Running With Hope (Hebrews 12:1-3): The Dash

I remember hearing some time ago about our headstones and how we have the date we were born, a dash, then the date we die, and the person talked about how important that dash was. That dash represents all of who we are--our entire life in one little symbol. I've shared before how much I love analogies and how God uses them to communicate His truths to us in His Word and how He has made my brain to think in analogies or come up with them and put them to ink and paper for others to read and hopefully be encouraged or gain an insight that they didn't have before. I've been doing a lot of thinking lately. Jordan and I are walking through a difficult situation and then yesterday a fellow PCDer in her 40's lost the battle for life waiting for a lung transplant, which had been preceded by another PCD family giving birth to a little one that did not make it. There's another PCD Mom whose 12 year old son continues to be in and out of the hospital and her older son has another rare disease that causes him to have seizures all the time. My joint pain is continuing to get worse and I'll find out next week at my follow up Rheumatology appointment whether things are pointing towards Lupus or Rheumatoid Arthritis or another auto-immune disease. As I said in my previous post, life on this sin-cursed planet is difficult and challenging and if we focus constantly on the sin and the effects of sin and forget to move from that to God's grace that conquered that sin, we can be in a downward emotional spiral pretty quickly.

At times like these in continuing challenging circumstances and losing someone to a disease that you have can be very intimidating. But thankfully God has been gracious and has placed godly friends around me and great messages from Pastor Joe each week to encourage my heart in just the right thing at just the right moment. God is so good and gracious and when we can move our eyes from looking at our circumstances, however painful they may be, to looking to Jesus, the Author and perfecter of our faith, He gives us that supernatural peace and joy that nothing can take away. Right now life is hard, but God is still reigning on His throne and causing all things to work together for our good and His glory.

Times like these also make me treasure those little moments in life all the more. I remember to appreciate the little things, to love deeply and run at life with all I have, by His strength and grace, doing the work that He has for me in my time left on this earth. These moments remind us just how precious that dash is--and how much life we have to live, no matter how many aches and pains we may be feeling or the difficult circumstances we find ourselves in. We simply have to keep looking up to the One who holds everything in His hand, has a reason and a purpose behind it all, and keep running the race that He has set before us...after all that race, with those specific peaks and valleys, is the race that will make you the most like Christ and bring Him the most glory--no matter how hard it is to keep taking those steps forward, when everything in us wants to give up and go home to be with the Lord. He promises that THAT DAY IS coming, and one Day we will be free not only from the penalty and power of sin, but the very presence of sin and all its effects--o to imagine how amazing heaven will be! Come quickly Lord Jesus!!!!

Thank you for all of you that continue to pray for Jordan and I's journey on this earth. Life continues to present us with challenges--"regular" ones and unique ones related to my health and his, but I'm so thankful that we both know Jesus and can draw on His strength and draw closer to each other and run this race together--our marriage hopefully being a picture of Christ and His bride, the church.

We were blessed recently with some of our closest friends coming to visit us, Jeremy and Jenn and their little guy Landon and were able to get away for a couple days with them to Glacier National Park--and we even saw a moose! We were able to manage several short hikes and got to see some amazing water falls and just be out in God's glorious creation--something so beautiful, yet it doesn't even begin to compare with what we will see in heaven one day. Hard to imagine as some of the sights were just absolutely breathtaking! I was also able to enjoy the State Fair with some of my friends here the last couple of days and go on some fun rides--one that I was literally shaking when I got off, but I'm still glad I decided to go for it, although not sure I would do it again unless someone went with me! ;) Although there's a part of me that still wants to skydive at least once, so we'll see if that can happen one of these days.

I'm also enjoying having my horse up here and being able to work with him and the dogs....teaching Roxi that it's NOT ok to heel my horse, although every fiber of her being tells her that's what she's supposed to do. ;) She's doing really well with listening to me and obeying my commands and learning to keep her focus on ME and not be distracted by her surroundings...yet another neat picture of how our gaze should be fixed on Christ and not be distracted by the waves of the storm as Peter was when he was walking on the water towards Christ. He was doing it until he took his eyes off Jesus...then he started to sink because he was afraid of the waves. The storms of life can be intense, but He WILL see us through and keep us until that Day!

Here's some pictures to enjoy!