Faith, God's Presence, Marriage, Parenting

The Birth of Peace

by hcfwomenLeave a Comment on The Birth of Peace

Five years ago, after three years of trying, we became pregnant with our sweet miracle Jude. From the very beginning we had complications with the pregnancy. I was always in a constant state of fear. We waited so long for this baby and our hearts ached for him.

At 34 weeks, my placenta ruptured. I found myself in the middle of the floor, and Bret called 911.  I started to replay my night. Did I feel him move last night? Fear crept in. I started to doubt, thinking, Did we make it all this way, and we are going to lose this baby?

The ambulance arrived within minutes. I was put under anesthesia and rushed for an emergency C-section. When I woke up I had an empty belly and a 6″ incision. As I waited to see Jude, anxiety and fear overwhelmed me, crippling me into multiple anxiety attacks. That anxiety and fear basically became a part of me and ruled the next year.  I would be so distraught with Bret leaving the house or simple day-to-day tasks. It took many months of constantly calling that fear out before I felt “normal” again. There was no way I was going to have another baby. Why would I knowingly put myself or my family through all of those emotions of another pregnancy?

Fast forward to almost a year ago. I said that the only way I was going to get pregnant was if we had a “Mary” kind of moment, where she wasn’t planning on having a baby but God had better plans. There was still so much fear that surrounded being pregnant, anxiousness for whether we would have the same pregnancy with bed rest, or if we would have an early baby, or an awful post-partum that included emotional and physical stress in our marriage.

At the beginning of January, I was in such denial that I could be pregnant that it took a friend coming over with a test and a Starbucks to actually confirm I was pregnant. I took the test(s) and…  No fear, no stress, no anxiety. Peace. God gave me this immediate and overwhelming peace over the pregnancy.

At 32 weeks Bret and I hit our knees in prayer about home birth. In my mind, I thought I was crazy for even pondering the idea of giving birth at home, but it was around this time I had a dream. The dream took place in our home with worship music in the background, and during each contraction I was on my knees with my hands lifted high, giving glory to God. It was after that dream that each time I thought of having Scarlett at home, I thought of that God-given word… peace.

The night that Scarlett came the lights were dimmed. Worship music was blaring in the background. As each contraction passed Bret would pray and proclaim over the labor, me, and Scarlett. We sang worship songs through contractions, words like “It’s your breath in our lungs.”

Not an ounce of fear ever swept in. That spirit of fear was replaced with boldness and peace. Scarlett made such a fast appearance it was unreal. This baby girl took her first breath in the most peaceful, spirit-filled way I could have imagined. The Holy Spirit was undeniably there. He transformed a birth that was surrounded by fear and anxiousness into a birth of peace and boldness.

I pray that by sharing our story, it can bring someone hope during the trials. God is eagerly ready to release us from whatever it is, fear, anxiety, or shame.  He hears our prayers and truly wants to give us our heart’s desire by giving us power through His Holy Spirit.

Isaiah 41:10 –

So do not fear, for I am with you, do not be dismayed, for I am your God.  I will strengthen you and help you, I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.

Romans 15:13 –

May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.

This post was written by Kendra Huey. To read more about her, click here. 

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Hospitality

Creating a Welcoming Place

by hcfwomen3 Comments on Creating a Welcoming Place

I want to be like Betsie ten Boom when I grow up.

She was a sister to Corrie ten Boom, who wrote The Hiding Place, which chronicles their family’s courageous decision to hide Jews in their home during WWII. Betsie found joy in flowers, cups of tea, and the blue sky. Even while in the concentration camps, she was astoundingly able to create a place of order and beauty. God gave Betsie dreams and visions of establishing places of refuge and peace for those ravaged by the war…even though she never saw it actually come to pass. She wanted these places to have gardens and lots of flowers.

Betsie told her sister, “It will be so good for them…watching things grow. People can learn to love, from flowers.”

I love that. I want to create a place of beauty and welcome for those around me.

