a RUNNING he will go!!!

Paul wrote in 1 Corinthians 9-

24 Do you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only one gets the prize? Run in such a way as to get the prize. 25 Everyone who competes in the games goes into strict training. They do it to get a crown that will not last, but we do it to get a crown that will last forever. 26 Therefore I do not run like someone running aimlessly; I do not fight like a boxer beating the air. 27 No, I strike a blow to my body and make it my slave so that after I have preached to others, I myself will not be disqualified for the prize.

In order to win a race, it takes discipline and LOTS of hard work. You can't just sit back, relax, and then think when it's time to race you're going to win. Having a relationship with the Lord is hard and takes work. This world is full of lots of distractions and things that seem to be "better" than using our time spent on our knees. Sometimes we have to give up or sacrifice things that we love or enjoy, sometimes we have to give up living a life that seems to be more fun or full of self pleasure, sometimes we have to work hard to not give into an attitude of anger and resentment. My prize overall is heaven and spending forever with my Jesus. I sometimes can close my eyes and picture getting to see him, picture getting to hug Him and sit with Him. I sometimes can picture walking with Him as if He was actually in person with me. I know one day I will get to walk with the Lord hand in hand. How precious! Until then I have to run the race of this life and the journey that is before me.

Cale and I are both tired, but we have to keep our eyes focused on the prize. Our immediate prize is getting to go home together and seeing his progress everyday. It's so hard though! It's taking so long...Cale is asking every day "When?" He wants to know when will we get to go home? When will he be better? When will he be able to walk good? When will he get his memory back? When will things start to be easy? When will he be done with the hospital? We don't have answers to any of it, but we do know we need to work hard-run this race that's before us. To get the prize we have to work hard and be disciplined.

Cale is definitely running this race! Wanna see?!



He ran 5mph for 1 minute! He was actually running! He did AWESOME! I could hardly believe it was happening! My husband is running!! He was putting a lot of his weight on the handle, but his legs were moving SO good! As I watched him, I had the sweetest picture in my heart. One day Cale will run with our kids...such a beautiful picture! Thank you Lord! I'm praying that his confidence will continue to get better as he's walking!

In ST today Patty tried to use a metronome to help slow down Cale's speech. His words all run together so it comes out all slurred and jumbled. At first he thought it was kind of fun, but after a couple minutes the noise got to him and he said he wanted it gone! Haha! I think it would actually help though. We'll try that again another day! I think him being tired didn't help the trial ;)

Cale and I had some special time together today. It was just the two of us and we had lots of fun! We laughed so much, ate chocolate, cuddled, and were able to just be with each other with out any nursing staff coming in. Time with him is so special and I never take a minute of it for granted. He is the cheese in my macaroni, the sugar in my Kool-aid. He is the peanut butter to my chocolate :)

Many waters cannot quench love, nor can rivers drown it. If a man tried to buy love
with all his wealth, his offer would be utterly scorned. Song of Songs 8:7

I realized today that one of the biggest reasons I've been afraid of Cale's surgery coming up, and why I've been slightly panicking at the thought of being here by myself is because with out realizing it, I've been thinking it's going to be like it was in ICU. I feared those thoughts and emotions, I feared going back to seeing Cale so lifeless...it's going to be nothing like that! As I thought about it more, I began to pray that the fear inside me would flee and that I would not be chained by it. God is Cale's healer and creator! He loves Him and has brought him this far! I can still smell the scent of the ICU room. I can still see so clearly in my mind the way Cale laid there, in his bed with out moving. I can still hear the machines beep and the IV bag pump. I can feel it all so clearly and didn't want to return to that. Thank you Lord that we are pass that! Thank you that we have been lifted out of the muck and we are seeing miracles and God's glory!