Last week was a pretty “common” week for the Bailey family with one exception. We were in town going through many of the routines of family life while also trying to prepare and pack for upcoming adventures. The exception was that Katherine Mae had to have tubes put in her ears. This is a “simple” procedure which takes 15 minutes, but it does require anesthesia, which thus requires a several trips to the doctor’s office, pre-op, post-op, drug store, etc., as well as a whole lot of unnecessary worrying by parents and loved ones! Everything thing turned out fine. Katherine did great! Thanks be to God.
Surgery, no matter how short or simple, is still anything but routine, but it is very much the routine around our house to be shuttling children around town for appointments, activities, and events. So in that way the week seemed like a very “common” one. And in this sense I was blessed to be able to see anew treasures that are concealed in the form of my family and our routines. We are so blessed to have Hudson in our family! He is so nurturing and loving to his baby sister. Charlie is so full of joy and wonder. I love watching him when he thinks no one is watching. What a joy he is to us all. Katherine has to be the world’s best baby. Even through her surgery and recovery she has amazed us with her good manner and radiant smile. Laura is such a great nurturer of our children and organizer of 5 lives! She keeps us moving forward – and does so with style and grace. What a blessed man I am. I am so grateful to have this sabbatical opportunity to see and appreciate the treasures God has concealed in these “clay jars”. I am sad to say that I don’t always see the treasure. I hope this time set aside continues to allow me to see the treasures, yet also trains me to more regularly look for them. A favored hymn might need to become an oft-uttered prayer of mine as a result of this sabbatical:
Open my eyes, that I may see
Glimpses of truth Thou hast for me;
Place in my hands the wonderful key
That shall unclasp and set me free.
Silently now I wait for Thee,
Ready, my God, Thy will to see;
Open my eyes, illumine me, Spirit divine!
This current week finds us at the beach in Ponte Vedra, FL with Laura’s sister, Melissa, our brother-in-law, Wade, and niece, Margaret. We love spending time with them. They are treasures too! We are enjoying playing in the water, sand castles, lazy afternoons, World Cup Soccer, and searching for shark teeth on the beach. Early morning runs on the beach have been a nice time for me to reflect and enjoy God’s natural creation. Here at the beach with favorite people and beautiful scenery, it sometimes feels like God is “showing off”! As He does so often through people, creations, and experiences that can be seen as “common” God is once again revealing His glory. All praise be unto Him!
-MRB
