The Rear View Mirror

My favorite comic in this morning's newspaper was Fox Trot. The dad asks if there are any rice cakes in the house in order to deal with his new year resolution of losing weight. The mom says "no" but reminds him he has a couple of days until the new year and he can wait to buy them. Then he explains he's talking about 2012's resolution to lose 15 pounds. She says she thought his resolution was to lose 5 pounds in 2012. He says, it was...turns out he gained ten. The last caption is the mom saying, "How very, very, very sad."

I found it both funny and sad mostly because I can relate to it. There's a lot of truth in that comic. It's ironic how very unresolved most of us are about our resolutions. I don't bother making them anymore. If there's something worth changing I best get about it right then and there. Problem is it's very tempting to give myself a couple more days before embarking on that diet.

Thinking back over this year, some of our experiences seem like ages ago and others feel as fresh as if they'd happened yesterday. It's often true that objects in the rear view mirror are closer than they appear.

Then again, so are the things to come.

Before I know it I'll have a daughter driving, then away at college. There are two more right behind her. There's bound to be more weddings, babies and funerals in the years to come. I think the more I realize this the more I have this twofold reaction.

The first is to slow down and enjoy the moments.

The second is to hold them loosely.

This life is most assuredly fleeting. I don't find many people to argue that point that aren't stay-at-home moms with multiple kids under three. Even they will admit the days drag, but the years fly. The Bible says in James 4:14 that we don't know what tomorrow will bring and our lives are but a mist that appears for a little time and then vanishes.

That's some serious time perspective.

Like the mom in the comic this morning, I'd find that very, very, very sad if there wasn't more to it than this life. So less than a week after Christmas I find myself thinking less about the new year and more about the centuries to come on a new earth with the Savior who promised to come again.

T'was the Night Before Christmas 2012

T'was the night before Christmas and all through our home
There are little clues hidden, one or two are in poems
They will guide our sweet children to their one Christmas Gift
Carefully chosen to give their hearts lift

There's some trinkets in stockings but that's about it
This year we cut down on the merchandise blitz
Instead we were focused on the present of old
Each day during advent a story was told

Of a God who left heaven and took on our flesh
As the babe in the manger you see in the creche
Though seemingly helpless He had all the power
And chose not to wield it until the right hour

His purpose in coming is hard to concieve
He came to pay ransom for all who believe
He lived His life sinless yet died on a cross
So sinners like me would no longer be lost

The treasures we'd valued are shadows for sure
Next to God's Gift they have lost all their lure
The life He has offered is bright and unending
My prayer is more open the Gift He is sending.

Sweet Sixteen

Sixteen years ago at this time I was lying in a hospital bed amazed at the miracle God had just worked. Lying next to me was a brand new person - I remember thinking she was the longest baby I'd ever seen (23 inches) - one that had been entrusted to our care and for whom we were tremendously grateful.

She was by all accounts a very low maintenance baby. She slept well, rarely cried and was very content doing the same thing for long periods of time. She had big eyes and no hair (oh the irony, her hair is EVERYWHERE now).

She was adored by all who knew her.

Sixteen years later she is still very low maintenance. She has managed to be the exception to nearly every rule for girls her age, abstaining from all the popular activities including; rolling her eyes at her parents, texting non-stop (or in her case at all), slacking on homework, swearing, shopping for increasingly low tops/high bottoms and begging to drive. She does none of these things.

She is, in fact, the anti-teenager.

She still sleeps well, once her overactive, creative mind allows her to fall asleep, still rarely cries, and we often find her in the same place for hours on end. A book or computer is usually involved.

She is still adored by all who know her.

Tonight we were treated to a wonderful display of just a few of the gifts God has blessed her with from her animated song introduction (wonder where she gets that public speaking thing from?) to her exceptional muscianship on the French Horn during the concert band's winter performance.

What a blessing Caitlin Camille is to me. She puts the "Sweet" in Sixteen.

Advent

How is it that a month has passed since my last post? The days are flying and I hear cries of "Slow down," "I need more time," and "There aren't enough hours in the day."

I wonder what the Israelites felt like while waiting centuries for the promised Messiah. I bet they were eager to have a few months pass by in a flurry.

