Faith vs. common sense

FOX News reported the story of a family in Wisconsin who's 11 year old daughter died recently from ketoacidosis, a complication of diabetes. The reason? Rather than admit their daughter had diabetes and seek medical treatment, they chose to pray for her healing. This young girl died a slow death, as her body was consumed with too much sugar and no way to deal with it.

My husband has been diabetic since he was six years old. His parents prayed constantly for his healing...probably still do...but they also gave him the treatment he needed to live. Does that mean they didn't have enough faith? Hardly! It means they used the common sense God gave them to care for their son.

I guess this begs the question of faith versus common sense. At what expense do we continue to pray, while doing nothing on our own to help the situation? Scripture exhorts us to "pray without ceasing". OK, so pray, but if God has provided a way of help, then take advantage of it. God, through modern medicine, has provided a way for diabetics to live a productive, healthy life. They prayed for their daughter, He provided a way of escape and they ignored what was right in front of them because it wasn't the complete healing they were praying for.

Did they ever consider the possibility that this disease was part of God's plan for their daughter's life? Part of His greater purpose? Mike will tell you he is thankful for his diabetes because of the discipline it has taught him in every area of his life. He has seen it as a blessing of sorts, not a death sentence. All of us want our children to be healthy, but it's not an all or nothing deal. We can't say, "God heal my child, or I'll just let them die."

I would venture to guess this family thinks they did the right thing. You would have to be incredibly committed to your belief in order to watch your young daughter die such a slow, horrible death, especially knowing it could easily be prevented. The mother is holding on to the notion that God is going to resurrect her daughter. I pray the Lord will minister His truth to their hearts.

Pull-out beds don't say "Welcome"

If you stay at our house, you will find yourself sleeping on a pull-out sofa bed. Now that's a recipe for a short visit! Often times we offer our master bed and bath to our guests, but it is a tug of war to get them to accept. Strong arming your guests is probably not a good bit of hospitality. Sorry folks. It's either that, or our kids twin bunk beds...your choice.

I picked up some brochures on attractions in the area I thought our guests might be interested in. No, I'm not trying to get them out of the house.

Today at Wal-Mart we picked up some shower scrunchies for them. Who wants to lug a soggy shower scrunchy in their suitcase? Yuck.

The pantry is stocked and I'll pick up some of their favorite Dr. Pepper tomorrow. I've even ordered 80 degree weather, but the verdict's still out. Where they come from, anything over 35 will be a tropical vacation. We'll sit by the pool (did I mention it opens in six days?) and pretend we're in Cancun again.

I've got some chocolates to leave by the sofa bed. Hopefully the taste of chocolate as they drift off to sleep will help them forget the bar sticking in their backs. Maybe a good, strong margarita wouldn't hurt either.

I know that no matter what, laughter and fantastic memories will abound. We vacationed with these people for two weeks, so I'm pretty sure there is nothing we can't handle.

If you find friends you can vacation with - they're keepers!

Spring cleaning - I have no choice

Jennifer over at Zaankali's Adventures just posted great before and after photos of her daughter's room. The spring cleaning bug has definitely bitten that girl.

I have no choice. I must clean my house. I don't have time to wait for the spring cleaning bug to hit. The only itch I've been having recently is the one I got when I realized the pool opens in seven days. That got me excited.

Back to why I must clean...we are having out of town guests on Wednesday staying for several days. Now granted, these are great friends and they don't particularly care what my house looks like, but there is nothing like a house full of people to make you look at those piles and cobwebs in a whole new light.

Speaking of light, I think I'll just pray for cloudy weather so the sun won't shine through my dirty windows...or I could just keep the blinds closed.

I did mop my floor tonight. Of course that was because my six year old dropped a glass jar of applesauce which exploded all over the kitchen. Did I mention the glass jar was FULL? And that half the applesauce went UNDER the fridge? Necessity is the mother of invention? Nope. Necessity is the mother of the urgent.

Kitchen floor clean - check. What are the odds it will stay that way until Wednesday? About as good as BSU winning a game in the NCAA tournament.

Enough rambling for tonight. I need to go clean something before bed.

OAMC = sanity

Several years ago a friend introduced me to the joys of once a month cooking. The thing I enjoyed most was always having the answer to the age old question, "Mom, what's for dinner?" Knowing my freezer was stocked with healthy, homemade meals gave me peace of mind and peace in my checkbook.

