Chicken Nurse?

"Saralyn.... will you look at the chicken's foot?"

Our friends recently got some chickens, and last Friday the poor bird got his toe stepped on...the vet's was closed for the weekend....being a nurse and having worked at a vet's office in the past evidently qualified me to take a look at the chicken...

I offered up a prayer as I walked out to the driveway, "God, please give me wisdom, I don't know anything about chicken's feet!!"

The toe looked swollen and crooked... after deciding the lump wasn't where a joint would be, I concluded a broken toe must be the answer...

What would you do for a broken chicken's toe?

slowly and gently pull the toe straight... bandage tape and q-tips to splint it...

poor fellow, I don't think he appreciated the addition to his foot...

Originally, I had wanted to start working as a nurse this summer... but it seems I've still been able to have some interesting "nursing" experiences just being at home--from my grandma's heart attack to setting broken chicken toes.

I used to think I wanted to be a vet. And I guess there's still that side of me that would enjoy being a small town vet. But I'm glad that God had a better plan. A plan that involved working with people and not just animals, but also a plan that still lets me help out with the little things of the animal world too... I'm glad for the those little things of life, and glad that my big God cares about something like broken chicken toes.

"Look to the birds"

Some friends from church found this small nest out in their yard the other day.

Look to the birds of the air;...Are you not much more valuable than they?...Do not be afraid little flock, for your Father has been pleased to give you the kingdom...

Matthew 6:26; Luke 12:32

Goodbyes & Lessons

One week ago I stayed up till about 3:30 in the morning with my sister as she finished last minute packing...then Tuesday morning my parents took her to the airport three hours away to fly to Bolivia.

Having my sister leave was a lot harder than I had thought it would be. I've had to say goodbye to my sisters before, but I've never really had to consider the fact that we might not all be able to be together again on this earth. And yet, what a wonderful hope we have in Christ! Goodbye is not forever.

All day long on Tuesday, I was fighting back tears threatening to spill out of my eyes. I was so happy that she was going, I wouldn't want her to stay here, and yet I was already missing her so much. When Amy called from the Los Angelos airport later that night, Karie answered the phone since I was cleaning the kitchen. Saralyn, it's Amy! pick up the phone! I walked over to my Mom's desk where the phone was, but I couldn't pick up the phone right away, first I had to gain control over the sudden storm of tears that had errupted from what seemed like nowhere...so it took a minute before I could talk on the phone. That was the last time I talked to her since she left.

Later that night, I was in the shower and just talking to God about everything that was going on in my life. I'm so tired of telling the people I love goodbye. Why is it so hard to say goodbye God? Then a thought that had never occured to me before, hit me like a bolt of lightning. God said, Now you know what I felt when I let my Son leave home to come to your earth. Now you know more what that pain of separation was like for me.

Honestly, I've never thought of it this way before. I have often thought about what Jesus had to give up--heaven, being in a place where there is perfect love, face to face communion with His Father, being surrounded by angels all ready to do His bidding... but what about the relationship, the closeness of Father and Son, what was it like to let Him go?

For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish but have everlasting life. ~John 3:16

I know that my sister and friends who are going all over the world are safe. Because their lives are in God's hands, they are going to do His will, and so no matter what happens, thier salvation is secure in Christ. What is a little sleep now until that day when we see Him face to face? No, it doesn't take away the pain, but God gives hope in the midst of it. I know that this hope is the only reason I can go on living in this sinful world. But I think must be easier for me than it was for God. What if something had gone wrong in the plan? God is perfect, and so are His plans, but Jesus had the same opportunity to choose God or not as we have in every temptation. And if He had failed, we'd be lost. Would this have also meant eternal separation for Father and Son? I don't know for sure, but if so, then He has taken such a greater risk than we'll ever have to take. To me, the thought that He would be willing to risk so much, is more than I can comprehend. It's totally not human, that's for sure. And such a God is safe to trust, wherever He calls, wherever He leads, calvary shows that God is selfless and 100% safe to trust. Seeing this love enables us to give no mater the cost too. What wondrous love is this!

What Everyone Can Do...

This morning, Karie shared a paragraph with me that she'd read in Ministry of Healing. We both really liked this story because it takes the gospel commission and makes it something that anyone who knows Jesus can do. Many times, I think I don't know very much. What can I do? But Jesus has done something for me, this is enough! This in itself is the qualification. All I'm called to do is to share what He's already done.

(The context for the story is in Matthew 8 & Mark 5.)
Two helpless men, so controlled by Satan that no one could stand to be around them, the disciples fled them in terror, and when their Savior appeared they charged at Him to kill him.

This situation didn't alarm Jesus. He'd just stilled a storm on the sea, and He knew the longing deep within the stormy hearts of those demoniacs, and He knew that He was able to still this storm too. (Oh, for that kind of peace in the face of such a storm... I know it's only possible if I stand next to this Jesus, and let Him brave the storm for me.)

Soon there were two healed men, two transformed me, two men who were lost but now found. They sat there at Jesus' feet. They wanted to never be separated from Him who had showed them such mercy, love and blessing. But in His wisdom, Jesus had another plan. Go, go back home.

"The two restored demoniacs were the first missionaries whom Christ sent to teach the gospel in the region of Decapolis. For a short time only, these men had listened to His words. Not one sermon from His lips had ever fallen upon their ears. They could not instruct the people as the disciples who had been daily with Christ were able to do. But they could tell what they knew; what they themselves had seen, and heard, and felt of the Savior's power. This is what everyone can do whose heart has been touched by the grace of God. This is the witness for which our Lord calls, and for want of which the world is perishing." ~Ministry of Healing, page 99

This story is like a mini picture of the Great Controversy.

Jesus came to their town. The people there begged Him to leave, so He did. (Love won't force itself where it isn't waned. It can't stay when asked to leave.) But Jesus didn't give up on the town. He sent the healed men back to their hometown area. Maybe they'd get who He was if some of their own people went and told them. (Sometimes God in all His power is too much for we humans to take.)

Jesus came to our world. We rejected and crucified our Savior. He died and later went back to heaven. But this doesn't mean He's not intensely interested in what's going on here or about people's misconceptions of His love. He doesn't give up! When Jesus went back to heaven, He sent His disciples out as His representatives.

Later in Jesus' ministry, He returned to the Decapolis area, and this time the people received him gladly. What does this say to me regarding my role and position in the Great Controversy today? He's coming back!

Upon Every Flower

"God is love," is written upon every opening bud, upon every spire of springing grass. The lovely birds making the air vocal with their happy songs, the delicately tinted flowers in their perfection perfuming the air, the lofty trees of the forest with their rich foliage of living green--all testify to the tender, fatherly care of our God, and to His desire to make His children happy.
~Keys to Happiness, pg. 2

God gave me a special blessing the other day! About a week and a half ago, Karie graduated from high school...after the program was done, there were a lot of flowers left over...it's a rather long story, but one of the ladies who was taking them home asked if I wanted a few flowers, then before I knew it, she was offering me the entire boquet. I left the place with an armload of flowers almost too big to hold! To me, it was a special gift from my heavenly Father who knows how powerfully each blossom speaks to me of His love.