One of the first places that we create beauty is in our own homes. We create places of peace for those who daily live in our home, and we also open up our homes to others.

It doesn’t have to be perfect. In a way, this is opening up your life and heart to people, and extending the invitation for them to do the same.

To invite people into our homes is to respond with gratitude to the God who made a home for us.

It can be simple. It doesn’t have to be complicated. Use what you have. Be creative. Improvise. One of my favorite things is to have a bowl of mints on my desk at work. In a small way, I am saying, “Come in, you are welcome here; you are valuable.”

It does have to be intentional. As impersonal as it may sound at first, get out your calendar and write down when you want to have people over. Schedule a time and stick to it.

Take time to make things around you beautiful. What does beauty look like for you? What makes you take a deep breath and relax a little bit more? What makes your heart happy? Surround yourself with these things.

When you are at ease and your heart is open, your guests’ will be, too.

This post was written by Heather Dillard. To read more about her, click here. 

Faith, Fruitfulness, Health, Scripture

My Struggle with Depression–and My Healing

by hcfwomen3 Comments on My Struggle with Depression–and My Healing

God has done so many wonderful things in my life, giving me many stories to tell of His goodness.  One story involves a battle that I have fought three different times in my life—chemical depression.  I have often had background skirmishes, but three times the battle has been more intense.

When I say they were major battles, I am not saying that flippantly.  Each episode had different degrees of symptoms but some overall themes were:  great anxiety, strange physical symptoms, total lack of hunger, inability to sleep, feeling hopeless (and you sure need hope in this!), and inability to concentrate.  My whole body would feel weird, and it seemed like I couldn’t remember feeling normal.

This particular story was during the worst episode which occurred after the birth of my first daughter in the form of post-partum depression.  I hardly even want to go there to explain how dark a time period that was, but that’s also when I saw God’s hand move in a miraculous way. When you have endured several months without sleeping, without much eating, and with no peace whatsoever it can wear on you in a big way, especially when caring for a baby.  We lived in Houston at the time, and my mom came to help me.

I remember crying out to God out of total desperation in my closet one day (yes, I sometimes pray in my actual closet).  The next Sunday at church I met someone during the greeting time named Sandy.  Our church was fairly large (a few thousand people), so I didn’t know everyone and I hadn’t remembered seeing her before.  I had to leave to go to the nursery to tend to my daughter which happened so often that everyone knew my number on the screen—0012 (which I still remember 20 years later).

While I was gone Sandy came to my mom and asked her if I was going through a hard time, and my mother briefly explained the situation.  Sandy replied that God had put it on her heart for several days to pray for a person named Karen who was going through great difficulty.  When we had met, she was very intrigued that my name was Karen and asked the Lord if I was the one she had been praying for which the Lord confirmed.  Through that encounter we talked more, and she relayed to me that the battle would end and it helped me get started on a different path.  It sure wasn’t immediate by any means, and many dark days were still ahead.

Yet, I cannot describe what comfort it was to me for the Lord to reach out to me in that way to let me know that He saw my pain, that He sent someone to pray for me, and He gave me hope that I would get past this battle.  He met me where I was!

God is so great and loves us so much.  God not only helped me in this supernatural way, but He revealed to me some ways in the natural to combat the depression as well.  When I say depression, that can mean anxiety or depression or a combination.  I learned that they are two sides of one coin.  They both are the result of a serotonin deficiency, and your body and personality may just manifest them in different ways.

As for supernatural means to fight it, obviously, we should first seek God to show us what we in particular need to do.  Due to your brain feeling so muddled when chemically depressed, that may require the help of Godly friends (or a counselor) who will seek God with you.  Here are some supernatural weapons that I found to be effective for me:

  • Praying God’s Word over myself, declaring that I have the mind of Christ (I Corinthians 2:16), that no weapon formed against me will prosper (Isaiah 54:17), that great is my peace (Psalm 119:165), and that God’s peace would guard my mind (Philipians 4:7).
  • Praying in tongues, especially when I didn’t know what else to pray.
  • Praising God! The Word says that you put on (like clothing) the garment of praise in exchange for the garment of heaviness (Isaiah 61:3). This could be through music or by pouring out the praise in your heart to Him in plain words.
  • Keep standing! Sometimes existing for another day is a victory and one step closer to complete victory.

