Saga Eleven

The days go by so quickly.  I know Sally has a lot on her plate with Jake not driving and complaining that he can't drive. DH asks when will we get together with Jake and Sally again. We do go out to dinner with them and the conversation revolves around how mad Jake is about not driving; however he does say that Sally is a good driver (he wasn't so sure before). I know Sue has a lot on her plate also; she even had to Baker Act her husband due to his Alzheimer's. Pray for my friends in a similar situation. 

I am up to my ears with things to do. Probably every one is. I am working on a counseling degree, have taxes, and have never really finishing organizing the house, desite FlyLady and Barb's Cleaning Up the Clutter. Last week I worked  out of the house six days. I have yet to put DH's monthly Facebook photo album up to remind him of what we did in March and it is already April 5th! The home is not in the condition that I wanted at this time. We go twice a week to the chiropractor now. I was hurt more than DH in the crash last December, and so my moving boxes, decluttering in the house or working in the yard sets my back "back" until the next chiropractor visit.  I have sewing to do, etc., and was reminded that I am behind in blogging here. How can I get 70 followers who pray for us and for whom I can pray if I don't blog! I have so much more to write here.

However,  DH is doing just great! I think the brain health supplements (Ribonucleic Acid from Whole Food Supplements and the CoQ10) recommended by our chiropractor for DH and the Turmeric spice I add to foods are helping him. He has such a great attitude and strives to keep on top of what is going on. He is not on any anti-depressants as some dementia patients are.

We are making some financial headway because we don't have any car payments now (due to the crash) and  have Preferred Care instead of AARP. When I get a chance I want to find a coupon buddy here in Plant City and start saving money on our food costs. But everything takes time.

What do I accomplish?  I every day read Scripture, again going through the Bible in one year with The Daily Audio Podcast. I don't only listen--some days I only read the OT, NT, Psalm and Proverbs selections without listening. So this was in my dailly Bible reading this week from Luke 10:40-42:

Martha was distracted by the big dinner she was preparing. She came to Jesus and said, “LORD, doesn’t it seem unfair to you that my sister just sits here while I do all the work? Tell her to come and help me.” But the LORD said to her, “My dear Martha, you are worried and upset over all these details; There is only one thing worth being concerned about. Mary has discovered it, and it will not be taken away from her.”

LORD, enhance the Mary in me. I better not turn into a Martha concerned about what I don't accomplish or who should be helping. I will just prioritize and not be weary in well doing (Galatians 6:9). D. Martyn Lloyd-Jones writes in Spiritual Depression: Its Causes and Cure (one of my course books):

You are tired and weary and you feel at times it is too much for you? Go back and look at your life and put it into the context of eternity. Stop and ask yourself what it all means. It is nothing but a preparatory school. This life is but the ante-chamber of eternity and all we do in this world is but anticipatory of that. Our greatest joys are but the first fruits and the foretaste of the eternal joy that is coming. . . . We are too immersed in our problems. We need to look ahead, to anticipate, to look forward to the eternal glories gleaming afar. The Christian life is a tasting of the first-fruits of that great harvest which is to come. (pp. 200-201)

LORD, thanks for my "to do" list. Help me not be weary, to prioritize and realize this world is not all. Amen.

How to Manage Worry

Perhaps some people do not want to read this blog because it might cause them to worry.  What if this happens to my loved one? What if I get Alzheimer's and how will my spouse manage? I must confess that last year about this time my worry blossomed big time.

Then I started instead to learn all I could about the disease and make the best possible situation for DH (dear husband). I began going to an Alzheimer's Association support group once a month. Slowly I have begun to live for the moment--we camp now and we even went dancing with Jake and Sally! Bob on the Alzheimer's Reading Room advises to live your life as you always have. I became concerned for the concerns of others. Today DH and I  visited Sue whose husband has both Alzheimer's and cancer. The life of a caregiver is not all about worry. Some call changes the new normal.

I am determined to not be a worry wart. I have been immersing myself in Scripture. How does Scripture help me? It  helps me, for one thing,  accept my imperfections, my sin, and do something about it. Scripture helps me not to be proud about anything I can do, be, or become and gives me guidelines to help me live out my faith, to be obedient and content with my calling as a caregiver. Scripture helps me cope. I post Scripture highlights on my Facebook notes every day now since the beginning of January.

Last Monday morning I was going to substitute teach at two schools (one in the AM and one in the PM) and had too much to do to get out of the house. I started feeling sorry for myself (sinning), barking orders at DH--get my watch, plant flowers today so they won't die, don't forget to take your pills, eat your breakfast and please make your lunch--I don't have time! He can't handle all those verbal orders and inside of me I knew that I needed to be calm with him. I was as angry at all I was having to do just as I read earlier that morning about Balaam in the Old Testament book of Numbers.  Balaam beat his donkey for not obeying him. But with the Scripture reading I saw that Balaam had to learn to do ONLY what God wanted him to do. To get through to Balaam God even had to have his donkey talk to him! I had to see that I can only do so much and it's okay--what does God want me to do or not do?  I called DH and apologized for my short-tempered barking out of orders to him.  Everything worked out fine on Monday and even when I came home my husband, who is often unmotivated, had put flowers in the planter boxes! Christ uses Scripture to work out sancification (His best) in my life and helps me calm down with input such as the story o Balaam.

Isn't worry justifiable, understandable, for the caregiver?  I am taking a class on anger, worry and depression. One of the books for the course is called Down, But Not Out: How to Get Up When Life Knocks You Down, by Wayne A. Mack. Mack has the nerve to call worry a sin but says we can overcome it! We learn first that the foundation for overcoming anxiety is a personal, vital relationship with Jesus Christ, he writes. Putting struggles in perspective he continues:

As believers, we have trusted God for our salvation, for forgiveness of sins, and for a guarantee of eternity in heaven. Why then are we not willing to trust Him for our food and clothes and health and all these other things [a husband with Alzheimer's] that are of infinitely less important than our salvation? (p. 72) . . . When we experience anxiety, we need to make sure that we surround ourselves with godly people who can encourage and admonish us. In other words, people who can lift our spirits but who can rightly point out our sin in a loving manner. (p. 77)

So many people who comment here do lift my caregiver's spirits. Above all,  God can be trusted with the road ahead and my worry will not add to the outcome. The Lord has led in the past. There is nothing He and I cannot handle together.

Wonderful Scripture supports this peace the believer can have.  Mack himself expounds on Philippians 4:6, 7:

Don't worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank him for all he has done. Then you will experience God's peace, which exceeds anything we can understand. His peace will guard your hearts and minds as you live in Christ Jesus. New Living Translation

Worry can be managed, folks. What Scripture or techniques help you?