Sunday Reflection & Monday Schedule

“How do you do it?” “I can’t imagine handling that…”

Those are a couple variations of one sentiment we’ve heard countless times in the last few weeks: “I couldn’t go through what you’re going through.”

(While I know that this has the beginnings of patting ourselves on the back or bragging, believe me, that’s not what I’m going for. And if you’ll continue to read, you’ll see that that’s not where I’m going with this either.)

To answer the question, “How do you do it?” I’d like to ask another question: “How do YOU do it?” How does anyone do it, for that matter? How does anyone deal with the stuff of life, the daily difficulties, the little – and not so little – hurdles that come between you and the finish line of life in a broken world?

Allow me to give two answers; one for someone without a living faith in the One Living God, and one for folks like my wife and me.

First, I myself wonder how people who aren’t Christians get through life. Time and time again, I have had that conversation with members of my church when they’re in the hospital. And I don’t bring it up myself. “I just can’t imagine how a non-Christian could get through a storm like this,” is something that is said virtually every time I visit someone in a crisis situation. And yet, I think I’ve stumbled on how such people get through those times. Here’s how: God. Of course, they don’t know that directly. They wouldn’t be able to put their finger on that – in fact, they would probably argue against such a conclusion. Nevertheless, the Bible describes God as giving rain to the godly and ungodly. We’re told that God cares for the sparrows and dresses the lilies; “how much more for you, o man?” And besides the external, daily provisions, I think that God provides incredible internal strength for everyone – both for those who believe and for those who don’t. “What’s this?” you ask? Folks without the Biblical vocabulary might call it the human will or the human spirit or mere drive. And they might define it as this uncanny, supernatural ability to press on, to hang on, to carry on. It’s what our poets and playwrights, our authors and actors portray in every tome. And here’s what the Bible calls it: being made in the image of God. Having something – like good art that can’t be defined but only recognized – that makes humanity different from everything else in this world. That’s how I think non-Christians get through tough times – ultimately because of God; proximately because of God’s provisions and God’s image.

Second, I think that Christians have what non-Christians have, namely, provisions and the image of God; but we also have more. We have hope that God will carry us through and that these trials don’t last forever. We have faith that God is in control and that everything works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose. We have joy – pure joy – whenever we face trials of many kinds, because we know that the testing of our faith develops perseverance; perseverance must finish its work so that we may be mature and complete, not lacking anything. We have strength from other Christians as we bear one another’s burdens. We have communication with God, since the Holy Spirit takes our groans and transforms them into exactly what God needs to hear from us. We have grace – the train ticket at the station, “give us this day our daily bread” kind of grace so we take one day at a time.

How do we do it? The same way you do. The same way a young mom deals with her chemotherapy treatments. The same way a young family handles the hole in their home while Daddy is away in Iraq for a year. The same way that couples persevere through the tragedy of miscarriage. The same way that parents and siblings handle the sudden, no-signs-this-would-happen loss of a child.

God carries us through, and we carry on. We care for others, and they care for us. We pray for you, and you pray for us. God gives us all these things to assure us of his fatherly care for us. One day at a time.

What’s left for us to do in Cincinnati, in (we hope) our last day here tomorrow?

We have a 9:30 ultrasound to measure how our girls are growing and what’s happened since the last one on Thursday. Next, we have a 2:30 echocardiogram – it’s there that we’ll find the Tei (sorry for misspelling it “Tay” – it’s named after an Asian cardiologist who created a scale for heart function) score and see whether it has improved for twin B. Maybe we’ll also get a better picture of the hole in twin A’s heart, now that she has a little more room to move. Finally, we’re scheduled for a 5:30 consultation with the surgeon and some other doctors to go over results and devise a plan from this point. Then we hit the road so we can sleep in our own bed tomorrow night. =)

Please pray with us for a good day tomorrow – specifically, that the Tei score will have improved, that the twins continue to look strong and healthy, and for wisdom as we discuss plans with doctors. Thanks again so much – we’re thankful that God has given us YOU as a means of grace for us. =)

~Jeff