No, I don't just mean the tumours and swellings and other stuff...I mean what's in the eyes. (Best not to take off the shades, sometimes.)
It's a fact (well, I woul guess so) that the only truly genuine person is Jesus; we're most all of us trying, sometimes very hard, to be someone else.
Sometimes, God help us, we succeed.
And in this winning, we truly lose.
As a husband I have truly failed;
the legacy is lost, and yet
I hope you know that here prevailed
the toughest bastard you ever met.
I wish that I could have understood
the tenderness, so vulnerable
and not have always played the hood,
out for glory, and for trouble.
All I can offer, in this place
is to rise with smile, against the pain,
and pray that God's most holy grace
will bring you joy in life again.
Remember me, and don't be sad,
for I was hard, and I was bad.
This one-secod clip says it all.
Thanks to Carol Ashby, Blessed Are The Pure Of Heart is back on Kindle, and will be available in paperback soon.
Friends are everything. I couldn't have done it.
Marley, the canine waif from Afghanistan, whom WE helped save, has a Facebook page! Please drop by to see how happy he is today.
Below are my recent releases on Kindle -please excuse their presence in the body of the blog. I haven't the energy to get them up as 'buttons' in the sidebar. You can click on the covers to go to the Amazon links.
That's quite thought-provoking, Andrew! I hope we learn more to be ourselves, to celebrate who we are instead of trying to hard to be someone else – there are enough pretenders out there already! :) Thinking of you, Katha
ReplyDeleteKatha, you're so right...being who we are, who God designed us to be, is a vital step to HIS joy...if that makes sense?
DeleteThank you so much for being here.
yes, yes we do. I liked this. :) no. 25 this week.
ReplyDeleteThank you so much, Annette!
DeleteWe're not perfect for sure. That's why we need Christ. But in Him we are perfect, thanks be to God. But yeah, we're not to put our loved ones on a pedestal. We are real people with a dark side. Thanks for being vulnerable and honest and showing us it's okay to do so. Blessings to you as you process everything. Praying for you, Andrew.
ReplyDeleteWell-said, Mari-Anna, and thank you so much for your prayers!
DeleteAndrew, an elderly lady once said to a group of us ladies in Bible Study: "A hug always helps". That has stuck with me. The other night I was talking to a young man who was the server in a restaurant; he had brought the check for me to pay but we got to talking about jobs, money, his education--he has one more year of nursing school, same school I went to 3 decades ago for my RN. He is putting himself through school. We talked about 10 minutes (I did finally sign the bill:).I just encouraged him and then as I stood up to leave, I spontaneously gave him a hug. It was a lovely interaction! So sending you a hug via cyberspace and praying for you too. One more thing, Andrew (I know this is getting kinda long)... You are so gracious & kind in all your responses to us commenters and I think you are giving "verbal" hugs ��!
ReplyDeleteLove & prayers, Kathryn
Kathryn, than you so much for sharing this lovely story...and thank you for the hug!
DeleteIt is welcome, and needed.
Love back, and thank you for your prayers.
We are all trying to live up to Jesus' example. Very powerful post, Andrew.
ReplyDeleteLaurie, it's sure an uphill climb, sometimes.
DeleteThank you so much for being here.
Poignant realism. O, Andrew, it's not the way you thought it would be. I wish you could be well again. Bless you. The bad boy part is history. GBU.
ReplyDeleteMy dear Norma, thank you so much for loving, kind, and powerful affirmation. This is a treasure, as are you.
DeleteI'm finally back from my blogging break and have missed you and your raw honesty, as well as sense of humor, Andrew! I'm sorry to know you're still in excruciating pain, but know that's the valley you are in without a way out. Praying that God helps you to endure!
ReplyDeleteBeth, I am SO GLAD to see you back! The blogosphere without you...it's like running out of oxygen on a staged dive. Been there, done that, and they can keep the t-shirt.
DeleteIt's bad, but God is here, and we're very, very grateful for your prayers.
Beautiful! Grace truly is a gift! You are so raw and honest and vulnerable with your posts my friend. I’m in the 37 spot this week.
ReplyDeleteTara, thank you so much for this, and please forgive my late reply!
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