Vampire Diaries 1

The slew runneth through my veins

Three times per week, no less

Mixed with this concoction, drug, or natural element

Sigh . . . I hardly get a break ya know.

Mr. Herx visits more often now

Not a friend nor enemy per se

He just stays and goes to torment at will

Hi torn and tattered calling card left with me.

The blood letting continues in test tubes of hope

For finding the answer, the cause:

Is it toxo, tuli, or tricho in cahoots with Lyme

Or a known co-conspirator that eludes capture?

Maybe in another lifetime or appointment next month

Will I find more to Google in this Hide-n-Go-Seek

Followed by a witches brew so dastardly I seize

Within seconds of pounding it down in faith perhaps displaced.

Aye, is not therein the rub or the salve to quiet my soul?

My Lord sees it all and stands nearby knowing the time,

The place, the reason, the meaning, the end

And will show me what I need to know and when

It says so in His Word:  better written than a vampire diary ever could.

So reject that a proclaimed healer bearing a wooden cross

Will know more than the Spirit of assurance in which I rest

Who will answer these questions, not you nor I.

My vessel may not go on or somehow come into its needed repair

But my being shall live on as it should in Christ

With a testimony, Lord willing, to bring glory to Him Who made it so.

Yes, therein I shall rest.  He holds my tears filling the river of life

And turns beauty from ashes in the dawn of the coming day

For “hope beyond’ as this blog will continue to attest.  Come along with me Gentle Reader.

The day of His return and our restoration is coming soon.  There is hope!  JJ

 

Psalm 41.3

It’s just not my turn that’s all

Another day slipped into history as I pondered the gratitude I felt for a recent task accomplished.  It’s no matter that the wrapping of Christmas presents got done from about 2 to 6 in the morning on Saturday.  That’s just how I roll these days . . .

Social media is one of the ways that I employ to counter the tremendous isolation I experience while overcoming a serious illness.  I used to be shy about it.  Many folks write about their need for a sabbatical occasionally when Facebook and the like become too big of a time eraser.  My life is structured differently I guess . . .

My brother, Michael, often talked about the support he felt from fellow poker players online.  Really?  How can you experience anything valuable from an anonymous side chat in a gambling venue of penny poker through the internet?  Flash forward ten years.  Now I get it.  Mike was home all of the time caring for our mother who was struggling with lung cancer, chemotherapy, and alcoholism.  The things that he endured were very difficult.  He would say that he never knew what he would find when he returned home from running out to the store or anywhere at all, making it difficult to get things done.  Those little touch points with his fellow poker players gave him the assurance he needed to do what he had to do the rest of the day . . .

Should life return to “normal” one day for me then my time spent here with you will naturally diminish.  I’ll be sleeping in the wee hours of the morning instead of wide awake in the recovery phase of a hellish nightmare earlier that evening.  I have already grieved about it, the loss I mean.  So much time has passed with so little getting done in my own life.  Perhaps the tasks that have been completed are not measured on a calendar or my “To Do List?”  For those in Christ Jesus, we know that to be true.

Romans 8:28, encouragement, encouraging scripture, all things work together for good, hope, hang in there

Another example is how I finished reviewing a copy of a canoe and kayak paddling magazine last night for which my husband is the Editor.  I guess I can now add “Assistant Editor” to my resume for my contributions to the first four issues.  Cool beans.  I could list a bunch of crafty Christmas things that I would rather be doing yet that was not my calling for those hours.  Many will be blessed by this sacrifice including me.

Ever feel this way when sidetracked from your dreams, Gentle Reader?  In ways big and small we may struggle to discipline ourselves to do the tasks we must do when our hearts are in another room or time zone.  Know what I mean?

The bottom line for me on this subject tonight is that the sooner I rest in the promises of my Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, the sooner I will realize that I am perfectly where I need to be.  He will provide everything I need from the breath that is not coming easily to the assembly of a Christmas gift still in boxes strewn here and there.  I know from another tumultuous time in my life that the Lord does answer our prayers in due time.  The waiting, the setbacks, the anticipation make the rewards sweeter.  How can I expect to make it to the finish line with style and grace if I give up on the last leg of the race?  I will not!

So don’t you give up on me either, k?  And please hang tough if you are going through challenging times as well.  If you need to cry out for help then please do so NOW.  Our God promises in His Word that:

The Lord will strengthen him on his bed of illness;
You will sustain him on his sickbed.

Psalm 41:3  New King James Version (NKJV)

He will see us through to our last breath if we but call upon His name.  My Heavenly Father has done so for me a thousand times.  He will do so for you too.  Tonight I am praying for us both.  JJ

Dog in bed

It ain’t no fun anymore

Just when I was getting a bit of a handle on the Candida treatment in this ongoing saga of illness, I caught my first head cold in 2 years.  Sish.

Common Cold Invention
Common Cold Invention

Hanging tough once again!

Psalm 41:3  (NIV)

The Lord sustains them on their sickbed and restores them from their bed of illness.