It has been a long time since I last posted, but not a long time since we last endured the trials associated with hypertrophic cardiomyopathy. In fact, there have been times when I knew exactly what to write but had no time to do it because of said trials. But those times have long since passed, so I am going to pick up at the present, and if any of my heart friends want to do the same, please do!!!
Three days ago, after enduring the most difficult summer of our lives, mainly because of my husband Matt's HCM and related issues, we received the news that our little J will need to have his surgery in about two months. I was grateful the news came at a time when Matt was feeling significantly better, but I felt like our time of rest between major trials was all too short. I went for a walk in the cool morning air of this beautiful valley we live in, and pondered over the Lord's timing in all of this.
What came to my mind was the time I forgot how to ride a bike. It is embarrassing for me to admit it. The few people that knew about it said something like, "Is it really possible to forget how to ride a bike?" Why yes, yes it is. I am living proof. When Matt and I were first married, he got me an old bike so I could ride to school from our new apartment, but I couldn't do it. I tried a few times and couldn't get anywhere. It had been too many years since I had attempted to ride a bike, and I was too embarrassed to re-learn in front of all the people in our complex. After we moved to Heber, I vowed to get a bike and learn to ride again in a place that didn't feel so much like people were watching me all the time. In time, it all came back to me, and, while I am not an expert, I can now get around on my bike with my kids, and I really enjoy it.
A similar experience I thought of this morning was when I forgot how to play Waterfall by Jon Schmidt. It was one of my favorite songs in high school, and I used my talent for listening to learn to play the whole song without any written music. But over the course of the busy years that followed, I played the piano less and less often, and I forgot how to play something that meant so much to me - something that had been mine. One day, I overheard my dad telling someone how I had learned to play it all just from listening to it, and I felt unworthy of that praise. I committed to learn to play it again - and this time I used the music. It was hard, and I'm still not terribly proficient, but I can play it.
Is it possible to forget something we've learned, something that seems like second nature or is very dear to us? Yes, it is. Is it possible to remember it again after we've forgotten? Yes, it is, but it takes a lot of work and dedication. Is it easier to keep up on a skill that we value by practicing every day? Of course it is! So what's my point?
Trials require us to exercise faith, and in the process we learn a lot of tough lessons. There are some lessons I've learned this year that I don't want to forget. I don't want my faith to decrease because it is not being pushed and tried as much as it once was. And only the Lord knows the magnitude of the trials that await me in the future and the faith I will need to overcome them. So I will trust that these exercises in faith will never cease, and I will try to embrace them and be grateful that at least for now, I won't forget.
No comments:
Post a Comment