Wednesday, December 31, 2008
Psalms 34
Psalm 34 brings comfort to me today. Verse 19: "Many are the afflictions of the righteous: but the LORD delivereth him out of them all."
Sunday, December 28, 2008
Christmas 2008
We had our first wake-up call from Judson at 3:40 a.m.! In a whisper, "Mom, Santa came early, it's Christmas!" We instructed him it was not morning yet, please go back to bed. 4:00 a.m., "Mom, it's morning!" We called Mikiah down to our room (yes, she was also awake). We instructed them it was not morning until 6:00 a.m. Promptly at 6:00, "Mom, it's morning!" As much as I don't like to be awakened at 3:40 a.m., I just had to smile at remembering how excited I used to get when I was a kid. What fun! Well, needless to say, it was still dark outside when we opened presents. Thus, there are no pictures of Josh in this batch because his eyes are very light sensitive -- a flash in the eyes would have produced a less-than-joyous picture I'm afraid. We did have a very nice morning -- day, actually.
I have to share about my awesome coworkers. About 10:30 or so on Christmas morning, a co-worker's husband (also a friend of ours), came to the door with a bag of goodies. On first glance, we thought it was a bag of candy and other yummy items. We thanked him, visited for a while and said goodbye. Then, we opened the bag...our mouths were hanging open in wonder as we pulled gift after gift out of this little bag. My coworkers in St. Joseph Medical Center and St. Mary's Medical Center transcription department all pooled together and gave us numerous gift cards (Blockbuster, Pizza Hut, McDonald's, Applebee's, etc.), snacks, some cash, a massage for me and an I-tunes card for Josh. You know, when people ask us what they can to do help, I honestly don't know what to tell them. We really have no need -- simply a big desire for Josh to get well and life to get back to "normal". However, some of these wonderful ladies must have been down a similar road and known that though I cannot identify any real needs, this was a thoughtful, awesome gift that will give us some entertainment, relaxation, and the ability to eat out as that need arises from time to time. I've never had a massage, and honestly there has probably been no other time in my life that I would have looked forward to getting one like I am now!
Well, here's a few pics from Christmas morning...
Judson's Cookies for Santa. Ho, ho, ho! :o)
Ta-da
Our tradition since the year we were really, really poor is to buy our Christmas tree two days before Christmas. We found out way back then you can get them really cheap. That year we got it for $5. This year, $15, but still a great deal for such a nice tree. Last year it was free -- we got a flat tire from a pothole in the parking lot so they gave us the tree and paid for the tire repair! Good deal, but I wouldn't recommend you try it!
He's just all that.
I have to share about my awesome coworkers. About 10:30 or so on Christmas morning, a co-worker's husband (also a friend of ours), came to the door with a bag of goodies. On first glance, we thought it was a bag of candy and other yummy items. We thanked him, visited for a while and said goodbye. Then, we opened the bag...our mouths were hanging open in wonder as we pulled gift after gift out of this little bag. My coworkers in St. Joseph Medical Center and St. Mary's Medical Center transcription department all pooled together and gave us numerous gift cards (Blockbuster, Pizza Hut, McDonald's, Applebee's, etc.), snacks, some cash, a massage for me and an I-tunes card for Josh. You know, when people ask us what they can to do help, I honestly don't know what to tell them. We really have no need -- simply a big desire for Josh to get well and life to get back to "normal". However, some of these wonderful ladies must have been down a similar road and known that though I cannot identify any real needs, this was a thoughtful, awesome gift that will give us some entertainment, relaxation, and the ability to eat out as that need arises from time to time. I've never had a massage, and honestly there has probably been no other time in my life that I would have looked forward to getting one like I am now!
Well, here's a few pics from Christmas morning...
Judson's Cookies for Santa. Ho, ho, ho! :o)
Adding to her pig collection...number 38 I believe.
Ta-da
Our tradition since the year we were really, really poor is to buy our Christmas tree two days before Christmas. We found out way back then you can get them really cheap. That year we got it for $5. This year, $15, but still a great deal for such a nice tree. Last year it was free -- we got a flat tire from a pothole in the parking lot so they gave us the tree and paid for the tire repair! Good deal, but I wouldn't recommend you try it!
