Posted on by landktheluckyones

” Retirement?”

I have worked all of my life and was always limited by time. Was this an excuse to not get involved in anythimg? I am not sure, but what I do know is this… I enjoy freedom. 🙂

Could I afford to retire? No, not at all. Yet, God in His Provision continues to provide. I don’t really think retirement is Scriptural. What I do think, is that even though I retired from a life of income which had me tied to a system that made me think that I couldn’t retire, to a life of faith. Yes, I retired from the “9 to5” but, to have the freedom to go places and meet needs or even to enjoy another’s company. I don’t call that retirement. I call that a mission field.

Yes, at first, I struggled with time on my hands and I so miss the people that I worked with. I believe I was meant to be at all the places I worked at that very time because the Lord placed me there. To either, learn from, teach, or meet people to plant seeds along my path. God places us where we need to be if we will be quiet enough to listen.

When I “retired” in June, my sister-in-law invited me to a ladies Bible study that meets weekly. I have met some amazing, beautiful women. I love seeing the beauty that God has bestowed uniquely on each of these women.Some share, some don’t, but we are a community of ladies that love the Lord. I feel very blessed that I am a part of this group. We all go through ups and downs in this life and God in His wisdom created us to need each other. There was a book that I read a few years ago called”There’s A Crack in Your Armor” by Perry Stone. A lot of that book, I don’t recall but, the story of a pastor visiting a mother in the hospital that her son had been in a car accident, has continued to stick with me.

He tells the story in the very first part of this talk he is giving : https://youtu.be/aQJtx1tzA2U

We women of faith get our strength from the Lord, yet sometimes we do get “A crack in our armor” and this is when it is such a blessing to have those around us that will stand in the gap for us. I am thankful for those who have stepped in the gap for me and I feel it a priviledge to stand in the gap for others.

I enjoy not having to “be somewhere” and being free to tag along when someone invites or just to hear a bit of their life. When I was working outside the home, I felt rushed in my time with the Lord. Now, the blessings that I recieve from spending hours in the Word and prayer is something that has brought be through when life gets … well, like life.

No, I am not retired…I am in the mission field and Leonard and I continue to be the lucky ones—blessed by God!

Posted on by landktheluckyones

Life: A mixture of Ups and Downs

It has been a bit since my last blog post. I always enjoy any time that I get to spend with my family, so this is the best place to pick up.

Tina asked us to join her for the Boyne City Mushroom festival. Tina and Isaac did the bumper cars together. This brought joy to watch.

I was able to meet some long time friends for lunch. I enjoyed seeing them so much even though I was self conscious of my physical state when I saw them. It was good to hear how their lives are changing with kids and grand-kids.

As I’ve stated previously, relationships and encounters are what I treasure above many things. On the 23rd of May, I went back to my doctor for a follow up of the hip surgery. He gave me the “go ahead” to return to work. Part of me was ecstatic, for this meant that I was doing well. As it turns out, that the day they told me to return to work, was the very day that my long time girlfriend was in the area. I totally missed an opportunity to visit with with her. Even though I was overjoyed to see the people that I have grown special relationships with at work… I cannot adequately explain how disappointed I was to not see her for this round of her returning to the area. Especially this year, when this fall has made me so aware of the frailty of life.

Since I have been recuperating, I have tried to be vigilant with walking and exercises that physical therapy has given. One of those walks, I was startled by this morning dove that did not seem to be disturbed by my entering it’s personal space.

Memorial Day weekend, Brian and family came to visit and it was such a joy to see them.

Isaac turned 11 and asked for us to take him miniature golfing. I made him an ice cream cake and he was overjoyed to get a Nerf gun that he had been asking his Mum for.

Just a few days later, was Tina’s birthday. I made her a cake made only with fruit which she thought was great!

Leonard and I with our baby

After returning to work, I found that my ability to do my job adequately and how it was effecting my health was just not providing the desired outcome. I had many mixed feelings about this. We made the decision for me to retire. The reality of not seeing the people that I have grown so close to, puts a sadness in my heart that I cannot explain. Did I return to work to early? I don’t know. I never realized a simple fall on the ice could impact not only my health but also my emotional state in such a big way. I realized how fragile life is and how quickly that can change. We decided as a couple that we needed to be together as much as possible. We both are realizing that each day is a gift and not to take it for granted.We go through life believing that there will be a better day or that we will have another day. We count on it, but that is not promised.

Even though life is a mixture of ups and downs, I am grateful to my God for the many relationships that have blessed my heart along the way. To the friends I’ve made that are near my own age to the younger ones that are younger than my own kids and the unlikely relationship that I encountered with a young man that I worked with for 7 years. These people that I’ve been accustomed to seeing everyday, I had to leave behind, yet their uniqueness and the love that I feel for them will be etched in my heart for eternity. Will I forget about them? Not a chance! They have impacted my life and changed me in a way that could have not happened without their place in my life. We have photo albums of moments with our families but, I have a photo album of memories of these people that I hold dear on my heart. No one can take that away. These are moments of just living everyday…same place, same time and yet, that is what draws you close.

Yes, life IS a mixture of ups and downs, but we remain the Lucky Ones and I am grateful.