My daughter arrived in the Intensive Care Unit (ICU) in the middle of the night on the eve of Thanksgiving. A tough respiratory virus attacked her lungs, and she needed a substantial amount of oxygen support. And now, this unexpected illness meant Thanksgiving was going to be completely different than we had all planned.
Are you scrounging for thankfulness this holiday season? Holidays can be a challenge for those walking through hard days. Perhaps you feel like you've been handed the short-end of the stick; your child is struggling, you’re exhausted and it seems like everybody else has life with a bit more gravy. It’s easy to focus on our circumstances, take stock of what we have and where we are and end up feeling completely void of thankfulness. Is there a cure for this?
I first suspected I had ADHD as a teenager, but finding the right professional to take me seriously was much harder than I expected. Previous attempts only ended in frustration and tears.
Enjoying the holidays with a food allergy sounds like an oxymoron doesn’t it? After all, eating together is an integral component of the holiday season. I looked forward to making our traditional holiday foods until I was diagnosed with a dairy allergy in 2012. What was to enjoy about the holidays when the foods associated with it were off limits to me?
It was a short, ten-minute drive from the hotel to the residential facility. I maintained composure while I navigated the busy public roads, and then residential streets. I had a whole range of emotions racing through my body, mind and spirit as we pulled into the campus. This was not just a pleasure drive or a routine errand, this was a significant milestone in the life of my son and our family.
The emotions I felt at this point were profound, as this wasn’t just another service on another Christmas; this was me and my son, once again in a new church community, strangers in a familiar yet unfamiliar place, trying to find our place. What helped me get through it, what allowed me to get to a place of hope for this new church and my son’s place in it?
I began writing this series, Post Tenebras Lux, for the purpose of offering the only thing I have to give those who are weary, grieving, and hopeless, including myself: hope. I have learned that when someone is processing through grief and trials, it is good to let them say whatever it is they need to say without offering immediate answers. This song feels very much like a therapeutic biblical counseling session, where the celebrant is asking the congregation questions of how they feel and what they desire.
In the early days of parenting our son, we couldn't imagine having 20/20 hindsight about our child with special needs. Nearly 38 years after the birth of our beautiful baby boy, hindsight reveals how his special needs diagnosis transformed us from a young, scared, and unsure couple into braver, confident parents. Here are five of the many means God used to complete the transition.
Guest blogger Sarah Lango shares honestly about her anxiety and fear in parenting her daughter with special needs. She writes, “As I wrestled with God on how to handle this anxiety I found myself face to face with some basic Biblical truth. I didn’t trust God with my child.” Do you relate? Read more of their story in today’s post.
