Strange answers to prayer

I have, a few times, posted a link to Amy Bixby's blog.  Amy went home to Jesus this morning.  We thank Him for His goodness to her and her family, though as we watched, it was hard to understand some of the things that happened in the past few days.


1. One of the children came down with chicken pox.  The very hard decision was made to move the children out of the home with other families.  As it turns out, this was God's blessing for them.  Within 24 hours, Amy had confusion set in and the decision had to be made to move her into a hospice care home.  We had prayed that the children would not have to see her in a confused state.  We would not have chosen chicken pox, but God allowed them to be with their mother until the very last moment, and then moved them all out.


2. Amy's father-in-law had hand surgery that wasn't/isn't healing well and he had to go home to see his doctor about it.  While he was there, he had a heart attack.  We wouldn't normally think of a heart attack as a blessing, but this allowed him to be home for his children (although they are all adults, they adored their sister-in-law) for the moment of her passing.


My heart aches for my friend and her family, but I know that God was very good to them in Amy's last few days.  


If you pass by and read this, say a prayer for this family as they learn to live without wife and mother.  

Apologies

I think we should take a moment and understand what an apology looks like when it constitutes true sorrow over an act.  I have been seeing a lot of apologies fly around that make a mockery of repentance.


An apology that is truly meant is an apology that says, "I offended you when I(________).  I am so sorry that I came across/acted out so badly."   An apology that smells of truth owns the offense and humbly admits it to the person offended.


Unfortunately, too many apologies I have heard in the last 5 years go along the lines of, "I'm sorry you took what I said/did the wrong way.  You misunderstood me." When your apology makes you the victim, you have not apologized; you have made the offended person the person who is wrong for being offended.


Matthew 18:7 says, "Woe unto the world because of offenses! for it must needs be that offenses come; but woe to that man by whom the offense cometh!"


People are going to be offended, but Christ did not pronounce woe upon the offended; He proclaimed woe unto the offender.  If you know you have offended someone, make it right.  Just admit the person was offended and be sorry--truly sorry-- that you offended them.  It doesn't matter how silly it was.  Maybe the offended person was having a bad day; maybe you said something without knowing some of their history and you touched a sore spot.  It isn't that person's fault for being offended.  


We need to get over ourselves and take care of the offended instead of blaming them for being offended.

Ephesians

I'm not sure what it is, but when I read through Ephesians or listen through it, I always feel that I can stop after 1:6.

¹ Paul, an apostle of Jesus Christ by the will of God, to the saints which are at Ephesus, and to the faithful in Christ Jesus:

² Grace [be] to you, and peace, from God our Father, and [from] the Lord Jesus Christ.

³ Blessed [be] the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who hath blessed us with all spiritual blessings in heavenly [places] in Christ:

⁴ According as he hath chosen us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before him in love:

⁵ Having predestinated us unto the adoption of children by Jesus Christ to himself, according to the good pleasure of his will,

⁶ To the praise of the glory of his grace, wherein he hath made us accepted in the beloved.

You need to read this

If you are a facebook friend, you've seen me post this already.  If you are just happening by, you need to read this.


She is where we all will be someday.

How will you handle it?

Last minute family outings are probably the best

Saturday morning, when I woke up (Rod woke early and went for a drive and cup of coffee), Rod asked me if I wanted to go to Fort Stevens.  I thought it sounded like fun, so off we packed the kids and took off.  My gps is named "Google Maps" which has several unpleasant nicknames due to its propensity to send us the scenic route.  We learned about Whiskey Road and never did figure out how Del Laura Beach Road fit into the equation.


Finally we got there only to learn there was a "living event" that day.  In other words, there would be live people doing some sort of re-enactment.  It was WWII day. All in all, it was a good day.

No trip to the northern Oregon Coast is complete without a stop at Camp 18 for a meal.  You may not go there for the food, but you certainly stop for the atmosphere.

Yes, I forgot to list a few books

I have books stashed all over the place and I read different books based on where I am.  I have a lot on the iPad, but there are still a few real books around.


1. It Is Well With My Soul, by Ella Mae Cheeks Johnson.  This is subtitled The Extraordinary Life of a 106-Year-Old Woman.  It is her autobiography.  It's very straightforward as was her life.  In the middle of hard times, she flourished.  


2. Les Miserables, by Victor Hugo is another one I've never read.


3. Alonzo Fitz and Other Stories, by Mark Twain.  

On the bookshelf

I am reading several different things; some are personal and some are for the kids' school.  Don't be alarmed at the number of books I may read at one time.


For school:
1. Conquistadors, by Michael Wood.  This book chronicles the journeys of Cortes, the Pizarros, Orellano, and others in the conquest of the Americas and the heathen Indian cultures of the day.  While the brutality of the indigenous peoples was great, we have to keep in mind that the brutality of the Spaniards at the time was just as hideous. Both peoples believed they were doing right.  


2. Belize, by Leslie Jermyn.  This is a general overview of the country.  We have covered Greenland, Canada, Mexico, Guatemala, and now working on Belize.  


3.The Disease Book: A Kid's Guide, by Margaret O. Hyde.  This book is a general overview of various diseases sorted by system.  It does not get in to great scary detail, but just gives a brief synopsis of what the disease is and whether there are cures or treatments.


4. The Prince and the Pauper, by Mark Twain.  


Personal:


1. War of the Worlds, by H. G. Wells.  This one I've never actually read before.  The kids want to read it when I am done.  


2. Radical, by David Platt.  I am reading this for a book group.  First chapter down and it really sounds a lot like Your God Is Too Safe, by Mark Buchanan.  If you have stumbled across my bookshelf before, you know how much I appreciate Buchanan's book.  Radical is a challenge to leave the status quo of mainstream Christianity and launch out in to greater things.


3. Nonsense Books, by Edward Lear.  This is just for kicks.  His poems amuse me.


I think I started one more on iBooks last night, but last night was pretty rough for me and I don't rightly recall.