#reality

PREPARING COMPASSION PT. 2

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“Prepare! Prepare! Prepare! Prepare you Spirit (come out of the decay of your strongholds). Prepare your Souls(Prepare to practice and feel compassion). Prepare your facility (your structures, infrastructures and plans). Prepare for the storm (Pray for action plan, Pray for a spirit of perseverance). Prepare your witness (know your gifts, earn the right to speak, build your relationships with those outside the church, build your example). Prepare your hope and faith (think hope, speak hope, act in hope). Prepare your love (love each other, love the people in your towns, love those who disagree with you, love through the doors that open).“

OVER THE COURSE OF THE NEXT FEW MONTHS I WILL BE REPOSTING THESE DEVOTI0NAL THOUGHTS I WROTE DURING OUR CHURCH’S 21 DAYS OF FASTING AND PRAYER. TODAY WE CONTINUE TO…

PREPARE OUR SOULS TO PRACTICE AND FEEL COMPASSION.

Photo by RDNE Stock project on Pexels.com

WHAT CAN I DO TO BUILD THE HEART OF COMPASSION?

In Matthew 9 the Bible says, “When he saw the crowds, he had compassion on them, because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd. 37 Then he said to his disciples, “The harvest is plentiful but the workers are few. 38 Ask the Lord of the harvest, therefore, to send out workers into his harvest field.”

A heart of compassion starts with God moving on that heart to see things the way He sees them. When we see a need that is the beginning of God moving on our hearts to build compassion. The recognition of the need is the first step. 

When we begin to pray for God to send someone to meet the need we further align ourselves with His plan, because I promise you He wants to help.

I love that Jesus told the disciples to start praying for God to send someone to help and then as God He sent them into the very harvest field they were praying about…

Jesus called his twelve disciples to him and gave them authority to drive out impure spirits and to heal every disease and sickness.

5 These twelve Jesus sent out with the following instructions: “Do not go among the Gentiles or enter any town of the Samaritans. 6 Go rather to the lost sheep of Israel. 7 As you go, proclaim this message: ‘The kingdom of heaven has come near.’ 8 Heal the sick, raise the dead, cleanse those who have leprosy,[a] drive out demons. Freely you have received; freely give. Mat. 10:1, 5-8

When we learn we are the answer to our own prayers for help for others and then become willing enough to actually do something rather than make excuses we will have gained a heart of compassion.

SHARE YOUR WORLD WEEK OF FEBRUARY 29TH

/ joseph elon lillie / 4 Comments

Every week I am choosing to enter a blogging community challenge. One of may personal favorites is SHARE YOUR WORLD.

This challenge has been a part of the blogosphere for many years and has had several hosts. Check out the current hosts blog when you have finished reading my answers to her questions.

1. What do you normally have for breakfast? I am pretty ritualistic when it comes to breakfast. Most mornings I start with two glasses of water, a cup of coffee, two pieces of whole wheat toast with peanut butter and half a banana. About twice a week I will switch it up and have two fried eggs with toast or an English muffin and a half a banana
2.  Do you prefer to cook using gas or electricity? I don’t really have a preference. I have always been a little leery of a gas stove, if I am honest.
3.  When you are working on your computer/laptop/tablet/mobile device etc, do you listen to music or have something else on in the background? Not usually. I sometimes pray with music on, but if I am writing or working I generally do that in silence.
4. Do you hang pictures on your walls, or prefer to have personal photographs on shelves? My home was built with two “photograph rooms”. The photo rails are built just above eye level. I guess when the house was built it was considered that photos should not be everywhere in the house, but only in specific rooms.I have also been told, It was also considered improper to hang things on the walls. Today those shelves are jammed with photos and I have photos and art hanging all over the walls.

Gratitude: I have said it before. I am very grateful for family, friends and professional hospice workers who are helping to make Mom comfortable for however long she has left with us.

THE MAKING AND KEEPING OF A SCHEDULE

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At this moment, Mom is sleeping. She ate her first solid food in six days a little while ago. a quarter of a ham salad sandwich and a few chip crumbs. Amanda and I are sitting watching Murder She Wrote (the key to creating an atmosphere that keeps Mom calm).

Mom requires a two person assist since her last bout of illness. So I spent this morning making and sending out the weekly schedule to our family to make sure we have the proper coverage every day.

We have never kept a sedate schedule at The Vicarage. While our hours, as ministers and teachers, are flexible for the most part there is still a lot to do. While we have lots of hands in this work (and I am blessed for all the help). Each set of hands comes with an added layer of complexity. Keeping Joe and Kristine’s work at their schools and Amanda’s, Brenda’s and my visitation and preaching schedules in mind means scheduling takes some consideration.

Melanie and James are coming over a few times next week to make sure Brenda is not alone while Amanda and I are out at staff meeting.

I am also working to make sure the whole family is in the know about times and schedules for the PCA’s and nurses.

I am really thankful right now for Paul Hackett who trained me in scheduling all those years ago. I am also thankful to his wife Carrie, my personal assistant at church who has kept my schedule at church organized.

I know that in the days ahead communication is going to be a key to keeping our sanity and to giving Mom the best quality of life she can have now. That is the penultimate goal at the moment. Well, I just got an alert than Megan is about to arrive to help Mom with her daily wash up. So folks I am off. Keep us in your prayers as I keep you in mine.