He's just all that.
Friday, December 26, 2008
The Comforters
She died last summer, severing many years
of pleasant marriage ties that held them near
to one another until death pulled her away
and left him struggling almost every day.
How could he mend the tear and close the gap
unseen by those who've never felt the tap
of life's goodbye on the window of the soul...
who've never tried to round a fraction to a whole?
His help came not from dark and distant hills,
but from the Maker of those mounds who fills
the lonesome valleys with His light and love
sent freely from His vantage point above
to bless the mourners through His Spirit and
His Word, by kindness of a loving band
of family knit to him through ties of blood
and blessed bonds of spiritual brotherhood.
He found another source of comfort in old
and sometimes faded photos, mines of gold
in sepia tones, all stashed away in books
of picture albums, boxes, and in nooks
that would surprise him as he searched to bring
the past back to the present...not to cling
to portraits of what seemed were better days,
but also to remember: nothing stays,
except the love that made them man and wife,
which saw them through and blessed their life,
then took her to a place far more sublime,
is also his until the end of time.
Written by my dad, Ken Roller, November 2008, in honor of my mom, Connie, who passed away in July. A year of firsts without the love of his life.
of pleasant marriage ties that held them near
to one another until death pulled her away
and left him struggling almost every day.
How could he mend the tear and close the gap
unseen by those who've never felt the tap
of life's goodbye on the window of the soul...
who've never tried to round a fraction to a whole?
His help came not from dark and distant hills,
but from the Maker of those mounds who fills
the lonesome valleys with His light and love
sent freely from His vantage point above
to bless the mourners through His Spirit and
His Word, by kindness of a loving band
of family knit to him through ties of blood
and blessed bonds of spiritual brotherhood.
He found another source of comfort in old
and sometimes faded photos, mines of gold
in sepia tones, all stashed away in books
of picture albums, boxes, and in nooks
that would surprise him as he searched to bring
the past back to the present...not to cling
to portraits of what seemed were better days,
but also to remember: nothing stays,
except the love that made them man and wife,
which saw them through and blessed their life,
then took her to a place far more sublime,
is also his until the end of time.
Written by my dad, Ken Roller, November 2008, in honor of my mom, Connie, who passed away in July. A year of firsts without the love of his life.
Friday, December 19, 2008
Thursday, December 18, 2008
Judson's 6th Birthday and New Birthday!
I'm a bit behind... Judson turned 6 on October 5th! What a big boy. The better news? Judson had a spiritual birthday on December 10th. Grandpa Roller (dad) prayed with Judson in the midst our our crazy week of Josh's treatments and Mikiah's Mystery of Christmas performances. A perfect example of God working in the midst of the storm! What a great blessing -- years ago my dad did the same thing with me... :o)
Sunday, December 14, 2008
Losing Your Life
Have you ever had a season in your life that caused you to move so far away from normal that you actually couldn't recall what "normal" was? I think everyone experiences the need to redefine normal from time to time. It happened in our home with the birth of each child. It's happening again now as we are nearing the eight-week mark of Josh's illness. So, this morning when I read Matthew 16:25, it took on a bit of different meaning for me... "whosoever will lose his life for my sake shall find it". The Greek word translated "lose" in this passage doesn't mean to misplace something; it means "to put out of the way entirely, abolish, put an end to, ruin." That's a pretty strong word! But, certainly there are times when our life's course is altered to such a degree it is put out of the way entirely. The question is, what do we do with that? Do we mourn the loss of what we thought we had? Do we fight and argue as Peter did with Jesus about Jesus' impending death (see Matthew 16)? Or, do we understand God is sovereign and relinquish our hold on our life to lose it for Christ's sake, for the purpose of making us a little more like Him?
Losing my life for Christ's sake doesn't end at that loss. It ends with finding my life. One of the definitions of the Greek word translated "find" in Matthew 16 is "to find by enquiry, thought, examination, scrutiny, observation, to find out by practice and experience." If there is one thing all life- altering experiences have in common, it is their propensity to provoke pondering. In those seasons, we become introspective, examining every aspect of our lives, measuring their worth, and redefining our priorities according to our discoveries. If we do this in the context of God as our head, truly we do find our lives. This, friend, is another reason we can have peace in life's storms. Those storms are not without purpose. On the contrary, they serve many purposes. Losing our life in the storms is only part of the "silver lining". I am eternally grateful to be doing life with Jesus!
