Elaboration on my thoughts on the previous post

I thought I would clarify my thoughts on the quote I included in the previous post before moving on from it. Here's my take on it. I don't believe that it's sound theology to say that God would heal someone because if He didn't it could cause a lot of people to lose faith. I believe that God will do whatever brings Him most glory and accomplishes His will. That's not an easy answer either. I'll admit that. But it does explain why God may answer some prayers in the way that we would hope and others in ways that we don't much better.

I believe the poster was sincere in her faith and her statement. She's in the middle of a difficult situation. However, I would caution anyone who is giving advice to someone else in a crisis situation to be careful with statements like that. I believe with absolute certainty that God can heal and intervene in any situation. I don't know that He will choose to do so in the way that I want. That doesn't mean my faith is less strong.

Which is a stronger evidence of Christ's miraculous work in a person's life: A person miraculously healed (here on earth) of terminal cancer or wife that, though losing her husband, continues to praise God in the midst of incredible circumstances? Both scenarios are powerful and can have equal impact in increasing one's faith.

Post something

I need to post something. Yesterday marked the one year anniversary of my mom's death. I'll write more later.

I read this statement on someone's blog this morning:

And we believe with everything in us that she WILL be healed. Because we
know that God has the opportunity to show His power and love in that
healing.
And to NOT answer would be to have the chance to have people lose
faith in the
power of prayer.

The context is that their newborn baby is seriously ill. Anyway, what do you think of a statement like that?

Audrey Caroline Smith

It's been a year since Angie Smith received the news that her baby daughter wouldn't live long (if at all) after her birth. She posted a video yesterday sharing some of the final moments their family shared with Audrey Caroline before she went home to Jesus. The images and the words are powerful and a beautiful testimony.

http://audreycaroline.blogspot.com/2009/01/mourning-and-dancing.html

Almost a year

I miss having Mom's hands holding the kids. Almost a year has passed.

Ethan quote

"Moms don't go away".



I love that in Ethan's world, I am always there or will be soon.

Audrey's Birthday

Audrey turns 2 tomorrow.


It's bittersweet since Mom is gone. 1/3 of her life has happened without my mom around. I'm feeling sad about it today. Life has gone on and I don't really want it to. It would have been nice to have her around today to see Audrey playing, talking and enjoying life. It would have been fun to see her open a gift that Mom had spent time looking for and specifically picked for her.


I know as Audrey's mom I'm supposed to think she's pretty, but I really think I would think she was gorgeous even if I wasn't her mom. Look at this beauty:

Remarriage

What a provocative title, huh? This post is a collection of my thoughts and responses to the question, "Do you think that your dad will get remarried someday?"

Short answer: Yes. My father is young, handsome and a very good catch.

Very long and rambling answer follows:

I read somewhere that men who lose a spouse marry faster than women in similar circumstances. There are a couple of different factors in play, but the thing that stuck out to me about the one article I read was that a relatively short period of time between the death of the men's spouses and their remarriage was particularly hard on their daughters. I'm a daughter so that struck a chord with me. The article went on to say that it somehow made it harder for the daughters to work through their grief.

Part of me understands how this could be true. I've thought about how I would feel if my father remarried quickly. "Quickly" is a relative term. So, for this purpose, I'll define that as within 2 years of the death of my mom. It would be easy to see that as a statement about my parent's marriage. If Dad were to call me tomorrow and tell me that he found "someone", I would feel like maybe my parent's relationship wasn't as special as I thought it was if he was able to move on so quickly. I would fear that other people would look at the situation and think the same thing.

However, the truth is that my mom isn't coming back. Having my father sit around lonely doesn't mean that he loved my mom more than if he were to remarry.

Dating and remarriage doesn't have to dishonor the memory of the deceased spouse. It sometimes does in one of two ways: 1) The surviving spouse looks for a "replacement" to fill the shoes of their deceased spouse. They want someone who looks, talks, acts, and thinks just like them. Or 2) they swing way to the other side of the spectrum. The surviving spouse was so in love in their marriage that they have resigned themselves that they will never have a relationship as meaningful as that again so they aren't choosy. They just want someone to do laundry, cook supper and provide companionship. I would have a very difficult time dealing with either one of those scenarios.

The biggest deal breaker for me would be for my father to pursue a relationship with someone who didn't share a genuine, strong faith in Christ. That would spit in the face of the memory of my mother more than anything I could imagine. I can't even begin to tell you how offended I would be. If my father were to introduce a woman to his grandchildren that he wouldn't want Audrey to grow up to be like, would break my heart. I know it's not my decision to make, but that is the one and only thing that is non-negotiable for me and I would speak up about.

So, I guess that's my answer to anyone who might ask. It would be an adjustment, but unless my father was pursuing someone that didn't love the Lord, the adjustment would be managable.