The Venable Family: First "Leg" Down

Wednesday, June 27, 2007

First "Leg" Down

Greetings to you all from Joplin, Missouri!!!

Sarah and I have completed the first leg of our trip, presently kicking back in our hotel room after a GREAT Mexican dinner. We will rest up tonight since tomorrow holds for us the longest of our three legs - 11 hours of driving (to Albuquerque, New Mexico) not counting stops for gas, food, and those other breaks (!!!). Today's drive was wonderful, though we did hit a few rainstorms. I have posted a few photos from when we passed through St. Louis...

St. Louis Arch

Busch Stadium - Home of the St. Louis Cardinals

Those of you who have known us for more than a few years will feel old when I say Sarah drove 117 miles of the journey. Not just that but she was behind the wheel during the worst downpour we faced today. I will only say she handled it well, though my knuckles were white!!! Driving through the Ozarks was absolutely beautiful, we were both amazed by the sheer awesomeness of God's creation!!!

I spoke with Michelle quite a few times today, she seems to be doing ok. She is still experiencing some mild "pressure headaches", but she definitely sounds like she feels better than the last few days on that front. I'm sure the lack of sleep - she stil is having problems sleeping - and the stress of the upcoming relocation are not helping. We are sure the headaches and sleep isues are residual side-effects of the Taxol treatments so please pray the Lord will help her begin to sleep better and that the headaches will go away. Also pray that she will rest a bit more each day!!!

Okay, enough for now - please pray for Sarah and I as we rest tonight and continue our journey tomorrow. It looks like it will be a wet day for us so pray for our safety, as well as that the truck continues to run well. Along those lines, pray for all those in Texas - like our friends, the Ellis' - who are being hammered by severe weather, especially being deluged by rain! Thanks and we will post again tomorrow provided we get to our destination at a decent hour!!! We love you all... - Steve and Michelle -

2 comments:

Anonymous said...: Hi Dad,
I miss you and love you soooooo much!!!I like the pictures you put on the blog! Well,I just wanted to say I love you and miss you.
Love,
Rebekah; June 28, 2007 at 8:19 AM
Anonymous said...: Hi Dad,
It's Moriah. So your knuckles where white and Sarah's weren't!!!
I really love the pictures you put on the blog!!!It's weird typing on your laptop!!! I just wanted to say that I love you and miss you. Well I guess it's time to say

Mo,
Out or
Love,
Moriah; June 28, 2007 at 8:34 AM

Post a Comment

Trust, Lean, Acknowledge

"Trust in the LORD with all your heart, and lean not on your own understanding; In all your ways acknowledge Him, and He shall direct your paths." (Prov 3:5-6)

An alternate rendering of "He shall direct your paths" is that the Lord will make your way smooth and/or straight. This can seem so contrary to life experiences, which at times appear to be anything but smooth or straight. Yet, as we trust in the Lord and not in our interpretation or thoughts on what is "happening around or to us", acknowledging that He is in control and nothing escapes His knowledge including the trials of life, relying on Him for even our very next breath, He truly provides "shock absorbtion" for the bumps and potholes of life; and what seemed to be a dramtic turn in the road is nothing more than Him redirecting us down a path for our edification and growth. It is not always easy and many times doesn't seem to make sense, but in the Lord it is ALWAYS for our good.

Trust in, lean on and acknowledge HIM... He will guide you through even the most difficult of times of life. Today, even if you are in the midst of the fiery trial, like Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego, in Jesus you will come through it not singed, without even the "smell" of fire on you (Daniel 3:27), purified for greater service unto Him and bringing glory to His name alone.

Pause and Ponder (Selah):

"Come now, you who say, 'Today or tomorrow we will go to such and such a city, spend a year there, buy and sell, and make a profit'; whereas you do not know what will happen tomorrow. For what is your life? It is even a vapor that appears for a little time and then vanishes away. Instead you ought to say,'If the Lord wills, we shall live and do this or that.'" (James 4:13-16, NKJV)

At times like the one Michelle and I find ourselves in at the moment, it amazes me how simple life really becomes. Yes, things can seem on the surface complicated when you think of tests, surgery, radiation therapy, possibly chemotherapy; but in actuality, as life becomes more focused on the immediate and more critical, it slows and everything just seems a little more uncomplicated. You can't really make plans for tomorrow, next week, next month, or even next year to some extent; you literally have to live life moment to moment, day to day. This brings about a re-evaluation of ones life, causing that which is truly important to come to the forefront.

It makes me wonder how many times we, even as Christians, fashion our plans, establish where we are heading, and detail out where our life is going and then, once we have come up with it all, ask God to bless OUR endeavors having never sought Him in the process. How much struggle do we bring into our own lives because we didn't first seek Him as we were coming up with our "plans"? I am reminded again that is is okay to make plans in the Lord for our future, but in the end it is the Lord's will that matters most. To paraphrase Henry Blackaby from Experiencing God, we are really here to simply participate in what God is already doing around us!!! As the Word says, don't get caught up looking to tomorrow because you have no control over what it holds and sufficient for the day (today) is it's own trouble (or "stuff" to deal with!). Oh yeah, and don't get hung up looking back at yesterday either because you can't change it!

Keep an eye on where you are heading in the future, yes, trusting in Jesus each step of the way as you make your plans. But be sure, in the midst of the "road trip", to give your ALL today in serving the Lord, giving Him the "steering wheel" as HE guides and directs you into the future HE has planned for you. It is better than anything you could have come up with anyway!!!

The Venable Family

Wednesday, June 27, 2007

First "Leg" Down

2 comments:

About the Venables

Blog Archive

Trust, Lean, Acknowledge

Pause and Ponder (Selah):

Blogs, Links, etc.