True Love

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Nelson.Today is the birthday of the child who ushered me into motherhood 42 years ago. Nelson’s arrival did what every first baby’s arrival does: it turned our world upside-down!

As we’ve been told by the experts, becoming a parent sets you up for the highest highs and lowest lows you’ll ever know. Nelson and I have talked about this many times in reference to him being our firstborn, each discussion an interesting one. Despite a few difficult moments in our happy history, I can honestly say I’ve never loved Nelson more than I do today. And if Nate were here, he’d ditto that.

The strange thing about love is that it’s capable of growing and growing without ever stopping. When love is true (whether it’s parent-to-child, husband-to-wife, friend-to-friend, or something else), if it’s genuine, it’ll never fade with time. Real love doesn’t diminish even when someone causes trouble or makes poor decisions with negative fall-out. True love just never gets done loving.

Of course there are versions of love that do wear out, but these aren’t true love at all. It may seem so at the time, but true love has many imposters: infatuation, passion, obligation, affection, self-serving “love,” and others. Genuine love doesn’t shrink. It only expands.

Our love-model is God, who visibly demonstrated it through his Son. Other than true love, what could possibly have motivated Jesus to swap his heavenly life of perfection for an earthly life of hardship? And what but true love could motivate the Father to let him go? And they’re still loving to that extreme today.

As for me, I’ve been the cause of all kinds of lows and negative fall-out in my relationship with the Lord. That’s why I’m ever-grateful his love isn’t based on my performance. If it was, he would have turned away years ago. But he promises a true love that won’t ever weaken, no matter what I do or don’t do. What a relief!

Nelson instructsSometimes I wonder if true love as we know it here on earth has anything in common with the perfect love of the Father and Son. As I think about Nelson today on his birthday and how my love for him (and of course others) has swelled over the years, I wonder if the love of our heavenly Relatives is enlarging the same way toward us. More than likely, that’s true.

True love.

“The Lord your God is in your midst…. He will quiet you by his love.” (Zephaniah 3:17)

An Update from Jack

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My last blog post was over 7 months ago, and tonight Midge asked if I felt like writing. Since I’ve been hoping for a chance to tell you about some significant changes in my life, I said yes.

Tired JackThe changes I’m talking about aren’t physical, though at 87 years old, I’m definitely slowing down. My problem is that I’m changing on the inside, especially in my head. Midge tells me I’m acting different these days, and that makes sense, since I feel different.

 

Sometimes I have such an overwhelming need to get near her that when she’s doing dishes, I’ll wedge myself between her knees and the kitchen cabinets. Or I’ll plant myself right on top of her feet. Often I’ll lie down so close that when she turns around, she trips over me.

At other times I’ll find myself wandering down to the basement, even when the lights are off, and when I get there, I’ll stand in one place wondering what I’m doing there. Back upstairs I might start licking the carpet and be unable to stop myself without help, even after 15 minutes.

Occasionally I’ll drink all the water in my big drinking bowl without stopping, licking the bottom when I’m done. And when we go on walks, I sometimes forget to do what I’m supposed to do while we’re out.

Over the weekend, Midge and my cousin-girl Marta took me to the vet for a once-over. All 3 of us learned the reason behind these changes. Though it’s true I have multiple benign tumors in my abdomen, some as big as baseballs, they aren’t my problem. The real trouble is that my “thinker” is wearing out. It turns out I have (gulp) doggie-dementia.

The vet performed some tests on me, and said that physically I was doing ok. Nothing needed to be done. I was glad to hear that, and I know Midge was, too. The doctor simply said, “If Jack needs you to be his security blanket right now, that’s ok, isn’t it?” It was comforting to see Midge nod yes.

When we arrived home, Midge and I had a serious talk. She told me that no matter what happens, she’ll always love me, and that we’ll work together to make my remaining time the best it can be. She said if I have to start taking medicine, she’ll wrap each pill in my favorite cheese. And as long as I can get up from a lying position (quite difficult these days), she’ll continue taking me on walks.

???????????????????????????????Midge told me that she and anyone else who loves God can trust him to care for them, no matter how old and needy they get. So since she’s not worried about her own future, I’m not gonna worry about mine. The same God who created her created me, so I know he’ll make old age work out for both of us.

“Throughout your lifetime…. I made you, and I will care for you.”  (Isaiah 46:4)

 Praising and Praying with Mary

No news is good news, and both little Anders and I continue to do well. Thank you for your faithfulness in prayer! I will be sure to update you in this space, as soon as anything new happens. You are much appreciated!

Getting to Know You

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Dad's writingToday while cleaning out an old file cabinet I came across a piece of aged cardboard with a bit of my dad’s familiar script on it. It was a list of two items, both crossed off as if completed. Seeing his hand- writing sent a ripple of warmth through me, because as I saw his words, I saw him.

We can tell all kinds of things from a person’s writing. Actually, there are analysts who call themselves graphologists who say they can give details about whether or not someone was under the influence of drugs or alcohol when he/she did the writing, what their mental state was at the time, and what their personality characteristics are. Some dispute this, but even detectives confess to using graphologists in their efforts to solve crimes.

But those things aren’t what I saw in my dad’s writing. Instead I saw these:

  • DadDad was a serious person.
  • He embraced responsibility.
  • He thought in legal terms.
  • He wrote legibly.
  • He didn’t waste words.
  • He didn’t waste paper, choosing the back of a tablet for his list.

Also, since it looks like he penned a slow line under each item, I wondered if he might have been on the phone at the time, doodling a bit. Was he using his list as a prompt during the conversation?

I think about the words God has written for us to read, though we’ve never seen his actual handwriting. People have called the Bible a love letter, the word of truth, the law, the Good Book, The Holy Writ, the Scriptures, and The Word of God. We can tell an awful lot about the Main Character of the book by reading the inspired words we find there.

This is especially important because God is currently invisible, which makes “seeing” him in the pages of Scripture extremely valuable. Jesus even told us that’s how we should get to know him, by reading and studying the Bible.

One of my desires for 2015 is to get to know Jesus better. That was my goal for 2014, too, and though it did happen to a certain extent, there’s always more to discover. Actually, I don’t think we will ever, even through eternity, learn all there is to know about the Lord. Because of that, getting to know him better is probably a good goal for every year.

I’m looking forward to someday seeing the face of Jesus and also to hearing his voice. And maybe I’ll even get to study a writing sample. The only problem is, it’ll probably be in Aramaic.

”The Son radiates God’s own glory and expresses the very character of God.” (Hebrews 1:3)