Update:
After getting done with my morning routine on Tuesday, I loaded myself
into the truck and headed north. There
are two women in my church who have been in the hospital for over 100
days. Wow! I thought 8 days was too long, I can only
imagine how they must feel. I do know
that both of them are tired of being in the hospital and would like to improve
so they could go home. One is in the
hospital in Bloomer and the other is in Stanley. So my round trip was over 100 miles for the day. Although I knew that the women of our church
had been visiting them and sending them cards; I felt bad for never personally
being able to visit them. I know that
they understood—I was on their prayer list after all; but I couldn’t shake that
desire. So with the weather forecast for
40 degrees, I set out to visit them instead of going to my office to work. Both seemed pleasantly surprised by my visit. After being in the hospital that long—family can’t
be around every day so a visit, a phone call, or a card sent to them can really
brighten their day. I know it can be inconvenient but I’d encourage you to
contact someone you know is in the hospital or on the mend at home. Doesn’t have to be too long—just enough to
show you care. It will brighten their
day!
Once again I was struck by how much difference a caring nursing staff can
make to a patient. My thanks goes out to
all in the medical profession—but especially to the nursing staff who handle
the day in and day out patient care. They
can make all the difference by their attitude, their words, even their body
language. It seems like all the staff
are competent with their nursing skills; but there are some nurses that
instantly put you at ease; who help calm your fears and bring encouragement;
who make you feel like this is more than a job to them. Thank you!
Keep up the good work.
As I was getting my wheelchair set up after taking it out of the truck,
I was painfully reminded that there are certain places where you don’t want you
fingers to be when you snap it open.
Oww! I’m surprised that there wasn’t
bruising today. I am happy to report
that I didn’t need stitches or a splint (although I was right at a hospital, so
it would have been easy to get medical attention). I did have a chuckle thinking about hurting
myself enough to require medical attention while I am visiting people in the
hospital. I’m glad it didn’t happen!
I had a good workout on Tuesday night.
I did all of my new exercises, including the ones with the stretch bands.
The hardest one that was added was a “lumbar sidebend bridge.” The starting
position is you lie on the floor on your side, with your forearm supporting
your upper body. The knees are straight
and ankles together. Then you raise your hips and thighs off the floor until
your trunk and back are straight. Wow! I didn’t know some of those muscles existed
until they were screaming at me! “Well
hello, neighbor!” My goal is three sets
of ten repetitions on each side.
Yesterday I got through one set on each side. Give me a couple of weeks and we’ll see how
it’s going.
I am watching the village maintenance guys go by with the front end
loader and dump trucks, clearing snow away from the curb on our streets. They are forecasting up to 15 inches of new
snow from Thursday to Friday (beginning with a chance of sleet and ice early
Thursday morning), so the crews are making room for the next dump on our
already snow-crowded street. There are
perks to living on the route that the school buses use!
Thought for the Day:
Henry Wadsworth Longfellow wrote a poem
entitled, "Rainy Day."
In it he wrote that “into each life some rain must fall.” I’ve got to say that in my life I’ve had many
sunny, bright days; but I’ve also had a number of rainy days. And there have been a few days when it was
storming with high winds and it rained ‘cats and dogs.’ In other words, it stormed so hard that my
life was flooded by difficulties and troubles.
Fortunately those days have been few and far between.
We like to use metaphors when we are expressing ourselves. There is something poetic about it. Instead of just naming the cold hard facts,
we paint a picture with words. Pictures are
easier to remember than words. Metaphors
often will give us something to hang onto and make our own; and to make it
easier to talk about whatever we are facing.
The bible uses this metaphor many times throughout its pages. We learn that ultimately God is in control of
the wind and the rain and the storms both physical and metaphorically. Even our insurance policies usually include
some language about “acts of God over which we have no control.”
Psalm 148:8 “…lightning and hail, snow and clouds, stormy winds that do his bidding…”
“This image of the storm teaches us that God is ultimately in control
of circumstances… We must keep in mind
that God controls the storms… He knows
when we go into a storm, He watches over us in the storm, and He can bring us
out of the storm when His purposes have been fulfilled. At the right times, He can say to the storm, ‘Hush,
be still!’ and make it a great calm (Mark 4:39).” [Warren Wiersbe, Looking Up
When Life Gets You Down].
Isaiah 43:1-2 “But
now, this is what the LORD says-- he who created you, Jacob, he who formed you,
Israel: "Do not fear, for I have redeemed you; I have summoned you by
name; you are mine. When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and when you pass
through the rivers, they will not sweep over you…”
“God does not promise to keep us out of the storms and floods, but He
does promise to sustain us in the storm, and then bring us out in due time for
His glory when the storm has done its work” [Warren Wiersbe, Looking Up When
Life Gets You Down].
In the midst of the storm, God will often speak to us if we are
listening for His voice. So don’t be
alarmed when storms come crashing into your life. Remember who controls the storm. Trust in Him for your protection. Whatever storms you face, God is with you.
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