Update:
On Saturday morning I tried to do a number of things that kept me up on
my feet so I could exercise my muscles and get used to the feel of the new
foot. So I made my own breakfast, baked
cookies, and ironed my clothes. Later I went
upstairs to get something out of a cabinet.
Then after resting a bit I went down to the basement to add wood to the
fire and hung up some laundry. This was
the first time I have done a long flight of stairs; every other time has been
just doing 3 or 4 steps at a time. I was
a little winded and worn out after going up and down the stairs. With my new foot, I wasn’t comfortable
alternating feet, so I kept leading with my good foot going up and leading with
my bad foot coming down. Saturday afternoon, I practice the four prosthetic leg
exercises that I was given last week that helped me get used to the first foot quickly. With my first foot I was walking very
smoothly by the end of the first week; right now the new foot feels awkward—so
I need to put in my time using it.
Kate came over on Saturday afternoon and visited with me for a
while. I enjoyed spending time with her.
Karen and I spent the evening together at
home.
Sunday morning I headed to the church with the walker and the
cane. I used the walker to get all of my
pre-service work done. I end up going up
and down the hallway between my office and the worship area several times
before church starts. During our church
service, I used my cane. For the
message, I climbed the stairs onto the platform and sat on my barstool for the
message. It felt very comfortable. My only problem was figuring out where to
place my cane so it wouldn’t fall over (it did); one of the guys gave me a
great idea using a carabiner to secure the cane to the stool.
After church I had a number of curious kids wanting to know how I was
walking. Next week, I’ll have to wear a
pair of pants and some gym shorts so that I can show them what it looks
like. My dress pants that I have been
wearing to church are too tight around the cuff to easily slide the pants over
the knee area or around the ankle since it doesn’t bend like a really one. I am having one pair of pants altered with Velcro
on the inside seam to see how that works.
It will make dressing and undressing so much easier and quicker.
My family went out to lunch together and then I came how; took off my
prosthesis and rested the remainder of the day.
I had been up and on my legs long enough.
I don’t have any medical appointments today (Monday). That is the first time since early
January. I’ve got a number of chores
around the house that I hope to accomplish.
If it really gets up to 60 like they are forecasting, I am going to
spend some time outside enjoying the day.
Here is a sixty-second video of me walking with a cane. I’ve only had the cane three days and the new
foot for two days. I am walking pretty
well but haven’t developed the fluid smoothness of motion that I had with the
other foot yet. Just like in sports, I
have to focus on the fundamentals (mechanics of walking) and it will
develop. Still, I think I did pretty
well walking even now.
Thought for the Day:
One of the most difficult and humiliating times that the nation of
Israel has faced was the Babylonian Captivity.
God allowed the Babylonian forces to capture and destroy Jerusalem and
cart off most of the people. They were
taken back to Babylon to live out the rest of their days. As a nation, Israel was destroyed. As a religion, their faith and their God seemed
impotent. As a people, they were filled
with grief, disbelief, and hopelessness.
Nobody ever came back from captivity.
It was game, set, match.
During the time of captivity, God sent the people a prophet to speak
His truth to the people. The prophet
Jeremiah spoke words of encouragement to the Jewish people. Remember where the people were and what they
had suffered as you read the words of this promise.
Jeremiah 29:11-14 “For I know the plans I have for you,
declares the LORD, plans for welfare and not for evil, to give you a future and
a hope. 12 Then you will call upon me and come and pray to me, and I
will hear you. 13 You will seek me and find me, when you seek me
with all your heart. 14 I will be found by you, declares the LORD,
and I will restore your fortunes and gather you from all the nations and all
the places where I have driven you, declares the LORD, and I will bring you
back to the place from which I sent you into exile.” (ESV).
In the midst of disaster, of great loss of life, of humiliation, and of
hardship—God tells the people not to despair but instead to place their hope
and trust in Him. He was challenging
them to not look at their circumstance; but look to their God.
It is only natural for us to assume that God has abandoned us when things
go wrong. We incorrectly assume that if
we follow God, obey His commandments, and love Him that we will be protected
from all harm and suffering. So when bad
things happen we get mad at God for not doing what we expected. Look at the lives of the Old Testament
prophets and you will see that following God does not mean life will be easy
for you. Re-read the gospels and see
what happened to Jesus Christ—the only person who completely followed God’s
will and faithfully obeyed the Father every moment of His life. Learn from Church history how the apostles
died; read Hebrews 11 and see what fate
awaited those who had faith in God; read
Foxe’s Book of Martyrs to see how the saints have suffered through the ages;
check out “The Voice of the Martyrs” and learn what is happening TODAY around
the world.
God has never promised a clean, easy, and prosperous life to those who
believe and trust in Him.
“The next time you are in the storm, or the battle, or you feel you are on
trial, or going through travail, or suffering in the furnace, meditate on that
promise (Jeremiah 29:11). Here is what
it says: God is thinking about you personally, and is planning for you in ways
that you could never understand, let alone imagine. Let Him have His way. Your future is secure if you are trusting Him”
[Warren Wiersbe, Looking Up When Life
Gets You Down].
Henry Blackaby says that “God did not make us for time, but for eternity”
[Called and Accountable]. What he is
saying is that although our focus is upon this mortal life that spans about 70
years, God’s focus upon us is for eternity.
God knows that we will live forever and His focus is upon preparing us
to enjoy eternity with Him; not whether we are pampered and cared for in this
life.
Think of it in terms of sports. Most
team sports have an intense time of pre-season preparation. Pre-season can be physically brutal and
mentally challenging; but it doesn’t go on forever. Pre-season is not an end in itself; it is
designed to get you ready to play during the regular season. In a similar fashion, we may encounter great
difficulties and hardship in this life (our spiritual pre-season) but they help
prepare us for eternity (the regular season).
I would assume that most athletes don’t particularly enjoy the
pre-season but they understand it’s importance as they work towards the regular
season. So we too should not be surprised
by the trials that we face here and now.
Instead, we should trust our coach (God) and remember that He has our
best interest in mind as He works us in the pre-season.
Whatever you face, hang onto the promise of Jeremiah 29:11. God hasn’t forgotten you or forsaken
you. He is preparing you; so trust that
He has a plan.
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