Tag: my Oak

Faith Journey

Setting Boundaries VS Putting Up Walls

Barefoot Faith Journey

Setting Boundaries VS Putting Up Walls

Setting Boundaries VS Putting Up Walls

Setting Boundaries VS Putting Up walls is something I struggle with because I sometimes live in fear. I am choosing not to live in fear because fear is a liar. Honestly, I am so tired of living under the judgment of others. Let me tell you something, friends, oh my word. I’m fixing to use my words and all of them. My words may not be pretty, but sometimes you must let it out.

I will have to take a few minutes and watch a Chopped episode. My brain moves faster than my fingers, and the emotions are strong. Let’s say I am completely and totally over it. A change is coming, and it may take till Jesus returns, but I am done!

Let’s Try This Again

I am not a people person. Yet, I’m empathetic (so I’ve been told), and I have the heart to help others. Those people who are unseen. People that other people snub their noses at because they don’t dress/live/act “appropriately.” I’m just saying that those are my people. I see them, I feel them, I understand them.

Their problems, I feel deep within my soul. The look in their eyes can tell a thousand stories, and they want to share that story. They want to be loved, accepted, and NOT judged. I CHOOSE to love, take, and not pass judgment on them. Honestly, I want to meet them where they are currently and walk into their world. It is an honor to step into their stories.

Hard Realization

What a brutal realization that most people in this world do not think the same way. I just don’t get it. How can you not love and SEE the people around you? The unseen, the less than, the “you are not in my circle. Therefore, you do not exist” people.

For the love of all that is holy, Jesus’ second greatest commandment is to LOVE OTHERS. Matthew 22: 36-40 clearly states, “Teacher, which is the greatest commandment in the Law?” Jesus replied: ‘ Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. The first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself. All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments.’

The Things That Have Happened

I cannot and will not detail the struggles we have had this summer. It has hit me hard that not everyone thinks like this. Love as Jesus says to love. What they want is to steal, kill, and destroy my joy. My joy is my family. They are all I think of and commit to 100% every minute of every day.

So Much Loss and Pain

The loss and pain were entirely preventable. Let’s try something radical. If you think something is wrong with a friend or their family, then TALK TO THEM. Ask how you can help them, pray for them without details, and listen to their cry. Clean their house, run an errand, cook a meal. Be the hands and feet of Jesus.

Radical, you think?

Outcome

Well, our outcome has been standing on Exodus 14:14 “The Lord will fight your battle. You have to be quiet.” I was quiet. There were lots of tears, lots of reflection. There was a period of hiding, a valley of severe depression and anxiety, another medical condition for a child due to the STRESS so-called “friends” put us through. Thank you for that, honestly. It’s been the most fun.

My Oak

This woman. She blew in like a whirlwind. Then, she ironed out all the people in my house. Next, she found me. With that hug, I melted into her arm. I felt her love permeate every single molecule of my body.

She gently walked me upstairs, and we both lay down and talked. I cried, and she sat in silence and rubbed my hair like when I was a little girl. She permitted me to wallow for a day, but tomorrow I have to get up and wash my face and face the day. There will be no hiding for her little girl.

She loves me. Unconditionally. She sees me. Truthfully. She knows all that has happened, yet she loves those who hurt her baby so profoundly. My kids will be blessed if I am 1/2 the mama she is when I grow up. She blesses me.

A Few True Friends

We discovered those who would stand by us and those who judge us. Prayer warriors surrounded us and kept us safe. We stood before God clean. Our family came out on the other side with no truth coming from the claims and lies.

For Now

I choose self-care. Pet a cat (or 12), bake, eat candy, smile more, block people on social media, keep loving on the “less of these” people, wash my hands, wear a mask, parent my kids, love my husband, and love my God. My enemies cannot hurt me because God goes before me, after me, and stands on each side of me. If you want to get to my family or me, you must go through Him first.

Good luck to you.

 

 

 

Faith Journey, Opsoclonus Myoclonus Syndrome

A Moment I Won’t Soon Forget

Barefoot Faith Journey

A Moment I Won't Soon Forget

A Moment I Won’t Soon Forget

A Moment I Won’t Soon Forget was this past Sunday, Big Daddy and I decided that we would go to church with my mama. See her Sunday School Class (the Empty Nesters), as she collected money from the past 2 Christmases and donated it to our fund for Louisville. We put ALL donated money in a plastic money bag and marked it Lville. We use this for gas, to and from, snacks, food, and hotel stays. I made last year’s donation stretch quite a bit. Honestly, we made it almost until the end of the year. This year, they surprised us and did it again. We are so humbled and grateful.

