Sunday, July 4, 2010

Finding My Joy with an Ironing Board

The news from the Schulze family is not great.  I will have surgery at the end of this month, my mom will undergo another back surgery in September and Elizabeth's ability to walk has come to an end, at least for right now.  Her doctors are discussing surgery because as one said, "She does not have much to lose."  The surgery could work and she would be able to walk some, or it could fail, which could lead to a total hip replacement and permanent placement in the chair.

Before Elizabeth's latest hospitalization, I heard three sermons about joy.  Joy is different than happiness.  Happiness has to do with your "happenstance", meaning it has to do with what happens or does not happen to you. Happiness is temporal.  On the other hand, if you have intense happiness we call that joy.  Joy has a source, so what is your source?  Could your source of joy be taken from you? If it can, will you lose your joy forever?  I know many people that have lost their joy. 

After my brother died, almost 10 years ago, my dad's joy died.  To be truthful we saw him die that day too.  One of his main sources of joy died.  I think you also know many people that say they find joy in their children, and I am among them, but it is not my only source.

Anyone that has experienced significant loss, which is most of us, knows the emptiness that creeps into our hearts when we lose some thing or some one .  It is a terrible valley that we must walk through, but I do not think it has to be permanent.

Joy, in the sense of eternal joy is a feeling that cannot be "robbed" from you if you make your source of joy on God's love.  God tells us that nothing here on Earth, or anywhere else for that matter, can separate us from God's love after we accept it.

This type of joy, rooted in His love, can come bubbling up when you are in a desert of unhappiness.  In fact, this is where joy can really shine.  When the circumstances of life are desperate, horrible, sad, depressing, joy can be a light that allows you to have that "peace that passes understanding."  It is the peace that only God can deliver.

I do not claim this joy or peace all of the time, but when I allow myself to let go of the immediate circumstances, it is an amazing feeling. 

Case in point, Elizabeth popped out her hip yet again Tuesday night by simply walking up the stairs.  She was able to crawl to her room where we attempted to put her hip back in for the rest of the night.  In the morning we called her orthopedic surgeon and they said to get her to the hospital right away.  Because her hip was potentially dislocated for over 6 hours (it was 19 hours) the potential for her hip bones to die was very high.

Trying to keep the drama down, we used an idea that our priest came up with to help her out one day when this happened at church.  The men from church loaded her up on an ironing board and slid her in the minivan.  Chuck went and got the ironing board and he and a neighbor and the support staff loaded her up on the board and slid her in the van again.

When we arrived at the hospital, the nurses kept her on the board and brought her back to the trauma bay.  The doctors gave her medicine, and when they did her hip was able to relax enough to get the x-ray that caused her hip to slide back in to place.  The ironing boar was removed from under her body.

Because it was out for so long, her pain was unbearable.  She was admitted to a room.  She could not sit up at all so I could not transport her home.  So, they wheeled her up to her room, and I had to take the ironing board. 

It was quite a scene.  Elizabeth in a hospital and me carrying an ironing board.  The ER doctors and nurses knew why she was on the ironing board, but the people in the hall I think thought I had OCD of some sort.  I intentionally walked straight faced to the room.  I thought there would be at least one chuckle from the many witnesses in the hall and elevator but no one cracked a smile.  Granted, there is a kid going into the hospital and that is not fun, but someone carrying an ironing board through the hospital, that is funny!

Another sermon I heard talked about how she sees funny things everywhere.  She travels the country giving talks about joy and is kind of like a Christian stand-up comic.  She said invariably there will be one person in the front row that will not smile through her whole bit.  She keeps trying to get this person to laugh, but there is not expression of joy on her face.  Thinking that she is failing miserably, she panics and keeps trying to get this person to laugh.  She admits that after the show is over, usually the first person to come up will be the sour expression person saying it was the funniest show they had seen in many years.  Her reply is great, "Then tell it to your face!"  Le the joy in your heart tell your face to smile!

I kept thinking that many people need to tell their face to smile.  Joy is the miracle cure for any problem.  I do not want to trivialize loss and pain, but if you cannot laugh through your storm, it is going to be a long storm.  Protect your joy, do let others steal it.  Don't let circumstances dictate your joy.  God made us in His image and I know he has a sense of humor, just look around and tell your face!

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