As Christmas approaches I'm determined to concentrate on one day at a time and spend as much time reflecting as looking ahead. It's easy to get caught up in the culture's priorities. There were 178 emails in my inbox on Black Friday. About 25 of them were not from a retailer. I deleted them all without even opening them. By God's grace I exercised enormous restraint and ignored the many ads of promised value and urgent deals. It's helpful to worship (and work) at a church that is preaching eternal treasures over the temporal prized possessions of this world. I keep hearing the hymnal lyrics "Come quickly Lord Jesus" in my head.

I find that having made the decision to purchase much fewer gifts this year is allowing me to feel increasingly relaxed about "preparations" for the season. Spending time walking through an Advent devotional each day with the kids has become more important than decorating, making cookies, addressing cards, buying gifts or finding outfits to wear this season. Though admittedly there's few outfits that fit anymore and that's making the selection process much less time consuming.

Last night we read Mary's Magnificat (see Luke 1:46-55) her song/prayer of response after an Angel of the Lord told her she'd conceive a child as a virgin and that child would be the Son of God. Personally I'd have been completely freaked out if I were a young teenager who had been visited by God's messenger with the daunting news and responsibility of giving birth to the Savior. Mary rejoiced and glorified God.

It's good for me to watch the days leading up to Christmas with my eyes focused on the Scriptures instead of the advertisements. It enables me to give better gifts to those I love.

Hindsite

I made a conscious decision today not to look at anything on Facebook. M,y but how the politically inclined love to publicly gloat or lament the day after an election. Granted, the postings I'd see would be few. I don't have a FB of my own and my husband's database of friends is a fraction of some of our nieces and nephews. Who is "friends" with a 1000 people?

I'm sure the newspapers are all offering their wise perceptions too, but I went right for the A&E and Sports sections of the Tribune this morning.

Truth is, no one can predict an outcome with certainty and it seems like a waste of time to ponder "the signs" after the fact. I'm not really interested in analyzing what went right or wrong in anyone's campaign. The stage is set and my plan is to pray for every leader whether local, state or federal, and whether or not I connected a black line by their name (there was a 15 minute wait for the electronic voting).

Yesterday's news, is just that, yesterday's news. I'm much more concerned about the next four years. Or to be honest - the next four days. Because I am keenly aware that time is both fleeting and indefinite.

A friend of mine was just diagnosed with ovarian cancer. She will have surgery tomorrow and then likely chemo. She's in her early 50's. She has no idea what to expect the next four days, let alone years.

But here's the beautiful thing about my friend. Her hope isn't in the doctor's or the tests, or the treatment. Her hope is in the Lord. And that's precisely why there IS hope.

I read something today on Randy Alcorn's blog "Eternal Perspectives" and posted an excerpt below along with a link to the page if you want to read the rest of the story.

I hope I vote wisely tomorrow.

"The election is over, but the truth is that every season of our lives is election season. Voting isn’t something you do just every few years. We cast multiple votes each day. We cast votes for Heaven or Hell, for grace or truth. For self-control or self-indulgence. For the Spirit or the flesh. For abiding in Christ, or independence from Christ. For wisdom or foolishness, and blessing or curse. We can’t solve all our nation’s problems, but we can address the issues of our own hearts. Our next chance to vote is right here and right now, whether we spend time with God, pray for His help, read His Word, serve our family, help the poor, dying and needy, entertain this thought, speak these words, watch this television program, or click on this Internet site. (You already vote often; vote wisely.) The key to change and influence in this world is not, and never has been, politics. It is faithfulness to Jesus." To keep reading, use this link; http://www.epm.org/blog/2012/Nov/7/dont-stop-voting

Merciful Suffering

I had a moment this week - well actually it was more like an hour - when a dark and overwhelming feeling came over me. That hadn't happened in awhile so it took me a little by surprise. Generally speaking it wasn't one of the more difficult days I'd ever experienced so I felt kind of pathetic about my state. That wasn't necessarily helping.

The good thing was my instinct was to pray. Or at least one of my instincts was to pray. I had another to call someone in hopes of getting either some encouragement or some pity. I think I was craving the latter just a bit more. I managed to follow the prayer instinct which in my experience has always been the best first course of action.

It's interesting to me how quickly my view of my circumstances can change. The circumstances themselves don't vary much - the house has some significant unattended projects, I need to lose thirty pounds, my daughter's been sick for almost two weeks, money's been tight for a lot longer than that and so on. What I think happened in that hour was a perspective change.

I was much more consumed with my temporary situation than the eternal truths that God has so graciously shown me.

