July 3, 2012

Twenty-five years ago tonight I was staying with my ex-husband and planning last minute details for my second wedding the next day.  A day of Independence, right?  My sisters came to be my bridesmaids, as they did the first time.  This time, however, our sons stood with their dad.  My uncle and aunt made a real family ceremony for us.  I don't know that we have lived up to everything we committed that day, but a lot sure has happened during the years until now.

We moved from NY to NC on our way to FL, and have been here since 1993.  We have a home (first one since 1970) due to the generosity of a church member who said no minister of his church was going to live in a one-bedroom rented apartment.  God bless him!

A lot of health problems have been overcome.  Bill had left main coronary open heart surgery before we left NY.  That left him with a physical disability and he has been unable to work.  In 1991 we discovered he had cirrhosis of the liver that was untreatable except by transplant, which was accomplished in 1995 at UVA.  The medication he had to take over the years has left him with a weak kidney and diabetes.  He also had a prostatectomy for cancer and urostomy for a shrunken bladder.  Other than that, he's doing fine!

My journey has not been quite so dramatic.  Left total mastectomy for large benign tumor, cholescystectomy (gall bladder), right total knee replacement (injury 41 years before), and COPD for which I use a CPAP.

You know, growing old ain't for wimps!  But God is good - all the time!

We are in the process of catching up on cleaning the house and organizing all the "stuff" we have accumulated.  It's a challenge. 

So, tomorrow is the 25th anniversary of our second wedding.  I'll be remarking on the 53rd anniversary of our first wedding in September!  We don't have much planned beyond a steak and salad dinner and a lemon meringue pie.  Our blessings are too numerous to count, so we'll just enjoy the day. 

July 1, 2012

We got up at the usual Sunday morning reveille (6:30).  It's hard to break old habits.  DeLeon Springs has a restaurant at the State Park (the old Sugar Mill) where you sit at tables with griddles built in and cook your own pancakes and eggs.  We got the last 2 seats at 8:15 a.m.  Beautiful day, perfect weather, great food and good company.  Now what??

It was too early to go to a worship and, besides, we hadn't chosen one yet.  So we started down a road we hadn't been on for a very long time to see the St. John's River.  Lo and behold, First Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) of DeLand was going to have Dr. Juan Rodriguez, our Florida Regional Minister as the guest speaker.  So, we drove down the road a little and turned back to the church.  Seems like another God-thing to me. 

The organ and piano duet led the congregation with good music.  They had a projector/screen for some of the parts of the service, but beautiful bulletins were provided.  The minister has just returned from heart surgery and it was good to see him back.  Juan was his usual up-beat, challenging preacher who shared his dream for the Florida DoC churches: a barrier-breaking, bridge-building movement for God.  Very inspiring - the whole thing.  The Communion service was familiar, but refreshingly different.

The rest of the day has been quiet and restful.  Except for the excitement of watching Tiger Woods win.  Even the animals were fairly low key.  Well, everything was calm until 60 Minutes came on with a story about cyber attacks in the world.  Sabotage, terror incidents, computer worms - oh, my!

I've been thinking that this whole world would be a really scary place - if I didn't believe that God was in control.  In control of everything - from the number of hairs on my head to the turning of centrifuges in an Iranian uranium enrichment plant, regardless of a computer virus.  The old spiritual says, "I cried to the rock to hide my face; the rock cried out 'There's no hiding place.'  There's no hiding place down here."

The Psalms tell us where to find safety:

1. Psalm 17:8
   Keep me as the apple of your eye; hide me in the shadow of your wings
   
2. Psalm 27:5
   For in the day of trouble he will keep me safe in his dwelling; he will hide me in the shelter of his sacred tent and set me high upon a rock.
   
3. Psalm 27:9
   Do not hide your face from me, do not turn your servant away in anger; you have been my helper. Do not reject me or forsake me, God my Savior.
   
4. Psalm 55:12
   If an enemy were insulting me, I could endure it; if a foe were rising against me, I could hide.
   
5. Psalm 64:2
   Hide me from the conspiracy of the wicked, from the plots of evildoers.

God is our shelter and our strength.  God is our peace.  God cares for us, especially when we don't deserve it.  Our past, present and future are all secure - no matter what it looks like at the time.  God help us all.

Guess I need a place to preach! And it's only been a couple of days...