As for natural weapons, medical research is making great strides in this area. (I grew up wanting to be a doctor, and I read these types of things because they are so interesting to me.)  Recently, research has pointed to inflammation in the body (or even an allergy to inflammation) as being a cause of depression, but there are many, many causes, and there are many effective natural ways to battle it:

  • In terms of drugs, in my three battles, one time I used a natural herb (St John’s Wort), once I stuck it out long enough that the depression eased on its own, and once I took a prescription anti-depressant. You have to do what’s right for YOU, receiving no condemnation for what path you feel is best in this area.
  • Cardiovascular exercise has been shown to be as effective as a prescription anti-depressant if done regularly.  (The scientist in me wants to give references for this but it is pretty prevalent anywhere you want to look this stuff up.)
  • Taking an Omega-3 oil supplement (or flaxseed or walnuts) is great for the brain.
  • Finding out what is a trigger for you can help. In the most recent battle, my doctor and I realized that the three times that have been true battles for me were all associated with a major drop in hormones.
  • Seeing a medical doctor to be tested for things like low thyroid or even food allergies/sensitivities.
  • Making sure to do everything in your power to be thinking right thoughts.
  • Having a good, loving circle of friends standing with you (or God can even provide a stranger like how He did for me in Houston—He’s limitless!).
  • Talking to a counselor. I do think that if there are any underlying physical causes then addressing those first helps the therapy to be even more effective.

One more word to the wise:  I found that everyone has an opinion about depression and anxiety.  Some will say it is only caused by hormones out of whack because that is what their experience has been.  Some will tell you that you are just not thinking right, and you just need to start thinking right.  Others may say that prescription medicine is the only way to go.

I think of it as how different blind-folded people see an elephant—the one holding the trunk think it’s hard, the one holding the tail think it is feathery, the one holding the legs think it is like a tree.  Our understanding of depression is so limited at this time and can have so many DIFFERENT causes and cures.  The good news is that God can see “the whole elephant” and knows how to deliver you!  Our victory is assured as we follow His pathway to deliverance!

This post was written by Karen Earhart. To read more about her, click here.

**Note: This is one person’s story, and not advice from a professional doctor. If you are in a place of depression, please contact the HCF offices for a list of trusted counseling resources (click here for Campus contact numbers).

Grief

On Grief

by hcfwomenLeave a Comment on On Grief

Grief can occur from a multitude of things. I grieved when Daddy was diagnosed with cancer. I grieved when Mother was diagnosed with dementia and I realized that the mother I had known was lost to me. I grieved when each of them died. All three forms are the same process, the same pain.

There are 5 stages to grief:

  1. denial and isolation
  2. anger
  3. bargaining
  4. depression
  5. acceptance

You don’t always go through them in order, and may not experience all of them. Grief is unique to the individual, and can hit you out of the blue: in a movie, at the store, when you pick up the phone to call them and realize that they aren’t there to call.

You have to allow yourself to grieve. There is no correct amount of time and no right way. It is personal, but if you don’t allow yourself to heal, you can move into complex grief, which requires professional help.

One of the hardest things in dealing with grief, is that while you are dealing with yours, and trying to hang on, others are dealing with theirs, and trying to hang on, and you are thrown into the mix together.

There are 3 personality types for expressing grief:

  • Intuitive mourners– touchy, feely, comfortable with emotion. Sensitive to others. Less able to rationalize and may appear more overwhelmed and devastated.
  • Instrumental mourners – seek accurate information, analyze facts, make informed decisions, problem solvers. They may appear to others as cold and uncaring, seeming to be dispassionate and detached
  • Dissonant mourners – in conflict between what they experience internally and what they express outwardly. They are in conflict with themselves and want to avoid it. They struggle to hide their true feelings in order to maintain the image they want to put forth. They may condemn themselves and feel guilty for not feeling what they think they are suppose to feel.

