Monday, October 15, 2007

Perspective, thankfulness faith and joy

Today I was surfing and found a blog about a family who lost their sweet little baby girl after a week to Trisomoy 19. I lost the link because my internet explorer closed down. Anyway, they relished every moment, every coo, every cry with their baby. They knew they would not have her long. The fact she made it to birth was a miracle in itself. But this little girl breathed on her own, and even fed a tiny bit on her own, without a feeding tube. This is beyond a miracle. They talked about their sorrow but also their joy. It put my struggles with my children into perspective! Yes, I face my own hurdles with my son, but the hurdles I face with him are survivable. Yes, I have almost lost my son, but he survived. So, when I complain about his childish, disobedient, stubborn ways, what am I doing. Complaining about something some families would relish in. My children are happy, relatively healthy, growing and prospering. They bring me joy everyday. This family never lost their joy in Jesus throughout their ordeal. Even as they watched their child's life slip further and further away, they relished in the beauty of the gift God had given them in her life. It makes me thankful that God gave me the children He chose to give me. He knew that at such a time as this, Thelma needed, Christopher with all his issues, Hannah with her jealousy and Jennifer with her sleeping troubles. He knew that He could help me be strong to handle each of these small things with His help. But I have to choose to lean on Him. I have to CHOOSE to find joy in the journey. The journey is not always easy but then again, it is not as hard as the journey some people face. I know we all face struggles in our lives as women, mother, women who struggle to even become mothers or mothers whose children live in heaven. I have a child on the other side, lost to early miscarriage. But I am just as much that child's mother as mother to the rest of my children. Yet, in the grand scheme of things there is nothing on this earth I have faced that is as heartbreaking as when the Father looked down on His Son, and had to turn His back on the sin He bore for us. The Son bore it all willingly and the Father turned His back upon the sin because He could not look upon sin. But the joy of a risen Savior far outweighs the sorrow of His death. So I must walk in joy even when I don't feel like walking in joy. My perspective needs to be faith based instead of fear or frustration based. Faith chooses to see the positive despite the circumstances. Faith chooses to see the answer is on the way, even when it doesn't feel like it. Faith is choosing to be thankful for the answer even when it is different than the one you wanted. Perspective, God has a way of changing it and teaching you how to look at things a different way, if you will just let it happen.

1 comments:

Mommy Reg said...

So good Thelma. Thank you for sharing that.