His Wonders Anew

 Last week's temperatures were wonderful! The sun was shining so bright and warm that the lilac bushes and the flowers in our yard began to open and show their beautiful colors.

When I was little and we lived out in the country, my mom had a lilac bush in our front yard. I loved that every spring it's purple flowers would burst open and let loose their beautiful fragrance. 

When we were looking at the house we now live in and the owners showed us the four lilac bushes that line one side of the property, I was excited!

We looked at the house in July and the purple flowers were no longer in bloom. I could not wait until the next spring when they would show their purple glory. Here we are in our second year of enjoying the wonderful colors of spring in our new home.

I do not have a green thumb so I am so thankful for the previous owners and for their green thumbs because they have left us with a wonderful array of flowers and trees that we enjoy every day.

Have you been able to experience the wonder of spring where you live? If so be sure to thank our Lord for his wonders anew each day.

"You opened my eyes to your wonders anew

You captured my heart with this love

Because nothing on earth is as beautiful as you."

Jeremy Camp "Beautiful One"

Love from the Preacher and I

We Are Just One Phone Call From Our Knees

There is a line in the song, Closer to Love, by Mat Kearney, that says "I guess we're all one phone call from our knees." 

The most recent phone call that brought me to my knees, came on March 1, at 3:06 am. My brother called in the early morning hours to let me know that our mother was being taken by ambulance to a hospital in Indianapolis. She was having a stroke. 

For the next several days we waited. She was in ICU and everyday my brother would text or call to let me know of her condition. Some days he wouldn't know what to say because things didn't look good and then there were days the news was positive.

In the meantime our soldier was home for leave. He had been away for a very long time and we were relishing every minute that we were able to spend with him. And yet, in the back of my mind, I kept thinking of the next phone call I would receive from my brother.

Our mother did improve each day. She was eventually moved to a rehabilitation center where she would do therapy for her hand and her leg. Both were extremely weak. She also had to wear an eye patch due to double vision; a condition caused by the bleed in her brain. 

At the end of March, I was finally able to go to Indiana to visit with her. She was to be released from rehab and taken to my brother and sister-in-law's house. I was to help take care of her during my week's stay, but unfortunately she had another mini-stroke on her second day there. She was then put back into another rehab facility. Each day, while visiting with her, I saw that she was improving. By no means was she back to normal, and I know that she will never be the person that she was before the stroke. 

During this entire time our churches were praying for her. It meant the world to me to have my church and my friends praying for my mother. Prayer is sometimes the only thing that you have to hang on to when you receive the call that brings you to your knees.

Thank you to those who were on their knees praying for our family.

Love from the Preacher and I