Wiggly And Waggly

If I simply look at her, her tail starts going back and forth in wide swooshes. Our dog, Zoey, has a perpetually wagging tail. Many times I hear her tail thump, thump, thumping against the wall when she’s asleep in her bed. She wags her tail widely and a lot!

Kaylee, our other dog, also wags her tail, but not nearly as often and in more of a quivering motion. If she’s extra happy and excited, her tail may swish back and forth a whole few inches in a little wiggle.

Mike, my husband, with our granddaughters and the pups at Nottingham County Park.

Some of us are wiggly and others are waggly, meaning some are more expressive than others. The same emotions happening on the inside can appear quite differently on the outside. The point is not to make assumptions based on a wiggle or waggle. Let’s give each other space to respond the way we are designed; don’t expect others to react like you would.

Kaylee and Zoey (Zoey has the white-tipped tail).

God made each of us so wonderfully and just as He planned! He created male and female in His image. Together we are a beautiful picture of His design for life, both wiggly and waggly.

When you look at those around you, always remember they are made in the image of God.

So God created man in His own image; He created him in the image of God; He created them male and female. Genesis 1:27

My son, Dan, with Senna, Adina, Kaylee, and Zoey (each unique and each dearly loved).

Baking Bread & Catching Fly Balls

It was a strike, then another, then another. My husband, Mike, was so excited. We needed a pitcher for our softball game that night, and he had asked me to give it a try. After those first few beautiful pitches, the truth revealed itself. I am not a pitcher. I didn’t come anywhere near the strike zone. I was fine with that, because I loved chasing down fly balls in the outfield and backing up those around me.

Each of us is unique and uniquely gifted. Every single person is made in the image of God and is smart. Kathy Koch has a terrific book called “8 Great Smarts”. It details the different types of smart and how we need to recognize and encourage these traits in children. I’d say we should recognize them in other adults and ourselves, too!

Have you heard of Mattithiah, the firstborn of Shalom the Korahite? He was entrusted with baking the bread. (1 Chronicles 9:31) It seems that he was smart at baking. He used this to serve and glorify God. As J.I. Packer wrote, “Seek grace to work hard at whatever life calls you to do, and enjoy your work as you do it.”

What are you entrusted with? How will you use your smarts? We did find a pitcher for that softball game. This was quite a while ago, and I don’t remember if we won or lost. I do know we each enjoyed playing our particular role and using our smarts.

“Just as each one has received a gift, use it to serve others, as good stewards of the varied grace of God.” (1 Peter 4:10)

You are unique and uniquely gifted!

Winter Is a Season

She said, “I am just numb. I don’t feel anything.” We had just watched another patient go from life to death. I tried to assure her that it is a protective mechanism and that this is a season that will eventually pass. Like winter. Trees shed their leaves and are barren, with no signs of life, but life is still there, deep inside. It will burst forth again.

My heart hurts for my co-workers. I see a variety of responses from those around me – heartbreak, numbness, anger, and perplexity are just some of them. You don’t realize how hard this is and how concerning it is to wonder if your heart may be hardening simply to keep going and doing what you need to do. I work in an intensive care unit, where I’ve probably seen more death in the last 2 years than in the previous 20. However, there is hope in Jesus. He conquered death.

“Jesus said to her (Martha), “I am the resurrection and the life. The one who believes in me, even if he dies, will live. Everyone who lives and believes in me will never die. Do you believe this?” “Yes, Lord,” she told him, “I believe you are the Messiah, the Son of God, who comes into the world.” (John 11:25-27 CSB)

We must not lose our humanity in all of this. I hear a lot of talk about self-care, but what I think is needed more is to care for each other. Let others talk without judging them. Be open about how you are really feeling. Hug each other! Cry, scream, laugh, whatever. Don’t bottle it up. Listen to understand, not to reply. Every single person is a treasure, made in the image of God, as He tells us in the Bible. That means you, too. Let’s treat each other as such. Spring will come.

“Then God said, ‘Let us make man in our image, according to our likeness. They will rule the fish of the sea, the birds of the sky, the livestock, the whole earth, and the creatures that crawl on the earth.’” (Genesis 1:26 CSB)

“Listen to understand, not to reply.” – unknown