And I grossly misinterpreted my condition. It's not like I live on the Jersy shore in the aftermath of Superstorm Sandy, right? I'm sure a lot of people on the east coast are feeling a lot more overwhelmed today.

But here's what I think the thing is - God allows suffering. In fact, I would go so far as to say He sends it. I mean if He's sovereign and totally in control (and I believe He is) than nothing that happens can be outside of His providential will. So why does a good God send suffering?

I don't have all the answers to that one, but I think part of it has to do with His mercy. I may have just lost a few of you. But I honestly believe it's an act of mercy to show us how desparately we need Him. Because I can be living in the best circumstances in the world with a self-absorbed heart and a dying soul. If I don't think I need God, I"m certainly not going to pursue a relationship with Him, but if that's what He desires (a relationship with me) then He will use wisdom beyond my limited knowledge to bring it about.

That sort of stuns me. That the God who made the universe would first desire a relationship with me, and then care enough to make it happen to orchestrate events in my life that keep me close to Him.

And it's not like he's callous or unacquainted with suffering. It's the opposite - no one suffered on this earth more than Jesus. I would do well to consider the amount of suffering I avoid because He took it on Himself. And I would do better to remember that I have an advocate who can comfort me better because He suffered first and worst. Hebrews 4:15 says He sympathizes with my weaknesses. Astounding.

So I got discouraged and overwhelmed this week. But I prayed and cried for help. And God in his faithfulness reminded me to "fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God." Hebrews 12:2

I find that merciful.

Columbus Day

Pretend with me for a moment that Columbus really did discover America. Even though there were plenty of other explorers here first, including Leif Erickson some alleged 500 years prior. I know I misspelled his name, but if you google him they spell it with a "c" on some sites and a "k" on some others so I just used both. None of those sites mention the thousands of Native Americans that were lodging in the undiscovered land.

Not every state celebrates Columbus Day, but Illinois does. We close the schools and the banks and use it as an excuse to play in the beautiful fall leaves. This year even Dan took off work and we decided to take a drive up to Lake Geneva. We had thought about going on Saturday because it was Octoberfest up there but when the temperatures plummeted and the rain came we adjusted our plans. Bonus - Wisconsin doesn't close the schools for this particular "holiday" and so the downtown streets weren't nearly as crowded as we'd expected them to be on the sunny and 62 degree Monday afternoon.

We went first to the place my son had been dreaming about since the last time we were in Lake Geneva...the comic book store. The owner is almost as entertaining as the merchandise. I dare you to stump him on a character or plotline. He makes the Big Bang Theory actors look like actors.

After carefully perusing the myriad shelves of Marvel, D.C., X-Men and other assorted hereos and villains, Ryan selected his five Heroclix figures and laid out his remaining stash of babysitting money. Or he would have had he remembered his wallet. I floated him the loan. That took about an hour.

We walked up and down the cute shops and looked around before ducking into the Caribou ordering one smoothie and one coffee for the five of us and played a board game for another hour. It was glorious.

After our considerable warm up and relaxation we ventured to the beach where the wind was whipping full force off the lake. We let the kids run up and down the docks, take pictures by the fountain in front of the Riveria and pet the horse sadly bridled to the costly carriage ride before making our way to everyone else's favorite store...Kilwins. If you don't know Kilwin's I'm very sorry for you. It's the candy, fudge and ice cream parlor of yore where they make it fresh in front of you, sell it by the weight and you know your purchase will never make it back to the car.

We took a ride through the rustic drive that spans 2.6 miles just west of the town where it winds past the estates that used to belong to the Chicago Wrigley family (yes, THAT Wrigley) and other well-to-do types. We'd be happy to set up camp in any of their gatehouses or servants quarters among the splendor of the autumn trees.

We parked by the Convenant Harbor Christian Camp which has some of the most breathtaking foliage surrounding the lake for the photo op. The state of my hair in the above photo can attest to the velocity of the wind coming off the lake. That or a small dog jumped onto my head at the last minute.

We headed back to town and ate dinner at the famous Popeye's where they were serving a seasonal Octoberfest menu including locally made Bratwurst. Oh. Man.

We left just before sunset and watched the sky turn all shades of pink and orange on the way home. We were back in our driveway at 7pm.

Columbus may not have had much of anything to do with "discovering" America, but I was more than happy to use a holiday in his honor to celebrate the country we live in during my favorite season with my four favorite traveling buddies.