Things Are Not Slowing Down.

Things are not slowing down anytime soon. Last week I was in rehearsals every night and stayed after rehearsals to help with the set. I spent my days homeschooling 4 boys.

This week I have several jobs to finish up at the teen drop-in center, Movement 5280. Homeschooling. Two concerts with the choir at assisted living facilities. Worship at Movement 5280 on Friday night, which will be a regular occurrence every couple of weeks from now on. Our annual Christmas tree hunt is coming up on Saturday, then we'll need to carve our time to decorate for the season, which also means cleaning house, a task that has long since fallen by the wayside.

This past weekend, in the midst of 4 performances of our Christmas musical I learned that a young friend of mine has been diagnosed with cancer. It sent me reeling. If this young woman who has a very healthy life-style can get cancer, then anyone can get it. There aren't any failsafes for avoiding it. I can already see God in the midst of her diagnosis, yet I still don't understand how or why.

Nevertheless, it's a reminder to enjoy the moments of life. I laid in bed last night, dog tired from lack of sleep and craziness, and listened to the sounds noise of my house. What I heard was the infectious laughter of my youngest giggling! I savored it. When we were helping friends move last night and the littles were being all kinds of mischievous, I gave them some cleaning wipes and set them to dust, and savored the cuteness of their 'helpfulness'! While my daughter pondered the unfairness of life, I savored holding her in my arms while we talked about it.

No matter how long I have left to live on this earth, I want to take every moment I can to appreciate what I've been given. Sure, I forget sometimes and let frustrations get the best of me. But as we pondered cancer this weekend in the midst of a busy schedule, that won't be slowing down anytime soon, the Holy Spirit helped me to remember to live in the moment.

And while I discussed my questions with my friend, she reminded me that God's ways are not our ways, and that this life is the little life. The big life is the one yet to come!