Greetings 2013

2012 was a great year......

Every step of the way my friends Goodness & Mercy were there for me……

Tonight I celebrate the following….

New families filling the pews of CUPC……

So many in fact that I can’t keep all the names straight…

New friends I never knew I had…..

Resources that had heretofore been untapped because of the familiar……

A brand new grand-boy……

A new son–n-law…….

An empty-nest…..

And  an absolute joy in the memory of my dear little Sweet Annaleigh, who took a walk last April and wound up in Heaven…..

Oh yes….

Much pain…..

More gain……

Old new friends came into our lives…..

A friend called Trust came and stayed…….

And I,  like the man borne of four was also carried by Faith, Hope, Love & Charity…..

4000+ other friends came to share themselves when our Annaleigh passed away……

Then some very special people stepped into our world and were just there……

Their names need not be called for they know who they are…….

Yes, 2012 was a great year…….

Greatness comes packaged in the most unique ways…..

Packages named….

The Wonderful, for He knew we would need wonder in those dark moments….

The Counselor, for He preplanned counsel we would need….

The Mighty God, for He understood we must have a God moment to survive…..

The Everlasting Father, for He knew we needed a lap to crawl up in and just cry….

The Prince of Peace, for stormy, broken hearts always need His peace……

2012 was a great year…..

However the greatest part of the year has been…..

My Tracie, who I held when she wept, and who held my head and hands when it was my turn….

My Tracie who is without doubt a world class model of grace…..

I will long be thankful for the journey of pain and peace and love and trust……

I am oh so thankful for Him…..

He never leaves….

He never forsakes……

He stays close…..

He loves……

Tracie, Trent, Redonia, Calah, Hector, (Annaleigh), Pressley & whatever this next one’s name will be……

God has been good to us……

And for this I rejoice……

I rejoice in Him……

And through it all….

2012 was a great year……

Tonight I sleep cradled in the confidence of One who never fails…..

Greetings 2013……

rks

A Stable Family

 So here is the scoop….

Girl is with child, unmarried to guy and has an off the wall explanation….

The guy bought in and wants to help her out…..

So they take off on a 100 mile trip on a donkey……

Have you ever travelled with a 9 month preggo wifo in a car…..

Imagine the guy’s dilemma with a preggo girlo on a donkyo……

They made no reservations….

No place to stay….

So they hang outback with the other homeless types…..

Not your normal pic for a Stable Family?

Somebody’s water breaks and its time for baby…..

Baby is born and put in a rock cattle trough, while the new parents sit on hay bales…..

Heaven stands still for this family…..

Locals come visit this family…..

Nobility from around the world arrive to pay respects…..

The child grew and transformed his day…..

Then grew into a man and died and changed his world…..

He changed mine too……

He probably effected yours as well…..

And now tell me what you think about that not so stable Stable Family…..

rks

Wonderful Wonder

 The last several days my thoughts have followed this path….

For unto a child would be born, a son given with a first name called Wonderful……

The shepherds were filled with Wonder as a heavenly host sang to them things to Wonderful to believe….

And wherever the Wonderful would appear Wonder would be in his wake….

At 12 years of age the Wonderful brought Wonder to the elders in the temple…..

3 dead people discovered the Wonder of the Wonderful……

3 different blind men discovered the Wonderful Wonder of the Wonderful……

3 full of the devil guys…..

And great multitudes came unto him, having with them those that were lame, blind, dumb, maimed, and many others, and cast them down at Jesus’ feet; and he healed them: Insomuch that the multitude Wondered, when they saw the dumb to speak, the maimed to be whole, the lame to walk, and the blind to see: and they glorified the God of Israel.

Regardless of where or when…..

Wonder was found in close proximity to the Wonderful……

10 lepers saw the Wonderful from a distance and began to cry out and were cleansed…..

But the 1 came and fell at the Wonderful feet and was made completely whole….

Lost things were restored…..

Lost digits of his hands were re-digitized….

By simply falling at the feet of the Wonderful……

There is no mandate for Wonder…..

