Wait Here

I have spent my whole life waiting. Waiting to grow up. Waiting to find love. Waiting for babies to come. Lately, waiting for my computer to update...

At every stage, I feel like I am waiting for more waiting. Waiting for doctors and dentists and groceries and traffic. Waiting for my children to finish baseball practice, wrestling practice, volleyball practice, cross country races. Waiting for them grow up. Then waiting for weddings, and grandchildren. Always waiting for life to slow down...just a little. 

There has been no shortage of waiting for me, and there is more on my horizon, I am sure. I am also fairly confident in saying that it is probably the same for you. So, what shall we do in the meantime, while we mark time? How shall we fill our time, as we wait through the waiting?

For me, you can be sure that there will be knitting. Knitting for babies that are waiting to be born. Knitting for bridal and baby showers, for dear friends, darling grandchildren and dainty new lives. Knitting simply to pass the time more productively...after all, Christmas is always coming! 

There will also be reflection and self-examination, as I look back through memories of past waits. I have not always waited well, and I have occasionally been bested by impatience and laziness during the wait. These days, I fill my wait times with more prayer and Bible study (and yarn) than ever before, and this is a good thing. I love that I am learning constantly, sometimes listening to a Bible podcast and knitting a new stitch at the same time.

A couple of verses have presented themselves over and over again in recent waits, so I am certain there is something for me in them. Perhaps there is something for you, as well, so I will share.

Psalm 145:13

For your kingdom is an everlasting kingdom. You rule throughout all generations. The Lord always keeps his promises; he is gracious in all he does. 

Romans 8:38

And I am convinced that nothing can ever separate us from God's love...not even the powers of hell can separate us from God's love.

2 Corithians 1:3-4

All praise to God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. God is our merciful father, and the source of all comfort. He comforts us in all our troubles so that we can comfort others. 

Three truths that carry me through my waiting, three truths to combat the lies my mind whispers incessantly in its idleness: 

1. God is an everlasting God who ALWAYS keeps his promises.

2. God loves me, and NOTHING can separate me from that love.

3. God is the source of ALL comfort, so that we might also be sources of comfort.

There are lots of other verses that confirm these truths for me, but these are the three that have been in my face this week. I am so thankful to live in a time and place where his truth is so available to me. It is quite a thing to be free to believe and practice my faith, free to learn to be a better person because of who He is to me. 

There is one more thing in these truths. Even though I sometimes have to wait on God...waiting for answers and direction, or for hard times to get better, or for bad feelings to pass...I know that God will always be there, keeping his promise to love and comfort me. Yes, the waiting might seem like the hardest part, but at least we get lots of practice in getting through it!

Thanks for stopping by, and Knit (and wait) in Good Health!

The rest of the story...flexibility

I mentioned on Wednesday that I've had to be flexible lately, and that has not changed. My boss was recently hospitalized, then diagnosed with stage 3 lung cancer (no, he never smoked...not a single cigarette, ever). As you might imagine, this means a few more hours for me in the office, and (because I am the secretary of my church) out of the office, too. I am totally ok with that, but it has left me less time to knit and to blog. And again, I am ok with that. There is still knitting, but I tend to go for simpler, quicker projects these days, like fingerless gloves for my favorite 3-year-old:

If you are the praying kind, please pray for my boss, Tim. He is my minister, friend, mentor, boss, and brother in Christ, and one of the most extraordinary men I have ever known. And pray for our church members and leaders. Many have taken on extra responsibilities, most unpaid, to keep things up and running, and many are simply so stunned by the news that they aren't sure what to do next. There have been many days in the last two weeks that I have been unsure of what to do next, so I just keep going...praying and knitting to get through the uncertainty of what comes next. The owl-y baby cardigan I've been working on is a little more complicated, and it reminds me that I know "Who?" holds the future of all of it.

Thank you, in advance, for your prayers and good thoughts. Thanks for being a reader of the blog, and for keeping up with what's going on in my pretty knitty life. Thanks for your understanding if the blog happens along late, or short, or not at all in the next few weeks. Finally, thanks for stopping in to read the blog today, and each week.

Knit in Good Health.

So far, and yet so close (to my heart)

You have probably heard about the earthquake. The one in Haiti.

I will not use my blog to share my religious views, or to try to convert anyone to my way of thinking, but I will use it to make the following request:

If you are the praying kind, please pray for the people of Haiti in the wake of this disaster. My church supports a mission and school that is located about 2 miles from the epicenter of the quake, and I cannot even begin to imagine the losses they have suffered. I know that many buildings have been destroyed, and like the rest of the world, I am waiting to see the stats on the injured and the loss of life. I am praying, not just for Christianville, but for all those affected by this tragedy in Haiti, and I ask you to please join me.

That's it for today. Knitting Knews and updates next time.

I hope that you are knitting in good health, and counting your blessings while you do.