Losing my life for Christ's sake doesn't end at that loss. It ends with finding my life. One of the definitions of the Greek word translated "find" in Matthew 16 is "to find by enquiry, thought, examination, scrutiny, observation, to find out by practice and experience." If there is one thing all life- altering experiences have in common, it is their propensity to provoke pondering. In those seasons, we become introspective, examining every aspect of our lives, measuring their worth, and redefining our priorities according to our discoveries. If we do this in the context of God as our head, truly we do find our lives. This, friend, is another reason we can have peace in life's storms. Those storms are not without purpose. On the contrary, they serve many purposes. Losing our life in the storms is only part of the "silver lining". I am eternally grateful to be doing life with Jesus!
Friday, December 12, 2008
For Josh
My son, Josh, is in a season of testing. It is a season more physically, emotionally and spiritually demanding than any I have personally faced. He is physically debilitated and in pain daily. We know God has a purpose for this season. I won't presume to know His exact purpose for His ways are not my ways. I do, however, know that He has one, and He preparing Josh through this fire from which he shall come forth as gold. I breathe this prayer from Psalms 91 as a reminder to my son, who is so faithfully trusting God through this trial, of God's promise of continued faithfulness to him.
1 He that dwelleth in the secret place of the most High shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty.
2 I will say of the LORD, He is my refuge and my fortress: my God; in him will I trust.
3 Surely he shall deliver thee from the snare of the fowler, and from the noisome pestilence.
4 He shall cover thee with his feathers, and under his wings shalt thou trust: his truth shall be thy shield and buckler.
5 Thou shalt not be afraid for the terror by night; nor for the arrow that flieth by day;
6 Nor for the pestilence that walketh in darkness nor for the destruction that wasteth at noonday.
7 A thousand shall fall at thy side, and ten thousand at thy right hand; but it shall not come nigh thee.
8 Only with thine eyes shalt thou behold and see the reward of the wicked.
9 Because thou hast made the LORD, which is my refuge, even the most High, thy habitation;
10 There shall no evil befall thee, neither shall any plague come nigh thy dwelling.
11 For he shall give his angels charge over thee, to keep thee in all thy ways.
12 They shall bear thee up in their hands, lest thou dash thy foot against a stone.
13 Thou shalt tread upon the lion and adder: the young lion and the dragon shalt thou trample under feet.
14 Because he hath set his love upon me, therefore will I deliver him: I will set him on high, because he hath known my name.
15 He shall call upon me, and I will answer him: I will be with him in trouble; I will deliver him, and honour him.
16 With long life will I satisfy him, and shew him my salvation.
1 He that dwelleth in the secret place of the most High shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty.
2 I will say of the LORD, He is my refuge and my fortress: my God; in him will I trust.
3 Surely he shall deliver thee from the snare of the fowler, and from the noisome pestilence.
4 He shall cover thee with his feathers, and under his wings shalt thou trust: his truth shall be thy shield and buckler.
5 Thou shalt not be afraid for the terror by night; nor for the arrow that flieth by day;
6 Nor for the pestilence that walketh in darkness nor for the destruction that wasteth at noonday.
7 A thousand shall fall at thy side, and ten thousand at thy right hand; but it shall not come nigh thee.
8 Only with thine eyes shalt thou behold and see the reward of the wicked.
9 Because thou hast made the LORD, which is my refuge, even the most High, thy habitation;
10 There shall no evil befall thee, neither shall any plague come nigh thy dwelling.
11 For he shall give his angels charge over thee, to keep thee in all thy ways.
12 They shall bear thee up in their hands, lest thou dash thy foot against a stone.
13 Thou shalt tread upon the lion and adder: the young lion and the dragon shalt thou trample under feet.
14 Because he hath set his love upon me, therefore will I deliver him: I will set him on high, because he hath known my name.
15 He shall call upon me, and I will answer him: I will be with him in trouble; I will deliver him, and honour him.
16 With long life will I satisfy him, and shew him my salvation.
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