First, a little of this:
Happy Friday, my friends! This is my mom’s birthday, and I’m so very thankful for her presence in my life. Having lost my dad years ago, I know how valuable it is to still have a parent in my adult life. My mom is not only my “mother” – but she is also my friend. Now that I’m an adult and a mother of teenagers, my eyes have been opened to the many many many sacrifices she has made in the last 40+ years in order to mother me, my brother, and my sister. God has blessed us way beyond what we could possibly deserve by giving us our specific parents. We are like the Psalmist said in Psalm 16:6, “we have a good heritage”, and I am grateful beyond my ability to express it. Happy birthday, Mom. I love you so much!
Mom (Mary Crawford), my sister (Rebecca Turner), brother (Chris Crawford), and me. My brother calls us “the Original Crawfords”. 😉
Mom and her grandchildren: Will, Zach, Ella, Abigail, Anna Beth, Hannah Grace, Crawford, and Nathan. Daddy would have been so proud of this bunch!
And now, a little of that:
Nathan – and a quandry that only God knows how He will work out ~
I shared earlier that we are waiting and praying to see if there will be room on Oct. 3rd for Nathan to be admitted to LeBonheur hospital for his week of testing. In our minds, we “think” that would be best – especially since he has had some strange “episodes” in the past week that have us very concerend. If he doesn’t make it into the October 3rd study, he will be admitted on November 7th for the week. And that was originally fine and dandy.
But yesterday, as I was entering things into a new calendar, I realized that the week of November 7th, I’m supposed to be in KY speaking at a retreat. I’d leave my house on Thursday. The same Thursday (and Friday) I would need be in the hospital with Nathan. My heart is flip-flopping between faith and sight as I try to figure out how James and I can switch places, how I can get packed, and on the road (for an 8 1/2 hour drive), not to mention mentally prepared for the weekend – all while my son is in the hospital going through tests and hooked up to a hundred electrodes. (That sounds dramatic, doesn’t it… but it’s all true, and what we’ll be dealing with if Nathan doesn’t get into the Oct. 3rd study.)
So, even though I KNOW
– that God has it all worked out
– that all of this was on God’s perfectly timed calendar,
– that both Nathan’s hospital stay AND the November retreat are well on God’s mind,
– that God has big plans for His work in both the hospital stay and the ladies’ retreat,
– that none of this takes God by shock as it has us,
– and that we are trusting God to work it all out in the way that Glorifies Himself best….
Even though I know all of that… and we’ve submitted ourselves and this situation to the Lord…
I still feel led to pray, and to ask you to join us in praying that a spot for Nathan will open up for the Oct. 3rd date.
I’ve called the hospital EMU coordinator and told her all of this. And, now we wait. And we continue to trust that God will work it out in such a way that when we will look back on all of it, we will be grateful.
I wasn’t planning on asking you to join us in this specific prayer – because I really do have confidence that God will work whatever it is out for His best… but you have been such sweet and faithful friends and prayer warriors, maybe The Lord wanted you to continue to have a part of whatever it is that He is doing in our lives at this time. If that’s the case, when it’s all said and done and the story is being told, it will be to both Jesus, and you… that we will be grateful.
Today, I’m doing a little of this (prayer and trust and obedience) while I wait on that (God to iron out the details for His glory). Thank you for joining me, my friends! I’ll let you know as soon as we know something.
ONE MORE THING: Tonight and tomorrow I’ll be working on Keeping Christ AS Christmas – Yay! and I’d LOVE your help and input. A blog post will go up in the morning asking for some specific info from any who would be willing to share. Between now and then, please be thinking of how your family keeps a focus on Jesus Christ during such a busy and full holiday season. OR, the thing(s) that keep you from focusing on Jesus during that time.
You are such a blessing to me. I’m praying for you right now… That God will work in each of your lives and current situations – all for His Glory! And I’m asking that we’ll all have an Ephesians 3:20 kind of result in every place of need:
“God can do anything, you know—far more than you could ever imagine or guess or request in your wildest dreams! He does it not by pushing us around but by working within us, his Spirit deeply and gently within us.” Eph 3:20, Msg.
To Jesus be the glory both now and forever~
Jennifer