Tip of My Iceberg

Life is exhausting on any given day. Combine it with unexpected challenges and increased responsibility, it can feel overwhelming.

Quitting is never an option. Figuring out how to step up to the increased demands is the task that must be addressed.

We’ve had the joy of watching three of our grands over the past week as their parents were at a conference in Chicago. It was the reminder of what life used to look like–getting kids ready for school, packing lunches, and the extra curriculars. Busy mornings, orchestrated afternoons, crazy-maker nights getting them to bed all create a bit of a tornadic experience.

We’ve learned through the years the necessity of having our children write and sign a paper allowing us to handle medical issues that may come up. If a child gets sick or hurt at school, we need to be able to provide needed treatment.

We’ve never had to use it.

Until now.

Nolan, at twenty-two months, is a busy little guy. When he’s not feeling well, it’s quite obvious.

He woke early, having coughed for most of the night, with a slight fever and breathing rapidly. Early mornings might not be an accurate indicator of his actual medical condition, so I waited, helped the other two get ready for school, and realized the little guy wasn’t better.

We took him to a local miniER, hoping they could tell us what was wrong. But they didn’t have the equipment to do the necessary testing. We headed to the emergency room.

When we arrived, the nurses and doctors were kind and encouraging. Their demeanor was gracious toward this little guy, and they bent over backwards to help him.

It cost him. Five times they tried to put an IV into his arms, hands, trying to find a vein that would work.

All failed.

They came up with an alternative method of treating him. Once he had the steroids and antibiotics in his system, he began a rapid turn-around. We were fearful we’d have to admit him for the night, but we went home late afternoon, needing to keep him on breathing treatments for a week.

Life is like these visits. We have our strategies we think will work for us, often because they’re easier than doing anything else. But for real healing, of body and soul, we need the experts to help us. Often those methods are harder, sometimes painful.

But they work.

We want easy ways to get to heaven, or at least options to getting there. We try different things, assuming our good works will be good enough. The Bible is clear on how to know for sure we will get to heaven.

“And this is what God has testified: He has GIVEN us eternal life, and this life is in His Son. Whoever has the Son has life; whoever does not have God’s Son does not have life. I have written this to you who believe in the name of the Son of God so that you may KNOW you have eternal life.” 1 John 5:11-13

Nobody wants to make unncessary trips to the hospital, but if you’re sick, you must go to get well.

Nobody wants to follow an unreliable path, thinking heaven is just going to happen. God has given us a blueprint on how we can be assured of our eternity.

Why waste time on what won’t work?