Whichever category you are in, to you that is the right way. It is easy to judge others and be angry, but it is important to remember to have grace for those in the other categories, too.

In the body of Christ, we are gifted in different areas. Some are merciful, others are nurturers, others servants. But as we grow in Christ, we try to develop all of these areas within ourselves, and learn to do what doesn’t come naturally.

The way you handle grief and caring for elderly parents can be viewed in the same way. We need to step up and do whatever needs to be done. Do your part and let others do theirs, in all areas. You need each other, and need to help each other stay healthy.

There are people willing to help you. Let them. Find someone who has experienced it, and ask questions. Turn to your family and friends. They are the physical hug from the Living God Who will get you through this.

This post was written by Darla Carthel. To read more about her, click here. 

Fruitfulness, Marriage

Starting by Resting

by hcfwomenLeave a Comment on Starting by Resting

…He who has entered His rest has himself (herself) also ceased from his (her) works as God did from His.  Let us therefore be diligent to enter that rest.

Hebrews 4:10-11

I have been an over-achiever since I was a child.  I came from a home that was very poor, with an alcoholic father.  My way of coping was to do everything better than anyone else. I dreamed that I would get out of the life I had as a child, get married, have 2 or 3 kids, and live “happily ever after.” The common denominator in this is “I.”

Of course, living with a fighting mother and father, I didn’t know how to be a good wife; I didn’t have a good example. But I was determined. In 8th grade, I went to a church with a friend, and stayed for 21 years.  My feet hit the floor running. I volunteered for everything. I could do it all and I could do it with excellence. There is the “I” again.

I grew up, graduated, and got married. Again, my hands and feet went into action. I bet I had the cleanest house of any one, and that is not an exaggeration. I was obsessed! Then it was time to have those children. They would be the prettiest, most well-mannered, and the BEST. But there were no children…It was a downward spiral that wouldn’t stop. And then divorce.

A baby learns to sit first before they crawl, walk or talk. The Christian life should also start this way. God “raised us up together, and made us sit together in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus” (Ephesians 2:6). How well we work depends on how well we sit in His rest because of the finished work of Jesus.

The children of Israel wandered in the wilderness for 40 years because they didn’t sit in His rest. I wandered in the wilderness for many years because I did not learn to sit in His rest before I learned to stand and walk in His presence. I was not taught the finished work of Jesus was all it took.

As most of you know, I am now married to Dewitt, a man after God’s own heart. And he is a true servant. We just had our 21st anniversary last week, and our life together is good. We do rest in the Lord together. Has our married life always been great? No…we didn’t start our life as we should have, serving the Lord. But since we have been at Harvest, we are growing leaps and bounds in our walk and in our marriage. We still do volunteer, but I have said “no” also. It has been a struggle, but we are so happy and enjoying a blessed life.

If I can be of any help to anyone that is just starting their lives together, that is my prayer.  Don’t do the way I did. Start in His rest.

So today:

If you will hear His voice, do not harden your hearts…be diligent to enter that rest.

Hebrews 4:7,11

This post was written by Debbie Crosby. To read more about her, click here. 

Faith

Easter’s on the Way!

by hcfwomen1 Comment on Easter’s on the Way!

If my life lately has a metaphor, it’s the Good Friday through Easter holiday. Frankly, I’ve been stuck on Good Friday (that awful day) for a while!  My husband and I have weathered deaths, our parents’ changing health (including my mom having a major heart attack and going into full cardiac arrest in front of me), my husband retiring from farming, various other major life changes, and our son graduating from Tech and moving 10 hours away. Those things plus the everyday-ness of life has just be A LOT lately. It’s been the Friday before Easter in our lives for many months.