Because of different circumstances, I have not done OAMC in several years...until yesterday. I started out slowly, choosing several simple dishes and doubling them. Without much effort, I was able to put eight meals in our freezer. While the initial outlay of time can be a bit exhausting, the rewards FAR out weight the drawbacks.

With summer coming, I will be able to spend our afternoons at the pool and still have a great dinner waiting when we get home. That is an awesome thing ladies!

Here is one new recipe I tried last night. It was a huge hit, even with our picky eaters.

French Fry Casserole

2 lbs. hamburger (saute with garlic, onions, peppers...whatever you want to add)

1 package Lipton onion soup mix

1 can cream of mushroom soup

1 pint sour cream

corn

cheddar cheese

crinkle fries OR tater tots

Mix first four ingredients and spread in the bottom of a 9x13" pan.

Sprinkle corn on top

Add tots or fries

Bake at 350 for 30 minutes. Turn broiler on for last couple of minutes to brown fries. Sprinkle cheese on top.

If you were going to freeze this dish, mix all ingredients except for fries and cheese then freeze. When you are ready to cook, simply thaw, layer potatoes on top and bake.

What's your favorite OAMC recipe? Please share!

Pray without ceasing

We take every opportunity we can to teach our children the power of prayer.

Today during a rousing game of Candyland, my three year old burst into spontaneous prayer. "Oh Lord, help me make it to the Candy Castle!"

That made God smile.

Yes, she is learning to pray in all situations. By the way, He heard her prayer and she made it to the Candy Castle first.

That made me smile.

Zippadee do da!

My, oh my what a wonderful day! Plenty of sunshine headin' my way.
Zippadee do da, zippadee a!

Yep, the sun is shining a little brighter.

The sky is a little bluer.

Life is a little sweeter when you are finally back in the land of the living.

If you even think you might be getting the flu, run, don't walk, to your doctor and get yourself a dose of Tamaflu. Then load yourself up on NyQuil and Advil, put yourself in bed and don't get up for a week except to change your jammies. I watched so much FOX NEWS, I'm certain I could be considered a political analyst by default.

Being so sick makes you appreciate how great it is to be healthy. Even a trip to Wal-Mart is a treat. Sigh...it's the little things.

Excuse me, have you seen my lung?

I have been in my jammies since Tuesday.

No, that is not a typo. We are still sick with the flu and bronchitis. My kitchen resembles a black market pharmacy.

I cough so hard every part of my body hurts.

Here comes the good part. Despite feeling worse than I have ever felt in my life, I also feel more loved than I have ever felt in my life. We have been overwhelmed with friends calling and bringing meals to save our family from the perils of too much Captain Crunch.

It is humbling.

It is amazing.

It gives us great cause for thanks.

We may be sick, but we sure are blessed!

Finding JOY in the midst of sickness

I mentioned awhile back that I am leading a ladies Bible study on Philippians. One of the overriding themes of our study on Philippians is JOY.

JOY is a choice.

JOY is not the same as happiness.

JOY is an inner peace in the midst of your storm.

JOY is keeping your focus on God's priorities rather than allowing our circumstances to overwhelm us.

This week I can honestly say it would be easy to focus on what's going on around me. Our whole family is sick...coughs, aches and pains, stomach bugs, fever. It would be easy, given the way I'm feeling, to just sit down and cry. OK, I did that this morning already. It only served to make my head hurt worse. Then the Lord so gently reminded me that my strength comes from the JOY I find in Him. Instead of focusing on what's not right, I am attempting to focus on what I have to be thankful for. What a list it is! It is amazing how that simple exercise can change your entire perspective. I still don't feel well, but I don't feel overwhelmed anymore either.

Earlier this week, I had been memorizing Psalm 91:1-2. God's timing just makes me smile. "Those who live in the shelter of the Most High will find rest in the shadow of the Almighty. This I declare of the LORD: He alone is my refuge, my place of safety; he is my God and I am trusting him."

Lord, allow your JOY to spill over onto my family. Give me the strength to minister to them. Thank you for reminding me where my focus needs to be, even in the midst of the yuckies.

Where babies come from

Driving to the grocery store today, my six year old was telling his three year old little sister where babies come from.

"To get a baby, first you get married, then you kiss your woman!"

Hey, that boy's got his priorities straight!