An Invitation to the Weary

"Come to me, all you who are weary and

 burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my

 yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am

 gentle and humble in heart, and you will

 find rest for your souls. For my yoke

 is easy and my burden is light."

Matthew 11:28-30 

Some encouraging Post-its for mom

To be honest it has been a very rough week and it has been far easier for me to binge Netflix or open the refrigerator rather than to go to Jesus for solace. Speaking of refrigerators... (great segue right?) I wrote these Post-it notes for my mom in the fall of 2019. In 2019, dad was at Mission Hospital following a 2-day back surgery. Due to complications and rehab he spent almost 40 days at Mission and my mom was completely maxed out. She and my dad had just put their house up for sale and mom was daily spending time at Mission Hospital ~ caring for their pets ~ tending to my dad's orchids (literally a couple hundred of them) ~ handling details related to the sale of their house ~ looking for a rental property,.... it was A LOT. But that is how Ann Rupp rolls. She has always been this high capacity woman. I have truly marveled at her ability to spin 20 proverbial plates simultaneously and keep them all going.

Even so, she is a mere mortal and it was evident that she was mentally and physically tired. One day when I was at their house feeding Abby (their beloved German Shepherd), I felt prompted to write Matthew 11:28 on a Post-it to leave for mom and remind her I loved her and that Jesus invited her to come to Him in her weariness. 😊 [What is especially cool is that my mom kept these two Post-it notes for 3 years & placed them on the side of their frig. I noticed them when I was staying with my dad a few weeks back. So precious!]

Now it is almost three years later and mom has been at Mission Hospital since July 4th ~ for 3 weeks. My dad is now the one making the daily trips to Mission and caring for Abby and the orchids and all the many, many, many phone calls, arrangements, adjustments, etc. that have come with my mom's diagnosis.

Updates on mom:

• She is still in the acute rehab unit. However, mom experienced a marked decline in speech, cognitive and motor function (which  was noticed from Thursday to Friday), so a CT Scan was ordered on Friday afternoon.
• The CT revealed significant swelling in her brain so she was put back on Decadron to reduce the inflammation.
• Monday she will be transferred to the oncology floor to begin radiation and chemotherapy.

Prayer requests:

• That the medication would be effective to reduce swelling in mom's brain.
• That mom would be able to tolerate the treatments beginning this week.
• Comfort, strength and clarity for my dad.
• Wisdom for dad and my siblings and me as we navigate through the days & weeks ahead.
• God's mercy upon mom and our family.

Spiritual encouragement:

I experienced this multiple times during my husband, Roger's journey and it has been the same with my mom's brief journey thus far: "God, while I know in the marrow of my bones that You are Good; that You are Love; that You are Compassionate, etc. these circumstances do NOT feel good, loving, compassionate, etc."

How do I reconcile the two? As simplistic as it may sound: It is by faith. However, it is not a "blind" or untested faith. I have personally experienced God's intervention in miraculous ways as my husband battled brain cancer for 52-months: financial miracles, life-extending miracles and more. He is good even when life is unspeakably and unendurably hard.

So, I'll wrap up this post with a portion of Michele Cushatt's devotional: I AM: A 60-Day Journey to Knowing Him. This one is an excerpt from Day 19: I AM Received:

"Faith is often messy and riddled with questions. It's a complicated journey, one further complicated by pain. If you question your faith and struggle to understand this God you can't fathom, be assured you are not alone. From the beginning, humankind has wrestled with the complexities of a hard life and a loving God. The good news is God already knows your questions. He also knows how your heart longs to believe and trust, even in your doubt.

Rather than walk away from your faith, ask God to build it up, to use your circumstances to deepen your belief. And trust His reassurances that your doubts do not dissuade Him. He receives you still, just as you are, and can help you walk through them.

Like a groom who throws a wedding party without the bride's help, we arrive in the circle of His affection simply because He loves us and invited us there. Compassion is His character, kindness His heart. That's good news for you and me. Because no matter how far we fall, as long as we turn back to Him, we will be received."

So very beautifully expressed!

I am so grateful that we have family & friends accompanying us on this oftentimes wearying road,

Terrie