But…the hope beyond those seasons of ‘Fridays’ is that Easter—that glorious fulfilment of Scripture—is on the way!! I’ve often asked myself, “What would you do without your faith in Him? Where would you be without it? What if I didn’t have the promise of the cross?” I tell the Lord often, “We have come so far,  you and I.  You have been so good to me in the midst. You alone have shown me the path through this season of sacrifice, pain, sorrow, change. You alone have gone to battle before me and for me. Thank You. Thank You. Thank you.”

Philippians 1:6 often comes to mind…actually I’ve worn it out by leaning on it so much!  Simply put, God finishes what He starts. He carries it through. In the ugly, the good, the tears and the laughter, He never fails us. That scripture goes on to clarify that He will carry on that work until His return. Wow! What a promise!

The kicker is that while He’s doing His thing…you know, carrying on the work He’s started in me…am I doing mine? Am I trusting Him on the Good Fridays of my life? If I were honest, I would say that’s where the lesson is for me now: to lean into Him and not to lean on myself or circumstances. To fully trust in Him and His Word is the only rest and hope I have that I will even make to my ‘Easter.’ To drop off my fears and worries at the foot of cross because, as His child, my burdens are His to carry. He paid a beautiful, terrible price for them.

In the Bible, a lot happened in those three days between Good Friday and Easter Sunday! Christ’s crown of thorns was removed, death was overcome, the grave was emptied in the most wonderful example of God finishing was He started!  I’m so thankful to have Christ in my life! It may be Friday for me today…but Sunday’s on the way!!

This post was written by Deborah Smith. To read more about her, click here.

Family, Parenting, Scripture

Thoughts on Parenting from an (Near) Empty-Nester

by hcfwomenLeave a Comment on Thoughts on Parenting from an (Near) Empty-Nester

teensThe year was 2012, and our son Logan was graduating from high school and moving away to college.  I found myself in a bit of a panic, thinking, “Yikes! Have I instilled in him every value I want him to live by?” Well…the answer is hopefully yes but probably not (As a parent, you’re encouraged by that, I’m sure).

In truth, there are lots of things I wish I had known over the years of raising my kids. I wish someone had informed me that no matter how many times you help your son clean up his room, there will be that one random Lego under his bed that you suck up in the vacuum cleaner, causing racket that will make you believe that every screw is vibrating loose and rendering said vacuum useless.  Or that junior high girls turn into oversized whiny toddlers with competing desires to wear makeup and NOT deodorant. I should have mentally prepared…

Reflecting back, though, there were principles that became pivotal to how Lyle and I raised our kids to pass along our faith. We lived with Deuteronomy 6:6-8 as our guide: Teach the Word to our children as we walk through our daily lives. I am going to assume that you already want to read the Bible with your children and pray with your kids as you parent, so I hope these additional ideas will be fresh for you:

1) Boys need to hear the voice of their father in their ear (as their father is listening to THE Father!). In John 12:49, Jesus says He only speaks what His Father commanded Him. As a wife, I have prayed for my husband to hear what the Lord tells him to do, just as Jesus did. I grew up with a Marine father and am generally about as tough as a mom can be, but all that toughness often translated to nagging in our son’s ears. The concept of respect is deeply engrained in males, however. So enter Lyle, the father, who could say LITERALLY THE SAME WORDS as I did, but Logan—because he desired his dad’s respect—would obey.  Mamas, let your man take the reins, even when it’s difficult to agree with his method of discipline.  You’ll earn your husband’s admiration and (hopefully) your son’s cooperation.

2) Show interest in your daughter’s interests so that you can remain connected and speak truth to her. We spent our time with Leah hearing about My Little Pony, reading Lemony Snickett books, talking about school friends, boys, and watching romantic comedies…and through that investment God provided unexpected opportunities to share our perspectives (and the Word).   I will admit that paying attention is not always easy, especially if you disagree with your daughter’s latest pastime, but combining that questioning with a loving community allows them to grow.

In creating an environment where sons and daughters are loved and guided, your home will be a place where faith will be taught AND caught!

