I have a confession to make. I am selfish. This is a long story, but worthy of being posted on this blog.
On Thursday morning I thought that my world was coming to an end. I (we, but mostly me) made the decision to give our smallest dog, Zackie, to my little sister. Zackie was doing very poorly with Brooks and had snapped at Brooks and also was consistently growling at Brooks. I knew that it would just be a matter of time before Zackie took a bite out of Brooks' face or finger or leg. So with a great deal of sadness in my heart, I made the decision to pass Zackie onto a new owner. I cried. My heart felt empty and I felt very sad. I really thought that my life was horrible because I had to make this decision to give my beloved dog away. I felt like this was the end of my world.
The same day, as I sat throwing myself a pity party, I received a phone call from my dad. I could tell something was wrong. Through tears he told me that our dear friends had lost their baby. Our dear friends were 16 weeks pregnant and had to deliver the baby. It was too late in the pregnancy for the baby to miscarry. Our dear friends were checking into the hospital on Friday morning to begin the labor process. Our dear friends would leave the hospital after going through labor and would not have a baby with them. Our dear friends would have to sit on the birthing floor for over 24 hours listening to babies cry and watching moms who were overwhelmed with joy. Our dear friends would go through something that "wasn't supposed to happen".
And there I sat. Crying over a dog. Crying over the idea that my dog was now going to live less than 10 minutes away and was going to be loved and taken care of. There I sat wondering if anyone cared that I was sad. There I sat having a really bad day because I had to give my dog away.
These last two days have been hard. They have been very hard on our dear friends. I have spent hours praying for them and spending time with them. I feel a deep hurt for them and wonder how I could be so selfish to believe that my world was so bad because I had to give my dog away.
The Lord works in mysterious ways. I by no means think that the Lord had this happen so that the sorrow of giving my dog away would seem silly. I do however believe that the Lord has used this situation already. I believe the Lord has used this tragedy to teach me to put things in perspective. I believe the Lord has used this situation to "ground" me and help me prioritize what is really important in life. I believe the Lord has used this situation to teach me to put others first. I believe the Lord used this situation to bring us closer to our dear friends and to bring us closer to Him.
I am unsure how the Lord will use this for good in the lives of our dear friends. This will have to unfold as time passes. Right now, they struggle to see good in this situation. I don't blame them. They went home today without a baby.
Things seem so unfair. I often wonder why certain people seem to get all the "bad luck". I then remember that it isn't really "bad luck". The Lord does not give us anything we cannot handle. The Lord uses good and bad to show us how much he loves us. The Lord knows what He is doing.
I pray tonight for my dear friends. If you believe, I ask that you say a little prayer tonight for them as well. They need prayers and they need to feel God's presence. Please pray specifically that the mom would heal from the surgery she went through after the birth of the baby (it was a boy by the way, Drew is his name). Please pray specifically for their marriage. They are so strong but as we all know, stressful situations can either drive people apart or bring them closer together. Please pray specifically that my dear friends will sleep and will regain some energy to be the good parents they already are to their other 3 sons. Please pray specifically that the Lord will reveal some "good" in this situation.
This is so hard but we hold tight to the idea that God planned this and knew this was going to happen as soon as Drew was conceived. God's plans are always so much bigger (and better) than our own. Please pray that our dear friends can see this...even through their tears and sorrow.
We love you dear friends.
XOXO
Heather and Greg
The Lord is close to the brokenhearted; he rescues those who are crushed in spirit. Psalm 34:18
On Thursday morning I thought that my world was coming to an end. I (we, but mostly me) made the decision to give our smallest dog, Zackie, to my little sister. Zackie was doing very poorly with Brooks and had snapped at Brooks and also was consistently growling at Brooks. I knew that it would just be a matter of time before Zackie took a bite out of Brooks' face or finger or leg. So with a great deal of sadness in my heart, I made the decision to pass Zackie onto a new owner. I cried. My heart felt empty and I felt very sad. I really thought that my life was horrible because I had to make this decision to give my beloved dog away. I felt like this was the end of my world.
The same day, as I sat throwing myself a pity party, I received a phone call from my dad. I could tell something was wrong. Through tears he told me that our dear friends had lost their baby. Our dear friends were 16 weeks pregnant and had to deliver the baby. It was too late in the pregnancy for the baby to miscarry. Our dear friends were checking into the hospital on Friday morning to begin the labor process. Our dear friends would leave the hospital after going through labor and would not have a baby with them. Our dear friends would have to sit on the birthing floor for over 24 hours listening to babies cry and watching moms who were overwhelmed with joy. Our dear friends would go through something that "wasn't supposed to happen".
And there I sat. Crying over a dog. Crying over the idea that my dog was now going to live less than 10 minutes away and was going to be loved and taken care of. There I sat wondering if anyone cared that I was sad. There I sat having a really bad day because I had to give my dog away.
These last two days have been hard. They have been very hard on our dear friends. I have spent hours praying for them and spending time with them. I feel a deep hurt for them and wonder how I could be so selfish to believe that my world was so bad because I had to give my dog away.
The Lord works in mysterious ways. I by no means think that the Lord had this happen so that the sorrow of giving my dog away would seem silly. I do however believe that the Lord has used this situation already. I believe the Lord has used this tragedy to teach me to put things in perspective. I believe the Lord has used this situation to "ground" me and help me prioritize what is really important in life. I believe the Lord has used this situation to teach me to put others first. I believe the Lord used this situation to bring us closer to our dear friends and to bring us closer to Him.
I am unsure how the Lord will use this for good in the lives of our dear friends. This will have to unfold as time passes. Right now, they struggle to see good in this situation. I don't blame them. They went home today without a baby.
Things seem so unfair. I often wonder why certain people seem to get all the "bad luck". I then remember that it isn't really "bad luck". The Lord does not give us anything we cannot handle. The Lord uses good and bad to show us how much he loves us. The Lord knows what He is doing.
I pray tonight for my dear friends. If you believe, I ask that you say a little prayer tonight for them as well. They need prayers and they need to feel God's presence. Please pray specifically that the mom would heal from the surgery she went through after the birth of the baby (it was a boy by the way, Drew is his name). Please pray specifically for their marriage. They are so strong but as we all know, stressful situations can either drive people apart or bring them closer together. Please pray specifically that my dear friends will sleep and will regain some energy to be the good parents they already are to their other 3 sons. Please pray specifically that the Lord will reveal some "good" in this situation.
This is so hard but we hold tight to the idea that God planned this and knew this was going to happen as soon as Drew was conceived. God's plans are always so much bigger (and better) than our own. Please pray that our dear friends can see this...even through their tears and sorrow.
We love you dear friends.
XOXO
Heather and Greg
The Lord is close to the brokenhearted; he rescues those who are crushed in spirit. Psalm 34:18
