Life by Grace Alone

Many years have passed since I wrote this to my mom for her eightieth birthday. reading this reminds me how well I have been blessed.                                                                                                                              80 years, like 16, 21 and 40  is a year that should not pass without special notice. This is a marker of life that should not pass without special note. For fifty years I have observed the clear patterns of your life. It was Aunt Pauline that told me why we left our small house to live at Poppop's farm for nine years. I knew in many ways those years had been hard on you. Poppop's series of small strokes made him ha...

   My daughter in law made us a  blanket decorated with farm animals. This was a Christmas gift that stayed out after the tree and the decorations were long out of sight. On cold sleepless nights the throw kept at bay the chilly air. Steve had his medical emergency and the blanket when he finally came home became his. The blanket and her late night visits to Steve while he was in the ICU. made Kay's status of daughter number 3 crystal clear, I felt her love for us every time I stroked the softness of the fabric or saw the outline of farm figures on the blanket. Two large checks came from a former church home.  God has blessed us in a multitude of ways, Most recently we had our bathroom redone to make it more user friendly,  More than half was paid for by others , Over a year has passed since the first surgery, He has gone from near death to now preaching often and other forms of ministry, Blessing comes from many sources but I know God is the one who blesses t...

Jess, Steve and I were waiting in the ER, After time in 3 medical institutions we were now back to the first ,waiting for a doctor to appear. He had been released from the third place but not enough progress had been made and so we were back to the place we started. Our spirits were anything but high and then I remembered a favorite hymn. Our daughter's beautiful voice would be a distraction as we waited. She looked up the words on her phone. What e'er my God ordains is right His holy will abideth. I will be still what e'er He doth And follow where he guideth. After the first verse Steve joined his voice with his daughter's clear confident tones. The father daughter duet continued. He is my God, though dark my road. He holds me that I shall not fall . And so to this I leave it all. And so to this I leave it all. Two voices together singing of their confidence in God's will no matter how dark the road. Both voices belonged to two people who had gone t...

47 years ago I married a strong and brave man. Over the years I watched him charge forward on hiking trails, persevere as he moved furniture,and worked in the yard. His energy level often topped those who worked with him. A huge difference occurred before thanksgiving. After a plane flight to Vermont and than about one day after a flight home he flew to Florida. We did not realize how God protected him from harm. After conferring with his doctor he entered the hospital which culminated in triple bypass surgery. It soon seemed that every complication that could have occurred did happen from legionaire's disease to a bad reaction to a drug. Thanksgiving slid into Christmas and then suddenly the new year arrived with no fanfare. As a family it felt like we were treading water, Finally he was transferred to a rehabilitation clinic, the third facility. Although strength is slowly returning, he still has a long way to go. Strength is usually defined as physical strength. As some of...

I remember well the first kiss. We had been dating for a while and he had just taken me back to my home. He kissed me gently and then I floated into the apartment. I sat down and then stood and rushed to my friend across the room. "He kissed me" I said with wonder radiating from each word. I hugged my friend as I waited for each of us to absorb all that I said. 48 years have passed since the night of the first kiss.Now after 4 children I am again sparked by my man's kisses. Each light kiss feels like a jewel has been deposited in my account. Unlike the first kiss these kisses come as I lean over a hospital bed. Over 2 months have passed after he had heart surgery. Our interaction is confined to a hospital room and even though he has suffered complications he still slowly but surely by God's grace moves forward. We have no hugs or long kisses, no long walks holding hands. What we do have is the sign language for "I love you", the holding of hands and sweet ...

A month and a half have gone by since I turned seventy. Recently I came across a letter I wrote to my grandmother when she had celebrated her 90th birthday. It was clear how my words applied in some measure to myself. I was 25 when I wrote these words to my grandmother in honor of her birthday. Little did I know how much encouragement I would receive from my own words 45 years later. Recently I saw a movie in which a man told a woman that she wasn't just 40 years old but that she was also 40 carats. By this he meant that just as a diamond becomes more valuable with each carat,Grandmom each year you become more precious to me. More importantly since you are a Christian, each year God takes the joys and sorrows of your life and uses them to make you more and more like His son, Jesus Christ. Even when you are unaware of it He is working to make you into a more obedient child of His. Just as we can't deserve to be saved by Jesus from our sins neither can we merit any of the wo...