Journey in Faith

I follow a fair number of blogs, so on any given day I'll have maybe twenty blogs rolling through my Google Reader window. But one really caught my eye this morning. Especially since I personally know this blogger, and the post was titled A Very Rough Day.

Yes, it was. As a mother, and the mother of a fifteen-year-old girl, I've always been touched by Sarah's story. But today, it grabbed me. It grabbed me in two ways.

First, this is a family I know and love. When our family first moved to the Atlanta area and joined the local homeschool group, Heather was one of the first ladies to encourage me. As we crossed paths over the years on field trips, moms' nights out, and holiday parties, Heather always greeted me with a smile and spent a few moments catching up with me. I always admired Heather's bright outlook. But through Sarah's illness and treatment, I've seen a new side of Heather. I've seen her faith, her dependence on God, her eagerness to give Him the glory in all things. I've seen her reach out to other families in the midst of her own pain and struggles. Often, when Heather would post prayer requests, many of them would be for other families they met during treatment. I know that all of this was part of Heather's life before; I'm just thankful that I've been able to see it (from a distance, through blog posts) as it has shone through the trials she has faced over the last several years. And I see Sarah just following her mother's example in such a sweet way.

Second, it caused me to be grateful for where God has me today. I am so glad for the time I have with my family (as opposed to the big career I had planned). I'm thankful for God's provision for our family, especially during this time of transition. I have opportunities to serve and minister each day. I'm reminded daily that God desires my faithfulness, he desires that I reflect His faithfulness.

I don't think any of us will ever really understand all of the reasons why young Sarah has had to face cancer. But we can be certain that God does have a purpose (Romans 8:28). And I know what it has done in my life.

Tag, I'm it!

My daughter thinks she's so smart. She has been nagging gently reminding me that I haven't blogged much lately. Apparently, since the holidays and a move has not slowed her down, I am without excuse. And now, she tagged me with one of those cute little blog quizzes that goes around from time to time. As if that's going to motivate me to blog.

Oh well. Here goes.

First, she sends me rules. (Something's wrong right there.) Here they are:

1. Post these rules.
2. You must post 11 random things about yourself 
3. Answer the questions the tagger set for you in her post 
4. Create 11 new questions for the people you tag to answer 
5. Go to their blogs and tell them they've been tagged

Eleven random things about me? Alrighty, then.

1. I was born in Texas and only lived there for three years, but my mama raised me to be a Texan (or, as my hubby says, a Texican).
2. I really like Mexican food. Really.
3. And coffee. But I'm sort of a coffee baby. My hubby makes my coffee for me each morning, just the way I like it.
4. When I started college, I planned to graduate with a degree in marketing, then work my way up to being the vp of a major company (with a male secretary).
5. I've learned that God has a way of changing our desires and plans.
6. I have no baby pictures.
7. I grew up in Arizona and still tend to think of it as home.
8. I'm outgrowing roller coasters just as my younger kids are becoming adrenaline junkies.
9. I don't like shopping. 
10. I like decorating and helping other ladies decorate (which is why I'm a Willow House Design Consultant), and I'm learning to like jewelry, too.
11. I'm still in love with my first love, even after 28 years of marriage.

Now, on to the daughter's questions (which I've not yet looked at, so this should be good)...

1. If you could be any fictional character or character from history, who would you choose? I think I would like to be Mary, but I tend to be more of a Martha.
2. Onion rings, french fries, or tater-tots? Definitely depends on my mood, but I sure do love a good onion ring! (And just learned that you can get four onion rings in a Sonic kids meal, which is just right for me.)
3. What was your first word? Well, to go along with having no baby pictures, I had no baby book. So I really have no idea. Although it's a safe bet that if it wasn't Mama or Daddy, it would have been food-related.
4. If you could take a free flight to any country right now, where would you go? Probably England. Or France. Or maybe Switzerland. Or...
5. Coffee or tea? Hot coffee in the winter and cold unsweetened tea in the summer.
6. What are you passionate about? Faithfulness. That's the word that keeps coming to mind in my walk with the Lord right now.
7. Who inspires you? My mom, even though she went to be with the Lord six years ago. She loved the Lord, my dad, and us kids, she had a great sense of humor, and she could do anything she set her mind to.
8. The world is ending. You have twenty-four hours. What do you spend your last day doing? Sharing love and smiles with my family; sharing the gospel with everyone.
9. What's a movie you could see again and again? Pride and Prejudice (A&E version). We watch it annually and might watch it more often if we could find five hours to invest!
10. Do you prefer classics or new-books-on-the-block? Classics, baby, although I don't mind a new book that reads like a classic!
11. What's a quote you absolutely adore?  “It would seem that Our Lord finds our desires not too strong, but too weak. We are half-hearted creatures, fooling about with drink and sex and ambition when infinite joy is offered us, like an ignorant child who wants to go on making mud pies in a slum because he cannot imagine what is meant by the offer of a holiday at the sea. We are far too easily pleased.”(C.S. Lewis)

Okay, here's the part where I come up with 11 questions to pass on to my targets blogger friends.

1. What's your favorite meal to have someone else prepare for you?
2. What's one book that you would definitely prefer to read in binding and paper form rather than electronic format?
3. If you had a pet armadillo, what would you name him?
4. What's a movie you've seen that you would never, never, never watch again?
5. What is the best advice you've ever been given?
6. Beach cottage or mountain cabin?
7. Scrabble or Outburst?
8. What is your least favorite housekeeping chore?
9. Chocolate: dark, milk, or white (which isn't really chocolate, but I'm being gracious)?
10. What {human} author has had the most impact on your spiritual life?
11. What was the best part of your day today?

 And now it's time to pass the baton... if you're listed below, I hope you'll join the fun!

• Lori @ Nourishment for Ladies
• Sarah @ Sarah's Journey
• Jessica @ {jessica leigh}
• Ashley @ The Housewife Rookie
• Becky @ Organizing Made Fun