This week, so far, two deaths of relatives have touched people in our congregation. I’ve listened a bit to stories of life and of death. The real world is never as pretty as we would like to imagine. At the same time, living in the real world means we cannot imagine what God has in store!
To the families — may God be your strength and comfort, a very present help in times of sorrow and grieving!
Today I tried to walk up the two steps into our house.
Normally that is not a problem.
Today I tried without bending my knees. As though I had just had knee replacement surgery.
I used my arms to grab the door frame. Still put extra weight on my knees. Will that hurt? I guess a few weeks from now I’ll know.
Walking the floor will be a bit of a problem, since both knees will have been worked on. I’ll need to learn to walk with a walker. A number of people have remarked how embarassed they would be to have a walker. Not me! I’m kind of looking forward to it. Maybe I’ll even learn to dance with it (I’ve never been able to dance before — this could be a miracle).
All in all, practice is fun. The real thing may be a bit more gritty.
We’ll see!!
Foam darts with elastic. Put them together and you get projectiles. They fly across a room, touch you but do not harm.
Now, imagine 15 or so people shooting at each other. Yelling and screaming. Dramatic hits and exciting misses.
That was tonight’s activity. Fun part is you don’t have to move too much – just bend down and pick up shot darts. Shoot them back. Dodge another dart. Repeat over again.
Our grade 5-7 group experienced this game! I watched that I didn’t overextend myself (bad knees and all), yelled lots and had great fun. Even a bit of sweat!
It’s all good, as the saying goes. Followed by a Bible devotional and cookies and juice. What more could you ask??
I stopped at the reception desk at the hospital. One lady had recently retired and new faces were shining forth. I was introduced and look forward to working with these new staff.
For the last few months I’ve enquired about people being in hospital under the church care. Until this past weekend no one has been in long enough to warrant a visit. This weekend two people ended up in hospital. Then the father of one of our elders passed away. Christmas tensions surfaced in various family situations.
A year ago the same pattern developed. Lots of funerals and situations.
Those who have served within the "care sector" of society know that the depths of winter tend to be heavier periods for care. This winter looks to be no different.
May God sustain each one and give us courage for the day, sleep for the night and the love of loved ones to support us!