Remembering Carter...



Remembering our lives with Carter....

 

Merry Christmas 2009 from the Dorwin’s

Merry Christmas from the Dorwin’s!  We hope that this holiday season finds you comfy, cozy, happy and well.  2009 has been a busy, wonderful year for us with a big move from northwestern Durand, all the way to southeastern Lake Geneva!

 Carter turned eight in July.  He is enjoying his new school and the new city of Lake Geneva.  He makes a good little scout, with an interest in science and discovery education!  Attending the “Winter and Summer Camps” for the cub scouts at Fort Rice in Haugen, was a treat for him!  His Pinewood Derby was the event to be at this year, where he raced his “cool”, orange car that Grandpa Bill helped him make.  Currently, he is getting another car ready for the next Pinewood Derby in January.  Along with cub scouts during the week, and learning new wrestling moves in the Badger Youth Wrestling Club, he is a busy 2^nd grader.  His humor, along with his big heart makes us smile.  J

 Bradley will turn four on Christmas Eve.  Our little preschooler wants to be a policeman!  His animated stories entertain us.  He absolutely adores his big brother and his dad.  You would find Bradley playing with the dress-up clothes and acting out: Indiana Jones, Star Wars, a Police Officer, or a Knight.  The boys have become close brothers and it is nice to see them play together, along with our dog, Toby.  Bradley’s excitement and enthusiasm makes us smile.  J

 Chad and Nicole have been busy exploring Lake Geneva and finding all the good restaurants.  In April, Chad went to work for a business in Ellsworth, hauling sand and gravel.  Currently, he has the best job of all - and that is being “Dad”.  He is looking for a job in the Lake Geneva area, however, many of the leads that he has are positions for the Spring time – this makes Bradley happy.  How wonderful it is to think of the memories he is creating for Carter and Bradley.  Bradley will be very sad when the time comes and Chad finds work outside the home.  L

 Nicole is busy with her new teaching job at the Badger High School.  She loves her new Family & Consumer Sciences Department and the position that she has.  She completed her graduate work in August at UW-Stout, in Family Life and Human Development.  The school and community keep us busy with many invitations to all kinds of fun events.  There is never a dull moment around here.  We enjoy our boys and our new community.

 MERRY CHRISTMAS FROM OUR HOUSE TO YOURS-

CHAD, NICOLE, CARTER & BRADLEY

 

Jesus is the reason for this Christmas season. 

May your heart and home be filled with the true spirit of Christmas - JESUS!

 

I keep putting one foot in front of the other today as I did the day of Carter's death. I take a day at a time, asking God to guide me in trusting Him through every situation, even if I can't understand why it's happening.

 

Lord, even in times that are much less happy, may I still come and find joy in Your presence.

 

“Don’t let your hearts be troubled. Trust in God, and trust also in me. There is more than enough room in my Father’s home. If this were not so, would I have told you that I am going to prepare a place for you?  When everything is ready, I will come and get you, so that you will always be with me where I am." John 14:1-3

 

Memories become a treasure

 

Asking for God's comfort...

Someone posted this poem for the surviving family members of Laynie Amos, age 5:

"I'll lend you for a little time, a child of mine," he said.
"For you to love the while he lives, and mourn when he is dead.
It may be six or seven years, or twenty-two or three,
But will you, till I call him back, take care of him for me?
He'll bring his joys to gladden you, and though his stay be brief,
You'll have lovely memories as solace for your grief."

"I cannot promise he will stay; since all from earth return,
But there are lessons taught down here I want this child to learn.
I've looked the world wide over in my search for teacher's true
And from the throngs that crowd life's lanes I have selected you.
Now will you give him all your love, nor think the labor vain,
Nor hate me when I come to call to take him back again?"

"I fancied that I heard them say, "Dear Lord, Thy will be done!
For all the joys Thy child will bring, the risk of grief we run.
We will shelter him with tenderness, we will love him while we may,
And for the lovely memories, forever grateful stay;
But shall the angels call for him much sooner than we planned,
We will brave the bitter grief that comes and try to understand."

Laynie Jo Amos, age 5, joined her two beautiful cousins, Lydia & Clara, in heaven on Saturday December 14, 2013. She left this world surrounded by her parents, Kassi Milberg & Joseph Amos, immediate family and close friends at Gillette Children’s (Regions) Hospital in St. Paul, MN. Laynie was born on August 7, 2008 in St. Croix Falls, Wisconsin the daughter of Kassi Milberg and Joseph Amos.

