Happy Easter!

I hope you all had a wonderful Easter weekend with family and friends! No big post today, but I more just wanted to get down a few recent thoughts.

Sitting in church today, the pastor was talking about how different our lives are because of Christ's resurrection. Because Jesus was crucified for our sins and they were buried with him in the tomb, and because He was resurrected, we have new life. Simple enough. He talked about how we have the capability to trade our sorrows for joy, our despair for purpose, our defeat for victory, and so on. It is nothing that I haven't heard before, but it was a strong encouragement that I needed to hear. Basically anything that is a negative, we gain as a positive if we choose to do so as a child of God. The key is actually choosing to do so. In my opinion, this is the real challenge.

I was actually pretty weepy this weekend...I was really missing my dad. I've said it a million times, but he just made holidays and get-togethers so much better. I missed seeing him stuffing the Easter eggs at the kitchen table and making his deviled eggs. I think he loved watching his three grown kids hunt Easter eggs more than we enjoyed finding them. Sweet Rob was such a great husband to me...just letting me talk through things and cry on his shoulder. It was tough. But listening to the sermon today, it reminded me of the gift that I have because I have accepted Jesus. I know that in Christ, a scenario that is seemingly very tough on earth is actually a victory in the Lord's eyes. I know that I have grown much more in my faith because of my loss than I would have otherwise. I know the same is true for many, many more people that Dad came into contact with during his time at MD Anderson and at work as he shared his story. I know just how well the Lord can hold me when it seems like my world is upside down. I know and trust the Lord's timing much more than I ever have. I have come to know Him as a father in a much deeper way. The list can go on forever. And yes, it is obviously very easy to see my situation from worldly eyes...it is, after all, natural. It is easy to pull out all of the "it's not fairs." But when we choose to see things and events from God's perspective, things just seem to make more sense.

Rob and I had a good and busy weekend. We got to host my mom for a few days and also got to spend time with much of Rob's family. It is always a treat to spend holidays with family...something I often take for granted. I certainly missed the competitive rush of the annual Maxwell house Easter Egg hunt, the annual Kerrville Easter run, and the rest of my family, but I was thankful for our weekend. We are richly blessed.

Happy Easter!