I've kept this a secret long enough. About two months ago, a man walked into the store where I worked. He needed a battery for his cell phone. The man was Chuck Norris! It was quite exciting... Read on!
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Job
"God will not give you more than you can handle." "God won't give you more than you can bear." "God never puts on us more than we can stand." Wanna bet?! If we could ask Job in the Bible if God will allow more into your life than you can stand, what would he say? My family will testify that we have been through more than we can handle on our own strength. This cliche creates all sorts of problems for us in the church. It is unbiblical, impractical, and deadly to our relationship with God. This is why... Words are a wonderfully imprecise at times. I often tell my kids to listen. I can feel like Charles Stanley some days! "Listen! Now, Listen!" But it recently occurred to me that I may need to define my terms a bit. Listen, I recently told one of my children something he needed to start doing. He had that blank stare so I asked if he was listening and he said, "I heard you." Pressing further I asked, "What did you hear?" to which he honestly responded, "I heard words coming from your mouth." Now, listen! Frustration is not quite a strong enough word... Handicap. Special Needs. Exceptional. Medically Fragile. There are different ways people try to label or explain situations like our daughter, Macayla. The designation is important as it keeps us aware, aware that everyone's needs are a little different. Children like Macayla have uncommon needs. It is not common to need a feeding tube, wheelchair, or anticonvulsants. I guess that is why I prefer the term "special needs." We are experiencing other uncommon needs. Adopted children struggle in ways that are uncommon in one sense, but in another sense, their needs are ones to which we can all relate.... This past week, our daughter Savanna was adopted again! Our kids went to WinShape Camp put on by Chic-fil-a. They had a blast and learned a lot about Christ and themselves. The theme this year was "Heart Castle" and they learned that their hearts are the throne room of their castle. The big question was, "Who is sitting on the throne of your heart?" It was challenging to all three. They had to ask themselves if Christ was seated on their throne or if they were hogging the seat. Much to our joy, Savanna received Christ and trusted Him to forgive her sins. She admits that she is still struggling with letting Christ always sit on the throne of her heart, but we reassured her that is something we all struggle with. On Father's Day, we went as a family to see Man of Steel movie. It was a fitting thing to do, since, well, I am so much like Superman!! Okay, that is not true. My muscles are not that small! What truly made it fitting is how much the film can easily bridge to the gospel. This doesn't mean it is a perfect allegory to the gospel, nor was it meant to be. It is a good film (better than the 1970's version in my opinion) but it may not be suitable for all kids. I suggest you go to Plugged In and read the review. There are a few wordy durds, some of which unfortunately come from the mouth of a kid who bullies the young Clark Kent. But this can be another detail that helps connect Superman to Christ, as I will explain in a bit. On this day, 2001, Macayla Grace Smoak was born at Self Memorial in Greenwood, SC. She came out healthy in spite of a challenging delivery for Mom. Macayla lived for nine years and died at 11:25 p.m. on this day in 2010. She celebrated 98% of her 9th birthday with us and then stepped into Christ's presence to celebrate so much more! The picture here is of her last birthday cake, provided by sweet friends at a difficult time. It is hard to believe it was three years ago. It seems like a lifetime and a blink of the eye at the same time. We miss her. This was a tougher day than the last two birthdays. But we know she is whole. We know we will see her again. We grieve, but we grieve with hope. "Get your book bag and get in the truck," I said to my son for the second time. "Ok," he said. I went to ensure the lights were off and house set. Upon returning to the kitchen, I find my son talking to his brother and sister about a Flat Stanley book. No book bag on his back. Ugh! I got down on his eye level, put my hand on the book about a flat boy and said firmly with eye contact, "Get your book bag and get in the truck." "Yes, sir," he replied with a touch of frustration. My frustration was building and wondering if there was going to be a true life "Flat Stanley" in our home! I turned to get my gear for the day and walking to the door to leave, I find my beautiful, wonderful, amazing (not yet flat) son playing with an eraser! No book bag on his back... Adoption bring challenges that are unique. There is much to work through for both the children and the parents. There is much conflict and counseling is a must for families that adopt. We have found that the best kind of counseling for our family is, well, family counseling. One-on-one has been very ineffective with our twins. Our counselor was creative, and most importantly, shared a very similar worldview and faith to our own. She was great with the kids and us. I am having to write "was" because due to a situation in her life, our counselor had to change jobs and could no longer see us. But, she left us with some great directions... It's just not in our DNA as a nation. We have been a democratic republic since our beginning. We revolted against the tyranny of a king to form our nation. The idea of a king being our ruler is not only foreign to our thinking, it goes against the purpose and nature of our nation and culture. The title king is reserved and used in our culture by those who are the self-proclaimed best at selling furniture, cars, or burgers. It does not carry the idea of authority, sovereignty, royalty, or honor. Maybe this is why we enjoy Christmas so much more than Easter. |
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February 2018
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