hype surrounding America’s most romantic holiday, I wonder how many of you find yourself disenchanted with love itself.  

After the freshness of romance has worn off, sometimes before the honeymoon has ended, we are left with dashed expectations, hopes, dreams. 

Sounds lovely doesn’t it?! 

Lowell and I will celebrate our 23 anniversary this year.  And while the years have definietely been filled with a lot of hard, we are super blessed as well!  

I could prattle on and on about what I have learned and where I have failed in my marriage. 

I won’t bore you. 

It’s quite simply boils down to this…

Marriage is the daily process of laying down self, our expectations and how we think things should be. 

It is taking up God’s agape love for our spouse. 

I recently heard Agape love referred to as “the process of walking one another home”.  Isn’t that a neat thought?

How do we do that well?

I’ve had several conversations again lately that have reminded me how much we as married couples have in common.  

Our struggles may differ in intensity, but we all struggle.  

I haven’t met a marriage yet who claimed to be stress free. 

Also, I am convinced that there is strength in community when we can be open, honest, vulnerable with others about what we may be experiencing in our marriages. 

James 5:16 says “Therefore confess your faults to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed.”  While James may not have specifically been referring to marriage, I see this as perfectly applicable to the state of our unions. 

If your marriage is in a good place, use that time to pray for others who may need healing and completeness in their marriage!  

After 2 plus decades of learning all about the nitty gritty of marriage, the one defining thread woven through all stages, has been the reminder and motivation to pray for Lowell. Godly women I admire have stopped me in the midst of grump sessions to ask me the tough question, “Have you talked to God about this?”

GIVEAWAY TIME!

In honor of this blessing, I am doing a giveaway here!  Stormie Omartian wrote a powerful book called “The Power of a Praying Wife” .  If you’d like a chance at a copy of your very own, simply leave a comment here on dorothymiller.com telling me a favorite way your spouse blesses you. 

I will draw a winner on Valentines day. 

I pray blessing on your path as we all walk each other home.

Thankful for the Locusts

Posted on by admin

So I will restore to you the years that the swarming locust has eaten, the crawling locust, the consuming locust, and the chewing locust, my great army which I sent among you.  

You shall eat in plenty and be satisfied,  And praise the name of the Lord your God, Who has dealt wondrously with you;  And My people shall never be put to shame.  

Then you shall know that I am in the midst of Israel:  I am the Lord your God and there is no other. Joel 2:23-25 NKJV

I have always loved writing and began blogging as a means of recording “God sightings” in our family’s day to day moments. Those who know me well, know me as the hopelessly addicted to picture taking, post to social media freak.  I have always said that’s proof of the good times. 

After grief came, I wondered if the sun would ever shine again. Would good times grace our lives again?

We’d walked through infertility.   

Grief visited then too, but in a different way. 

I grieved what I perceived as wasted years.  

Afterall, didn’t God put the desire in me to be a mommy? 

Seasons changed.  

I always picture God giggling as He blessed us with 4 babies in 4 years. 

I was finally living the life I was destined for.  

His plan however was different than mine, when he called our Abby back to heaven unexpectedly after 3 short years here.     

My knowledge of grief was suddenly obsolete. 

I struggled with remembering God’s goodness when grief came.  From my point of view, the locust called grief destroyed all the joy we had known, leaving life bland, empty. 

As I have thought more in depth about the locusts, Job 2:10 kept coming to mind.  I love how it reads in the amplified Bible. “Shall we indeed accept only good from God and not also accept adversity and disaster?”  Job had just lost everything and I mean EVERYTHING, his home, his livestock, his crops, his kids.   Now Satan was attacking his physical body as well. His wife, bless her grieving heart, advised him to curse God and die.  (There’s a whole nother lesson for another day…) The verse ends with an admonition that still issues challenge for us thousands of years later.  “In all this Job did not sin with his lips.” 

He trusted that the God who had blessed him richly would take care of him during hardship and extreme adversity and loss. 

Same for me.

Despite my wrestling and many questions, God stayed close, constantly revealing himself as the faithful God he is.

Since then, my goal has been to make the best of messy, and to focus on God’s restoration of joy, even in our broken and to encourage others to do so also. 

Times & Seasons

Posted on by admin

“And the God of all grace who called you to his eternal glory in Christ, after you have suffered a little while, will himself restore you and make you strong, firm and steadfast. 1 Peter 5:10 NIV”

Today is not only the start of a brand new day, but a brand new season for me. Through an extended period of illness for me, we made the decision as a family to put both our daughters into the public school. Having known nothing else but the homeschooling I have done for almost a decade, I feel a little lost when I get up in the morning, even though I still home school my 7th grade son.