This post was written by Shelli Jarvis. To read more about her, click here. 

Marriage

It’s Okay: Ask for Help!

by hcfwomenLeave a Comment on It’s Okay: Ask for Help!

Last week, I had to go to the store after work—and then Howell went with me again after I got home because of an important item I’d forgotten in my hasty visit.

I’d spent hardly any time at home between grocery store one and grocery store two. We had dinner plans after that, so we jumped from one place to the other.

We didn’t get home until after 9:00 p.m., and I still needed to make sausage balls for a work event the following day.

As we were leaving dinner, I grabbed Howell’s hand and said, “I need help!” 🙂

Y’all. I know I say it a lot, but my husband is the best.

We got home, and he pulled out the mixing bowls while I pulled out the ingredients, and we stood—side by side—rolling 100 sausage balls.

I finished in probably half the time it would have taken me (rolling takes the most time, really), and I was grateful for his help.

That got me thinking: I’ve written before that our husbands want to help; we need only ask them.

Sometimes I don’t even realize I’m trying to do it all until I’ve completely worn myself out.

Any time I ask Howell to help me with something (“Can you pick up the dry cleaning?” “Can you run to the store on your way home?” “Can you do…?”), he’s always happy to do so.

The problem is, I forget to ASK FOR HELP.

Can anyone relate?

Wives, we weren’t meant to shoulder all the weight.  

Although 1 Peter 3:7 is addressing what husbands should do, I love what Julie, our pastor’s wife, pointed out recently at our women’s event. She said, the Bible calls US the WEAKER vessel. It’s okay. Get over it. Accept it. Be happy about it. 

#Truth 

Sometimes I’m so busy trying to be strong, that I forget it’s okay to be weak. Not only does the Lord tell us that when we’re weak, He’s strong, but also He gave us husbands who are strong for us. 

Culture tells women to be independent–not in need of a man. I’m all for empowering women from subjugation, but in marriage, that still must be balanced with biblical truth.

And the truth is, we were made to be a helpmate for our husbands, and our husbands are to lead and cover us.

If you feel overwhelmed today, ask your husband for help—or ask him to help you say no if there’s too much on your plate. Let him lead you—and let him share the weight. He is strong and able, I promise.

This post was written by Laura Brandenburg. To read more about her, click here. 

Faith, God's Presence

In a Moment’s Time

by hcfwomenLeave a Comment on In a Moment’s Time

father-daughterMoments are what truly make up the fabric of my time these days. With a toddler in tow, anything and everything can change in a moments time. Peace can turn to chaos, to-do lists float out the window to the sweet land of “Mañana” (Where nothing ever really gets done ‘Tomorrow’), and a moment to myself translates into little fingers creeping under the bathroom door. So for me, it is easy to let moments tic-tock right out of my memory and go by unnoticed while the next moment of my day begins.

However, I did have a moment with God that did take up residence. My husband and I have been on a financial roller coaster these past couple of years, and God has provided more abundantly than I could have thought possible. In January, God even provided my husband with a new job.  I thought that with this transition my heart would brim over with joy. Instead, I went into complete task mode. All of my focus and attention went into our budget: Shoring up the last year and trying to “get ahead.” I found myself getting stressed and worried on how to get it all accomplished.

It was then that God took a moment with me and revealed that I had applied a cultural norm from our society onto him and his kingdom. Traditionally, and in some ways even biblically, when a person either turns a certain age, gets a “big person job” or even gets married, they are to leave their parents’ home, authority and provision. The parents, in essence, have given their child the tools needed to fully provide for themselves. I had believed that since God blessed Derek with this job, that it was fully up to us to provide for all our needs. God had given Derek a big boy job and we were on our own. It was then that God spoke:

“Your age, marital status or income doesn’t determine my character and how I relate to you. You will always be my daughter, and I will always relate to you as your Father. Nothing can remove you from my Kingdom, you are forever in my home and under my provision.”

