Praise

Because of the Lord's great love we are not consumed, for His compassions never fail. They are new every morning; great is His faithfulness. I say to myself, "The Lord is my portion; therefore I will wait for him." The Lord is good to those whose hope is in him, to the one who seeks him; it is good to wait quietly for the salvation of the Lord.
~Lamentations 3:22-26, emphasis added

I love Friday mornings. This is my day off, and every Friday I wake up at least an hour before the kids and do quiet time. After a series of "Calgon, take me away" moments throughout the week, I'm able to wake up and be refreshed (so much more than Calgon can do) before I spend the day with my little ones.

This morning, the birds are chirping. The snow has melted, and spring at last seems inevitable. My family is healthy, and I think I'm going to avoid the doctor's office, too, this week--praise God! Little Nathan's (www.caringbridge.org/visit/nathanmclean) latest tests have come back normal!!! It seems that sanity may prevail in the California homeschooling debacle. Our taxes are almost finished, and I've found someone to help me get Neeny's done. 2 of my kids with reading disabilities are fussing over who gets to read Mary Shelley's Frankenstein first--a year ago, I'd have never imagined this to be possible.
These are incredible gifts, each of them, and God didn't owe me one of them. His mercies are new every morning!

While I'm full of gratitude, I must also share that this winter something kind of big has been working itself out in my own heart. I've determined that "even in the shadow of death, I will praise Him." Which sounds pretty 'Sunday School,' and definitely is a late start for someone who's already 30-ish, but for me it means that if I were sick today, I would give Him thanks this morning. If my kids at school weren't reading, if Neeny's taxes were a mess and expensive, if something happens to someone in my own family, I am resolved to do more than survive...I want to praise Him, to thank Him for his faithfulness that never comes to an end. God is so, so good. Not just Sovereign, but good. It is easy to acknowledge God's role as King of creation. What's harder, sometimes, is acknowledging that sometimes things that hurt, or don't make sense, or just plain stink, are going to be used by Him for good, too. There's a trust issue at the heart of it, and I guess what's been happening all winter in me is that I've learned to trust Him. We read to our children from The Jesus Storybook Bible by Sally Lloyd-Jones, and every time that book tries to explain God's love, it says "God's Never-Stopping, Never Giving Up, Unbreaking, Always, and Forever Love." Yeah. Like that. It's like not focusing so much on the situations in life that can be so debilitating, but focusing on the person of God who, well, heals the debilitated. With a word. Or a brush of His robe.

Kaela just woke up. She came into the kitchen, and I told her what God is showing me today out of his unfailing compassion, and I sang the song to her, "The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases, his mercies never come to an end....they are new every morning, new every morning, great is Thy faithfulness, O Lord! Great is Thy faithfulness!"

She answered, "Mom. (like, duh) I already know all that.

Faith like a child, right? :)