Kitty Face Cookies--and When You Face Disappointments

Week before last, we were preparing for the home school presentation night, to which each family took snacks.

I had seen the recipe for these cute cookies and cut it out long ago and far away and finally we had a chance to make them.It was a project that Danny and Hannah could help with.

If they had turned out delicious, I would explain how to make them, but I thought they were rather dry and not too great. Also, it took so long to poke the candies and licorice into each cookie that by the time we had done a few, the others had cooled too much and the candies didn't stick well. In the end, we didn't take them anyway because the program got rescheduled to a day later on account of an accident that landed one of the children from another family in the ER.

I guess accidents are contagious, for six days later, our Carrie was riding a neighbor's horse with Rose when Rose's horse spooked, scaring Carrie's horse. Then Carrie's horse started bucking, and Carrie made the decision to pull her feet out of the stirrups and make a jump, hoping to land safely away from the horse. Well, she landed away from the horse, but on her stomach, and injured herself--possibly a cracked pelvic bone. We are to find out when the results of the X-ray come back to the doctor.

We were so grateful that Jonathan was to be taking remodeling material to our doctor friend's office, and he told us to bring Carrie in. The doc sent her to a radiologist down his street, and now we are waiting for results. Till then, the doc said to treat it as if it were cracked, keeping weight off it.

So now Carrie is wheeling herself around the house on an office chair, and sitting around a lot trying to help with work from her chair! I am flying around with extra work, and Hannah loves to push Carrie around! 

We are so grateful for the Lord's mercies, that she is not in pain as long as she doesn't move around much. God is so good to us!

She is very thankful that it didn't happen before she went skiing, as she so wanted to go skiing and got to go!

I was glad today was busy, and I forgot about another disappointment until later in the day when it started hitting me hard. Jonathan had stayed home all day, and the children and I helped him clean out his trucks, getting his old truck ready to sell. I also had piles of paper work to sort and file.

When I went to my room to talk to God about the disappointment, it seemed that telling Him made it worse at first. It just seemed like the more I talked about it, even to God, it just wanted to become a mountain. 

So I got my Bible out, and was reading the story of Jesus' transfiguration and how the disciples fell on their faces, afraid, till Jesus came and touched them.

And it said that when they looked up, they saw no one but Jesus only.

"No one but Jesus only." 

There had been Moses and Elijah and a bright cloud and God's great voice--but now, there was Jesus only--Jesus in his same poor old garment like usual, the extraordinary ordinary man.

And they weren't afraid of Him. He was their friend, He was not intimidating.  

And He was just Jesus only.

Somehow, when the lights get bright (or go out!), and the bright clouds come (or dark ones), and intimidating figures like Moses the LawGiver and Elijah the Fire-Calling prophet show up in our lives,

when we don't know what to do or how to feel, and we fall on our faces before the providences of God,

it is good that Jesus loves to come and touch us on the shoulder and tell us not to be afraid.

When He comes and touches us like that, all the clouds and people and disappointments just seem to disappear, and it is Jesus only. 

And He is telling us not to be afraid. He will walk with us down the mountainside into the valley. 

He will be with us through our disappointments.

When accidents interrupt our lives, when we can't afford something, when we are not included in something we hoped to be,

when we're not invited, when we have to give up our hopes and plans, when others enjoy something we cannot,

Jesus is there with us.

He laid aside His glory to walk back down the mountain with His disciples in ordinary clothing

to be with them in all their trials and tests and disappointments. 

And Jesus is not a disappointment!