Mercy

I ran into the oddest off all devotional notes today and after having a sleepover with my loving, sincere, sweet 2 year old I feel refreshed.  The sleeping pill kicked in and we were in bed by 9 but not until I watched the NFL networks "A Football Life" on Steve Gleason.  Talk about a craphole hand he's been dealt.  Derrick warned me not to watch it.  I did it anyways.  It was nothing that I didn't already picture in my nightmares and honestly I needed to watch it.  I needed to face the fear head on and not blink.  Basically what I got out of it was that life could be a whole hell of alot worse.  He was diagnosed in 2011 when he was around 35.  Now in 2013, he is wheel chair bound with no speech capabilities except electronically and no movement in any of his limbs.  It was painful and it was hard to watch but he brought me back to reality.  The reality is that this disease sucks.  The reality is that this is an underfunded, under researched disease.  The reality is that this disease has knows no boundaries.  It takes the young, the old, the middle aged, it takes all races and all diversities.  Are you kidding me right now that in this day and age they can't find a link or a cause?  Are you kidding me that the plan of attack is to enjoy each day.

My notes from the book Captivating were sitting on the counter this morning.  Derrick probably took them out of the junk drawer to find something else but these words kicked me hard.  "Live in the present.  Our future as we imagine it is dictated by fear and rarely includes God.  We try to take control over something we can't.  The future isn't even real, making plans and contingencies stops us from living in the love of today.  I went on to note that "don't ever assume that using something means God caused it.  He doesn't need it to accomplish His purpose. Grace doesn't depend on suffering-where there is suffering you will find Grace."

So today I resolve to live for today.  Today might be crappy and hard but anything that is worth it isn't any different.  I urge you to take a look at http://www.teamgleason.org.