Topics

Each of these posts incorporate real stories and practical truths. Many of the posts were written while we were in the depths of the challenge/season, so they are raw and real - not just hindsight. But at the heart of every post, you will find encouragement and hope.


Adoption

Grief

Parenting

Reconciliation/Unity

Change


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Living the promises

This week marks the one year anniversary of our family saying goodbye to our sweet, little boy Elliot.  It's hard to believe that it has been one year ago that Elliot was stillborn.  This year has been full of pain and grieving... we said goodbye to Elliot, my Mother, my Uncle Don, I had a tumor removed (thankfully benign), and I walked away from my career.  Wow.      During church on Sunday, I was reminded of how faithful God is to fulfill His promises to us.  God provided 3 promises to our family over the last year: First regarding the past, then regarding the here and now, and the third is regarding our future. PROMISE #1 - OUR PAST As we were preparing to go to the hospital on December 21, 2011, I prayed to God in shear agony as I knew our lives were about to change.  I prayed, "Dear God, please prepare us... I don't know how you prepare someone for losing a child in such a short time frame between here and the doctor's office, ...
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Pursuing the Illogical

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Reading: Colossians 3:15-25 Prayer: Lord, give us wisdom and insight so that we may have a humble confidence in following You even if it seems weird or illogical. Daily Challenge: What, if anything, are you pursuing/doing in your life simply because it seems logical even if you routinely have an internal wrestling? How do you determine if the internal wrestling is something you need to continue pursuing OR is it Him stirring you to pursue something different? In the past few weeks, the state of Oklahoma announced massive budget shortfalls that greatly impact departments serving the mental health community. Though it is uncertain at this point how deep the cuts will go, there is a strong likelihood it will impact my husband's employment in some way. Therefore, when a previous employer encouraged me to apply for an open position, it seemed to Ron and I that this opportunity may be the "rescue boat" sent from God to keep us from financial hardship! Yay God! Well, ...
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Co-existance of Joy and Grief

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Today is our son, Elliot's, birthday.  Elliot was stillborn on Dec 21, 2011.  Below is a tribute to the time we had with Elliot, and a glimpse of how we continue to recognize and cherish him.  It is not my intention to overwhelm this blog with the theme of loss or grief, but I will be spending the next several posts sharing some of our story and our joys in the midst of it all.  To those who ask, "How are you doing?"... the best answer I can give came from a note I wrote to many friends a month or so after Elliot had died. As I've evaluated my emotions this week and still wrestle with answering the "how are you doing" question - I've realized I can't say "We're fine" because it doesn't do our grief justice, but we also can't say "oh, we are so sad" because it doesn't give our joy justice. I never knew that JOY and GRIEF can so closely co-exist with one another. Though I am grieving so deeply, God is ...
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