“I am surrounded by death.” These are my words I brought out as my husband brought home a deer last night. The first one of this season…and the first of a very long season of not getting one. I tried to be happy for him but…I still felt sad when I saw the once wild doe now limp and lifeless. I am happy for my hunter-gatherer man but…this week it is another death.
A sister in Christ went home last week to be with Jesus and one…
Just a couple of years ago a friend of mine lost her husband unexpectedly. My husband drove us to the memorial – a short drive across a short town – not a lot of time to prepare words. I had only seen her a few times since returning to my hometown. I spent the night at her house once or twice in middle school We laughed as we spied on her sister kissing her boyfriend in the driveway. I remembered that silly youthful moment as we pulled into the funeral home. Who was I to now approach her in her deepest sorrow…the loss…
What is it about the gospel of grace that can make me endure better? Is anyone else out there challenged in their endurance levels? Physically I can go…push myself to get it done. But I’m talking about how I respond to challenging emotional situations. These days that mostly plays out in how I respond to disappointment throughout the day. A temper tantrum on top of trying to keep up with homeschool on top of one crying for attention on top of all kinds of other needs and duties. Just the simple but overwhelming challenges…
I went camping with my family last weekend. We canoed in a lake littered with tree trunks…still standing in water but dead. What was it about them that drew me to take many pictures? Time and time again I carefully brought my camera out, risking the safety of it in a canoe of four to get just one more haunting angle. One more picture of the sun shining down on them.
And I think of them again as I ponder suffering.
How can I approach suffering…
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