Excuse me... Nurse.....

 Our beautiful daughter Jennifer or "Jen" as she prefers to be called, is graduating from Nursing School today. In my rush to make it to Statesboro for her Graduation, I left her card.  I want to honor her in my blog today.

Jenny,

  It was a Nurse that took my pregnancy test and told me tha I was pregnant.
  It was a Nurse who taught our 'Natural Childbirth" classes and convienced your Daddy that he would be a great help in the delivery room.
 It was a Nurse who talked your Daddy into letting 7 student nurses into the delivery room to watch  your birth.  That happened during a contraction~

  It was a Nurse that told me to push.
  It was three Nurses who told me to push harder.
  It was a very determined  Nurse who literally got on top of me and pushed you out of me. By the way... don't every judge a 300lb nurse... they are very necessary.. here is why...
  You were born with the umbilical cord around your neck and you looked like a Blueberry.
  It was a Nurse who told me that everything was going to be alright.
  It was Nurse who prayed with us.
  You beat the 50/50 odds and at 5lbs 12 oz ... 4 weeks early you did fine.


  Fast forward to April 5th 2004....

 In Tallahassee Fl. You were expecting your 3rd child... Our dear Libby....

A big secret now being revealed.
When the Doctor said it would be a great idea if you went home with your husband ( all the way to Perry Fl.) It was a Nurse who shook her head NO behind the Doctor. This action made me do something I have never done before... Put my foot down with your Husband... NO...JON...You can't take her back to Perry! Leave her here.
Elizabeth Joy Edmisten was born 45 min. later.

Your Daddy and I are so proud of you!

It's not everyday that you see a Pastor's wife... Mother of 4 Graduate with Honors.
Congratulations Beautiful Daughter!
Love Mama

Living in the Moment

  I woke up very early in the a.m. yesterday with tears streaming down my face. Sweet memories of fun times with my husband Jamie had me in tears. I guess it's because I know that my sister Linda is by her husband's bedside while he is in a coma. I went to sleep with the thought of how terrible it would be if I knew I may never hear my sweet Jamie's voice again.
 The little pranks and funny things he does around the house to make my life more joyful.

When we first got married he would try to "Teach me" wrestling holds. I learned how ticklish he was and there were no rules so I could actually beat him at his own game.
He loves to turn the light off and on while I'm putting on my makeup in the am. This never gets old and it always makes me laugh.
Just as I'm dozing off at night he thinks it's funny to wake me up and ask me questions because I slur my words and fuss at him for waking me up.
He knows I have conquered  the "Cluttered Drawer" in the kitchen so he loves to throw an ink pen in my orderly utensil drawer to watch me give him the "Look". He thinks that is so funny.

Over the years he has come up with sweet ways to bless me. One of my favorites is the Thursday night surprise. He "Jumps on the house" meaning he cleans the house like crazy. He knows I don't particularly like to clean bathrooms, vacuum, sweep and mop so he has made this a weekly ritual for years.

There is never a time when he goes to the kitchen that he doesn't ask me if I want him to bring me something.
He loves to bring me my coffee in the  morning. What a way to strat my day!
The first thing we do in the am is wrap our hands around our coffee and talk. Our morning time is priceless.
We talk about growing old together and planting a garden. We are both combing grey hair now and realizing we are not as young as we used to be.
We both wished that we would have slowed down and savored each moment.
The possibility of one of us dying is 100%. I want to live in the moment. My Mother used to say..."Live each day like it is going to be your last day on earth because one day it will be."

He received a text message today that said..."I adore you".
He answered. " I love being married to Mrs. America".... I answered...
"Thank you Mr. Universe".

As I am up this morning praying for my sweet Sister Linda and her husband John their final hours together. I pray too for my family that they all will savour each smile.. each kind word. Each kiss....Because ...Life is short.

Peace in the midst of the storm

The past few weeks have been very trying for me. The Tyranny of the urgent has worn me out. My best laid plans have been sidetracked for the more urgent matters. Stacks of paperwork lie on my desk for me to sort through, fill out, scan and file. Checkbooks to balance and schedules to sync and update.... it seems a little overwhelming ... but it hit me... God has this! He has given me the strength to meet all of the challenges of each day. He has given me strength for the day! He has given me peace in the troubled times. Believe me ... when you helping people who are sick, you are in troubled water!
I am finding such comfort at 3:00 am just reading God's word.
in Psalm 92 verse 14,15 and 16 he tells us this : " Because he hath set his love upon me, therefore will I deliver him. I will set him on high, because he hath known my name.  He shall call upon me, and I will answer him,; I will be with him in trouble; I will deliver him, and  honor him. with long life will I satisfy him and show him my salvation."

