Ouch! Need some ice to go with that burn?

Grumble grumble grumble. My teenager makes me grumble from time to time. Bite your tongue. Don't yell. Stay patient. This morning was especially trying when I came downstairs to an ant party in my kitchen. We've been struggling with ants for the last month, just like most households in the southern hemisphere this time of year. Last night Sam had a brilliant idea to create his own varieties of custom soda. (Perhaps he's frustrated I won't buy him the Soda Stream.) So last night he made some super sweet, delightful concoctions with a surplus of fructose and grenadine syrup. I'll admit, the soda flavors were very yummy, but like me he's very good at the project part, but not the clean-up part of the activity. As soon as we turned the lights out for the night, the ants discovered the sweet aftermath of his experiment and told all their buddies in our zip code that our house was the place to be.

Grumble grumble grumble. The negative thoughts filled my head as I was clearing off the counter and preparing to go to battle with my ant foes. In perfect God timing, this verse came to mind, "I prayed for this child, and the Lord has granted me what I asked of him" (1Sam1:27). Ouch! Need some ice to go with that burn? 1Samuel is the passage that inspired me fifteen years ago as a 20 something newlywed longing to be a mom. This is the passage that spoke to me as the Holy Spirt woke me in the middle of the night all those years ago and led me to kneel on the floor of our designated nursery after another unfruitful month. This is the passage that Sam, my creative and brilliant patience-testing 13 y.o., is named after. The cliché, "Be careful what you what wish for" is so appropriate here, for sure. I don't think I really had any clue what I wished for when I prayed for kids, but I am so thankful for all of my kids, even my teenager! ;) Thank you, Lord, for a good reminder of your blessings and answered prayers. Help me turn my grumblings into gratitude.

D Day

Today is our D day: deployment day. Kevin leaves for Afghanistan for nine months today. Nine months... so much can occur in nine months. Human babies grow from conception to 9 lbs of wonder. Students move from knowing nothing about Algebra to mastering quadratic equations. What will begin and take flight during Kevin's nine months? I'm camping out in Romans 8 today and I anticipate for the net (broken key on our keyboard! Who knew how often I'm going to miss the key that comes after w!) nine months that God will use this passage to encourage and bolster our faith. These verses resonate with me especially: 28 And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who[i] have been called according to his purpose. 35 Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall trouble or hardship or persecution or famine or nakedness or danger or sword? 36 As it is written: “For your sake we face death all day long; we are considered as sheep to be slaughtered.”[j] 37 No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. 38 For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons,[k] neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, 39 neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord. Romans 8:28 is such a life verse for me, almost to the point of being cliché. But I was reminded of the depth and richness of God's word when I began seeing the relevance to this trial in our life. I don't want us to see this challenging year as a deficit - a "lack" of Dad in our lives. I want to see it as an opportunity, an accelerator of sorts. How can we embrace our unique situation and let God use it for HIS GOOD in our lives? How can we reach out to others instead of withdrawing into our own self-pity? It will be tough, no doubt, but as Kelly Clarkson says, "What doesn't kill you makes you stronger!" (I'm sure she's not the coiner of this phrase, but her rendition certainly beats in my head with a memorable crescendo.) We've already ewperienced (missing key again!) some 8:28 goodness in our lives: we recently visited Kevin for a week in Tewas (ugh) during his appointed leave time from training at Ft. Hood. We had such a great cowboy adventure of sorts: pulling armadillo road kill off Highway 35; swimming with the nibbling minnows at Reimer's Ranch; eating our weight in barbeque; indulging in a real set of cowboy boots. More than just these ewperiences, we reconnected with a college friend that we hadn't seen in decades. What a joy it was to see God renew bonds so quickly with Rich and his amazing family, Tracy, and their three fantastic boys. The time we spent at the Steinle Ranch splashing in the pool, catching critters and talking in depth about Christian parenting and teens renewed our sense of gratitude in a God that wants good things for his children in spite of tough circumstances. I am touched by the Lord's tender hand in our lives and look forward to seeing Him use this time to mold us more into His likeness.