Saying Thank You

My days are short and busy, so getting to the store to buy a thank you card seemed an impossible task. I didn’t know if I could find one that could do justice in expressing ourselves. These people had never met us. They have never met my son, they know what my parents tell them, and it is hard for our parents to understand the ins and outs of this life-altering thing that H has been diagnosed with. I thought it would be best to personally go, introduce them to H and the rest of my family, answer some questions, and thank them.

Donnie

We got there, and their SS teacher, Donnie, stepped out into the hall. When my crew walked in (everyone but my oldest daughter), the look of surprise on my daddy’s face and my Martha’s was a good moment. After being introduced to everyone and them, so graciously feeding my kids. LOL. I looked over, and there stood my daddy with the fellas. He was drinking his coffee. See, the thing is that, growing up, my dad came for holidays and if one of us girls sang. That was it. I never knew him to go to SS, he would slip in for those brief moments in a big church, and then he would leave as quickly as he could.

Realization

In my adult life, I’m pretty sure I’ve never seen him in a church (except for weddings). My mom faithfully has always gone while dragging her kids behind her 🙂 I was overwhelmed by the sight of him standing there. He wasn’t there because he was forced. Amazingly, he was there because he wanted to be there. He was surrounded by men and women of God who love him. He CHOSE to go. He drives by himself.

It is cold outside, like bitterly cold, and since his medical issues (stroke 2 yrs ago and quadruple bypass earlier this year), he can hardly handle the cold. Yet, there he stood. With that grin on his face, he took it all in. He has been in church since God shook him to the core about 11 years ago. During that time, he fell in love with my mama again. Daddy fell in love with God again. His SS teacher is a retired cop. He knows the things my daddy has gone through. He can sympathize and empathize. They are like a little match made in heaven.

Jesus

I am in awe of the goodness of Jesus. I’m blessed to have parents who love each other. I saw my daddy….in a Sunday school class….because he wanted to be there. My heart. My parents had stood in front of me, protecting me from the world besides me as I made tough decisions, and behind me to hold me up when I started to fall. They have done anything that I’ve asked of them and then some. I can never repay them.

My rainbow is growing 🙂

 

Life or Something Like It

My Oak My Mama

Barefoot Faith Journey

My Oak My Mama

My Oak My Mama

When I think of an Oak Tree, I think of being little and standing next to the giant oak tree in our yard. It was so big that I could not wrap my arms around it.

I remember looking up at it and seeing it touch the clouds. The giant limbs stand firm in the wind while the little limbs sway back and forth.

I can still see the beautiful leaves that protect me from the sun. I also vividly remember the life living on and around it. The ants and critters crawled up the massive trunk of this tree.

Then, when I look down, I am standing on the roots. These roots are so big that they are bulging out of the ground. I can follow the roots from the tree’s base for as far as they reach.

Many days, I stood in awe of the beauty of this massive living thing that God created.

This mighty tree may bend, but it never breaks.

Our oak tree provides shade in the summer. It loses its leaves in the fall, and the old things pass away. The leaves dying allows the sun to shine through the branches and provide heat on a cold day. In the spring, new life forms, and it begins again.

The circle of life in this tree.

My favorite tree is a tree of strength, honor, and consistency. An oak tree to lean on in hard times. This oak tree brings me joy at the sight or the rustle of the leaves.

I would like to introduce to you my Oak, my Mama.

Thank you, Mama, for loving me without abandon and giving me solid roots.

Thank you for being that big, sturdy branch while I flopped in the wind.

You led me to Christ through your faithfulness in your walk.

Also, for guiding me back to Christ when I wandered off and got lost.

You have always loved my husband and my children.

Thankful that you have never judged but were consistent with your faithfulness.

For showing me love when I was unlovable.

You have taught me values and stood up for me.

Mama, you rescued me, rocked me, and baked with me.

More importantly, mashed potatoes, macaroni & cheese, green beans & potatoes, and lima beans for your fried chicken.

You, my Marth, have been a living, breathing example of a Proverbs 31 woman.

You, my sweet Martha, are Oak Tree.