Hands-On

God is evident. He is not a removed, dispassionate Creator who started the universe spinning only to wander off to observe us on occasion from the sidelines. This morning I was sending out the latest update on Ralph Adler who remains hospitalized far from home today. Two of Ralph's daughters are part of the Operation: Prayer SURGE! team (We are headed for Poland in six weeks to pray!). I was wondering as I sent the e-mail if people were seriously praying for Ralph and his family or if I was simply sending out e-mails that "kept people in the loop". It was not a particularly encouraging moment. I proceeded to pray for Ralph, but today I decided to type my prayer into an e-mail to send to Shelley. I sent the e-mail, and my inbox gave a "ding" to indicate an incoming message at the same time.
I have incorporated Shelley's e-mail recipients from an early e-mail regarding her Dad's health into the updates that I send out on the family's status. In my inbox was a message from "Amy" who is a total stranger to me, but a friend of Shelley's who stated that she has been praying for Ralph, Shelley, and the whole family throughout their ordeal. I thought that was pretty cool, so I proceeded to e-mail several other people to share how quickly God had bolstered my waning commitment and encouraged me to continue serving in a communication capacity as part of the prayer chain lifting up the Adler family. As I sent that message, the inbox went ping yet again. This time, the message was from a woman who attends our former church home, but who I have not met in person, saying simply that she is praying with us.
I love it when God shows his hand so clearly upon us. The real wonder came hours later. I was at church when my phone rang. I saw that it was Don, and I answered hoping that he was not calling with bad news about Ralph's condition. Ha! Well, me of little faith! Don was calling to tell me that my inbox had again signalled a new message. This one was of the wonderful news that Ralph's body temperature is normal and the family is waiting for a doctor's report to give more information on his amazing rally from this morning's low with a resistant staph infection that had him wrapped in warming blankets because his body temperature was only 94 degrees or the previous report of a sky-rocketing temperature over 103! Whatever news comes next, I am thankful for a hands-on, involved God who truly knows every hair on my head and Ralph's.

Snowball

We live in a bubble. While the appearance of great wealth and insatiable consumer consumption continues in our area, there are subtle differences. Prior to 2000, there actually was what felt like a limitless expansion of local industry. The crash at the turn of the millenium saw a decrease in babies born and, around 9/11 and the tech bust, people even stopped (gasp) shopping momentarily. What's underneath the surface veneer of shiny new cars, super-sized homes, impeccably dressed toddlers, and take-out meals?
Even before the housing and lending "credit crisis" we were a country that was in debt. Our government is in debt. Our students are mortgaging their future to credit card lenders. Families and individuals are hobbled by debt from a few hundred dollars to staggering amounts with multiple digits on either side of the comma. Minimum payments are not going to make the problem go away anytime soon.
Our personal household debt grew for well over a decade. Unsecured debt feeds on itself with the help of creditors offering small payments that may or may not cover the interest being charged on money already spent even as limits on spending spiral higher allowing the foolish consumer (that would be us) to dig the hole a little deeper each month. It was "too depressing" to actually tally up the total of our credit card debt. Making the monthly payments ate our disposable income so that necessities like diapers went on plastic with a promise to pay.
Our monumental acts of financial mayhem included having a card paid off, only to run it back up. The greatest act of sheer foolishness was the acceptance of an offer to "consolidate" our smaller debts into a lump sum so we only had to pay the one creditor instead of many, and the one would give us a better interest rate. That would have been great if we had closed the accounts that we transferred. We didn't. We ran the existing accounts back up until we were gasping for air and drowning in minimum payments that threatened to exceed our monthly income. Two years ago, we finally reached our breaking point, and decided that no matter what we would climb out of this pit.
Last week we reached a threshhold. On our 14th wedding anniversary, our debt repayment plan began to "snowball". The first account was paid off. The monthly payment from that account is now added to the monthly payment on another account. When the balance on that account reaches $0, the money used for that payment will be added to the current amount allocated for another account. The first payment has crested the seemingly insurmounatable heights of our debt with the pay-off and elimination of the first account. Eventually, the little snowball that started rolling last week will grow as it makes the downhill journey toward financial freedom from the bondage of unsecured credit.

