The "Eyes" Have It

Monday is my phone call day. Even though I know it is one of the hardest days to reach people, it just seems like the need to call falls heaviest after the weekend. I think all weekend of who I need to call and even make a list most of the time. It's a relief when all the calls have been made.

One call I made today though was not very relieving. I found out from the optometrist that I very likely do have glaucoma in one of my eyes and will be seeing an eye surgeon soon to determine if I need to treat it with drops.

This discovery prompted me to make another call. To one of my cousins who I thought might know who in my family may have had glaucoma. I knew my great uncle was blind because of it, but wasn't sure who else had the diagnosis. Turns out a couple of aunts and cousins have also been treated with it, so I was consoled that all of them had success in treating it with eye drops. I was relieved with the extra knowledge from my cousin Willa in Omaha. Thank you, Willa, for your comforting information.

I have just one more call to make before bedtime. That call to my heavenly Father with a special thanks to Him for giving me peace in the midst of my daily storms.

Calming the Storm

I just heard about another disaster to fall on a niece of mine. She has four beautiful little daughters, but the two-year-old recently survived a dog attack, with multiple stitches on her face. Very traumatic for the whole family, as they were all there when it happened. But then tonight, it seems that they have had a house fire, destroying a large portion of their house.

We wonder when trials like this just seem to keep happening. If you have a belief in God, these bad experiences can shatter your image of Him. Let alone reduce your trust in Him to protect and keep you.

I've come to the conclusion that even God can't (or more correctly, won't) prevent all disasters though, simply because this is a planet that has rebelled, and Lucifer is temporarily in charge of as much mischief as he can muster. Let's be careful not to blame God for Satan's handiwork.

God, on the other hand, has promised to be with us in hard times. He doesn't always calm the storm, but He is always there to calm us. The comfort and strength He provides may be just what we need to carry us forward, even after the storm subsides. I pray my niece and her family will look to God as the means to survive these ordeals and that they can soon have some normalcy back in their lives.

The Day After

How nice of the sun to shine so brightly on the freshly-fallen snow from yesterday. The wind even stopped its cold distraction, so we could focus on the glistening white landscape. Along with the brightness of the sun was a warmth that melted away all the bad feelings in the wake of yesterday's snowstorm.

Once again people took to their vehicles and invaded the stores for supplies they forgot to get just two days previous, before the storm hit. But this time the shoppers were wearing their happy faces, instead of their woe-is-me-how-much-snow-will-we-get faces.

When storms threaten to impact our lives, we should try to envision the day after the storm. What a different world it will be for us, when the storm passes. God will help us live for "the day after".