What in the world happened?

Now, I KNOW there are much more important things in life than College Football...like nearly EVERYTHING!
But, I do have to comment on Auburn's really unbelievably terrible season.
"What went wrong? " we ask. Was is the hiring of Tony Franklin? Was it choosing the wrong quarterback from the beginning? Is it the injuries? Is it the head coach? Is it the assistant coaches?
Ask and try to figure it out and we are still left with questions.
I have noticed that no team stays on top forever even if they keep the same head coach for 25 + years.
The bottom line is: This is supposed to be a GAME...FUN, rivalry, cheering, going a little crazy, but still... young guys playing hard but not professionally.... FUN for the fans...but not life to be taken so seriously that you lose your perspective!
I am talking to myself, of course.
I will always be a faithful Auburn fan no matter if they are in the top ten or not even ranked!
I will cheer, get mad, yell, scream jump up and down during the games. But when the game is over, whether we win or lose I will ALWAYS LOVE AUBURN and support them and be proud of them! WAR EAGLE! Hey!

Another "God" Thing

There were other amazing events that took place surrounding Keith's death that I feel I MUST share with all of you.
During a one year period in the church that we were attending in Richardson, TX there were a total of 7 children of members of our church who died.
Two months before Keith died the Preschool director who was also the Sunday School director lost her daughter in an automobile accident. She saw Keith several times a week and was a great help to me during that time.
Two months after Keith died, a lady who was in choir with us lost her daughter to suicide.
A few months later, an 8 year old boy was hit by a car and died.
About 4 months later another couple in choir with us lost their twin daughters shortly after they were born.
Shortly after that, a young girl was killed in an automobile accident coming home from a football game.
Several of the mothers of that group would get together and talk and share our feelings with each other. I can't tell you how therapeutic it was so share my grief with other mothers who were also Christians.
Friends were wonderful and sympathetic, but, truly, unless you have experienced what another person has experienced, you can never totally understand what that person is going through. These ladies UNDERSTOOD.
I believe that this was no coincidence. I believe that God gave us to each other to help us through the grieving process.

As far as I know, only one of the families is still in the Richardson area. Everyone else has moved away.
We were there for each other when we needed one another and The Lord blessed us with each other for support, prayer, and understanding.
His loving kindness knows no end.

Keith

Brooke and Keith
Summer of 1982


This weekend is the anniversary of the most painful experience in my life. On November 6, 1982, our precious little Keith who was 18 months old at the time got very, very sick very, very fast.

He developed at high fever and became lethargic. After talking to my pediatrician's nurse several times, we decided to take him to the hospital.
I still cringe when I remember the looks on the faces of the Dr's and nurses who took him from me and whisked him into a room without asking first for our insurance,etc. as they usually do.

He was rushed to Children's Hospital in an ambulance after they told us that they were 99% sure that he had spinal meningitis. That ambulance ride was so terrifying. I was in the front, Keith was in the back, it was dark and I felt that the world was caving in on me. I have never felt so absolutely helpless and terrified in my life.

When we got to Children's and he was admitted into ICU, we got to go in and see him with all the tubes, with his eyes shut, etc. We could only stay in for a few minutes at a time. But we were able to hold his hands, kiss him, hug him. etc.

The Dr told us that he would probably be in the hospital for about 10 days and that he may suffer some hearing loss and/ or some sort of mental handicap.

Then, about 2 hours later, we saw about 5 doctors rush into his room. He had begun having seizures and had gone into respiratory arrest. The Dr told us that the situation looked "very grave" He was not responding to stimuli, etc.
The terror that I had felt in the ambulance returned.....

My thoughts were...." What in the world is happening here? How in the world can a perfectly healthy little toddler who is BEAUTIFUL and SMART be seemingly fine at 5:30 this afternoon and 7 HOURS later be in a life threatening situation?

This is the USA..NOT a third world country....
Perfectly healthy children just ARE NOT at death's door in such a short period of time. This HAS to be a nightmare...It can NOT be real. Any minute I am going to wake up and be so relieved! But...slowly, surely, the reality began to set in......

I went into a small office in the hospital and cried out to God, sobbing and begging Him,"You CAN'T take Keith....You just CAN NOT take him..If you do, I will DIE...I will kill myself. I will let myself go crazy and just spend the rest of my days in a catatonic state in an asylum."

I remembered 5 years before when my sister died suddenly. I KNEW how horrible the grief was...how almost unbearable it was...how amazed I was that the world could just keep going on.
I wanted to step off of it for about 6 months to get myself together and then step back on after I had a little time to adjust.

I said to God, "I ABSOLUTELY cannot wake up every morning knowing that Keith is not here. I am NOT strong, I do not WANT to be strong... I CANNOT go through the day, doing the things that I do as a Stay At Home Mom without him here. There is no way that I can be an effective Mother to Brooke. What will happen to her?
PLEASE let me have a heart attack and die NOW..PLEASE, PLEASE. PLEASE do NOT make me go through this."

Then, miraculously.......HE SPOKE TO ME...

I KNEW that HE was speaking to me even though I did not hear an audible voice.
I immediately felt a peace come over me at a time when I was feeling anything but peaceful.

"The Peace That Passes All Understanding" washed over me and THE LORD spoke to me and HE said, " You CAN do this because I will do it WITH you and FOR you...ONE DAY AT A TIME."
The calm, supernatural strength of the Lord flooded my soul and my physical being. I no longer felt alone and terrified. I felt sad, beyond belief, I felt heartsick but I also felt the peace and strength that ONLY the Lord can give.

Well, you do know the end of the story. Precious, beautiful Keith went to be with the Lord. The official date of his death was November 8th.

It was such a bittersweet time. I was amazed over and over again at God's sufficient grace. Even though it was humanly very close to being unbearable, GOD'S GRACE WAS SUFFICIENT...Just as HE promised us.

He actually does not promise that we will be free from pain, but HE DOES promise that He will see us through ANY situation if we place our hand in His hand and let Him walk us through the pain.

He did SO much more than we could ever hope or imagine to comfort us. Of course, there were times that I would panic and think.." I can't DO THIS."

The Lord would remind me of His words to me,"One day at a time." Once again, the peace, HIS peace, would wash over me and I would feel strong again.

The Bible verses that saw me through was Matthew 11:28-30 "Come to me all you who are weary and burdened and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me for I am gentle and humble in heart and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light."

Truly, He does carry our burdens for us. There is nothing like actually experiencing
the TRUTH that The Lord speaks to us through the scriptures.
When I remember this bittersweet experience, I cry. I cry because I loved Keith, and wonder what his future would be. I cry because I remember the pain. But most of all, I cry because I remember how the Lord took a devastating situation and made it
what only He can make it....perfect, precious, full of His Love and Grace; Full of His
Power to accept, to persevere, and to "fear not". Full of His promise to never leave or forsake us and to empower us with HIS strength and his perfect peace that "passes all human understanding."