Caring for Carleigh Reading (Chapter 7)

Soap box time! I want to comment like Holly and say I don’t like the words “birth defect.” Actually, I don’t like the words “disabled,” “handicapped,” or even “special.” All of those words describe someone who should be excluded and I just hate it.

What do you think of these verses and how they relate to that line?

I don’t think God is the only one who can “give” us “more than we can handle.” We have an enemy whose goal is to keep us on the evil side. From the 2 Corinthians verse especially, to me it sounds like God is promising to be with us through the highs and lows, no matter who “gave” them to us. As for the first verse (regarding temptation), I think the enemy is so crafty tempting you that asking God for help is the last thing on your mind, especially in this day and age. But I digress. I think when we’re at the end of our rope and thinking we can’t handle even one more thing, when you get to that point and you just want to end it all, that’s when it’s scary to not be a Christian because there’s no hope. You might feel like a big chicken or a big baby for asking God for help, but just ask ... he really does help you.

Have you had any moments in your life where you felt really close to God?

I didn’t think Lynnette’s recollection of how she found Anna’s name to be that big of a stretch. I can believe it!! God does speak to you through the Bible, he does! It’s hard to explain it to a non-Christian who doesn’t think God can talk to people anymore, but I’ve had instances in my own life that are similar to Lynnette’s. In 2008 I vowed to memorize one Bible verse a month (I know, I know – I’m not the brightest star in the sky so it takes a while to get these permanently in my head!). I decided since I had been reading through the bible since October (with BlueLetterBible.org’s NLT reading plan), when I came across a verse that really stuck out on the 1^st of the month, I would write it down and that would be my memory verse for the month. All of the verses I memorized in 2008 were dead-on specific to what I was going through at the time; it was awesome.

I felt really close to God for the first time a couple months after I started counseling. My husband and oldest son don’t get along and they were fighting really bad at dinner. They were posing like they were going to hit each other, they were throwing things, and my youngest two ran into their bedrooms. I felt frozen because I didn’t want either my husband or son to get hurt and I was screaming at them to stop but they weren’t listening, and I ran down the hall to my bedroom crying to God that I was so scared, and as soon as I shut the bedroom door I felt like I was wrapped in a blanket snuggly safe even though I could still hear the fighting from the kitchen, and I know God was there with me.