LIFE IS PRECIOUS LIFE IS SWEET
...like the earth beneath my feet,
though I know I am passing through
I know I belong to you.... (Wes King song)
...like the earth beneath my feet,
though I know I am passing through
I know I belong to you.... (Wes King song)
What an emotional weekend...it is all jumbled together up there in my head so I am going to try to sort out my thoughts in this blog...bear with me...this week at Baylor, we lost our sixth student , Caitlyn Creed, to a car accident...it has been a long, hard year in terms of understanding the "whys." Then later this week, we had some very serious weather pass through. High winds and lots of thunder and lightening. This particular storm found a young mother, Melissa Brinegar, of 28 walking back from the lake hand-in-hand with her 5-year old daughter. Lightening struck her and killed her. She was 8 weeks pregnant. Her 5-year old is in Mia's (my niece) kindergarten class. The "whys" grow larger for all of us.
Today, after church as we headed to Fuddruckker's, Mia was sitting in the front seat and said to me... "today I want to take the training wheels off!" This comes on the heels of her riding up and down my parent's driveway on her bike with the training wheels. I have given her a hard time - just kidding around - about it. This statement came without any prompting. So, we decided to meet on the tennis court and work on the independence of two wheels v. four.
As I ran up and down the middle of the court holding the seat and trying to encourage her to "steer and pedal - steer and pedal" I finally figured out that she was afraid to fall. She would rather quit than fall. How true of all of us. We would rather give up when it gets hard. We would rather put the brakes on, put our feet down, or change directions than risk a fall that could injure or scar us. So, we stopped for a talk... I explained that she WAS going to fall. It is ok and we have all experienced it. She found the courage to keep trying. She fell. She got up and tried again. This is what I love about coaching...you know you were called to coach when you find greater satisfaction in the small successes of your students than if you did it yourself. I suppose the same can be said about parents. All in all it was a great afternoon. I worked with both Mia (6) and McKenna (9) on riding their bikes. They both made progress. We all felt good.
The "whys" still loom. Why was her life (and that of her small baby) cut short? Why should a 5-year old have to go through life without her mom? Why do most of us fear things that are so small (like falling off a bike)? Fear can only exist where God is absent. 1 John 4 says "God is Love..." later in that chapter is says, "There is no fear in love; perfect love casts out fear..." The words "Fear Not" appear 23 times in the New Testament. Jesus says to us...His beloved children...FEAR NOT, I am with you...FEAR NOT, I will never leave you...FEAR NOT, I have overcome the world.
Today, after church as we headed to Fuddruckker's, Mia was sitting in the front seat and said to me... "today I want to take the training wheels off!" This comes on the heels of her riding up and down my parent's driveway on her bike with the training wheels. I have given her a hard time - just kidding around - about it. This statement came without any prompting. So, we decided to meet on the tennis court and work on the independence of two wheels v. four.
As I ran up and down the middle of the court holding the seat and trying to encourage her to "steer and pedal - steer and pedal" I finally figured out that she was afraid to fall. She would rather quit than fall. How true of all of us. We would rather give up when it gets hard. We would rather put the brakes on, put our feet down, or change directions than risk a fall that could injure or scar us. So, we stopped for a talk... I explained that she WAS going to fall. It is ok and we have all experienced it. She found the courage to keep trying. She fell. She got up and tried again. This is what I love about coaching...you know you were called to coach when you find greater satisfaction in the small successes of your students than if you did it yourself. I suppose the same can be said about parents. All in all it was a great afternoon. I worked with both Mia (6) and McKenna (9) on riding their bikes. They both made progress. We all felt good.
The "whys" still loom. Why was her life (and that of her small baby) cut short? Why should a 5-year old have to go through life without her mom? Why do most of us fear things that are so small (like falling off a bike)? Fear can only exist where God is absent. 1 John 4 says "God is Love..." later in that chapter is says, "There is no fear in love; perfect love casts out fear..." The words "Fear Not" appear 23 times in the New Testament. Jesus says to us...His beloved children...FEAR NOT, I am with you...FEAR NOT, I will never leave you...FEAR NOT, I have overcome the world.
Carpe Diem! Seize the Day! Seize TODAY!
CUTE PICS KIM....WHAT A CRASH PICTURE HUH? :) That really is so sad about both of those women. God bless them and their families. Can not imagine. Thanks for sharing! ejw
ReplyDeleteI'm in tears. thank you so much for you devotion to serving the Lord in every aspect of your life. I adore you!
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