I think about that old hymn "Tis so sweet to trust in Jesus"....
Jesus, Jesus how I trust him, how I've proved him over and over. Jesus ,Jesus precious Jesus... O for grace to trust him more...
We don't have to go through life in our own strength ... we can fill our our cup to overflowing ... how? On our knees... giving our burdens to The Lord.  We can rest assure that he will give us peace.
Oh, what a comfort to know that God is our faithful friend. He sees all and holds us in his tender loving care. O What a Saviour!
Trust him with your life.
In his grip.
Sherry

The Secret Place: When Trouble comes....

The Secret Place: When Trouble comes....: When trouble comes, what do you do?  When your in a holding pattern and God is not giving you direction. What next? There are Good decision...

When Trouble comes....

When trouble comes, what do you do?  When your in a holding pattern and God is not giving you direction. What next?
There are Good decisions and there are "God decisions". How do you know if you are hearing God's voice?  You have to be close to the lips of the whisperer. Remember, God speaks in a Quiet Still Voice. Amongst chaos... we must slip away to a QUIET place. Of course, it's not the Starbucks coffee shop... it's your Prayer closet.
The place where you study God's word. The place where you get on your knees. When  you don't know what to do... Just trust God and keep serving him.
In your taking on OPB ( Other Peoples Burdons) you will lay yours at the feet of Jesus. When you help people to know Jesus and trust him... your faith will increase.
We only have a short time on this earth. We all have families that need us. We have co-workers that need us. We have Pastors and Church family that need us. We have such influence and it can be for good... or evil.
My question is... Will your words be those of encouragement or of doubt and fear? Who's side are you on anyway?
We must be on the right side of the but... Here's what I mean by that.

Fear says:  I trust God, But I don't know what to do.
Faith says: I don't know what to do, But I'm trusting God, he knows and he will lead me.

We must make the best of each day. We don't know when our last day will be.
Psalm 90:12 says... "So teach us to number our days, that we may apply our hearts unto wisdom".
We can't sweat the small stuff. Guess what... It's all small stuff!
Go from Strength to Strength today.
In Chirst...Sherry

The Refreshing

Friday morning I attended a Catholic Mass funeral with one of of my new friends and his dear son. This precious man lost his wife of 58 years. We had planned the mass with one of the Bereavement counselors from the Church.  I was so impressed with her loving spirit. She told me that her sister
(Earthy one) was a Baptist like me. Well I like this woman~ she was so honest with me! She let me know very quickly that the traditional Hymns like " Amazing Grace and What a friend we have in Jesus" were not suitable for a Mass.  I was disappointed, but understood. So the songs that were planned were Catholic songs.
Note... The Husband is no longer Catholic, but completely honored his wife's beliefs.
Here we are at the Mass and here comes my new friend, The Bereavement lady. She runs over to me and whispers in my ear.... "You can't receive communion because you are Baptist, but if you will just go the alter, the Father will bless you".  Oh... I need a blessing I said. I really meant that and she knew it. She smiled and the Love of God was all over her, I gave her a Baptist hug.

The mass was Perfect. The songs were Perfect... I sang with all my heart. I didn't know the prayers, but I raised my heart in agreement like we do in our church.

I was sitting with the Husband and Son of the Deceased . The Son went to the alter first...Then the Father who is frail got up from his Wheelchair and went to the Alter and his Son helped him up and I walked to the alter with him. This man can barely stand, kneeling would be next to impossible. He knelt. He cried and cried ... so did his Son... I cried and cried because I needed forgiveness and needed to do business with God at the alter.

We stayed there and felt the presence of God. I don't know how much time went by... my eyes were closed. When I looked up the alter boy was tugging on the robe of the priest. The priest whispered something to him. The alter boy came to us and said... You can stay here ... I will come back and help you get up.

What a refreshing this alter time was. The service was PERFECT.
So... my baptist friends... don't shun the Catholics! Embrace Jesus.
The bumper sticker on the Bereavement lady's car has it right.
Jesus Possess me.

A Place of Rest

I love the old hymns. I especially love the ones about Rest.  I guess it's because my life is so busy, I must admit that I want to stoop and just REST.  I am finding that by keeping my mind on Christ brings a peace that is well.... a kind of rest to me.  A deep contentment that the world cannot give is the best way to describe this rest.
I often ask Jesus, What did you do to rest?

He takes me to the shore of Galilee and there I imagine what I have been taught in his word. He is fishing with his friends and teaching them simple life lessons.
He sits around a campfire just talking.
He walks into the village and there is greeted by Children, who adore him. He lets them sit on his lap and they talk to him, and he laughs and plays with them.
He visits with the sick, he prays over them to be healed. With his power, he heals them.
He visits with the Harlot, he explains why she can't continue living the way she has.
His life is not rushed or hurried in any way.

So... let me get this straight....

He was simply a People Person.

If you don't love your neighbor ... then you don't love God.

Pretty Simple really!