When Wonder cannot be found, the Wonderful can……

However it appears the closer to the Wonderful the better chance for the Wonder…..

Today I choose the Wonderful….

Today I elect to stay as close to the Wonderful as possible…..

I pursue the Wonderful……

I live amid Wonder……

Those of you who follow this blog are aware of my life the last several months…..

Brokenness, sadness, grief, cemeteries and a dead baby……..

Days with no Wonder…..

But not a single day without the Wonderful……

And today I declare….

I proclaim Wonder…..

Wonder abides close to the Wonderful…….

If you want to know where I am….

If you can’t find me…..

Get close to the Wonderful…….

You will see 2 guys…..

1  re-digitized leper guy…..

1 regular preacher guy…..

Awaiting……

Wonder….

rks

Princess For Life

Every little girl dreams of her day……

Her day that she is princess……

Princess with the dress, the hair, the flowers, the friends and family……

The Prince….

Redonia…..

Dresses, flowers, friends, family and your Prince are all here today

This is your day…..

This day you have chosen Hector……

You two will drive away today into your own world….

26 years ago your Mom & I welcomed you into ours….

You came to us via the gift of another…..

We awaited the call of your arrival….

We chose to love you…..

We chose you….

While many can never understand the depth of adoptive love…..

Your mother and I made that choice…..

Said choice included so much joy…..

Along with the joy was incredible pain……

Love involves the highs of great days and the pain of the bad……

Today I reference the pain, because this pain rejoices today with you in your day and in your joy…..

Your Dadee is happy that you are happy…..

Your Dadee rejoices that you are so beautiful today…..

We ended last year with a world class 1 year old birthday party for Annaleigh…..

Only to be plunged the next few days into the darkness….

April broke our hearts as that angel….

Your angel went away…..

Six months now we have grieved……

Each of are forever marked and changed by that little girl who was our gift for a day….

Darkness, pain, grief, cemeteries and sadness have been the order of our days….

But today Doni….

You are Princess…..

This is your Princess day….

But may I declare that you indeed are Princess for Life…..

This life you choose is yours …..

Mom and I gladly release you into it……

In a little while you will step into your own new world…..

Mom & I will return to ours……

Our’s is a world of order and strength….

Yours is before you to order and fortify with your character and choices……

Do it with gusto Redonia…..

Create your own world just like you do with that computer and mouse pad…..

Place into your world gentleness, kindness, love, submission, wholeness, goodness and mercy…..

Layer it with greatness…..

Place a layer of trust and honesty…..

But above all else…..

The foundation layer must be of Jesus Christ……

Make sure he shines through every layer you add to your life…..

Don’t forget the purpose and power of Him in your daily activity……

He must be the priority……..

Hector will never satisfy you completely…….

For completeness comes in loving and submitting to Jesus Christ……

For 26 years Mom & Dad have held your life in our hands…..

Today, we hand that life to you…..

My prayer is Doni,…….

That you love that life of yours and treat it as carefully as we have……

Your bridal pictures show a beautiful exterior…….

I pray the same carefulness will be shown daily to your interior……

For true beauty comes from within……

True love comes from self respect and Godly carefulness…..

Princess for Life is a choice…..

Today you are that Princess……

Today you make choices that are yours……

I am your biggest fan…..

I am your biggest admirer…….

Doni,

I love you more than you can ever imagine…..

Indeed….

You are my little Princess for Life…..

rks

Presley Came Today!!!

Lolly, MeMe, Poppy, some aunts and uncles sat tonight and gazed at the perfect gift from God to our family…

Presley “The President” Rhys Smith decided today was as good as day as any to assume the throne of his kingdom…..

Oh, and he did….

Cone headed, cow licked, pink skinned, baby lotioned & wearing a dress…..

Our world changed……

We all cried….

Cried shamelessly….

Cried joyfully…..

My tears began about 8 a.m. when the call came that Presley was coming today….

To really understand the tears one must understand the journey…..

To those who follow this blog you know….