As I look back on our journey, I see very clearly how God’s divine hand led us to and through the places we’ve been. I did not set out to home school. But after many years of infertility and also having worked as a teacher’s assistant I went gung ho into the process.

It was indeed the best yes for our family’s season as we grieved the sudden loss of Abby. Grief can not be hurried or placed on a time table. We were able to putter about and do what needed doing in that time.

Back to the present…I have always loved writing and for as long as I can remember have written. I come from a heritage of writers. My grandfather was a devout Amish man who from my earliest memories sat holed up in his office pecking away at a manual typewriter writing for the Family Life magazines he founded or the Amish newspaper, the Budget. As a young child I pondered how one could possibly spent all that time tucked away.

I get it now. It’s in my blood.

My uncle Ira is soon releasing his second book after his first called “Growing up Amish” became a New York Times best seller. Along the way I’ve picked his brain and he’s always been super encouraging.

Both men are my inspiration.

Over the years, I have had much encouragement to write. As I have spent time exploring God’s call on my life, it has become apparent that writing may just be a piece of that puzzle.

Though I don’t yet know if me writing is for the greater good, or simply for my own healing and encouragement. I do know God has offered me the gifts of time, a support network, and a small platform where I can make my mark on my world, all gifts I can not refuse.

Our guest speaker at church yesterday, John Troyer, spoke directly into my vision. He talked of being plucky and asked us to raise our hands if we saw ourselves as that. Only one or two did. He then went on to explain that plucky is defined as “having or showing determined courage in the face of difficulties” I was to intimidated to raise my hand but after church my sweet husband questioned me about if I had raised my hand. At my reply, he stated quite abruptly that plucky defines me perfectly.

John explained how we are all pretty much created fully and completely average. Reassuring, isn’t it? But then we all have an assignment from God that is not limited by those around us. He finished by challenging us to remember that pluckiness keeps going and how each of us must allow God’s dream to be planted in us.

So, today, with my dream in hand I set out on a new adventure. It may seem a little scary and a whole lot intimidating, but I have a finished manuscript that has already passed several editing processes and just needs me to be brave enough to write an actual proposal, so I can get it published. I choose to embrace my new season with joyful anticipation because I know who’s with me.

“The Lord himself goes before you and will be with you; He will never leave you nor forsake you. Do not be afraid; Do not be discouraged….Deuteronomy 31:8”

And If Not

Posted on by admin

I’ve been sitting on these 3 small, seemingly insignificant tittles of our English language for quite some time. Continued notions zoom by as I have played them over and over intertwining them with the plaguing unanswered questions that seem to be on constant replay.

I have noted myself to be a person of contrast, sometimes gullible and easily swayed, yet firmly grounded in what I have found to be truth.

My parents taught me about prayer at a young age, a gift I cherish and enjoy to this day. They showed me God’s personal side, and his love for us, his beautiful creation, and how very much He pays attention to the small details in our lives.

As I have grown older, I find myself somewhat callous and honestly, at times, questioning. Do my prayers matter? Is God really who he says he is? Is Heaven real?

The heavy load of grief has saddled many a dear soul close to me, including my own.

Sometimes I find myself wondering why we even pray for healing, financial miracles or restoration of a marriage.

Did I just say that out loud?

Recently though I was reminded of the why we do exactly that.

A sweet friend recently lost her husband to a brutal brain tumor. On the post announcing his passing, the one line caught my eye. Through my tears, I have gone back to it several times. “although our hearts are broken, we rejoice with him that our prayers for complete healing were answered…”

God did not close his ears to the prayers of healing for this man, he just answered them in a different way then hoped.

Heaven is perfection, complete healing. Whereas staying here presents the reality of continued pressures, problems and pain.

While seasons may bring us to different places in our thought processes, the reality of our foundation is God’s faithfulness and knowledge of what we truly need most.

He invites us to ask the most difficult questions with the assurance that his shoulders are big enough to handle them.

His call to us is simple yet profound.

In Matthew 17 he says, “Truly I tell you, if you have faith as small as a mustard seed, you can say to this mountain, ‘Move from here to there,’ and it will move. Nothing will be impossible for you.”

He, sweet friend, is bigger and more capable then the what we see as unanswered prayers and every “and if not” moment we face.