quote for the day

"One need not be a servant to be able to serve."
-Victor Frankl

A bouncing new baby boy!

The Cross family has yet to bear a small baby, but this one takes the cake! Andrew Reed was born Friday afternoon, weighing 10 lbs. 6 ounces! Amazingly, the delivery went fine and my sister Julie is recovering at home now. Attached is a picture of dad holding Andrew.

He and mom traveled two hours on Friday to see the baby, and I’m so very glad they made it. Dad has declined quite steadily over the last four weeks. He uses a lift chair now exclusively and a wheelchair. Hospice was called in yesterday for in-home care.

Until this weekend, dad was not ready to accept his declining health. He was still hoping that he might regain some mobility. He is now seeing what we realized several weeks ago. It is time for him to be gracious with himself as he walks this journey into the arms of Jesus.

If you are praying, pray that hospice will be a help in making him comfortable. Pray that my mom will have a supernatural strength to deal with the situation. Pray that we will know if it would be wise to move both of them up to Grand Rapids to stay with me. And finally, pray that I will be quickly healed of the respiratory virus that I have had for a week now.

It’s impossible for me to explain how our heavenly Father is holding and directing us right now. He feels so very near, and indeed he is. (James 4:8)

Visit www.praybigbook.com

If you've ever wondered how to pray Scripture, how to pray more boldly, or how to pray for both little and big things, this is the book for you. Check out the web site and be sure to view the video for a laugh. This is a book I've been working on for several months, and it will release on July 1.

Plenty of free prayer resources on the web site, too. You'll especially like the free ecard that tells a friend "I Prayed for You Today."

Let me know what you think.

Oh, yes, and what do you think of this quote from CS Lewis:
"Your book bill ought to be your biggest extravagance." ~CS Lewis

Update on Dad's journey

We continue to covet your prayers. Dad has been growing progressively weaker over the last three weeks or so. We’ve made adjustments by getting him a lifeline button, having a nurse in a few times a week, etc.

Last night he had to go into the emergency room because the strength in his left leg had deteriorated so significantly. He is back home now, but it is now extremely difficult for him to get up from his chair. It may be time for us to consider hospice or to get some more help.

This is the verse I’ve prayed over our family for some time:
“You brought me into a spacious place; you rescued me because you delighted in me.” Psalm 18:19

Ironically, the spacious place dad is being led to comes through a journey of pain and progressive weakness. But I believe with all my heart that God’s preparing a place that will be spacious, vibrant, and perfect for dad.

Prayers that we would respond well as he takes this journey are appreciated. Especially for mom, with mother’s day coming this weekend. And his grandson’s birth is just a week away now. We will celebrate these moments with abandon, and then we will pray that God gives us the strength to graciously release him when the time comes.

Crazy, crazy

I'm all for spontaneity, but this week I'm craving a bit more routine.

We started a new Bible study on Sunday at my apartment, I had a yearly review at work, a visit to the amazing tulip festival in Holland, Michigan, two all-day meetings, summer clothes shopping, teaching water aerobics, blogging, a mother/daughter banquet, and a visit to Indiana. Next week I will return to a life of sanity and regular exercise.

Hey, y'all come back next week when I'll have more time to say something meaningful. Word up. (For some reason, all this chaos brings me back to the 80s.) Ha!

Quote for the day

“I am grateful that I started writing at a very early age, before I realized what a daring thing it is to do, to set down words on paper, to attempt to tell a story, create characters. We have to be braver than we think we can be, because God is constantly calling us to be more than we are, to see through plastic sham to living, breathing reality, and to break down our defenses of self-protection in order to be free to receive and give love.” ~Madeleine L’Engle, Walking on Water