This Adventure Called "Life"

First of all, I want to thank all of my friends here who have been praying for me since my last post and during my recent surgery.  I am here to say that your prayers have been answered, and yes, God certainly did have His angels watching over me throughout this whole "adventure".  I like the sound of the word "adventure" better than "ordeal", don't you? If we can view our events in life more as an "adventure" rather than as an "ordeal" to be endured, we can look for all the ways that God has been with us and blessed us throughout the "adventure".  And that is what I want to share with you today. During my hospital stay, God demonstrated His Presence with me over and over again. But here are a few examples that really blessed me.

During the night following surgery, I woke up and noticed this picture on the wall of my room.

The sunrise seemed to just glow, beckoning me to look deeper. If you notice the two people standing on the shore, you will probably just think of them as a couple of lovers standing on the shore enjoying the sunrise together. But when I looked at this picture I saw Jesus standing there beside me, reassuring me that He was indeed with me through all of life's journeys, and especially right now, so I was able to settle down and rest peacefully knowing He was there with me.

When I awoke the next morning, I looked out the window next to my bed, and this was what I saw:

 Do you see the cross in this picture?  Here again was the Lord's message to me..."I am with you always"....

That evening our pastor came by for a visit, and he remarked about the beautiful picture of the butterfly on the wall above my head.  I had not been able to see it as it was above and behind me, and it was actually the next day before I could get a view of it to take its picture while they had me sitting up in a chair for a while.  Here again was a gift from God, a picture of "new life" as the butterfly escapes his cocoon and develops into this beautiful creature and flies off into his new adventure....
This reminds me of our hope in Christ Jesus found here:

2 Corinthians 5:17

 "Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new.

Going back in time for a few minutes, here are a few picture my hubby took as I was being prepped for surgery:

When we entered the pre-op area, we both noticed this lovely purple and lavender outfit laid out for me to wear to the grand event:

We also noticed the table with the many items and labels and things that would begin this journey:

Here I am all dressed up in my lovely new outfit, ready for the "ball"...

 I think this picture is showing that I am wrapped up in those lovely warm blankets that come directly out of a warming unit and cover you with the most lovely feeling of warmth and comfort you can imagine just prior to surgery...

In this photo the anesthesiology team is preparing for my epidural (nerve block). I did not know I was going to have this procedure until I got there, and once it was explained to me I agreed it sounded wonderful and was all too happy to comply. This epidural stayed in until a couple of days after surgery, giving me the ability to control my pain relief as needed...and it was a wonderful advantage.  I woke up less groggy and much more comfortable than what I've experienced in previous surgeries.

 Thankfully there are no pictures of me in recovery.  I don't think I looked quite this chipper.
This picture was taken as I was waiting for the doctor to come and release me for discharge...ready to go home!

Thankfully, I am now writing to you once again from the safe and comfortable confines of my home. And just as Judy Garland (Dorothy) repeated over and over again in the "Wizard of Oz", "There's no place like home...There's no place like home..." I totally agree.  Although I must admit I had not thought about some things that I would experience when I got home, like my inability to get up and down into low chairs, our bed and other important places.  When you've had any kind of abdominal surgery, which I have, you discover just how hard those tummy muscles work in moving you up and down and all around.  Last night when trying to get into bed it was quite an interesting  and painful "work out"...and I totally now understand why the mechanics of a hospital bed are so important and necessary.

It also became apparent to me how important those support grab bars in bathrooms and showers are. I believe that all homes should be equipped with them regardless of whether or not you think you will ever need them. Trust me, you will need them at some point in your life. 

For now, I am once again relying on "My Father's Cane" to assist me as I get up and down in difficult places. (Please click on that link above for a very special story about this cane).

So now my job is to continue this journey of recovery and healing, one step at a time.  I am so thankful for my sweet hubby, who is nearly worn out with all of my "demands"....Here he is after filling the bird feeder for me so I can watch my birdies come and go.

We have also been blessed by dear folks from our church who have brought by meals for us, even this past week while I was in the hospital they made sure my hubby and son living here at home did not go hungry, which was very thoughtful and kind of them. Yes, they are capable of feeding themselves, but it was the fact that it showed that people care and are willing to help out in time of need. I am so very thankful for how God provides even more than we think we need. He knows how to bless us.

