Lori's Rambling

Yesterday was eleven years since my brother, Jason, died.  Eleven years since he traded a painful, broken and limited human body for the healthy, painless and whole heavenly body.  Twelve years he persevered, kept the faith, and touched lives in that painful and broken human body.  Our family has grieved his accident, his death, and the 12 years of changed life in between.  Jason’s determination, faith, and outreach to shut-ins has touched so many lives, despite his inability to talk verbally for those 12 years.  Jason always had a tender heart, but this was much more evident when his heart was the only completely whole and correctly functioning part of his body.  From time to time I think about what life might have been like if the accident had not occurred.  Would Jaelyn have other cousins running around?  How large would our family get-togethers be?  I often think about how much Jason would have enjoyed Jaelyn, yet he never got to...

For the past ten weeks, I have been part of a women’s Bible study focused on learning the Biblical and God designed role for women.  The ultimate God designed role of women is to bring glory to God.  I can truly say that I cannot think about my Grandma without also thinking about God.  Now I know that my Grandma was not perfect, but in my eyes growing up and still to this day, she was and is the “perfect” representation of a Christian woman.  She was a gentle and caring woman who lived simply and was content with what God provided.  She did not complain and I don't remember ever hearing her raise her voice.  You could not know my Grandma without seeing the evidence of her close walk with her Lord.  I have never doubted or questioned her daily prayers for me, her family, her friends, her church, and the world.  She was mission-minded.  She lived on little and gave much.  My Grandma did not have an easy life – losing her mother an...

For the last couple of weeks I have been so excited to share some amazing news with everyone.   About two weeks ago I received a phone message from the youth pastor at our church.  They are establishing a scholarship for a graduating senior and were asking permission to name it after Scott. When I heard the phone message I sat and cried for a moment and it was such an amazing feeling -- I'm not sure I can describe it adequately.  This is such an amazing legacy for Scott and such an honor.  It still brings me to tears when I think about it.  The first annual Scott Bradley Adventurous Life Scholarship will be presented on June 1, 2014 during the 10:45 a.m. service.  It is meant to recognize a graduating senior with an adventurous spirit who takes many steps of faith throughout their youth career, including steps of faith in living out their walk with God, steps of faith in stepping up in leadership, and steps of faith in trying new things.  As ...

Tonight as we were sitting on the steps to our deck, enjoying the beautiful weather, Jaelyn asked if we could go play tennis.  I have to admit, it took a few moments of wrestling mentally with myself.  This would be the first time on the tennis courts since Scott’s death.  We used to go to the tennis courts as a family.  Scott would take time teaching Jaelyn how to hold the racket, do the forehand and backhand, and spend infinite amounts of time patiently hitting balls for her to practice.  When she would get tired, then Scott and I would hit the ball back and forth until I would get tired.  Then Scott would practice his serves until Jaelyn and I were bored and ready to go.   I’m sure we were always ready to go long before Scott. Tonight in my mental arguments with myself, I finally reminded myself that if Jaelyn wanted to do something that she enjoyed with Scott, it would be very selfish on my part to say no, just because it would be painful...