If I Could Bless You ~ A Visit from Mikaela

We met a little over 22 years ago. I was cramped and content in a small, dark place, and she, or rather, her voice, floated somewhere beyond the confines of all I knew. I wanted to meet her! Months passed, multiplying my age, and at last we looked upon each other's faces.

 

We were both rather unimpressed. 

 

I had to learn to walk, and to want to play, but even so it was settled {and obvious} very early on: God had picked us out to be the best of friends. Since then, simply, we have been. Dear readers, meet Mikaela. Book addict, music teacher, fabulous bread-maker, and veritable source of knowledge on just about any subject her life touches (seems that way to me, at least) ~ she co-blogs with Lauren at One Bright Corner. Her writing and insights are always a blessing to me, as I hope they are to you, today. Meet Mika!

"Mikaela, I heard the most amazing song at the conference in Texas!" Mama told me shortly after she had flown home. I couldn't have been more than twelve, and I don't remember anything she relayed to me about the content of the conference - except the amazing song she had heard. She ordered the music and a CD of it right away, and our family heard "The Blessing Song" by Dennis Jernigan for the first time.

May the Lord answer you in the day of your trouble;

May the name of the Lord be your strong mighty tower.

May He grant you your heart's deepest dreams and desires;

May He answer you each time you call.

Several years later, the young people of my church learned this song. We practiced and prepared. We knew the words, the melodies, the harmonies. Nevertheless, the spirit of the song I didn't understand until we were there on stage singing for 100 people. And suddenly, I was overwhelmed as I sang out a blessing with my fellow brothers and sisters in Christ to my brothers and sisters in Christ. There was nary a dry eye in the church - and the Holy Spirit was moving.

May He pour out the blessing of heaven;

May you cast your cares on Him and daily fall.

May you live to see your children's children;

May the Lord Jesus be your All in All.

As a family, we sang "The Blessing Song" for Mama on her 40th birthday and for Grandpa on his 70th birthday. Imperfect voices, earnestly voicing every word.

 

May the Lord Jesus Christ satisfy beyond all measure;

May His Word light your path; may His peace guard your heart.

May your days be filled with gladness, joy and peace through any sadness;

Filled with love that will not depart.

Then, in 2011, we huddled together in a hospital room. Bobcha was dying, and we were saying our good-byes, knowing that after we left and drove the 360 miles separating our home from her hospital, that we would never see her again on this earth. So we sang a blessing to her. We broke and we cried - we hardly made it through - but we sang those words so familiar to us by now.

 

May your strength be renewed like the eagle;

As you run the race may joy flood every part.

May your memories all be sweet in each parting;

May the peace of Christ rule in your heart.

 

Last year, our family went through many trials. And suddenly, in God's sovereign plan, Mama was in Georgia preparing for surgery, and the six of us kids were home. Praying. Wishing we could be there to hold her hand. Worrying. Wishing we could be there to kiss her before she went in to surgery. Praying. And wishing some more. So, the night before her surgery, we sat down and recorded ourselves singing "The Blessing Song" with honest, raw tears streaming down our faces and sent the video to Mama. We were singing about life and joy and God's mercies and goodness when we were verily in the midst of trouble, pain, and hardship.

 

May His Word be to you health and life, joy and treasure;

May your home be a light; may the Lord guard your ways.

May the Lord be your shepherd;

May His goodness and mercy follow after you all your days!

 

Many of these words are taken directly from Scripture (such as Psalm 20), but they're no magic incantation. This is no blessing of prosperity and ease. This is the blessing of martyrdom and family and most of all communion with God Almighty that triumphs over any weakness, desperate circumstance, or real-life nightmare. This is the power of blessing someone in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ.

 

May His mercies be new every morning;

May His grace and Holy Spirit help you stand.

May you live your life to die for the gospel;

May you hold to His unchanging hand!

 

Have you given a blessing to someone? Through song, words, or prayer? Bless and be blessed, for the giver of the blessing is just as blessed as the recipient.

 

May the Lord answer you in the day of your trouble;

May the name of the Lord be your strong and mighty tower.

may He grand you your heart's deepest dreams and desires;

May He answer each time you call.

May He answer each time you call.