Laynie had the heart of gold and loved animals very much. Laynie and her sister Audrie were inseparable from the time they woke up until the time they went to bed. Many memories, laughs, and joys were spent together. Laynie loved her sister very much. Most days, you would find Laynie playing outside with her dogs-Twister & Ted, gerbil- Spike, horse-Bingo, cats-Tedo & Tink and watching her fish-Cookie. If she was not with her parents, Laynie could be found with her grandparents, aunts/uncles, or cousins. When Laynie, Clara, Easton, Audrie and Lydia were together, there wasn’t a moment without laughter filling the air. Their love for each other was inexpressible and had to be witnessed to fully comprehend the depth of emotion. 

 

Can I please borrow Your smile?

Praying that I can do all things through God as He strengthens me.

 

 

Singing for Joy ... Even When the World Seems Dark

by Barbara Rainey

 

Blogs I've been reading are oozing with enthusiasm, emotion, and eager anticipation for the holiday season. Descriptions of fireplaces and hot cocoa, plaids and sequins, lights and laughter are so vivid they feel like an attempt to scatter glitter from every screen. Be warm, be filled, be happy. Let the dazzling delights of the season satisfy.

 

But for many of us the holiday sparkles only magnify our loneliness. Our losses. There has been a cloud of discouragement over my world this fall. Like a moving cold front with periodic breaks in the cloud deck or dark stretches with rolling billows, it has changed from day to day, but the external circumstances in my world have not.

 

I have a friend whose son and daughter-in-law are divorcing. Their situation is unbelievably complicated by a beyond-healing medical condition. How does my friend find joy in this season?

My daughter has lots of friends, godly young women, who long to be married but are waiting again this Christmas for that long-prayed-for, but still-unanswered, prayer. Yes, they know marriage is not the answer for all, but they also know Psalm 37:4, "Delight yourself in the Lord, and he will give you the desires of your heart." The ever-present images of happy children opening gifts with ever-smiling moms and dads is a constant reminder to these delightful young women of their aloneness.

 

Another young friend will walk through this season knowing her unborn baby has a heart defect.

It seems our prayer list of dear friends, family members, and many acquaintances is littered with challenging medical issues and broken relationships. Where do they and we find joy in this season and beyond?

 

In God alone

One of my favorite verses is Isaiah 33:6: "And he will be the stability of your times, abundance of salvation, wisdom, and knowledge." No matter the current national or world crisis, and though our eyes constantly look for the outward to satisfy, to fill us, to bring us joy, it is only found within. David said, "Restore to me the joy of your salvation" (Psalm 51:12). He knew the source was in God alone.

 

Joni Eareckson Tada gives me the perspective I need. For over 46 years she has been bound to a wheelchair and to the constant need of others caring for her physical needs.

She said this year in an interview, "In the morning when I wake up, I know they'll be coming into my bedroom to give me a bed bath, to do my toileting routines, pull up my pants, put me in the wheelchair, feed me my breakfast and push me out the front door. I lie there thinking, Oh God, I cannot face this. I'm so tired of this routine. I don't know how I'm going to make it to lunchtime. But I can do all things through You as You strengthen me. Can I please borrow Your smile? I need it."

 

Do you tear up just reading those words? I do. Do you shake your head incredulously at her impossible-to-comprehend circumstances? I do. And I marvel.

 

She went on to say, "I make myself be happy. I make myself sing because I have to. I choose the Holy Spirit's help because I don't want to go down that grim, dark path to depression anymore. Cast yourself at the mercy of God and let Him show up through your weaknesses because that is what He promises."

 

Her faith stuns me. But God eagerly waits to meet us when we come with our losses and broken hearts to His welcoming embrace. That is where joy is found in the holiday season--in a real, vital, alive relationship with Jesus Christ who willingly shrunk His deity to a single cell to then be born on Christmas Day for our sake.

 

Come to Him. Give Him your broken heart. Adore Him always as Christ the Lord. Then sing for joy that He has not abandoned us. Not for a moment will He forsake thee or me!

 

Praying "...eyes are ever toward the Lord..." Psalm 25:15

December 20, 2013

Combating Loneliness
Samantha Evilsizer

"My eyes are ever toward the LORD, for he will pluck my feet out of the net. Turn to me and be gracious to me, for I am lonely and afflicted." Psalm 25:15-16 (ESV)

Don't look his way, her heart and mind insist.

She doesn't want to look. Then again, she does. Though my friend did not check the "Plus One" box on her RSVP card, she wishes she had. Why had she come to this party alone? Maybe then she wouldn't gravitate to him.

