I endured freshman geology. I could not imagine at the exceptionally mature age of 18 that igneous rocks would EVER capture my interest, much less inspire me to understand their formation. Their significance dropped off my radar screen as quickly as the final test was filed away.
Or so I thought. Life has an amusing way of re-introducing matter like bell bottom jeans and platform shoes, as well previous ideas and thought patterns that might require a second glance. Hiking mountain trails, rafting through the Grand Canyon, climbing over nearly dormant volcanoes, I was suddenly not only aware of igneous rocks, but I became sincerely interested in their substance. They were relevant because they moved from a textbook to under my hiking boots.
Unlike enduring a class so long ago that I believed to be irrelevant input, each day of these treatments arrive with endurance built on anticipation and expectations. Anticipation for the moments that are GOOD: opening encouraging cards and packages, taking a short walk, enjoying the exquisite bouquets of flowers that dress our porch. The expectations that Mary and Joelle, the nurses at the infusion center, as well as the entire staff, are profoundly caring and exude infinite kindness: the warm blankets they wrap around you, the care with which they administer the IVs, their tender attention. It is a triumphant endurance.
An igneous rock is molded from heat and pressure, and develops the strength to be chiseled and polished. Each day of endurance brings an added measure of hopeful confidence in the One who is performing the polishing. Romans 5:3-5 promises that “we can rejoice, too, when we run into problems and trials, for we know that they help us develop endurance. And endurance develops strength of character, and character strengthens our confident hope of salvation. And this hope will not lead to disappointment. For we know how dearly God loves us, because he has given us the Holy Spirit to fill our hearts with his love.”
These are GOOD days, and I am thankful for all who make them so and a heart that is filled to overflowing!
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