One Word - LOVE

God is LOVE!

"For God so LOVEd the world that He gave His only begotten son, that whosoever believes in Him will not perish but have everlasting life."  John 3:16

Faith Barista Blogger Bonnie Gray inspired and challenged me last year in her January blog to come up with "your one word" for the year?.  For 2011 it was "confidence" for me which I sorely needed after a few health scares.  Confidence was coincidentally (I think not) Bonnie's word, too!

So here we are in 2012! Bonnie offers her annual challenge again.
http://www.faithbarista.com/2012/01/one-word-for-2012-a-faith-dare/ 
See what her word is for this year!

Mine is "LOVE" if you could not guess from the John 3:16 scripture.  I crafted a breath prayer (a future post for sure) many years ago, that is "Father, let me know and show and your LOVE."  I say this quietly to myself throughout the day.  That is what I hope to do in 2012, to show LOVE in every situation and person I face this year.  I am to LOVE God (Deut. 6:5)! I love Jesus for He is my Lord and Savior (Rom. 5:8)! I am to love as God LOVEs (Eph. 5:2)!  I am to LOVE in the good and the bad, the beautiful and the ugly, in the hope and in the despair. May I LOVE from a pure heart, a good conscience and a sincere faith (1 Tim. 1:5).

I hope to show LOVE to my husband and children (1 John 3:18) - they get the best and the worst of me at times.  May I look at them with LOVE in ALL situations (1 Pet. 4:8).  I hope to show LOVE to my extended family and friends - sometimes I have opposing views with these LOVEd ones but that does not mean that I can't LOVE them even if we don't agree (Rom. 13:10).  It has taken me a long time to realize this!  Sometimes, I get it right and sometimes, I don't and that is okay!  God still loves me in spite of my failings.

Probably one of the easiest groups to show LOVE to is our pets (Matt. 6:26)!  Aren't they precious?  Even if I am gone for 10 minutes or 10 hours I get a joy-filled greeting from them like no other!  Help me, Lord, to LOVE them even when they eat 2 dark chocolate candy bars and our family stays up basically the whole night to make sure they are okay!

I am President of our women's group at my church this year.  A daunting task for sure--one that I do not feel qualified for but God equips the called, amen?!  I hope to show LOVE to the women in our church family in ways that are meaningful to each of them (Rom. 12:10, Heb. 13:10)!  Lord, help me talk less and listen more...

I hope to show LOVE to those running for office as this is a huge political year - some say the most important ever (1 John 4:7).  May I not trivialize any part of it.  I hope to know the issues and how the votes were cast but more than that, I hope to love the people whom have agreed to serve God and others (1 Cor. 12:31).  May I show God's LOVE for them, too.

Lastly, I hope to show LOVE to the least and the lost (John 13:34).  It's been said 'No Jesus = No peace, Know Jesus = Know Peace'!  Help me to not be so self-centered or stuck-up that I miss those opportunities that God has placed before me to be His hands and feet (Phil. 1:9)!  Help me, Lord, to LOVE more and hate less.

So what's your one word this year?  Tell me yours.  Mine is LOVE (Eph. 3:17)!  God LOVEs you and so do I (1 Thes. 3:12)!  Here's to a LOVEly 2012!

12/3/10 - I have HOPE in the Lord

December 3, 2010

This is the day the Lord hath made, let us rejoice and be glad in it! Psalm 118:24

I want to rejoice in the day the Lord has made, yet I feel weak and apprehensive.  So much has happened in the last few weeks.  On October 26, 2010, I had a colonoscopy and endoscopy...I had been having stomach and bowel issues.  I had been eating junk and not really taking care of my body.  Lots of gas, lots of burping, pencil like stools, constipation and diarrhea...Maybe it was my thyroid medication causing these issues...or maybe not...I know this may be "TMI" but we must talk about these things even they are embarrassing!

So I tell my Physician Assistant at my thyroid check in September that I am having some "issues".  She said, "Let's get you to a gastroenterologist just to make sure everything's OK."  I meet the doctor and we schedule the endoscopy and colonoscopy especially since my family has cancer on both sides.  I do the bowel prep which is annoying and disgusting. Ask anyone who has had one!  You basically have starve yourself and then take pills that give you diarrhea.  Next comes the lovely bowel prep--a mostly tasteless drink but you have to drink a gallon of it over a period of several hours...I thought I would explode and now my bum is sore!  Get some zinc oxide to utilize between BM's! Your bum will thank you!

I had a nice check in at the hospital, wonderful nurses and a kind anesthesiologist.  My doctor comes in but I am already loopy from the medication.  The procedures are done and I awake 30 minutes later.  He tells me he removed two polyps from my colon and they will be tested.  He said my endoscopy revealed that the bottom of my stomach (Gastric Antrum) is inflamed and irritated and so he biopsied it and the results will come back on that soon but not too worry.

Fast forward to November 11, 2010, Veteran's Day and my nephew, Keegan's Birthday!  My husband, Steve, is out of the country so my boys wait in the waiting room while I meet with the doctor.  He tells me that it is a good thing that I had the polyps removed - they were tubular adenomas (one sessile or flat, one like a stalk).  They are smaller but left unremoved they could have developed into colon cancer.  Wow, thank you Jesus they are gone!  My endoscopy revealed that I have intestinal metaplasia in my stomach...what in the world is that?  It is an abnormal cell structure - the bottom of my stomach has become more closely resembled to my intestines?  That is weird!  Why would that happen?  No one knows the exact reason this occurs he tells me.  He also says it can become a precursor to stomach cancer...now my eyes bug out and I am starting to get scared. He says to change my diet, take more fiber, no broccoli or beans - they cause gas which can irritate one's stomach, eliminate fried, greasy foods, smoked meats, BBQ (smoked is a known carcinogen) and no lunch meats with nitrites.  He says a few other things but I cannot recall them...he says we will do a two year follow up on both...I say OK and leave.

Wow...I cannot believe it.  It's not the "C" word but it can become "it"...I call my husband, Steve, - he is in Dubai.  He is shocked too.  He wants me to get checked in one year instead of two.  I agree.  I go home.  The polyps are straight forward - checks and removal should help protect me from colon cancer.  I research intestinal metaplasia - not exciting or very good news; lots of unknowns about it.  I am praying.

I feel fear but I keep saying, "OK God, I trust in You!  I have a HOPE and a future in You!" (Jer. 29:11)  I will keep saying this and proclaiming this!  I have a HOPE and a FUTURE in the Lord!  The medical community is a healing agent for God.  There are also times when our healing comes supernaturally from God.  I have a HOPE and a FUTURE of being healed of whatever comes my way!  So I will rejoice and be glad in this day!

Are you rejoicing in this day He has made?  What makes you glad? What gives you hope?