He's reckless and destructive. My friend knows better, but he's the only one who can relate to her. Even so, she avoids eye contact, hoping to make him believe she doesn't need him anymore.

She succeeds until another round of laughter fills the Christmas party. Her resolve walks out as he walks up to her, extending a knowing hand. Fingers entwined, she falls in his snare. She can't stand him ... this companion called loneliness.

In the midst of listening to marriage, baby, vacation, life-is-grand stories, she hears the voice of loneliness, high above the conversations: You'll never have this. You'll be lonely forever.

She had promised herself she wouldn't turn her eyes to him this time. As she was getting ready for the party, she put this truth on: "My eyes are ever toward the LORD, for he will pluck my feet out of the net. Turn to me and be gracious to me, for I am lonely and afflicted." (Psalm 25:15-16 ESV)

But she forgot this hopeful promise as she fell into the trap of loneliness.

By the time the clock chimed an acceptable hour to bid her goodbyes, she was eager to be gone. One step out the door and she lowered her guard too soon. Loneliness had saved his best for last. Powerfully, he pummeled lies until she believed: You will always be lonely.

When he trotted off, leaving her alone, a different hand reached down. One that is gentle and healing. Let me help you up. Rough night, huh?

She looked up to see His scarred hand extended.

How'd You know I was here?

He tells her He's been there the whole time, always near, at the ready to rescue any time she looked to Him for help. As she faced Him, He began to untangle the false claims of loneliness with truth: I am near (Psalm 145:18). I will never leave (Deuteronomy 31:6). I am your joy (Psalm 16:11).

Hollow parts of her heart filled with the confidence of Jesus. She knew it was time to break-up with loneliness for good. Not just at parties, during holidays, or weekends with nothing planned.

Maybe it's your time too? Truth is, loneliness can tag along whether you are alone or surrounded by family and friends, on special days and ordinary days.

There's only one way to keep loneliness from being a constant companion in life. It is to make sure our "... eyes are ever toward the LORD ..." Psalm 25:15a (ESV).

Let's keep our focus on God and call out to Him when we feel loneliness setting a trap for us: in the festive times, in the quiet times, at all times.

Dear Lord, my eyes are ever toward You, for only You will release my feet from the trap of loneliness. Will You please turn to me and be gracious to me, for I am lonely and afflicted? Thank You for being near and being my joy. In Jesus' Name, Amen.

 

Third Child Dies After Western Wis. Crash « CBS Minnesota

Please pray for the families in this tragic car accident.  I am at a loss for words right now.  Please pray for them.

Third Child Dies After Western Wis. Crash « CBS Minnesota

Abby's Poem - December 2011

My cousin spent Christmas in Heaven last year,

He has been safe with Jesus so have no fear.

 

Since Carter's been in Heaven we feel very sad,

And so does his brother, his dog, his mother, and his dad.

 

This Christmas we'll gather from far and near,

To celebrate Jesus to live in his heart with those we hold dear.

 

When we think about Carter we'll always be glad,

That he asked Jesus to live in his heart when he was just a lad.

 

We can all have the gift of Heaven that is clear,

If we accept Jesus' gift of love so pure.

~Honorable Mention - Abby Klimek, age 13, Notre Dame Middle School, Chippewa Falls

Remembering Collin...

Please remember Dan & Rachel Fitzgerald in your prayers.  It has been one year since their son, Collin, met Jesus.  I have an overwhelming sadness on these days, as doubt and fear creep in.  Please lift them up in prayer, think of Collin and his family......let them know you are thinking of them and of Collin (I can't tell you how much that means....).  Pray that God's forever love will embrace their hearts with His ever-present healing comfort.  "Because He bends down and listens, I will pray as long as I breathe!" Psalm 116:2

We can't fully understand what it means for the Lord to welcome home one of His precious saints.  And we surely can't fully understand what it means for the Lord to welcome home a young child. It is also difficult to understand the joy that our loved one experiences while we are in the midst of pain.  But we do know that our Lord loves them and is with them and we do know that our Lord loves us and is with us.  "May Your unfailing love be my comfort, according to Your promise." Psalm 119:76

May God hold up and carry this family today and the days to come.  Praying for their suffering and their hurting hearts.

" Precious in the sight of the Lord is the death of his saints." Psalm 116:15





We Will Remember..

Will I Forget?

After three long years of missing you,
I have a newborn fear;
That as time goes by, my mind will fail,
And your memory won't be clear.

Already I have problems in
Remembering the sound
Your sweet voice made in speaking--
Oh, where can it be found?

I have photos by the hundreds,
And your face will always be
Engraved upon my very heart,
For you're the heart of me.