Beauty from Ashes ~ A Visit from Kaytra

If I had to choose one person for whom this was true

It would be this girl.


Seriously. Whether we're studying Scripture, planning parties, or discussing C.S. Lewis, I can guarantee two things: tea, and laughter. Kaytra is a "PK, lover of tea and chunky sweaters, and an avid traveller." She also happens to be one of my dearest friends, and blogs happy thoughts at scraps of reality. Since age 13, she has had continual health challenges, but as she continues to seek the LORD and His blessings, she continues to be an encouragement and inspiration to those around her. Ladies and gentlemen, here's Kaytch!

Have you ever felt like you’re the only one going through a trial or temptation, and no one could possibly understand what your experiencing, even if they tried? Do you ever give up praying because you don't know how to talk to your Father about your inner intestine and bowels? {yes i just said that}
 

Have you ever looked into your fridge and slammed it shut because you are so discouraged because 99.9 percent of anything good in there is not digestible to you and will make you feel like you’re going to collapse at any moment from being lightheaded, bloated, inflamed and miserable? 

{i forget to add commas generally when i am venting.}

 

Have you ever cried out to the Lord asking Him, "Why me?!" 

"Why this?" 

"Why now?"

 

I feel like i am in a marathon, and although i have already crossed the finish line, i can't stop because i realize that i'm chained to a treadmill. 

{i need to work on my metaphors}
 

Sometimes i am so discouraged that i just decide not to eat at all, which leads to a "nasty Kaytra," which leads to hurting peoples feelings and more importantly hurting God.

 

Because He is there, He knows me, and He has designed me this way. 

{photo}

"Let affliction come~God has chosen me. Poverty, you may stride in at my door, but God is in the house already, and He has chosen me. Sickness, you may intrude, but I have balsam ready~God has chosen me. Whatever befalls me in this vale of tears, I know that He has "chosen" me."

I read this about an hour ago, and I just started weeping.

 

I was chosen for affliction.

 

This broken and disease-ridden body of mine was chosen ~ to fulfill His purposes.

 

Not mine. He has chosen me for affliction, and i so desperately want to be worthy of that choice.

 

I know now that suffering is a not a sin. It is a precious opportunity, and one that i do not want to miss.

 

It is His choice of blessing for my life. Because often, hidden blessings take on an ugly and hideous disguise. 

 

Someday, I believe, God will eventually remove the layers of that disguise so that I can truly see how He used my IBS for His glory and for my good.

_________________________________________

 

"For I know the plans that I have for you, says the Lord, plans for welfare and peace and not for evil, to give you hope in your final outcome." ~Jeremiah 29:11

 

___________________________________________________

  

"Through floods and flames, if Jesus lead, I'll follow where He goes."

"Blessed Are..." ~ A Visit from Jennifer



Uncle David & Aunt Jenn

Before the role models of babysitters, teachers, and professionals-of-your-sphere, there are, and ever shall be, aunts. "Tante Jenn" - travelling all the way from Loches, France for our party this week - is just such an example. With a contagious joy in life, a wonderful laugh, and a beautiful story of obedience to the Lord {she & my uncle & two cousins left their 'normal' lives & newly-remodelled dream house in the states to become missionaries}, I treasure every conversation we have {even more so, now that she lives half-way across the world!}. She blogs about the lessons, joys, and challenges {and sometimes good ol' funny stories} of ministering in a different culture over at Four For France.

 

Friends, allow me to introduce my aunt, Jennifer.

Do you have one of those friends for whom everything always seems to go well? I do.

She lives in a big house that is delightfully decorated. She has three bright-eyed children and a hard-working, faithful husband. She is popular, fit, and cute to boot. She is the type who plans out her life months, sometimes years in advance, and nothing ever seems to interfere with her agenda. She has a warm and open personality, a joyful countenance, and a deep love for Jesus. By her own admittance, she has never really suffered.

So it seemed the most natural thing in the world to me when she blithely stated, "I'm just so blessed."

Yet, when she said it, my heart beat seemed to grow heavy. I squinted, trying to assess my recoil. While I believe her statement was an expression of genuine gratitude, something about it chaffed. Finally, gently, I whispered, "People who suffer are blessed, too."

"Oh, I know," she said, a little too quickly, and on we went to other subjects.

Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

I can't stop thinking about that brief conversation. I wonder if there is a disconnect in our understanding of blessing. What does it mean to be blessed?

According to the dictionary, it means "divinely favored." But it can also mean "blissfully happy."

 

Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted.

I know that every good gift is from above, and indeed, the pleasing circumstances of my life are blessings. But if I stop there, might that be too narrow of a view? Isn't it also true that God blesses us in and through challenging circumstances?

And while I don't think we need to go looking for trouble or inviting disaster into our lives, I do sometimes wonder if our relentless pursuit of our own comfort and glory could be barriers, rather than pathways, to blessing.

Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth.

What if I chose the "discomfort" of living in a smaller house so that I might be more generous? What if I sought opportunities to serve others so that I might be more humble? what if I turned the other cheek instead of defending my "rights"? What if I demonstrated love to someone who treats me with indifference or even hatred? Do I need to wait for calamity to come to me in order to experience the blessings that Jesus speaks about in Matthew 5? Or could it be my calling to engage in suffering no matter my circumstances?

 

Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be satisfied.



The Blessing of Health ~ A Visit from Bronwyn

Good morning, everyone ~ look who's here! This is a dear friend of ours, Bronwyn. Wife of Heiko, mother of five, health-food authority, flower arranger, artist...she wears many hats {and aren't they all pretty?}. I'll be quiet now, though, and let her talk.

Everyone, meet Bronwyn.

Hi, I'm Bronwyn from over at CleanGreenStart, and I'm super excited and honored to be a guest blogger here for Sarah's Bloggy Birthday Party! Since Sarah's theme this week is Blessings, I decided to write about the blessing of health because, ahem, I do write a healthy home blog (sometimes masquerades as a Paleo recipe blog). I tend to think about healthy stuff a lot. :-)

Have you ever pondered the blessing of good health? If you're youngish, it may be something you've never considered, since we tend to take it for granted until we lose it. It tends to be the older generation, or those with chronic disease, who extol the joys of the health they once possessed. They will tell you that it is the basis for enjoying most of life's other blessings.

Health As A Blessing
Health is a blessing which is bestowed upon us, given to us, without our effort or merit.

Kind of makes me think of some other blessings. Salvation. Earth's beauty. Children. Grace.

If we arrive at adulthood in good health and with all our parts and pieces, we can hardly take much credit for it. Good genes, sufficient nutrition, and shielding from toxic exposure are gifts our parents, especially our mothers, bestow upon us before our birth. Our habits of diet, hygiene, and exercise, and our preventive and interventional medicine as children are directed by our caregivers.

To be alive, is to have some measure of health. We should be filled with gratitude to our parents and to God for the measure of health that we have.

Health As A Stewardship
But, not unlike some other blessings, health is entrusted to us as stewards. It does take effort to keep it. To nurture it, and at times to restore it.

This takes knowledge. And wisdom. Especially when several conflicting paradigms of knowledge compete in our health decision-making.

To vaccinate, or not to vaccinate? Herbs or medicine? How to stretch a family budget for the best food choices?

So we ask, we seek, we knock.

God, what is Your design?
Doctor, what are the options? The side effects?
Grandma, how do you prepare food in traditional healthy ways?
Friend, how do you budget organic? Where do you shop? Got some recipes?
Chemist, what chemicals should we avoid on our skin and in our homes?
Husband, is this a priority for our family?
Farmer, what are your growing practices? Your chicken feed? Your fertilizers?
Dentist, what are whole-body impacts of this treatment?
Nutritionist, how do you read a supplement label? Can this be obtained in food?
Midwife, how can I work towards a healthy birth?
Salesman, will this product off-gas into my home?

It takes time. Diligence. Missteps, and backtracks, and learning. Stewardship always does.

And again, I'm brought back to gratitude for those who have invested in me (and continue to do so) by book or in person to make their knowledge available to me. I'm grateful to God for planting some of them in my path even before I asked Him! Whether by diligence on our part, or by unmerited favor, health is a gift He bestows.

A Blessing We Pass On
If you are a parent, you recognize that stewardship of your child's health is part of your role as parent.

If you are not yet a parent, that stewardship has already begun in the choices you make. A study done in recent years found that the most significant factor in the health of infants was the nutrition which the mother received in the ten years prior to their birth.

