The Cards....

....Before we begin....this is not a post about baseball. So if you came here looking for some inspirational talk about the Rangers and the Cardinals...well I'm afraid your google search did you wrong.

Anyway...someone recently asked me if I was "happy with the cards life had dealt me thus far." It was out of the blue...and I quickly, without thinking, said..."absolutely" and then afterward I thought maybe I should have given it more thought.

You see...here are some of the cards life has thrown me....

- loss of father at a young age
- paying my own way thru college
- fertility issues
- near loss of life in child birth
- near loss of life of firstborn
- financial difficulties
- small church ministry pitfalls
- taking a loss on selling a house
- 3 months of bed rest
- hurricanes

And...

-Salvation
- Christian parents
- Bible College
- A godly husband
- Opportunity to serve in full-time Christian service
- 2 wonderful kids
- fulfillment in employment
-A beautiful home
- steady paycheck
- sweet friends
- Freedom to homeschool
- Peace of mind
- Support
- Good health


And there's more...much more. God's allowed so many things to happen in these short years and each one of them has had its purpose. I haven't always liked it when I went through it...and even now the twinge of pain I might feel about some of these things is tough, but I know these things are just the beginning of the good things he has planned for me. He allows these things to mature me.  In our ladies Bible study at church we've been studying James and how to walk a more spiritually aware life. It's difficult, but possible. I'm finding each and every day a struggle between my flesh and my spirit, but when I learn to trust Him completely....100%, then I can accept these comfortable and uncomfortable situations and all these moments in between as time designed to get focused on His goodness and His character...and to walk in HIM...under His control. There's no better place to be!