But how I long to hear your voice
And see your loving smile!
To gaze upon your precious face,
And talk with you a while.

I can't believe it's been three years--
It seems like yesterday;
Yet it also seems a million years
Since you went away.

Time doesn't work the way it did
When you were still on earth;
Sometimes it crawls, sometimes it flies,
It's hard to know time's worth.

But three years gone is three years less
I have to live alone,
And as the years roll slowly by,
Someday I'll be called Home.

And then I'll get to be with you,
For all eternity,
How precious, then, will be our time,
Each day a symphony!

Oh, always, I'll remember you
And all the things you are,
You are my son, my precious child,
My brightly shining star.

I will remember!

Loving you ever, forgetting you never,
Mom

This poem was written by Saralyn McAfee Smith, for her son in heaven, Robbie Smith.

God's Grace

Strengthened By Grace

 

May our Lord Jesus Christ himself and God our Father, who loved us and by his grace gave us eternal encouragement and good hope, encourage your hearts and strengthen you in every good deed and word. 2 Thessalonians 2:16-17

The grace of God strengthens a child of God. Like a B1 vitamin gives energy to the body, so God’s grace energizes the inner being of believers. This is why in the face of human weakness, grace flourishes. Fear weakens, but faith strengthens. Anger weakens, but forgiveness strengthens. Busyness weakens, but prayer strengthens. Noise weakens, but quiet strengthens. Stress weakens, but rest strengthens. Yes, the love of God strengthens His servants by grace!

Has your patience been tested to your very last nerve? Are you exhausted and depleted by the demands of others? Look for the way of grace to give you what you need in your emotional emptiness. Your heart yearns for what only the Lord can provide through the fullness of His Spirit. So, Christ consoles your soul with His eternal encouragement, the good hope you have in Him. Gladly and gratefully receive God’s grace like at salvation, abandon yourself to His care. Because of the disgrace Jesus experienced on the cross, you enjoy His grace when you bear a cross of pain.

It is good for our hearts to be strengthened by grace. Hebrews 13:9

Furthermore, the inner energy we receive by God’s grace is supplied for our service. This is why it is remarkable when a man or woman on their sickbed become a blessing to those who serve them. Nurses, nutritionists and neurologists go away scratching their heads having been in the presence of heaven’s emissary, a grace filled follower of Jesus. Indeed, our adverse condition is not about us, but about how we can graciously exhibit what we believe for God’s glory. Grace strengthens!

Grace gives you stamina to serve a needy child or an aging parent. Grace engages your empathetic heart with a friend’s hurting heart. Grace is the fortitude you need to remain steadfast in a relationship that is not life giving right now. So, whether strength of character or mental toughness is required, God’s grace is available as your supply chain. Grace does carry Christ’s expectations, but with it HIs power to execute. Grace is a sweet, soothing sound that is music to your soul.

I became a servant of this gospel by the gift of God’s grace given me through the working of his power. Although I am less than the least of all the Lord’s people, this grace was given me: to preach to the Gentiles the boundless riches of Christ. Ephesians 3:7-8

Prayer: Heavenly Father, strengthen me by Your grace, so I can serve others in Your power.

 

This side of heaven...

Today is baby Jacob's birthday/heaven day. He would have been six.  We would have had a six year old, seven year old and a twelve year old....on this earth! We would have been raising three busy boys....if it were our will. When we put our faith in Christ, we allow His will to happen.  This does not happen without pain, but we will see God through the pain.

 

Jacob was born sleeping....right into the arms of Jesus. My precious baby. Carter knew Jesus and loved Him and loved heaven.  Into the arms of Jesus at the age of nine.  My precious son. Bradley loves Jesus and looks forward to our life to come with the Lord, where he will be reunited with his brothers. My precious boy.

 

As we live our lives on this side of heaven, we keep our eyes fixed on our life to come. God is bigger and stronger than our own understanding.

 

Give your children an extra hug today.  Be ever so thankful for your gifts from the Lord.

 

 

"I am leaving you with a gift - peace of mind and heart. And the peace I give is a gift the world cannot give. So don't be troubled or afraid."  John 14:27

 

 

Keeping the memories alive..

When your child is no longer with you, you ask the Lord to fill your lives with special ways to keep the memories alive.

"O God, listen to my cry!  Hear my prayer!  From the ends of the earth, I cry to you for help when my heart is overwhelmed.  Lead me to the towering rock of safety, for you are my safe refuge, a fortress where my enemies cannot reach me.  Let me live forever in your sanctuary, safe beneath the shelter of your wings" Psalm 61:1-4