Give It Away

Recently I read an article on YAHOO! regarding a study that showed happiness was linked not to income, but to giving. I was not terribly surprised by the study results that indicated that people who gave to others generally reported feeling happier and more satisfied than those who did not. In talking with the kids about giving, I asked each of them to bring me three things they were willing to give away. Erin offered three of her beloved Magic Tree House books. Evan brought me three dollars and promised to get his birthday "Thank You" notes written. Katie appeared with a sparkly silver purse, a paperback book, and a Bible. Erin was also keen to clear all canned goods from our pantry to take to hungry people. When I asked where we would find the people who needed these items, Erin had a bright idea. She ran to the computer to search "poorpeople.com".

Circulate

I received an impromptu explanation of circulatory health from Bella's vet yesterday that shed a bit of light on some of the difficulties confronting Ralph Adler ("Dad" to five including Shelley of "Shelley In Poland"). Bella's OD yesterday caused her blood pressure to drop extremely low--- not unlike Ralph's crazy-low blood pressure at the time of his hospital admission Wednesday morning. For Bella, lots of fluids given by I.V. increased her "blood volume" so that there was more fluid for her heart to pump as it moved through her kitty veins. This was important because low blood pressure meant poor ciculation of blood. (Blood is how oxygen gets to organs like kidneys.) For Ralph, the kidneys needed to clear waste from his body and to help medication remove the excess fluid from around his heart and lungs. Bella's heart is in prime condition, and, once the drug she sampled cleared her system, she was fine this morning. Ralph's heart was not fine to begin with, and this ordeal has taxed his system further. A machine breathes for Ralph's body tonight, his family is at his side, and the body of believers continually circulates updates and prayer requests. In a nutshell, we wait and hope.

Bakugan and Birthday

The boys brought a card game I have not seen before for Evan's party last night. This one involves magnetic cards. Two cards are placed end-to-end and these little balls are rolled (one by each player) across the "board". If the ball rolls across the card and the magnet imbedded in the ball catches, then the ball pops open to reveal some sort of character inside that is then "standing" on that spot. Each time a ball is rolled across the original cards, another card is added to the field of play. When two of the ball-creatures "stand" on the same card, the card is turned over to reveal game point information and a "battle" ensues.

The lack of carpet in our house allows for a really big playing field. I am sure the manufacturer of Bakugan (pronounced "bah-KOO-gahn") loves their enthusiasm, and will work to provide them with a great variety of cards and magnetized ball-thingies that can stretch out endlessly--- so long as the boys continue to pay, pay, pay for new, new, new gamepieces.
The card play, video game play, cake, plastic sword and light saber practice at our local park, and a round of High School Musical sing-along (to which none of them will ever actually admit althugh it as primarily a kindness to our youngest daughter), and eventually a few hours of forced sleep see us to the end of the party. The parents will be arriving to retrieve their boys-to-men (none of whom called me "Evan's Mom", but all of whom used the "Mrs." form of address which ensures their invitation to return again) in about twenty minutes.

Just Say No

Bella appears to have ingested a people pill. (The photo is from last week--- not today.) Don found a prescription bottle belonging to our son overturned with one mangled pill on the floor this morning around 9:00. He commented that he hoped none of the animals had gotten into the pills. The furballs all seemed fine when we headed out to the grocery store to stock up on food for the Boy's overnight.
At noon, Bella was not fine. She was yowling and purring. (A sick or frightened kitty will purr to comfort itself... Purring not just a contented kitty noise.) Bad Bella was also badly off balance and her eyes looked weird. We called the vet with our suspicions, and then made the drive over to the office with Bella howling down the moon over the car ride.
We are hoping Bella ingested less than a whole capsule because one capsule of that medication will be fatal to a 7.75 pound cat. She is holding her own right now with an I.V. to keep her blood pressure up. If she survives this misadventure, the boy will likely be read the riot act on being VERY, VERY careful to always close the lid on his meds securely. If she doesn't survive, we will be doing everything possible to avoid the topic of exactly what made Bella "sick".

Beating

There have been a rash of serious illnesses and deaths this week. I feel off kilter, and I find myself grieving for the losses others fear or are enduring. Each new report of yet another loss beginning with a young family we know from our previous church home to Don's boss's sister-in-law and Katie's favorite teacher's sister. The reports keep coming. The serious illnesses faced by loved ones and those closest to them are daunting--- from upcoming polysyllabic back surgery for one friend's father to cancers and heart trouble. I keep praying, and I keep hoping. I am feeling a little battered right now, but our little immediate family is not facing the trials confronting so many others so I can better devote myself to prayers for those who need to be lifted up.