You know of our last two years…

Loss of several our most trusted CUPC members…..

Death of our baby Annaleigh…..

The struggles of our daughter…….

But also in that room was Calah’s family that still feels the loss of their daddy and husband not so long ago…

We all cried…..

And then we asked each other why???

Suddenly I saw and understood…..

When one loses someone they care about or love, an empty place is left in the heart….

An emotional void appears, that we guard and promise that we are not going to let ourselves feel such pain or emptiness again….

Empty places that long to be filled…..

Then the big event of say,  a new knappy headed baby arriving on the scene and everyone is reduced to tears…..

Suddenly, the guarded empty places in our hearts is filled with a surge of love and adoration and long refused or longed for emotions pour in…..

The empty places are filled…..

And tears are rush to the surface…..

They run down our faces and soften the hardness we hide behind….

These same tears release us from captivity….

The wash out sorrow….

Rush in joy…..

Psalm 126

A Song of degrees.

1 When the Lord turned again the captivity of Zion, we were like them that dream.

2 Then was our mouth filled with laughter, and our tongue with singing: then said they among the heathen, The Lord hath done great things for them.

3 The Lord hath done great things for us; whereof we are glad

4 Turn again our captivity, O Lord, as the streams in the south.

5 They that sow in tears shall reap in joy.

6 He that goeth forth and weepeth, bearing precious seed, shall doubtless come again with rejoicing, bringing his sheaves with him.

There is the moment that captured captivity leaves and our mouths are filled with laughter and love…..

From the abundance of the heart the mouth speaketh…..

Our hearts erupt in laughter and joy….

Such joy might just show up in the form of tears dripping and running….

Today was one of those rare moments in life, when in an instant, two, no three families experienced this….

Years of betrayal, abandonment, loss, death, loneliness, brokenness, tears and misunderstanding were all in an instant,  displaced by tears of joy…..

And three families cried….

Calah’s mom cried and said she had longed for this moment…..

Tracie cried as Presley displaced the pain of Annaleigh’s death three months ago….

I cried as I prayed over Presley and gave the two recently unemployed guardian angels their new assignment….

My broken pastor’s heart that has lost and given until it has felt so empty of late was suddenly filled with faith and love….

My grand daddy heart that has wept with the pain of our grandbaby loss…..

My daddy heart that has wept with Doni’s struggles…..

My husband heart that has wept because Tracie wept…..

And in an instant….

Love burst in and forced out sadness and gladness manifested itself in tears….

The Psalmist mouth was filled with song because his heart had been filled with gladness……

And my heart has been filled with the same…..

The same heart that has been drained and twisted today was fllled with gladness and love….

I can understand just a bit what is meant by a “full heart”….

For mine is….

My heart is full…..

Presley “The President” Rhys Smith stormed in and filled some emotional craters today…..

I am glad….

I am tired of those emotional potholes…..

Oh, and by the way…..

I taught the little Presley the pull my finger trick today…..

This can only get better…..

rks

Three Months

Three months….

Three months and things still seem surreal……

I understand our event….

Our Annaleigh was not the first child to drown and die too young…..

I realize that our pain is not the first to be felt by grandparents….

However, this was my grandbaby….

This is my pain…..

This is our loneliness……

I will never forget our baby….

I will never forget the love of those  who came and shared…..

I am eternally grateful for every card, text & call…..

I am so thankful for the number of friends who have come and stayed with us…..

I am awed by the pulpits opened to me since this tragedy…..

Kindness, love, compassion and friendship and been poured upon us…..

But all of that on dents the pain of the loss of our baby…..

15 months of incredible love and fun……

Today, three months after her passing……

I continue to celebrate the goodness of a perfect God…….

I trust in the Lord who does everything well…..

He makes no mistakes……

Heaven’s need for our angel must have been more important than ours…..

So I trust….

I accept……

I look forward to a great reunion one day…..

Does anyone know if I can sneak a little ducky into heaven when I go?

An old song resounds in my heart today……

I Have More To Go To Heaven For Than I Had Yesterday

rks