Independence

Single moms and wives of the deployed military have my utmost respect. I just don't know how anyone can possible raise a family all alone...precisely why God intended for couples to tie the knot before bringing children into the world. It's an exhausting task! Oy!

This week, it seemed like if anything could go wrong, it did. First of all, the AC is on the fritz again...this time, I think it's the thermostat. It's supposed to be a manly task to replace those things, right? Guess not. I will be replacing it myself, if I can figure out how to read the directions that are printed in Spanish, German, or French. Then, the girl I had lined up to watch the girls while I mowed the lawn, conveniently decided not to return any of my calls. Grrrr...I bet she calls back when she needs some money in her pocket! So I left the baby in the swing, turned the webcam on , and had my mom watch her long distance from Florida. She was instructed to call me on the cellphone tucked neatly into my sports bra the instant the baby woke. Our little plan worked, but note to self: Come up with a different plan!

Then, the baby got a nasty scaly rash on her neck...a doctor visit later (which I wish hubby was around for!) she has a cream to be applied. Okay. To me, a rash gives me the heebie jeebies and take me over the edge. I hate them. They make me feel like washing everything and everyone in hot soapy water. So to top it all off, a few days later, the oldest child get a completely different kind of rash. It looks nothing like the baby's...this one has to be fungal. I am boiling bedsheets and making her wear gloves. No, not really, but I am using that coveted Temperature Boost button located on my washing machine, and not allowing her to touch the baby. She is going into the Doctor's office first thing tomorrow.

The lesson this week that I learned? Pastor Steve was talking about independence this week, and what that really means. Freedom means to be totally reliant on God...to depend on Him to raise my family, to depend on Him in times of trouble, and to depend on Him to supply all my needs. Flashing back to that picture last week of my husband driving away, the other half of that image fell neatly into place today. As he was driving south towards Louisiana, we were turning our vanload towards the church....toward God. Of course. And that is EXACTLY what God is asking of me during this time. To be totally reliant on HIM, to help me raise my family, to help me through this time of trouble, and to rely on Him alone to supply my needs. This is a lesson I should have learned long ago, but apparently I need another crack on the noggin to get it right. I pray that I get it right this time, because Lord knows, this time of stretching and learning and being independent (yet totally dependent at the same time!) is leaving my very tired at the end of the day.