Keep the change

Nov. 21, 2010

We are all creatures of habit and enjoy things our way. Many of us know what we’ll order off the menu before pulling up to the restaurant. We know how long traffic should take and if there’s an accident or weather problems, it’s simply unacceptable. The only people who I know who say they like change are the ones who make others adapt to their way of doing things.

Last week I wrote about Nathan’s delays with his new walker. We thought we finally had all the right pieces in place, for him to succeed, show greater results and jumpstart his improvement once again. Instead, it seemed as though we took two steps back. Fighting over why it wasn’t working, Annette and I tried everything; checking the walker, making adjustments to make things easier, double-checking that the AFOs weren’t pinching him, that the shoes fit properly.

There had to be a solution we weren’t seeing. We kept looking high and low for answers, and thought we’d searched everywhere. However, at church today we were reminded that throughout our suffering the one place we didn’t look is the place that provides the most answers, the Bible. Romans 5:3-4 held the answer we needed to hear, “… suffering produces endurance, and endurance produces character, and character produces hope…”

It was the same as we had gone through months before, when Nathan didn’t want to move his old walker. The goal was for him to build endurance, confidence, motivation and just keep moving forward, literally. We overcame that problem and we'll get past this one too. Motivation still seems to be the key as when he wants to, he’ll get the new walker moving. We saw the pastor after service today and thanked him for the message, knowing it was what we needed to hear. Not knowing our struggle and frustration, he replied he saw Nathan in the new walker and couldn’t believe how well he was getting around.

He wasn’t wrong. While at church, Nathan was excited about seeing all those who have been encouraging to him. He loves to go from one room to the next, seeking out kids his own age, teenagers who cheer him on and adults who see his determination as a source of strength for their own battles.

When it comes to our daily challenges, the steps listed in Romans 5, aren’t linear but cyclical. We had completed one loop and it was time to move on to the next challenge. God never said that life would be easy, He said He’d be with us every step of the way. We don’t doubt God’s presence in our lives and especially in Nathan’s. We know that without faith, hard work and the grace of God, Nathan would be the do-nothing kid that doctors sentenced him to be four years ago. Instead, as long as we keep moving forward, the possibilities are endless.

My lesson for the day is suffering is not always a bad thing. In many cases, it’s something to embrace head-on. If we get stuck in our old ruts, we’ll never get anywhere new. The things in life worth having are worth fighting for. Tonight pray for the strength to start building your own endurance, knowing hope is around the corner. Once hope is on your side, there’s no stopping where the future can lead.

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