Update:
Two hours were spent on
Saturday exercising. I’ve quickly become
comfortable using the weight bench and my floor mat to do my exercises. By the time I was done, I felt good about
what I had done and muscles were just the right level of soreness from lifting
weights.
I worked on Sunday’s
message and PowerPoint. I wasn’t
finished by Saturday night but I was going to be at the church for two hours
before the service, so I had more than enough time to put the finish touches on
everything. In the previous weeks, I
have been doing most of the work at home and then transferring everything on a
USB drive to take to church with me.
That was after I tried to email those files to my church office and they
didn’t arrive until after church one time.
But transferring everything is a hassle, so I decided this week to put
those files on Google Drive. It’s a
cloud based system, so I can access those files from any computer. I’ve done that with some of my other files—so
I decided to do it with these as well.
Saturday night I transferred the files and made certain that they were
in place. Sunday morning I got to the
church and started the computer and found that all the background (reference)
files had transferred but my sermon and PowerPoint did not. They weren’t there. I had no access to them. At that time of the morning there is no one
available at church to run back to my house to get the files and it would have
been a hassle trying to explain where to find them on my computer to transfer
them. So I started writing from memory
and reworked the message and the PowerPoint.
I finished recreating them about five minutes before the service
began. I spent the first half of the
service getting my mind out of the panting and panic mode and back into worship
mode. God showed up and the sermon went
well. Whew! Technology is wonderful when it works as
expected. Next week, I’ll try Google
Drive again AND take the files with me to church on an USB drive as well.
Karen and I went out to
lunch with the family after church. The
restaurant we picked was crowded and we waited for some time to be seated and
to be served. The food was good and
worth the wait.
As soon as I got home,
I changed clothes and immediately left to go to the Fire Department in
Altoona. There was a meeting going on
that I was invited to attend. I had a
good time being around my firefighters.
Karen had loaded my wheelchair in my truck and I drove myself to
Altoona. When I arrived, I figured out
how to get the wheelchair out by and got into the building by myself. Yeah!
Another step towards independence!
After the meeting, I had a firefighter help me load the wheelchair back
into the truck.
Karen was at home and
got me back inside safe and warm. We watched
a couple of “Star Gate SG-1” episodes and then headed to bed.
Since it was Monday and
my day off, I slept in until 6:30 a.m. I’ve
had a relaxed, enjoyable morning so far. I read the Sunday paper, talked on the phone
with someone from church, and then read my bible and some other thought
provoking material. It is about time to
get going on another two hour exercise routine.
Then after that…who knows?
Thought for the Day:
Psalm 126 A song of ascents. 1 When the LORD
restored the fortunes of Zion, we were like those who dreamed.2 Our
mouths were filled with laughter, our tongues with songs of joy. Then it was
said among the nations, "The LORD has done great things for them." 3
The LORD has done great things for us, and we are filled with joy. 4
Restore our fortunes, LORD, like streams in the Negev. 5 Those who
sow with tears will reap with songs of joy. 6 Those who go out
weeping, carrying seed to sow, will return with songs of joy, carrying sheaves
with them.
This psalm is set after the Babylonian captivity as the people are
returning to the land of Israel, something that they thought would never
happen. Their initial response is joyful
wonder as they flood back home. God has
done the impossible and the improbable!
But the people have been gone for 70 years, and so the land has been uncultivated,
hard and wild. There is much backbreaking
work to be done and it will take years of labor to restore the land. Those who return to the land remember the
stories of what life had been like when Israel flourished. None of that beauty and bounty remain—as they
look around they see only barrenness and hard work ahead of them. So as they go out to the fields to plant seed,
they cry. They cry over what has been lost. They cry at the effort life now takes. Despite their tears they go and plant. God promises that those who “sow in tears
will reap with songs of joy.” In other
words, He tells them “Yes, now life is hard brings sorrow; but don’t lose faith
and do the right things and in the end good things will come and your hearts
will be filled with joy.”
As I read this Psalm, I saw the parallels in my own life. I am in the middle of my hard time. There is sorrow because I lost my leg. I lost my freedom and independence. I lost the ability to go up and down
stairs. I lost my future and what I
thought life would be like. I almost
lost my life. I have to work hard to go
anywhere and to do anything. I am tired
of sitting in this wheelchair most of every day. Right now I am spending up to two hours per
day exercising to get my body ready for wearing a prosthesis. I am spending time every day filling my mind
and spirit with inspirational thoughts.
I focus on the future and what it will be like when I walk again. Life will be better than it currently
is. In the end I will reap a harvest of
joy; I should be walking and enjoying life again without pain. My life will be restored. Almost everything that I have lost will be
restored at least in part if not in whole.
What is not to celebrate? In the
end, I will be healthier, eating better, down to a healthier weight, etc.
My goal is to remember the past and how I got in this position so that
as far as I able, I will not relive it.
My focus currently is on doing the things necessary to bring about the
future that I wish to enjoy. My strength and determination comes from faith in the Lord God Almighty.
My purpose in sharing my life and struggles is that you might be
encouraged and challenged to face the difficulties in your life and become an
overcomer by reaching out to God and find the resources you need.
As Jesus prepared His disciples for His upcoming death, He shared many
things. In John 16:33 He said this, “I have said these things to you, that in me
you may have peace. In the world you
will have tribulation. But take heart; I
have overcome the world.”
May the peace of Christ fill your heart and give you the courage to
face whatever difficulties you face.
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