Tonight while making dinner this was the view out my window. The joy that welled up in my soul was gushing. The beautiful lush green rebirth of spring, the sun shining, the blessing of shade, the beautiful blue skies, siblings playing and laughing, and a wild pup added in for fun. Nehemiah 8:10 says, "Go and enjoy choice food and sweet drinks and send some to those who have nothing prepared. This day is holy to our Lord. Do not grieve, for the joy of the Lord is your strength." Life is full of ups and downs. Valley's and mountain tops. The view from the mountain top is vast and wide in scope, but the valley can be dark and narrow. In this life, we will experience hardships and failure. We will spend time in the valley. Proverbs 24:16 says “For a righteous man may fall seven times and rise again, but the wicked shall fall by a calamity.” In this world we will all fall—we will rise again to experience success, but we grow in the valley's. Joy and hope are virtues that inspire us to have the strength to climb back to the top of the mountain. That said, finding the strength to get up after a fall/struggle is quite a task to perform without joy and hope. Proverbs 24:16 is describing a joyful man, a man that hopes in the darkest hour, and he rejoices even when there isn't anything good to rejoice about. A man like this will ultimately succeed—because he rejoices in God amidst his failures and struggles. That was my station for many years in our adoption wait. I felt consumed by darkness some days and I knew I needed to call out and praise my God. Sometimes all I could manage was praising God's graciousness for hydration so I could cry my tears or praising God that I had breath. Breath is vital and worthy of praise, but in those moments it was a near sighted praise because I couldn't see past my breath. God has given me so much! I have praised Him through our storms and today I praise him from a mountain top! Our days are full and as our schedule ramps back up to full speed, I find myself exhausted at the end of the day. Beautifully, joyfully exhausted. The joy of watching all four of our children laugh, be grumpy with each other, and play is a moment I will cherish for my whole life.
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AuthorMy name is Deidra Miller. I have been married to my wonderful husband, Dusty, for 17 years. We have two biological children and our family is growing again. We prayed for 2,786 days and God answered our prayers. More days (almost 4 years) have been added as we wait for God's perfect plan for our family. We can't wait to meet our beautiful twin boys! Archives
October 2022
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