Surgery

So, Thursday is the "big day" for a gallbladder-ectomy...The patient is at the hospital learning how to be a good patient and get the pre-op labs out of the way. But alas there will be no video of the procedure joining our laparoscopy library. The appendectomy will have to go it alone.

We'll be checking into the hospital at 7:00 am on Thursday, so those inclined to pray can start your prayer-engines then. We aren't sure when the actual surgery is going to take place, so that is all I can say for now as far as specifics go.

During the surgery, I plan to write more on my nano novel...giving a main character a dread disease. (Sorry Ames no specifics, but I will email you when I get to 30,000 words so you can get caught up.)

Until then, more waiting, only this time with at least a limited list of what to expect.
Stay tuned, I will keep you posted as to the results.

Waiting...

So, we are waiting. Waiting for the next visit with the surgeon about a cantankerous gallbladder. Waiting to see if medicine for seizures will work for migraines and unidentified neuropathies. Waiting for the next big thing to happen. Waiting for the shoe to drop. We are waiting...

What to do while we wait...

We could panic. We could worry. We could distract ourselves with re-run episodes of our favorite tv shows on their network websites. We could write a novel in one month. We could pray. We could think about alternative solutions to problems that have not arisen yet. We have done all of these things, and yet we still wait.

What to do when you run out of things to do while you wait...

Write a blog entry about waiting and wait some more.

Gummy Bears

So, my two daughters have been watching episodes of the Gummy Bears on youtube. They love the show, and it gives us little breaks to do what needs doing around the house. Anyway, the other day I caught myself singing the lyrics to the theme song:
"Gummy Bears, bouncing here and there and everywhere..."
And then in the middle of the song:
"Their legend is growing,
They take pride in knowing,
They'll fight for what's right,
In whatever they do."
And the thought struck me, wouldn't it be nice if this was still the message sent to kids today.

No, I am not one of those "Oh, things used to be much better and now it's all downhill" kind of people. I also just watched "Top Secret" (rated PG!) and I have no illusions about pop culture past. BUT I do think that when I was a kid, the heroes in kids shows and cartoons typically had the same goal as the Gummy Bears, to fight for what's right in whatever they do. In several episodes of Gummy Bears, they are required to make a choice between doing what is right and doing what is best for their group alone. I don't watch much kid tv today, so this is not a commentary on today's kid's programming.

What is the point, then, you ask...

My point is this, how many of US have that goal? How many grown ups have in their heart to fight for what is right in whatever they do? I don't mean the self-justifying what is right for me is the ultimate good kind of "right." I mean the what is good for people in general, or good for those around me kind of "right." I believe this is what Jesus commanded us to strive for when he said that the two greatest commandments were loving God and loving those around us.

Loving God with all our heart, soul, mind, and strength is what helps us see that sometimes what is good for me is not "right" in the greater sense. In a "what is best for me" kind of ethic: lying, cheating, stealing, witholding help from others when it is inconvenient for me to give it is all right and good. God in revealing his holiness to us convinces our hearts that those things are not right.

That revelation gives us the ability to love our neighbor as ourselves. That is how we can really "fight for what is right in whatever we do."

Ranting

So, here is my rant of late:
"Stop it, stop it, stop it! Christians stop sitting in judgment over the world, and start running into enemy territory to save the lost!"

I have been so tired of people saying "you have to vote for _____ or it's the end of the world!" It has come from both liberals and conservatives, so don't think I am only peeved at one group.

Each has their list of "worst sins ever," but they are usually not the ones that Jesus condemned most often. For conservatives it is homosexuality and other sexual sins. Jesus never addressed homosexuality specifically and other sexual sins only briefly. He stopped a woman caught in adultery from being stoned, and allowed a woman of ill repute to wash his feet. Why not treat sexual sinners the same today?

For liberals it is restricting the political freedom of minority groups, equal treatment under the law for every person. In Jesus day, there were several classes of people from Roman citizens--the elite--to slaves who were expendable at their master's whim. Jesus never lobbied the Roman Senate for slaves rights, although he did come to break chains. But those chains were the links of slavery to sin's oppression.

The fact of the matter is this, Jesus said "Go and make disciples." He did not say "go find a nice spot with a view, sweep it clean of sinners and be comfortable ignoring the world as it goes to hell around you."

Our job as Christians is not to make the world safe and comfortable, it is to share the gospel of Jesus Christ with others so that God can reform their lives just as he has reformed ours.