Been a while!

The past four months have been a profoundly life-changing emotional roller coaster ride I would NEVER have bought a ticket for. But alas, MY GOD gets to choose my schedule. He gets the reins of my days. I surrendered my life to Him over 25 years ago. Jesus be the boss of me. So when He allows nightmare loop-de-loops, I have no where else to flee but in His lap, with tears in my eyes and my arms firmly around His neck. Trusting my heavenly Father through the storms is my only choice. Who else has the Words of life?

Wednesday, September 18, 2019 will live on in infamy as the day my mommy was launched into Jesus lap via horrific motorcycle accident. She loved her bright orange Spyder! Mom and dad were on their way home from their mini-vacay Spyder getaway. She texted me and said they would be back soon, but she never came to my Bible Study that evening. During closing prayer the phone rang with the news NO ONE ever wants to hear. There has been an accident get to hospital right away. Your dad is in ICU and your mom is in ER. I PRAYED all the way to the hospital thinking, ”OH NO! Poor dad!!! LORD HELP HIM. Mom must be ok or she would be in ICU, too.”

Mom wasn’t in ICU becuase she was already in heaven. My world was turned upside down in a minute. Grief is a complicated animal that would have to wait for another day. Now was the time to be a big girl and do what had to be done. Protect dad, contact who needed to be informed, papers…funeral plans, more papers… All sorts of details that had never crossed my mind, were now tossed on my plate like an extra large helping of really bad school lunch. YUCK. Where can I return this package of garbage sandwiches I most certainly DID NOT ORDER???

Time didn’t have the decency to stop. It just kept pushing forward relentlessly and unapologetically. But the Lord was so kind and His grace so tangible there in the hospital for 26 days and then the rehab center for 50 days. I learned so much about leaning on the everlasting arms of my Savior. I said a thousand times. MY MOM was the Critical Care nurse, she would know how to help my dad. How on earth am I in charge of anything??? My mother was brilliant. I got a taste of how loved and respected she was spending so much time on her turf. First in ICU then on the floor. She knew her stuff!

Four months out today from the accident and my miracle dad is walking with the same cane he was walking with before the accident. That is a miracle! His pelvis was so broken along with his shoulders. He is my hero. I am so proud of him. The pain and suffering he has endured is more than I can imagine. Psalm 119:68 You are good and do good teach me Your statutes. Psalm 119 the musical saved my life. My thoughts were not the truth. His Word is the truth. I did a lot of channel changing and turned my thoughts OFF and His Word ON!

Life goes on. Somehow the funeral was beautiful, MPK Christian Celtic Band performed 3 concerts (we knew Mama would come back and slap us if we didn’t do the concerts she worked so hard to book), and the Our Father’s House Christmas Spectacular was absolutely spectacular! I found out you can accomplish a lot on a smart phone! I wrote a mini-musical called Chozen for a segment of the Christmas Program in the rehab center on my phone. It was a delightful distraction from the dismal circumstances.

The good news is still good. Jesus is the answer for every one of the nightmares we will ever face this side of heaven. If you get shoved into a fiery furnace, He will go in with you. I know that in HD, 3-D and 4K now.

I am so thankful the Lord gave me 46 years with my beautiful mommywommy. She is safe. Hallelujah! I miss her fiercely, but am comforted by a vision she had during worship practice a few weeks before she went to heaven. With tears in her eyes she said, Dawny, I just got a glimpse of you and I worshiping before the Lord in heaven. She was overwhelmed with the beauty of it all. Jesus is SO KIND to his kids to drop us little nuggets like that one.

That is what I have been up to the past months. I never would have scripted my life this way, but I am not the author or finisher of this story, Jesus is. Wherever He leads I will follow.

Psalm 119:112 I have inclined my heart to perform Your statutes forever to the very end.

Happy New Year everyone!

Dawn