Membership Has It's Privileges

Yesterday, I parked for the 1st time in a handicap parking space when the kids & I went to Sam's Club. I got to park right up front! With Christian's disabilities, we qualify to have a handicap permit. So we got one!

Membership has it's privileges; however, no parent seeks out to be a member in this group...the disability group that is.

We may have received our membership card the day we got an ultrasound, after giving birth, after the 1st seizure, after the 1st CAT scan, or even after months of wondering why our child was not progressing as other kids their age. Whichever way, it doesn't matter...we are all members.

God knew that we would be part of this group before our children were even conceived (Psalm 139:1-6, 13-16). He had the sovereign power to not allow it, but he chose not to. Why? This is part of His plan for us. Some families' God-ordained plan includes kids that are all healthy and "typical" and some includes kids with disabilities. One is not better than the other; just different. If each of us embrace His will (no matter what that includes), we will see God's hand and evidences of grace throughout our lives. As we put our trust in our Savior Jesus Christ and choose to follow Him, we will witness His goodness all around us. Psalm 23:6a says, "Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life..." God's goodness does not depend on health or being "typical". It's about knowing God and becoming more like Him as we "taste and see that the LORD is good!" (Psalm 34:8a)

Well, I must run now...there's a parking space right up front at Target waiting for us! :-)

Proclaiming vs. Practical Atheist

The fool says in his heart, "There is no God." Psalm 14:1a

Many of you aren’t Proclaiming Atheist so you wouldn’t dare say, “There is no God.” However, are you a Practical Atheist? In the details of life, do you act like there is no God???

When you rise up in the morning, do you acknowledge God’s presence?
When you to go the grocery store and spend lots of $ on food, do you acknowledge God’s provision?
When you drive & arrive safely to various destinations throughout the day, do you acknowledge God’s protection?
When you resist a temptation, do you acknowledge God’s power?
When you feel joy, comfort, and rest in the midst of a difficult situation, do you acknowledge God’s peace?

Many of us don’t hesitate running to God to be our problem-solver. But He wants all of our lives, not just compartments of it. May the Lord be so much a part of our lives that we become preoccupied with Him. We would then be so God-focused that when others see us they will see Christ.

Therefore be imitators of God, as beloved children. And walk in love, as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us, a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God. Ephesians 5:1-2

ONE YEAR!!!!

Praise the Lord...Christian has been seizure-free for One Year!!!

It seems like yesterday when I wrote about his 7 months of seizure-free. The Turner family is overjoyed that Christian has been 365 days without any seizures. Our God is so merciful! The Lord blessed us with grace upon grace today! One grace is that it is a beautiful, breezy, 81 degrees outside! Another grace is that Christian had a great day at school! Yet another grace is that we had a wonderful family celebration! Our grace list can go on and on, but we want to share a few pictures that highlight our day.

Christian running and posing at Lake Calhoun.

We took our very 1st family bike ride to the park.

Christian really liked his cupcake.

Carysse enjoyed her cupcake too even though she was exhausted from our fun-filled day.

I'm holding up my 2 fingers to ask all my mommy's blog friends to pray that next year we'll celebrate 2 years!

10 Things We Want You To Know

After writing my previous blog entry, I think it would be a good idea to follow up with this one. On behalf of mothers who have children with special needs, here are...


10 Things We Want You To Know


1) When you see us with our child in public, don't stare...greet us.


2) After you do #1, don't immediately ask us what type of disability our child has. That is our personal information.


3) When we choose to tell you about our child's disabilities, please don't respond with, "I'm sorry." Sorry is an expression of sorrow, regret, sympathy. Our children are gifts & blessings from the Lord not burdens or mishaps.


4) Please don't pity us. Yes life is challenging for us, so we need prayer to persevere not pity.


5) Don't pry! If we say that we can't attend a function or come over to your house because it's not best for our child, leave it at that. Most of the time, it's a lot more difficult than you can imagine and we don't want to go into detail about it.


6) Be discerning on when to suggest that "book you heard about", renown doctor, new medication, technique, etc. We are often bombarded with medical info and it may not be the right time for us to ponder one more thing. Good timing is of the essence.


7) Understand that every child WILL NOT be healed/cured/get better. So, don't ask us questions like, "Do they think he'll ever...?"(Check out this post)


8) In light of #7, look for areas of growth, strength and progress in our child and share them with us.



