new life

2 Corinthians 4:16-18 (The Message)
"So we're not giving up. How could we! Even though on the outside it often looks like things are falling apart on us, on the inside, where God is making new life, not a day goes by without his unfolding grace. These hard times are small...compared to the coming good times, the lavish celebration prepared for us. There's far more here than meets the eye. The things we see now are here today, gone tomorrow. But the things we can't see now will last forever."

heaven will heal

I'm getting ready for our Java Jack's book study, and I came across this quote, made by an unknown author:
Earth has no sorrow that Heaven cannot heal.


This brings to mind Revelation 21:3-7 (in the Amplified Bible:
Then I heard a mighty voice from the throne and I perceived its distinct words, saying, See! The abode of God is with men, and He will live (encamp, tent) among them; and they shall be His people, and God shall personally be with them and be their God.God will wipe away every tear from their eyes; and death shall be no more, neither shall there be anguish (sorrow and mourning) nor grief nor pain any more, for the old conditions and the former order of things have passed away.And He Who is seated on the throne said, See! I make all things new. Also He said, Record this, for these sayings are faithful (accurate, incorruptible, and trustworthy) and true (genuine).And He [further] said to me, It is done! I am the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the End. To the thirsty I [Myself] will give water without price from the fountain (springs) of the water of Life.He who is victorious shall inherit all these things, and I will be God to him and he shall be My son.

What a day that will be!
g

yet i will praise

Psalm 73:26 (New Living Translation)
My health may fail, and my spirit may grow weak,
but God remains the strength of my heart;
he is mine forever.

I will praise you, Lord my God
Even in my brokenness
I will praise you Lord
I will praise you, Lord my God
Even in my desperation
I will praise you Lord
And I can’t understand
All that you allow
I just can’t see the reason
but my life is in your hands
And though I cannot see you
I choose to trust you.

g

burning bright

I read some of Edna St Vincent Millay’s words, recently, that I haven’t read since college days. For some reason, they have always spoken to me. They say this:

“My candle burns at both ends;
It will not last the night;
But ah, my foes, and oh, my friends—
It gives a lovely light!”

This brings to mind a song by Switchfoot. It is titled, “Burn Out Bright.” The chorus goes like this:

“If we've only got one try
If we've only got one life
If time was never on our side
Then before I die
I want to burn out bright.”

Which brings me back to our Kathy…all these words reminds me of her. No, she was not by any means perfect…who is?...but her life burned like the hot embers of a beautiful fire…giving warmth to many…burning bright.

I miss her warmth,
g

story translated

I found the passage about Jesus weeping at Lazarus’ grave. It is in John Eldredge’s book, Desire. He says:
“ He (Jesus) then comes to the grave site and weeps. Certainly the tears were not for Lazarus, for according to Jesus, Lazarus is quite well. Jesus weeps for Martha and Mary and for all of us who suffer loss. I think he weeps not only for our loss, but also for our inability to see beyond it. Dare I say, sometimes our refusal to see beyond it?”

He goes on to quote John Donne’s words:
“All mankind is of one author, and is one volume; when one man dies, one chapter is not torn out of the book, but translated into a better language, and every chapter must be so translated; God employs several translators.: some pieces translated by age, some by sickness, some by war, some by justice; but God’s hand is in every situation, and his hand shall bind up all our scattered leaves again, for that library where every book shall lie open to one another.”

And our lives…our stories…so translated, will be the joy and the music of heaven…the whole reason Jesus came to redeem our souls. Our sorrow and our sadness…our sickness and our pain…our tears and our tiredness…all translated into the joy of Heaven (Wow! That’s a lot of joy!).

I can hardly wait!
g

always love you

“I miss you and the funny things you say
I remember every day
in a hundred different ways
I miss you being here with me
Though you've been set free
I hold you in my memory

There's one thing I want you to know:
No matter how far you go
I will always love you
Like a thousand rivers from my soul
I will always love you”

Performed by: Nicole C. Mullen

happy V-day, Sister,
g

...tears...again...

Today has been a sad day for me. I’ve been tearful, and have felt jagged and raw. I got on a bike at the gym, this morning, and just cried and cried…all the time feeling like I was suffocating. I haven’t felt that way in some weeks, so I was trying to figure it out.

I picked up the little Hieberts Tuesday afternoon after school. I stopped by their house yesterday afternoon, and Nick, Brett, and Drew were playing catch in the front yard. It seems that when I spend time with them, I’m reminded of our profound loss and my heart breaks all over again. So, I suppose that is what started my tears once more.

I’m reminded of what I read recently about the possible cause of Jesus’ tears at the grave of Lazarus. The author proposed that perhaps Jesus wept because of the great pain and sadness he knew Lazarus’ sisters and friends were experiencing because of his death. I can understand this, because I want to weep whenever I am around Kathy’s motherless children. My heart literally hurts.

This is just another reminder of why Jesus is so precious to me. He knows where I live…and not only that, He lives here with me. He weeps with me. He feels my pain.

All that said, the sweetness in this day was that when I got to school, I was surrounded by my friends. They literally enveloped me with their love. God used them to help dry my tears and lift my spirits.

Thank you, Father, for being active and present in our joy and in our grief…but mostly in our grief.

g