So I leave you with this passage from Matthew 6:30-33 (MSG)

What I’m trying to do here is to get you to relax, to not be so preoccupied with getting, so you can respond to God’s giving. People who don’t know God and the way he works fuss over these things, but you know both God and how he works. Steep your life in God-reality, God-initiative, God-provisions. Don’t worry about missing out. You’ll find all your everyday human concerns will be met. Give your entire attention to what God is doing right now, and don’t get worked up about what may or may not happen tomorrow. God will help you deal with whatever hard things come up when the time comes.

Love you all!

Abbie

This post was written by Abbie Kellum. To read more about her, click here. 

Fruitfulness, Gratitude, Grief, Kindness

An Attitude of Gratitude

by hcfwomen4 Comments on An Attitude of Gratitude
An Attitude of Gratitude

Starting my mornings off in my cozy bed with my personalized Bible verse has really been a positive action for me. Rise and shine!

This is the day the Lord has made. Let ME rejoice and be glad in it.

Psalm 118:24

I try to say it out loud and declare it to be so. 

 It is very important for me to talk myself into a positive grateful mood to begin my day and often to continue that positivity throughout my day. You see, my precious husband of 46 plus years has had Alzheimer’s Disease for a long time. I have been a caregiver for others with Alzheimer’s also. My husband’s aunt, my wonderful Mother, my special Mother Mother-in-Law, and numerous patients. I have been a RN for over 45 years. 

 Forming the habit of being positive in each situation that arises is difficult, but not impossible with God’s help.

l can do anything through Jesus Christ who gives me strength.

Philippians 4:13

Find something affirmative in each situation that arises. Even if whatever is taking place at the moment is not so good, expect God to bring good out of it.

Surrounding yourself with Christians, such as your family, church family, neighborhood friends, colleagues, support groups, etc., is extremely important. You can cry, laugh, express your anxiety, get angry when you need to, and hopefully without judgement. Praying with a group is so refreshing, healing, and empowering. 

The act of grieving is so very hard when your loved one is leaving you mentally while his body is shriveling slowly away. Gratefully, he’s not in pain. I have laid next to him reminiscing about our life—especially how we met, holidays, birthdays, trips, harvesting, sport events, friends, etc. Not crying, for his sake, was extremely hard, but then on my long drive home from Lubbock back to our farm a flood of tears came. Many times I had to stop off the side of the highway to get my crying over with so I could drive home safely.

I truly enjoyed my days of laughter with my husband. I could not laugh AT him with his very bizarre actions or things he said caused by his Alzheimer’s. I did laugh about those things later though. “A cheerful heart is a good medicine.” Proverbs 17:22

Making out a list of your blessings is cathartic. Thanking God for the love of my life, our 2 wonderful sons, our 2 fantastic daughter-In-laws, and our four terrific growing-up-way-too-fast grandchildren is at the top of that list. Having the finances for my husband’s care is such a blessing. I am so very grateful for the good care he is receiving though the nursing home and hospice staff. What a blessing these hardworking loving people are.

Care givers, take care of yourself!! Ask for help. Accept help. Take care of your medical needs. Exercise, find some form of activity that you like so that you will do it. Get with a buddy so you will be accountable. Make your exercise a routine habit. You’ll feel so much better. Feed yourself healthy meals. Your body is a temple of God. Treat it that way. Show your body the GRATITUDE it deserves.

~*~*~*~

Helen Teeple is our guest writer today. She has been married for over 46 years, and has 2 sons, Brian & Keith. They have 1 granddaughter and 3 grandsons. Helen has been a BSN, RN for over 45 years. “I knew I want to be a nurse when I was 6 years old. When a RN friend called me to come to work as a Hospice Nurse I felt God was preparing me for the season of my life I am experiencing now.”

Helen is a member of the  First United Methodist Church of Floydada, TX. She grew up in Irving, TX, and graduated from TWU in Denton, TX. She lives on their farm in South Plains. “I never thought or dreamed I would marry a farmer, but God sure had other plans for us, and I’m glad I followed His directions!”