Despite the craziness, we have a batch of Evan's buddies coming for an overnight as a belated celebration of Evan's 13th birthday. I am having difficulty giving the planned party the necessary attention when there are so many difficult situations confronting those we love. I'm not feeling 100% either thanks to damp weather that plays mean games with my joints and a cough that won't go away.

For the Best

The news just keeps coming, and precious little has been what I would label good. Tonight I pray for time. I pray for safe travel. I pray for arrested disease and healing. I know the twin specters of worry and fear, but I am thankful for hope that can banish them both. Whatever tomorrow may bring, God is in control. No detail is outside His understanding. I do not have to understand His purposes, but I can appeal to Him. My prayers will be heard. The answers are not guaranteed to suit me, but I will trust that no trial, temptation, or pain is beyond God's ability to uphold His people. He sometimes uses our worst circumstances in order to draw us close to receive His best.
Buckle up, OPS Team. We're in for a wild ride if this week can be taken as an indicator of the level of spiritual warfare we face.

A bit much

Don and I really do everything together. We have now taken our codependency to a whole new level. On April 7th I am getting a root canal and crown build-up while he gets a crown. I could happily take a pass on sharing that particular experience. Our His and Hers dental appointments seem like a bit too much togetherness even for us. I guess the goal of growing old together does have to include our teeth.

Yesterday

Sooo. I typed yesterday's blog post before hearing of all the challenges being faced by a couple of my OPS teammates. I am doubly glad to have focused on the blessings of my own family so I could be well-prepared to pray for theirs. It was a weird day. I'm not too sure what God is telling us right now. It's time to purchase plane tickets, but I cannot separate my own self-interest (i.e. I want to go, and I want to go with my buddy. I'm a big fan of the buddy system.) sufficiently to offer any counsel to my travel partner who is facing situations at home that could preclude her going.

I wish I was a big enough person to be wholly able to turn away from my own hopes and to focus only on the need of my friend at this time. I continue to pray for the family situations that are outstanding while also praying that God will give us very clear direction on when we should proceed with the purchase of our airline tickets as the prices rise and flights with few stops are still available.

On the subject of my "wants", I am amused because Don and I drove out to look at the Barbie Dream House again yesterday morning after breakfast. (He thought it would be fun to go dream-a-little-dream as we marked our anniversary. I'm going wherever he is headed.) We walked through the cavernous 2,300 square feet of pure possibility and wondered again if we were crazy to not pursue it. A few hours later we picked up our copies of the latest church-wide Bible study. It is dealing with materialism. Hee. I wonder if our house hopes are an example of greed, or if we are reasonably hoping for more space for our family?

Enough

I was impressed that Ben Franklin decided he was ready to retire once he had "enough". Not the "had enough" that leads one to foolishly walk off a job, but the "had enough" that implies his belly was not empty, he was not thirsty, there were clothes on his back, and a roof over his head. This is the "enough" that seems to be the real challenge.
The line between "need" and "want" should be a simple enough thing. "Need" is requires for survival. Physical need assail us with signals for water, food, shelter, clothing, and medical care. Emotional needs cry out to be loved and to be part of a community. Spiritual needs tend to not crop up while our physical or emotional needs are unmet. If one's belly is empty, there is unlikely to be a strong desire for contemplation of philosophy or theology.

Together

As we celebrate our 14th wedding anniversary today, my thoughts are scattered. I'm glad we're one year closer to our ultimate goal of growing old together. Only yesterday we heard that one of our contemporaries passed away. It was shocking in the way that something which should be expected as an unavoidable eventuality always seems to be stunning when it actually occurs. I also spent a bit of time talking about just how shocking it was with another mom (who is currently in the trenches of parenting very young children) as we marveled at the horrifying idea of being widowed and having to unexpectedly become single parents. That started my thoughts off down the track of how good our life is right now.
Today I am rather thankful for the current blessings I see in our marriage. I'm glad to wake each morning to a bed vacated by my husband who has probably already made coffee, and even more glad to return to said bed for a good night's rest at the end of each day. Our kids have all reached the point where they can feed, clothe, toilet, and entertain themselves. They can even cook, do laundry, and usually remember to flush the toilet. (Better still, our kids have attained this level of independence before our parents are old enough to begin losing it.) All three children can be disciplined with logic. We have reached the point of the ultimate in parental freedom--- we can drive away from our house while the kids are inside without having to either arrange a babysitter or face possible prosecution. We're progressing rather nicely toward not being indebted. God has blessed us so richly, that we can give to others. We have great friends. Life is good.
Here's to the past fourteen years and the one just beginning to unfold.