God can use anything better than you.

GO read Nancy's post. I loved this growing up but I've never seen it done the way she did it.
It'll take two seconds. Seriously. GO.

A-N-Y-T-H-I-N-G

John Sills

John Sills. (Link to newspaper obituary)
1/22/1978 - 3/9/2009

He was a network specialist for our facility. He and his wife have suffered through the passing of two babies, then a few years ago joyfully adopted the most adorable babe Sydnee. Then about two years ago he was diagnosed with two different types of cancer.

The first time I saw him outside of work it was at a revival his church was holding. He and his wife were there - despite the fact that he had just gotten another chemo treatment that very morning and those were very difficult for him.

In January he was finally able to return to work after receiving a bone marrow transplant.
He had a setback, and finally pneumonia set in.
Last Friday he was given 2-4 weeks to live.
Monday morning, shortly before 5am he passed away.

I have the utmost respect for his wife. She's been incredible. You can read one of her final posts on the website they created at http://www.johnsills.com/ 2/28, she was hoping he'd soon be home.

In talking about what quirky things we'd miss most about John, someone mentioned that they'd miss seeing him praying in the chapel in the mornings, and how he would come to the chapel to fill his water cup because "chapel water tastes better" and jokingly he would say that you just couldn't be "toooo careful anyway".

I'm so glad to have known him.



"God Knows Best"
(A tribute to John Sills)


Our Father knows what's best for us,So why should we complain ...We always want the sunshine,But He knows there must be rain. We love the sound of laughterAnd the merriment of cheer;But our hearts would lose their tendernessIf we never shed a tear. Our Father tests us oftenWith suffering and with sorrow;He tests us, not to punish us,But to help us meet "tomorrow." For growing trees are strengthenedWhen they withstand the storm;And the sharp cut of the chiselGives the marble grace and form. God never hurts us needlessly,And He never wastes our pain;For every loss He sends to usIs followed by rich gain. And when we count the blessingsThat God has so freely sent;We will find no cause for murmuringAnd no time to lament. For Our Father loves His children,And to Him all things are plain;So He never sends us "pleasure"When the "soul's deep need is pain." So whenever we are troubled,And when everything goes wrong,It is just God working in usTo make "our spirits strong."~ Helen Steiner Rice ~

Happy New Year

"Lives of great men all remind us
We can make our lives sublime
And departing leave behind us
Footprints in the sands of time.
Let us then be up and doing
With a heart for any fate
Still achieving, still pursuing
Learn to labour and to wait."
Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

God bless you moms and dads.

Before I was a Mom,
I never tripped over toys or forgot words to a lullaby.
I didn't worry whether or not my plants were poisonous.
I never thought about immunizations.

Before I was a Mom -
I had never been puked on.
Pooped on.
Chewed on.
Peed on.
I had complete control of my mind and my thoughts.
I slept all night.

Before I was a Mom,
I never held down a screaming child so doctors could do tests. Or give shots.
I never looked into teary eyes and cried.
I never got gloriously happy over a simple grin.
I never sat up late hours at night watching a baby sleep.

Before I was a Mom,
I never held a sleeping baby just because I didn't want to put her down.
I never felt my heart break into a million pieces when I couldn't stop the hurt.
I never knew that something so small could affect my life so much.
I never knew that I could love someone so much.
I never knew I would love being a Mom.

Before I was a Mom -
I didn't know the feeling of having my heart outside my body.
I didn't know how special it could feel to feed a hungry baby.
I didn't know that bond between a mother and her child.
I didn't know that something so small could make me feel so important and happy.

Before I was a Mom -
I had never gotten up in the middle of the night every 10 minutes to make sure all was okay.
I had never known the warmth, the joy, the love, the heartache, the wonderment or the satisfaction of being a Mom.
I didn't know I was capable of feeling so much,
before I was a Mom.

Glory and grime

I'm still reading "In A Pit With A Lion On A Snowy Day" by Mark Batterson. Yes, yes, I started it over a month ago. When you're reading it, it's a hard book to put down. But once it's down, I find it takes longer and longer for me to pick it back up and carry on.
I'm still underlining as I go, and will share - probably later this weekend - what I've been underlining. But I got to something and had to fire up my computer just to post it for you.

It's from the book, but it's a reference to a writing by Ted Loder in Guerillas of Grace.


~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~


How shall I pray?
Are tears prayers, Lord?
Are screams prayers,
or groans
or sighs
or curses?
Can trembling hands be lifted to you,
or clenched fists
or the cold sweat that trickles down my back,
or the cramps that knot my stomach?
Will you accept my prayers, Lord,
my real prayers,
rooted in the muck and mud and rock of my life,
and not just the pretty, cut-flower, gracefully arranged
bouquet of words?
Will you accept me, Lord,
as I really am,
messed up mixture of glory and grime?