my mom wrote this today and asked me to post it on my blog. I thought it was very sweet of her.
So many times I have wanted to respond to the blog written or to the encouraging and affirming responses. I want to shelter the one that hurts and celebrate and thank the ones who offer up such loving support. Not yet. Wait. One day. So I did. Until today.
You see, I am the mother of the mother who grieves. I hurt because I know she hurts and I weep because I know she is weeping. No love like a parent’s love. And there is nothing I can do. But there is HOPE and there is PROMISE and that is the pike I must look down. To endure. To sustain. To support. To encourage. To make a difference.
JESUS WEPT. DEEPLY. It’s a powerful visual. His friend, Lazarus, was dead. His sisters, Mary and Martha were distraught. Tears were streaming down the faces of mourners and cries of unbearable pain could be heard by all. As Jesus stood in the midst of this Middle Eastern scene of sorrow, he became engulfed with sadness and overtaken with grief. How could this be when he knew he was about to perform a joyous miracle? I believe it is pretty simple. He is our Father. We are His children. We are his Beloved. The love he has for each soul he creates is extraordinary. Incomprehensible, thus, our pain is his pain. On that dark day in Bethany, every suffering that had and would span the ages, was his. HE WEPT. Deep guttural weeping. And so do we. At times. And it’s OK.
But we can’t stay there. There is more to the story. We were never intended for suffering. God created us to live in perfection with Him, free of any pain and sadness. No wonder he cries. So somewhere in all of this, there has to be a happy ending. In Bethany, there was a miracle. Life was restored. For us it is the same. Life everlasting.
Joy does come in the morning. It is promised. We will embrace it. Together. We are family. Annie is our Beloved. She is his perfect creation. God is weaving her into something extraordinary. I sense it. I see glimpses of it.
And we patiently wait. With excitement.
And we try to make a Difference. Stay tuned.
Shug
On a side note . . . To those that have shared so openly on Brooke’s blog, please know your words to her have also been extremely uplifting to Annie’s “Shug and Pop”. Thank you and God Bless.
4 comments :
Rhonda I love it - I love it because I just know Brooke felt "loved well" by her mother today as she posted this message. I personally hate struggle - hate dealing with things out of my control - and I hate seeing or dealing with grieving (personally I think there has to be a sense of loss that goes along with Annie's struggle). But there is a strange pleasure in the above things - many times we engage a God we may never have encountered unless we walked through the struggle. It doesn't make it easier but we're much better because of the encounter with an amazing God. We need those encounters - we need family we can cry with - we need community with people who we know will fight with and for us. I have hope for Annie and willing to love my friend as she walks through this struggle....
"Joy does come in the morning. It is promised. We will embrace it. Together. We are family. Annie is our Beloved. She is his perfect creation. God is weaving her into something extraordinary. I sense it. I see glimpses of it."
Thanks for the words--and the reminder that the suffering is not the end--just the passage. Brooke's a lucky daughter--hope you guys have a wonderful time together this week!
Shug, you made me cry at my desk today. Thank you for sharing...I love you and your family!
What a beautiful post, Rhonda. You are very lucky Brooke to have your mom by your side (even across the miles) during your struggles with little Annie. I can see where you get your amazing literary skills - from mama!!! OK - where does "Shug" come from?? :) Love you - Aunt Cindy
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