January 3 – “Long nights”

Nine-year-old Jachin told me he saw a friend of his at the library yesterday.  Seems the friend has two sisters, one older and one younger.  Jachin told the fellow that he was going to be having a baby sister.  He wanted to know if the guy had anything he could tell him about what to expect, or maybe offer some advice on how to deal with the new creature.  The guy didn’t have anything to offer.  Nothing.  That tells me he has been living a life of either despair because he has no idea how to handle girls or perhaps anticipation because he never knows what will happen next with these fair beings.  I hope Jachin chooses the latter.  Lots more fun to be had that way. 

We have had some more long, restless nights with Mom this past week.  She just can’t seem to get settled in when it gets to be bedtime … and beyond.  She was up until three last night, and back at it again around 4:30.  Her communication skills are almost gone, so it’s hard to figure out what she wants or needs.  Chris does her best to anticipate things, but she is getting pretty exhausted.  And it’s hard for her to ask for help because she knows how time intensive it can be; she doesn’t want to put that on anyone else.  I confess that, though willing, I am clueless as to how to help.  It is hard to stay focused and motivating at church when my heart is in several other places as well.  Here’s where it would be great to take a sabbatical or a leave of absence or a vacation or even just a weekend away, but it would be hard for Chris to enjoy it.  Plus it would take at least a few days to just crash – probably sleep a lot – before we could turn our attention to the task of relaxing.  And I’m the only paid minister at the church now.  That means sermons and Bible studies and hospital visits and weddings and funerals meetings and forming relationships with the community and the other endless tasks of ministry that I really do love. 

Whew.  Sorry for the rant.  So we will press on.  We will hold onto all the trite mantras like “Take it one day at a time.”  Chris will try to fit in a nap in the afternoons.  I’ll take a deep breath and force myself to attack issues at church.  We’ll quote a lot of Scripture, sing a lot of praise songs.  And hold onto each other every chance we get. 

Philippians 4:13 says, “I can do everything through him who gives me strength.”

Father, we can use some of that supernatural strength right now to fight back the “tired.”  Amen.