9) We are so many other things besides being a mom of a child with special needs. Get to know us...our hobbies, interests, gifts, talents. We LOVE to talk about other things besides disabilities.


10) Show our kids good ole TLC (Tender, love, & care) and they'll give it back in return...of course in their own special way! :-)

My Short Bus Rider

As my son rode away on the school bus today, I had a flashback to my childhood. I remembered thinking that I was happy that I wasn't on the "short bus". In my mind, being a "short bus" rider was a curse. It meant that you were the butt of all bus jokes, that you were an outcast and reject. Now that I am a mom to a "short bus" rider, my mindset has drastically changed. Here are a few things that the Word of God has humbly taught me by having a "short bus" rider.

1) God is sovereign over every "disability"

But Moses said to the LORD, "Oh, my Lord, I am not eloquent, either in the past or since you have spoken to your servant, but I am slow of speech and of tongue." Then the LORD said to him, "Who has made man’s mouth? Who makes him mute, or deaf, or seeing, or blind? Is it not I, the LORD? Exodus 4:10-11


2) God regards the "forgotten"

"But when you give a feast, invite the poor, the crippled, the lame, the blind, and you will be blessed..." Luke 14:13-14a


3) God knows what it means to be "rejected"

For it stands in Scripture: "Behold, I am laying in Zion a stone, a cornerstone chosen and precious,and whoever believes in him will not be put to shame." So the honor is for you who believe, but for those who do not believe, "The stone that the builders rejected has become the cornerstone..." I Peter 2:6-7


4) God's glory can be displayed through "disability"

And his disciples asked him, "Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind?"Jesus answered, "It was not that this man sinned, or his parents, but that the works of God might be displayed in him." John 9:2-3


5) God has a place for the "outcasts" in His kingdom

In that day, declares the LORD, I will assemble the lame and gather those who have been driven away and those whom I have afflicted; and the lame I will make the remnant, and those who were cast off, a strong nation; and the LORD will reign over them in Mount Zion from this time forth and forevermore. Micah 4:6-7


So, I praise the Lord for my precious "short bus" rider. Christian, your life has taught me so much and it continues to teach me. I pray that I continue to see you as God does...skillfully made by His hands (Psalm 139:13-15). I am honored to be called your Mama.

To Our Loved Ones in the Houston, TX area

Kempton & I are fervently praying for you right now. We read Psalm 65 this morning and was reminded of God's sovereignty over the seas and the waves. Hurricane Ike is no exception! May the Lord bless each of you with his supernatural peace during this time.

And he said to them, "Why are you afraid, O you of little faith?" Then he rose and rebuked the winds and the sea, and there was a great calm. And the men marveled, saying, "What sort of man is this, that even winds and sea obey him?"

Matthew 8:26-27

Where was God???

Where were you, on this day, seven years ago at 8:46AM, 9:02AM, 9:40AM, and 10:01AM??? These were the exact times in which 2 planes crashed into the World Trade Center, 1 into the Pentagon, and 1 in Pennsylvania. Each of us most likely remembers where we were on the horrific morning of September 11, 2001. Today, many radio stations and TV programs are recounting people’s stories of where they were on that morning. But I would like to ask the question, “Where was God?” I imagine if I had an interview with God today it would go something like this –

Caryn: Lord, what a day this nation experienced on 9-11-01! Were you sleep; oops I meant shocked by what those hijackers did?

God: No is the answer to BOTH of your questions, “I neither slumber nor sleep” – Psalm 121:4. “My eyes are in every place, keeping watch on the evil and the good” - Proverbs 15:3.

Caryn: So you knew what they were planning!?!? Why didn’t you stop them?

God: You live in a fallen world and through the sin of Adam all types of evil, loss, and calamity entered in the world. Check out Genesis 3. Those who hijacked the planes were “of their father the devil and their will was to do their father’s desires. He was a murderer from the beginning…” – John 8:44

But rest assured that man’s actions will NEVER hinder my plans. “My purpose will always stand” – Proverbs 19:21.

Caryn: What purpose could you have for allowing 4 planes to kill so many lives and devastate a whole nation?

God: “ALL things work together for good, for those who are called according to my purpose” – Romans 8:28. Beloved, nothing can separate my children from my love “neither death nor life” – Romans 8:38-39.

