The Lord taketh away and the Lord giveth

THE LORD TAKETH AWAY AND THE LORD GIVETH!!!

I know that this passage is usually reversed in our minds. The concept comes from the book of Job in the Bible. God had just allowed Satan to remove most of Job's riches, except for his wife. Job's wife, supposedly his biggest blessing from God, had just advised Job to "Curse God, and die." Job said to his wife, "What, shall we receive good at the hand of God, and shall we not receive evil? The Lord gave and the Lord hath taken away."

As I ponder, today on Mother's Day, the many children that the Lord took away from us through miscarriage, I am saddened again. Sometimes I wonder what my life would have been like if they had lived. Sometimes my grief for them, like last night at family prayer time, flows out fresh tears of sorrow as I miss my babies. Some of them would be in their late teens, with the youngest being about 5 years old.

Robert and I would have had a VERY full quiver--even according to home school standards, had our children all lived. One time a friend asked me how I was able to bear repeated miscarriages. I told her, "Robert just kept saying to me, 'You need to keep thinking about what you HAVE and not about what you have LOST!!!'"

That thought has indeed helped me as I eventually was able to accept that God intended for us to have 3 living children. Hence, although the Lord took away most of our children, He gave us THREE LIVING ONES. For a long time it was very hard thinking of all of the dead ones as "Failures". Now I see, though, that the Lord had it all planned out as He has allowed me to play a role in helping many families through my BodyTalk business. Why, just this afternoon I was blessed to be able to work with a husband and dad whose life affects many others. Praise the Lord for shaping my life in this awesome way!

As I share these new pictures from around here, I decided to continue with the taketh away/giveth theme. Pollyanna would say, "It's how you play the glad game." My goal is to help each one of you, to begin to look for the bright side of EVERY situation.

Although my grandmothers and mother aren't here to enjoy the Spring flowers anymore, I am soooooo glad that the Lord blessed our efforts to get some tulips started. Even though I was kicking myself for not getting them covered with straw last Fall, He blessed us with a thick blanket of snow that did the same thing. Here they are for ALL to enjoy. Who knows, maybe someday I'LL be that grandmother who shows her little people the pretty tulips in the Spring like my Grandma Martha did when I was little!

Even though Cora and I couldn't get the incubator to work a month ago, see how the Lord has blessed us anyway. The mother hatched them for us and we are raising them ourselves as last year something in the brush around here, did in most of our baby chicks. Even though that was bad, this year we are given a fresh chance to keep these little ones alive--and to keep them in the box. :)

This is one, "Taketh away," that is wonderful no matter what way you look at it. I wrote earlier that the railroad company came to take our rocks away. They need them on Goose Lake as the track is in danger with high water and 50 mph winds. We've been dreaming of getting the money together to bury the rocks and now they are walking away all on their own. :) This operator REALLY knows what he's doing. He climbs on top of the rock pile; starts scooping from the outside; and cleans up the whole thing in a couple of hours. I believe that one of the boys will be posting a movie of it soon.

How many of you remember my finger saga? Well, it's almost half a year since it began. I thought that you may be interested in seeing a recent picture of it. The nail is dead and it is slowly being pushed out by the new nail. You can actually see inside a fingernail as the edge of it is exposed now.

Perhaps you may recall that anger and sexuality are stored in that finger? Well, as I watch that new nail appear, I praise God that He has taken away all of the hatred that I harbored there for decades. As I ponder the new fingernail, I realize that the Lord has given me a new life now. I no longer have to helplessly cry out in despair that, "Life isn't fair!" Now I have a new life, with new tools, to help me process my emotions so that they don't have to store up in my body and cause my pain and heartache for the rest of my life. I praise God that He led me to BodyTalk when He did! He took away the BVT (bee venom therapy) and has given me BT (BodyTalk). Cora prefers the later as well. :)

And now for pictures of my greatest treasures on Mother's day--the people who made me a mother. I'm doing this in reverse order as Jacob need not always be last. Here he is using Andrew's camcorder to make the movie of the excavator I showed above.

Here is Andrew mowing the lawn for the first time this year with his repaired give-away lawn mower in our playground. There IS a fence between him and the cattle. :)

Here is my oldest living child--Cora. She surprised me right before she went to work after lunch with a mother's day gift. It was a roaster that we have desperately been needing as my 25 cent one from a rummage sale sprung a leak. She also bought a thermometer for the kitchen as ours broke. She also told me that, "These are the practical gifts, but something pretty was coming yet." Whatever that means. :)

Here Robert and I are looking at the thermometer. Robert is my faithful husband for almost 30 years. His optimism and determination have strengthened me over and over during these 23+ years of motherhood.

The last tribute I wish to make is to my loving Heavenly Father! Not only has He brought me through 23 years of motherhood; almost 30 years of marriage; and some terrible health challenges--HE HAS BEEN WITH ME EVER SINCE I WAS BEGUN IN MY MOTHER'S WOMB 53 years ago.

How I love this passage from Psalm 139: 13 - 18.

FOR THOU HAST POSSESSED MY REINS;

THOU HAST COVERED ME IN MY MOTHER'S WOMB.

I WILL PRAISE THEE;

FOR I AM FEARFULLY AND WONDERFULLY MADE:

MARVELLOUS ARE THY WORKS;

AND THAT MY SOUL KNOWETH RIGHT WELL.

MY SUBSTANCE WAS NOT HID FROM THEE,

WHEN I WAS MADE IN SECRET,

AND CURIOUSLY WROGHT IN THE

LOWEST PARTS OF THE EARTH.

THINE EYES DID SEE MY SUBSTANCE,

YET BEING UNPERFECT;

AND IN THY BOOK

ALL MY MEMBERS WERE WRITTEN,

WHEN IN CONTINUANCE WERE FASHIONED,

WHERE AS YET THERE WAS NONE OF THEM.

HOW PRECIOUS ALSO

ARE THY THOUGHTS UNTO ME, O GOD!

HOW GREAT IS THE

SUM OF THEM.

IF I SHOULD COUNT THEM,

THEY ARE MORE IN NUMBER

THAN THE SAND:

WHEN I AWAKE,

I AM STILL WITH THEE.

WOW--the Lord has showered His immense love on me since before I was born!!! He has been with me every step of the way (carrying me when it was the worst); and He has strengthened me to begin a new life when I had no will to fight to live. Oh what peace it is to KNOW that, the things which He has taken away, were not for my BEST!!!

Truly, the Lord HATH taken away the chaff from my life. Truly, what He has replaced it with--what He has given instead--is the knowledge of His presence EVERY STEP OF THE WAY!!!

HAPPY MOTHER'S DAY, LADIES!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!