Experiences & Thoughts that Got Me Thru the Viewing & Burial…

This was the song my kiddos sang to their daddy for the service.  It was pre-recorded:

This was my post on facebook the day of the burial:

“The kids and I have been wracking our brain to try to remember maybe a favorite verse Clint had. He knew so much of the Bible and quoted it frequently so it was hard to pick just one. As I sit to read my Bible and pray, I was wondering what I should read. I decided on proverbs 20, since today is the 20th. No kidding, I had a verse circled as one of his favorites. I even remember him telling me it was one of his favorites but couldn’t find it. It’s proverbs 20:5 “counsel in the heart of man is like deep water, but a man of understanding will draw it out”. He wanted God to use him to truly know someone and help them see Jesus more clearly. Thank you Jesus for giving me this gift this morning. You’re so close Jesus, I could just reach out and touch You.”

Here’s another quote I posted that expressed how I felt that day, “…many of us who are faithful followers of Christ stand at the edge of bad news, learning how to ask God for a comfort that we never wanted to need.” ~ Angela Thomas – Do You Know Who I Am?– book

'Even if this weekend didn't go as planned, Lord
and if it's not at all what we hoped, 
and if "we're* not yet quite what we hoped, 
and if life's not unfolding to our Plan A
and if it's not even close to Plan B
and if the diagnosis is not great
and if the forecast is not good
and if not... and if not... and if not... 
*You still are.* You still are Good & You still are God.
And we will be the people who will still... 
The people who will still rest in it & sing it into the dark: 
"and if not -- He is still Good. He is still God... so we can still & be & be at rest."

#HonestPrayers'
“Even if this weekend didn’t go as planned, Lord
and if it’s not at all what we hoped,
and if “we’re* not yet quite what we hoped,
and if life’s not unfolding to our Plan A
and if it’s not even close to Plan B
and if the diagnosis is not great
and if the forecast is not good
and if not… and if not… and if not…
*You still are.* You still are Good & You still are God.
And we will be the people who will still…
The people who will still rest in it & sing it into the dark:
“and if not — He is still Good. He is still God… so we can still & be & be at rest.” — Ann Voskamp
'...as you look toward the week ahead, remember -- there will still be love when the worst happens and when the hope doesn’t happen, there will still be love when everything’s crumbling and there will be enough love to rebuild, there will be enough love to keep breathing, to keep believing, to keep being and being brave.
Fear can be what we feel — but brave is what we do.
There’s enough Brave in us to believe that though the world is broken, there is light getting in…
Be brave. Your bravery wins a thousand battles you can’t see because your bravery strengthens a thousand others to win their battles too.

#TheBrokenWay #PrayingTogether
print's free here: bit.ly/StickyNotesForYourSoul'
…as you look toward the week ahead, remember — there will still be love when the worst happens and when the hope doesn’t happen, there will still be love when everything’s crumbling and there will be enough love to rebuild, there will be enough love to keep breathing, to keep believing, to keep being and being brave.
Fear can be what we feel — but brave is what we do.
There’s enough Brave in us to believe that though the world is broken, there is light getting in…
Be brave. Your bravery wins a thousand battles you can’t see because your bravery strengthens a thousand others to win their battles too. — Ann Voskamp
These are some of the things that got me through those first days/weeks after Clint died.  I was still in such a fog…SHOCK!  But, I tell you now…6 months later, that if you are reading this and are “walking through the valley of the shadow of death”, you do not have to “fear any evil”!  “The Lord is our shepherd, I shall not want.” “His rod and staff, they comfort me.”  That “rod & staff” are used to guide the sheep.  God WILL get you thru this, as you stay tucked under the shelter of His wings, Psalm 91:4, “He shall cover you with His feathers, and under His wings you shall take refuge!”.  Psalm 103:14. ” For He knows our frame; He remembers that we are dust.”  You may not feel like it right now, but you will be okay.  Cling to Jesus, read His Word, reach out to other Christians to help, listen to Christian music, and meditate on the Word!  Put on the full armor…this is war!  But, with God at the front, He does our fighting for us…even when we can’t see it or feel it!  I cried out many times to God, that He didn’t “feel” like “enough”.  In fact, that’s the question that has popped up the most through this whole process.  I feel Him asking me, “Michelle, am I enough?”  Even when it has hurt…like “hell”…truly…I have sobbed and said, “Lord, I may not feel like You are enough, but I know You are.  Help me to feel it again one day.”  He already knows how we feel, so it isn’t a shock to tell Him.  He has consistently shown Himself so present as He has guided me.  But, we must stay close…He’s the only one holding the “flashlight” on this dark road we are on.

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