So, thank you, again, dear friends, for your prayers, messages of healing and encouragement...and for just being there. You are a great joy and blessing to me.

In thinking about Dorothy and "The Wizard of Oz" quote, "There's no place like home..." I was reminded of this little ruby slipper pin that I have,

And I thought about the "Adventure" of our lives again, and this journey we are on toward "home"....

We are all on our way "home" to our eternal home with Jesus...and I love that He comes alongside and walks with us, reminds us of His great sacrifice for us, and gives us glimpses of the new life we will one day be enjoying with Him forever.   Yes, Dorothy was right, "There's no place like home...", and our home is heaven...but until Jesus calls me "home", I want to serve Him any way I can right here at this temporary "home" in this "adventure" called life!  How about you?  I hope you are on this journey with me. If not, why not ask Jesus to lead you home with Him today? 

Angels Watching Over Me

I stepped outside this evening ostensibly to watch the sunset, 

and it was magnificent and did not disappoint.

But what really caught my attention were the clouds...and it was as if God was putting on a beautiful display of His cloud creations just to give me great comfort and encouragement tonight on the eve of my surgery.

The song that came to me right away was:

"All night, all day, angels watching over me, my Lord,

All night, all day, angels watching over me."

(There's a video of the Oak Ridge Boys singing this song following these pictures if you want to sing along)

Now, don't get me wrong, no, I don't believe that the clouds are angels. But 

so often when I have needed a little reassurance from the Lord He has shown me "His angels" in the clouds, and they have always given me peace.

 Several verses from  Psalm 91 also came to mind:

1.  "He who dwells in the secret place of the Most High

Shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty.

 2.  I will say of the Lord, "He is my refuge and my fortress, 

My God, in Him I will trust."

 3.  Surely He shall deliver you from the snare of the fowler

and from the perilous pestilence.

 4.  He shall cover you with His feathers,

and under His wings you shall take refuge;

His truth shall be your shield and buckler.

 5.  You shall not be afraid of the terror by night,

nor of the arrow that flies by day,

6.  Nor of the pestilence that walks in darkness,

Nor of the destruction that lays waste at noonday.

 9.  Because you have made the Lord, who is my refuge,

even the Most High, your dwelling place,

10.  No evil shall befall you,

nor shall any plague come near your dwelling;

11.  For He shall give His angels charge over you,

to keep you in all your ways.

12.  In their hands they shall bear you up,

Lest you dash your foot against a stone.

14. Because he has set his love upon Me, 

therefore I will deliver him;

I will set him on high, because he has known My Name.

15.  He shall call upon Me, 

and I will answer him;

I will be with him in trouble' I will deliver him and honor him.

16.  With long life I will satisfy him,

and show him my salvation."

I want to thank you all for your prayers and words of encouragement over the past few weeks/days as I have shared with you the fact that I am having some major surgery tomorrow. Yes, it is "repair work", but because of the intricacies of this particular repair, it will be somewhat invasive and I will need several weeks to fully recuperate. Hopefully I will soon be back up and writing again, but if you don't hear from me for a while, please just say a little prayer. I will be anxious to get back to visiting with you all again as soon as possible. 

Oh, one more thing:  This morning I shared on Facebook that I was drinking that stuff that cleans you out, and I was drinking from my favorite cup:

I wanted to say that during the early moments of drinking this lovely drink (!), I did actually 

"Stand Still and consider the wondrous works of God" 

(Job 37:14) 

as I watched the geese on Still Waters Pond:

And I rejoiced in the way that God sent these beautiful creatures to visit and entertain me this morning...at least for a little while as I was able to "stand still and watch" them. 

So the day started out with God's blessing, and has certainly ended with His blessing.

And now, dear friends, I must get ready for bed. We finally heard from the hospital that I am to arrive at 5:00 a.m., and it is almost an hour's drive away from us...so...we will be rising very early in the morning. Makes me wish they'd go back to the olden days when they'd let you come and spend the night at the hospital the night before surgery. Oh well...hopefully I will be first on the docket and we can get this party over and done with!!

Final thoughts for tonight:

"I will both lie down in peace, and sleep;

For You alone,  O Lord, make me dwell in safety."

Psalm 4:8