Caryn: ALL those terrible things that happened will work out for good and through it your love still prevails…I really don’t understand.

God: Well, “my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts” – Isaiah 55:8-9.

Daughter, I want all my children to know that there are many circumstances in this life that will be very difficult. At those times, you may question my character and my concern for you. But know that I am working my good pleasure in you – Philippians 2:13. My desire is for all my children to look more like my son, Jesus Christ. So, trust me and remember that “I will never leave you nor forsake you” – Hebrews 13:5.

I look forward to my return and I hope you do too!

My 6 Random Things + 3 more

I got tagged by my friend, Christina, to share 6 random things about myself. Sorry I'm not going to tag anyone else (don't know many bloggers who haven't already been tagged). Here's my list...

1. Most of my extended family in Alabama have always called me Lisa. My mom wanted me to have the same initials as my dad CEG but she always liked the name Lisa. So, my parents gave me the middle name Elesia so my mom could have a justifiable reason to call me Lisa. I liked having 2 different names in 2 different places; it was like I could be 2 different people...I know, I'm weird :-)!

2. I NEVER liked sports! I NEVER was an athlete! I actually ALWAYS had an excuse to get out of P.E. When I was forced to play an organized game, I was the girl who let the ball hit the ground...no way was I going to get dirty or break a nail. I know, I was one of those girls!

3. The comment section on most of my report cards read, "She's a great student but she talks alot." Who, me???

4. When I was a 10 yr old Girl Scout in England (see #8), we took an over-night trip to a historical Girl Scout Lodge. That night while everyone was sleeping, the lodge caught on fire. By God's grace, a leader (who was 6 months pregnant with twins) was awakened by the excessive heat & sounded the alarm. I remember that night so vividly...21 girls, 3 leaders in our pjs walking down the street, had to pass by a cemetary, got to a neighbor's home, & then they called our parents (Mom & Dad, I'm sure you remember that call.) Most of the building burned down and we lost nearly all of our belongings. I actually still have the newspaper article.

5. I was a Resident Assistant in college. Of course my floor liked me because I was one of those RA's that actually had a life and didn't have time to spy on them around corners, peek, or sniff under their doors (believe me I know people who did this).

6. My first job was a hostess at Red Lobster. It's still my favorite restaurant!

7. I was born in Okinawa, Japan (both of my parents are retired Air Force).

8. I lived in England (1 hour from London) for 4 years. My parents were stationed there.

9. About 6 years ago, Kempton & I were driving home late one night. As we were about to turn into our neighborhood, a cop stopped us and asked Kempton to get out of the car. He told Kempton to follow him back to his car. We had no reason to be stopped. I was so scared & just prayed as they talked for a few minutes. Then Kempton came back to the car with this weird look on his face. He then said that the cop asked him if he was safe because there was a woman who fit my description who had committed a crime and then escaped in a car similar to ours. He thought that Kempton was in danger of “me”. Kempton laughed the whole way home, but I sure didn’t!

God knows better than "I"!

Christian’s 1st day of kindergarten was yesterday. We planned for him to go full day, but realized that it’s best to go ½ day until he gets familiar with the new school, teacher, routine, etc. He had a VERY rough day! I knew that ½ day was better for him, but because of my selfishness I wanted him to go full day. Pastor Piper preached on Philippians 2:4 on Sunday which says, “Let each of you look not only to his own interests, but also to the interests of others.” I was definitely only looking to my own interests in this situation. Here are just a few of the thoughts that were racing through my mind.

· For 6 ½ hours, “I” will only have one child to care for!
· “I” will have a break from Christian’s daily issues!
· “I” can’t wait for my free time; “I” have so much planned!

So, even though I knew what was best for Christian, “I” wanted my way. With Christian now going for just 3 hours, my plans had to drastically change. That is very good for me because I was definitely depending on temporal circumstances to bring me solitude, relief, & joy. My friend, Christina, encouraged me by saying, “God will give me just the right amount of refreshment to carry on”. That statement reminding me that God is the One who gives refreshment. All rest, joy, & peace come from Him. He says, “Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest” Matthew 11:28. It doesn’t matter how circumstances go or plans change, God will provide all that we need when we need it. We must trust Him!

May each of us find all that we need in our all sufficient Savior.