Thinking of Carter at 14....

HAPPY HEAVENLY BIRTHDAY, CARTER!

One would think that it would get easier as the birthdays come year after year.  But it seems harder, as we imagine our child another year older and very aware of the years that we have missed.  We have missed watching Carter grow up.

As we walk this broken road, we know that there is nothing other than Christ that can fulfill us.  We look forward to the coming day when we can be with Him forever and see our children again. 

"Wait patiently for the Lord. Be brave and courageous. Yes, wait patiently for the Lord." Psalm 27:14.

There will be a day when we can put all of our suffering and tears behind us and spend eternity with the ones we love..... we can spend eternity with our precious children! We have to keep on trusting that God's ways are higher than our ways.

"My thoughts are nothing like your thoughts," says the Lord. "And my ways are far beyond anything you could imagine. For just as the heavens are higher than the earth, so my ways are higher than your ways and my thoughts higher than your thoughts." Isaiah 55:8-9.

Praying that the Lord will strengthen us from within to walk in the plans that He has for us, even when its hard. Praying that the Lord will enable us to trust Him in all things. We are hanging on by the grip of God.

The Hope of Heaven

Be joyful because you have hope. Be patient when trouble comes. Pray at all times.

 

Romans 12:12

 

Remembering....

Brothers and best buds....

Falling asleep while traveling "up north"...

Lake Como 4th of July Parade...

Lake Geneva beach....

Walworth County Fair...

Good morning Carter and Toby.....

Reading in bed (with sunglasses on)  :) ...

Massage chairs at Kohl's...............

Oktoberfest, Lake Geneva...

Supper at Pizza Hut.....

Lots of time at the beach.....

I remember sitting on the side of the road, waiting for the ambulance, with Bradley on my lap; completely silent and terrified.  I remember thinking over and over in my head, "Oh dear God, how am I going to do this?" I kept thinking....there is no way I will be able to do this.  I will not be able to survive my son's death.

A stranger sat next to us in silence on the side of the road.  I did not know him.  I remember asking him, "How am I going to do this?"  And he simply answered, "I don't know......I don't know."

Time was caught between two worlds for me.....one of the past, which was so wonderful to me, and was now lying in a tangled mess on the side of the road; and the other was the future, which I did not want to face.

There is a constant darkness....a constant shadow that hangs over me.  There is no way to escape the pain of loss.  My life is truly being held by God.  I most desire to be in His presence.

I am hanging on by the grace of God.

1 Peter 1:3-12

"All praise to God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. It is by his great mercy that we have been born again, because God raised Jesus Christ from the dead. Now we live with great expectation, and we have a priceless inheritance—an inheritance that is kept in heaven for you, pure and undefiled, beyond the reach of change and decay. And through your faith, God is protecting you by his power until you receive this salvation, which is ready to be revealed on the last day for all to see.

So be truly glad.  There is wonderful joy ahead, even though you must endure many trials for a little while. These trials will show that your faith is genuine. It is being tested as fire tests and purifies gold—though your faith is far more precious than mere gold. So when your faith remains strong through many trials, it will bring you much praise and glory and honor on the day when Jesus Christ is revealed to the whole world.

You love him even though you have never seen him. Though you do not see him now, you trust him; and you rejoice with a glorious, inexpressible joy. The reward for trusting him will be the salvation of your souls.

This salvation was something even the prophets wanted to know more about when they prophesied about this gracious salvation prepared for you. They wondered what time or situation the Spirit of Christ within them was talking about when he told them in advance about Christ’s suffering and his great glory afterward.

They were told that their messages were not for themselves, but for you. And now this Good News has been announced to you by those who preached in the power of the Holy Spirit sent from heaven. It is all so wonderful that even the angels are eagerly watching these things happen."

Here's my heart Lord

Isn't it just like Carter to be making sure Toby is safe!!

Lord, please speak what is true!!

 

Lord, I need You...

Death is a gateway we all must pass through to reach that fair land where the soul's born anew, for man's born to die, and his sojourn on earth is a short span of years beginning with birth. 
 

And like pilgrims we wander until Death takes our hand and we start on the journey to God's Promised Land, a place where we'll find no suffering or tears, where time is not counted in days, months, or years.
 

And in that fair city that God has prepared are unending joys to be happily shared with all of our loved ones who patiently wait on death's other side to open the gate.

Helen Steiner Rice