How cool is that? To have a part in passing on one of God's blessings to another; our own child!

The Blessing of Disease
Huh? Wait...we were talking about health. It was all rainbows and ponies. Can disease be a blessing too?

I didn't think so. Not with chronic fatigue as a young mom...it was zapping the life out of my life. How could God bless me through that?

But it was illness that made me ask why, to read, to seek help, and make changes, and my husband and children have all benefited. I've met so many people in clinics, at nutrition meetings, on farms, on my blog. They help me, and sometimes I help them, and sometimes I get to witness to them of God's other blessings. God used illness to stretch my faith in His promises, and I learned to rely on His strength in a new way.

I'm really, really grateful my health has returned, because it wasn't fun to be without it. But I can attest that God can even use disease as a blessing.

How has God blessed you with health (or disease)? What are you learning right now that makes you a better steward of this precious gift?

Blessings of a Bloggy Birthday!

{photo credit}

Hello, friends! Come in! So glad you could make it! As you can see, I've spruced up the place for all the rare fun that's to happen this week. Scrubbed the windows, dusted the cobwebs, put up some new paint ~ how do you like it? Pull up a chair, will you? Would you like some tea? How about some cake? Yes, yes, that's two candles ~ can you believe how old my little blog is growing?

As I look back over these last two years of blogging, I am overwhelmed (and grateful) for the BLESSINGS documented herein. There have been the blessings of memories, lessons, miracles, and musings. Blessings of adventures, smiles, stories, and amazement. And, of course, there has been YOU! Whether you're a bloggy friend, internet acquaintance, or a friend I run into in everyday life (sorry about that ~ I'll have to better watch where I'm going!), I want you to know that your comments put a smile on my face and give me a day of sunshine!

Yesterday, I had the privilege of attending some friends' church, and there I heard a beautiful truth which seems to me to perfectly define true blessing. "We do not," the pastor challenged, "come to God to get what we want, but rather what He has to give us." While I am quicker to label the gifts listed in the paragraph above as "blessings," I have learned - and am continuing to learn - that when we receive tenacity to withstand pressure, comfort to carry through grief, or ability to overcome incompetency, these are often the most rewarding of blessings. In this last year I have begun to learn that somehow, God, in the miracle of Who He is, creates the most perfect beauty out of the most hopeless circumstances. It is the nature of our God. Is He not beautiful? Is He not awesome? Is He not deserving of every form of worship?

As you munch on delicious chocolate-covered strawberries at my little bloggy-birthday party, I ask that you would meditate, would remember, would share with me the blessings ~ both the easy and the hard ~ that Christ has given you this year. Surely, as Christians, there is no greater encouragement than to hear the stories of the Saviour's work!

So settle in and make yourself comfortable. We have a lovely seven~days~of~a~party before us, with stories and encouragements galore from some truly special people. And what would a party be without prizes? ...Still a party, perhaps, but certainly not as much fun! Would you like to see the items for the give-away? Yes, I thought so. :)

The first lovely is this wonderful "Emerald of the Sea" bracelet, hand-made by none other than my own amazing Grandma! An elegant, deep green, beaded in a wave pattern, it is one of my favorite jewelry pieces Grandma has made (definitely makes me think "Ireland" :).

 

 

Next item up for the give-away is C.S. Lewis' Till We Have Faces. I know that I've said this about nearly all his books, but this is my favorite work by C.S. Lewis. In his personal retelling of the mythological story of the goddess Psych, Lewis inexplicably grew my awe, fear, and love of the one true God. One of my top recommended books, to be sure!

 

photo credit (not the same cover picture as give-away book)

Are you as excited about these as I am?? Thought so! Here's how you can enter for your chance to win one of them!

 

1. Follow The Lord's Lass and comment with which prize you would prefer - 1 entry {required}

2. Vote on the polls which will be popping up on the sidebar this week - 1 entry per vote

3.  Blog about blessings and link to The Lord's Lass - 3 entries

 

Please leave one comment per entry you receive on this post. Give-away is open to both U.S. and international bloggers. :) Ends 11:59PM, March 18th, Pacific Time.

 

Now please, have another slice of cake and enjoy the party! Blessings!