A HARD RIGHT TURN

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Life took something of a hard right turn on Monday.

As regular readers will know, Mom started with hospice about three weeks ago. She started sleeping a lot on Saturday and Sunday and eating almost nothing. We also saw an increase in her pain level. Then on Monday she became very nauseous and her pain level spiked beyond control. She started vomitting dark black liquid. The nurse came out to help us, the doctor called and we made some adjustments to her meds. It was an intense 24 hours in which none of us got much sleep.

It seems we have moved very quickly to a new level of hospice. We now have the hospital bed mom had been resisting in house and the old couch she loved sleeping on removed. We have asked for and I think received an upgrade in PCA care to five days a week and today the doctor is coming out to review Mom’s meds to make sure we have what is needed for her comfort.

Dr. Harrington, the director of the hospice agency, is actually one of the doctors Mom worked with during her career as a nurse. She remembered him.

Today she is looking and feeling much better, but in the last few days Mom has eaten nothing more substantial than two or three scoops of ice cream. She seems to have no appetite for solid food. Good news… She has been drinking her Pedia-lyte and rehydrating. She is very weak. Walking to the bathroom is not at the moment a possibility. Thank God for all that has been provided in the way of adaptive tools, the transfer chair and commode my cousin gave us have been a life saver, and the hospice meds have been so helpful in keeping Mom comfortable.

I can’t say enough about the hospice staff who have been helping us through this season. They have all been so kind. I also am also so blessed by family and my congregation. So many in the church have reached out with offers of help. My friend, worship leader and deacon, Jody came to help me and my son, Joe, move the couch yesterday. My family, also, has really circled the wagons during this season. We all gathered and prayed together last night with many tears and much hope that God would see us through this life stage with grace and love.

Regardless of the hard right turn, I know God will see us through and we will end up right where we are supposed to be.

Photo by Josh Sorenson on Pexels.com

PREPARING COMPASSION PT. 1

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This year our church is focusing on seven prepare statements we are calling our 2024 congregational sentence.

“Prepare! Prepare! Prepare! Prepare you Spirit (come out of the decay of your strongholds). Prepare your Souls(Prepare to practice and feel compassion). Prepare your facility (your structures, infrastructures and plans). Prepare for the storm (Pray for action plan, Pray for a spirit of perseverance). Prepare your witness (know your gifts, earn the right to speak, build your relationships with those outside the church, build your example). Prepare your hope and faith (think hope, speak hope, act in hope). Prepare your love (love each other, love the people in your towns, love those who disagree with you, love through the doors that open).“

PREPARE YOUR SOULS TO PRACTICE AND FEEL COMPASSION.

Jesus was known as a man of compassion. Compassion is the movement of concern, love, pity. It is an emotion that results in action. Kind actions devoid of the emotions of concern, love and pity are not compassion. Further feeling concerned or loving or pitying without doing something as a result of those emotions is also not compassion.

Jesus did the things He did because He loved people and He pitied their condition. “When he saw the crowds, he had compassion on them because they were confused and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd.” Matthew 9: 36

We must be like him!

WHAT ARE YOU PRAYING MORE FOR, COMPASSIONATE FEELINGS OR COMPASSIONATE ACTIONS TO FOLLOW THROUGH?

FOTD- FEBRUARY 17TH 2024

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Well it is time for me to jump into another weekly challenge in the blogging community. FOTD BY CEE is a challenge I once participated in almost daily before life changed. This week I am going to jump back in and share some photos of my 2024 garden. You can take a gander at other daily flowers by clicking the capitalized link above.

Here is where it begins….

Not pretty at all…but it is a beginning.

THE SABBATH I DID

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On Tuesday I set my goals for Sabbath rest. Does it sound wrong to have goals for resting? Anyway I wanted my rest this week to be more than vegging out. I wanted it to be RE…creational. So I thought planting my indoor garden would be good fun.

My daughter-in-law and I have discussed several times the idea of getting the gardens back here at the Vicarage. It starts now with me planting the seeds in the little starter pots I bought at Walmart.

It took me about an hour to go from nothing to planted and watered. I had forgotten how much fun it is working in the soil, I got peppers, tomatoes, some kale and herbs into the pots.

My other goal as stated was to start pencil drawing again. It has been years since I put pencil to paper in an artistic fashion. My hand is shaky. But it is a start.

WHAT KINDS OF THINGS DO YOU FIND RE…CREATIONAL FOR YOUR DOWNTIME?

PLANTING A GARDEN AND DRAWING A PICTURE

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So I have two goals for this Sabbath Day. The first goal I have is to plant my tomatoes and peppers in the starter pots I bought at Walmart two days ago.

Photo by Karolina Grabowska on Pexels.com

I have been talking with Brenda and Kristine and we agree it is time to get back to gardening this year. I bought a bunch of vegetable and herb seeds. So the gardening begins….tomorrow.

The other thing I want to do is get back to my pencil drawing.

Photo by MESSALA CIULLA on Pexels.com

At Christmas, I asked for pencils and drawing supplies. Amanda got me a whole new set. I am determined not to let this gift go to waste and so tomorrow I will begin my drawing lessons again. I probably will not draw a monkey.