unexpected --

it was a rainy dreary day today, so i decided to check out a movie.  i decided on The Answer Man from Netflix - instant.  the summary sounded interesting to me.  but it was a very good, unexpected, and thought provoking movie.

i won't go into the details -- i urge you to check it out - the link above will lead you to the summary, one part of the movie - the main plot, involved a man, a writer.  for 20 years the "world" was looking for him for answers.  he had written a book about questions God had answered for him, and people believed he was some sort of guru or that God spoke through or to him somehow.  he basically hid and concealed his identity for those 20 years.

the whole movie was though provoking to me -- and i may watch it again in a day or two, but there is a quote that stuck out to me.

the author - Arlen is speaking to a woman (Elizabeth), whom he has taken an interest in:

"You are here so God can experience the world through your eyes, see what you see, feel what you feel.  Everyday He can't wait to see what you'll do, what makes you laugh, what moves you.  Everyday through you He falls in love with the world all over again.  You are His muse."

wow.  thought provoking.  what a powerful message.  there are so many interesting messages in this movie -an indy film that i don't remember hearing about - but defiantly a movie to check out.  as i said, i don't want to get into it to much -- but after you've watched it, let me know.  i'd be interested in hearing your thoughts!

it's been awhile . . . life happens

it's been some time since i've written.  but life has certainly taken an interesting turn.  i ran across this image today, and thought it definitely rings true. we certainly never know when the tides are going to flow differently.

looking back at the last post - about joy, and the retreat i had the opportunity to lead - speaks to the quote.  about a week after the retreat - on easter sunday, my mom went into the hospital.

it was anything but smooth sailing -- there were many drowning and crashing wave moments.  mom was in the hospital for 2 months. during that time she was on ventilator - twice, and in and out of ICU twice, the cardiac floor, a regular room, and a skilled nursing facility, twice.  there were some very scary moments, and we prepared ourselves for the end.  we/ mom had decisions to make - very serious ones. but, by God's grace - and there really isn't any other explanation - she became strong enough to come home. 

my mom has scleroderma.  she has had the disease for 26 years.  up until this point there have been some waves that we were able to ride out pretty ok.  but this one threw us all for a loop.  she presented at the ER with symptoms of pneumonia.  as things progressed - and by about 12 hours later, she couldn't breathe, and went unresponsive - hence the first ventilator.  as time went on the doctor believed she had some type of virus that knocked her for a loop.  the scleroderma has created scar tissue in her lungs - and her lungs were not filtering the carbon dioxide.

long story short -- she is now home, and we are all adapting to doing things a little differently.  dad has had to take on some extra responsibilities, and my sister and i will go hang out for awhile if dad is going to be gone for the day.

life has a way of changing without notice.  the past few months have been scary, but i have also felt God's hand on me the whole time.  i believed in the power of prayer before this, but my eyes have been opened wider.  there is no other reason that my mom is still with us today.

they say that change is good.  i'm not sure where the good was in this change. but we've all become closer and more aware of the time we have together.  change is the law of life - and sometimes we can't do anything about it.