The Sunrise of Your Smile

Dedicated to Sarah and Grace.

Reject the worldly lie that says,
That life lies always up ahead,
Let power go before control becomes a crust around your soul,
Escape the hunger to possess,
And soul-diminishing success,
This world is full of narrow lives,
I pray by grace your smile survives.

Now close your eyes so you can see,
Your own unfinished memories,
Now open them, for time is brief,
And you'll be blest beyond belief,
Now glance above you at the sky,
There's beauty there to blind the eye,
I ask all this then wait awhile,
To see the dawning of your smile.

Michael and Susan Card penned the lyrics above to give , as he says, "...all the advice...[we] could cram into one song ... to the kids...." They chose for a time, as we did, to homeschool their children.  It has been and is a lifestyle that challenges us in many ways. Challenges that more often than not have show the selfishness of my motives and actions which is why I appreciated those, whatever their educational or other lifestyle choices, who are willing to share their thoughts, ideas, triumphs, and struggles.  Susan Card wrote of her experiences as a homeschooling mom in The Homeschool Journey . When I read her book I was challenged by her willingness to do the things that she needed to do for her children's well-being even if that meant stepping outside the "normal" (whatever that is) homeschool choices. But more so I was encouraged to examine what my heart's desire was for my girls. My hope and prayer is that God will take I have done, both the wise and the foolish, and redeem it.   As any parent, and their children, will honestly confess, I haven't been the perfect, or even best, role model, but I hope they know that

"...I would wander weary miles,
Would welcome ridicule, my child,
To simply see the sunrise of your smile,
To see the light behind your eyes,
The happy thought that makes you fly,
Yes, I would wander weary miles,
To simply see the sunrise of your smile."

Love you girls. 

Joy in the Journey and Jesus Let Us Come To Know You

There was no Joy in [my] Journey. There was anything but. These songs came during what was in my life, a period of time that was soul-crushingly difficult. Over the course of a year I lost a lifelong young friend to ovarian cancer, dealt with my husband's brain surgery and partial hearing loss, wrestled with marital difficulties, and then after a head-on collision faced almost four months of bed-rest in order to keep my younger daughter alive, well, and in the womb. After the collision I remember bewilderingly, hopelessly asking God, "What are You doing?". That's when I began to learn that what I longed for and still do is to see His face.

Jesus let us come to know you
Let us see you face to face
Touch us, hold us, use us, mold us
Only let us live in you Jesus draw us every nearer
Hold us in your loving arms
Wrap us in your gentle presence
And when the end comes bring us home

Answers may come but what I wanted and still do is to simply see His face.  And knowing that I will  is what teaches me that there is Joy in the Journey.

There is a joy in the journey
There's a light we can love on the way
There is a wonder and wildness to life
And freedom for those who obey

And all those who seek it shall find it
A pardon for all who believe
Hope for the hopeless and sight for the blind

To all who've been born in the Spirit
And who share incarnation with Him
Who belong to eternity stranded in time
And weary of struggling with sin

Forget not the hope that's before you
And never stop counting the cost
Remember the hopelessness when you were lost

There is a joy in the journey
There's a light we can love on the way
There is a wonder and wildness to life
And freedom for those who obey

And freedom for those who obey...