How Can This Be?

"How can this be???" That is the question that runs through my mind as I sit here planning my oldest son's 16th birthday party!
How has this happened so fast? Why didn't someone tell me that the years would go by so quickly? Oh wait, they did! I was just too busy parenting to realize that what they were saying was TRUE!
In all honesty, though, I am so thankful to be enjoying this time of life with my son. When my children were young, I used to think with dread of the teenage years, but now that they are here, I do find myself relishing in the conversations, the laughs, the "hanging out", the late night chats and bowls of ice cream and so forth! The teenage years are like any other stage of life - there are challenges, sure, but there are also opportunities to strengthen your relationship and grow to love your child more and more! How fun it is to hear their thoughts, to challenge their opinions, and to spend time looking at the world through the eyes of a young person!
So, as I continue on with the planning, I have purposed in my heart to savor this moment. I never want to go through life with my eyes looking backwards. Instead, I want to learn to fully live in each season I am in, yet excited about what the next season will hold as well!

Boys Will Be Boys

Sunday afternoons are supposed to be peaceful, right?
Well, apparently the boys in my house didn't get the memo! Just as Jason was leaving to head to church Sun evening and I was mixing up a wonderful, homemade lasagna to have ready upon his return, our son, Luke (8) was carried into the house by his brothers and friends and his wrist looked like it belonged on some alien being! It was obvious that at the least, it was broken, and who knew what the worst case scenario would be!
Thankfully, Jason wasn't far from home and made it back in about 5 minutes and Luke was in shock, I'm guessing, because he sat there, not crying, but looking pale and sweaty instead. Immediately Jason loaded him in the car and headed towards the hospital for treatment. Meanwhile, the rest of us (friends & brothers) joined hands and said a sweet prayer for Luke and then spent some time assuring our neighbor friend (who had thrown him around on the trampoline) that we knew it was a complete accident and we still loved him and he was still welcome at our house.
Now the ironic thing about this whole situation is that we are currently in the middle of a change of insurance and March is the only month in the last decade or so that we have not had insurance coverage...of course! So, as our minds settled down from the initial shock of the accident, they began to race again from the realization of what an injury like this may cost! Emergency room visit, Orthopedic Dr., X-ray costs, and on and on and on! "Great!", was my thoughts! However, thankfully my husband had a better thought and remembered that he knows an orthopedic doctor and immediately called him on the way to the ER.
This is where my flesh was once again confronted with the reality that "My God shall supply all my needs..." and God in His sovereignty humbled me for the millionth time. Not only did the doctor meet us at the ER, but he offered to treat Luke FOR FREE and was gracious enough to add (as I thanked him profusely), "I would have been upset had you not called me".
Why do I worry when God has already promised that He will take care of His children? Why do I allow my mind to race and be filled with "worse-case scenarios" when instead I could turn to Him, trust in His words, and allow Him to work on my behalf? You would think that after being a believer for nearly 15 years that I would have this weakness conquered by now! Hopefully the next time I find myself in a situation (opportunity) where I must look to God instead of self, it is my prayer that I would remember John 16:33, "These things I have spoken unto you, that in Me you might have peace. In the world you shall have tribulation: but be of good cheer; I have overcome the world." ~ Jesus