Grace Upon Grace

As I am writing this, I am looking outside to a quiet sunny day with temperatures in the 40's. What a nice change from the bitter cold we have been having! According to the weather reporters, this has been the coldest winter Oklahoma has had in many years. A few days ago, the wind chill was eleven degrees below zero. There are still remnants of snow from the Christmas Eve blizzard, but those should be gone by the end of this week. After experiencing the past few weeks, I have become more convinced that I would be absolutely miserable living up north in the winters. I don't know how people do it. Just shoveling snow every morning would be annoying enough, aside from the weather itself! However, my perspective on temperatures has changed significantly over the past few weeks- I used to shiver in 40-degree weather; now it seems nice!

Thankfully for both of us, Andrew's busiest time of year at work is officially over. The 70-hour weeks were wearing on both of us, and we almost did not know what to do with ourselves when he got home at 6:30 yesterday! People always comment, "Oh, well he must be making great money!" Which is true. But after all of this, I can see with clearer eyes why so many rich people are unhappy. The quest for more and more earthly riches leaves people empty of energy and void of the hope that genuine relationships bring.

A brief update on marathon training: I am right on track for where I am supposed to be at this point. I ran 18 miles on Sunday, which is 2 miles more than I have ever run. I felt great after running 16 miles last week. This week, I did not feel so great. In fact, I could hardly move. I sat in the bathtub for at least an hour afterward. I am feeling more confident every day, though, that running a marathon is actually possible for me! No one ever said the training would be easy...

A highlight of this week was a Progressive Dinner that we attended on Friday night. The group consisted of friends from our church (UFC), RUF, and Christ the King (the PCA church in Norman). We hosted the main course (along with the Greer's) and went to two other houses for the rest of the meal. The evening was laid back and refreshing. Two new couples came who have started attending our church recently, and Andrew and I already love spending time with them. Their names are Brian and Amy, and Seth and Rhiannon. Seth and Rhiannon have two little girls. Both couples are just a few years older than us. I think we would both say that the thing we will miss most about Norman (beside our church) is the relationships. God has been so gracious to provide sweet friends who have been with us since the beginning of college (Katherine and Mitchell), as well as new friends through church (Cliff and Nichole) and RUF (the Serven's). These are the things that really make leaving difficult.

Yesterday, I had the worst day I have had in a long time. A many of you know, I started working for a family who has twin boys with autism, as well as two other kids. My understanding of the job was that I would mostly be working with the twins, doing behavior intervention and tutoring. I knew that I would help the other kids with homework some, and I was more than fine with accomplishing these tasks. Well, the job has not exactly worked out like I thought it would. To make a long story short, I have basically been nannying. Many of you probably know my thoughts on nannying (it is not my job to raise other people's kids), but yesterday just confirmed them a hundred times more. I was supposed to go to half-day kindergarten with the twins to sub for one of their aides, which was fine because I sub in similar situations often. I showed up at the school on time, waited around for half an hour, and finally received a text message from the boys' mother about 15 minutes after the bell had rung, saying that the boys were sick and would not be at school. Okay. So, I headed to their house a couple hours later (despite the fact that the boys were sick) to do their behavior interventions. When I arrived, Mom was not at home. Sam, one of the twins, was doubled over on the bed because his stomach was hurting so much. I tried to get some tutoring done, but I quickly saw that it was going to be of no avail on such a day. Shortly thereafter, Dad came home with Jenni (the oldest girl). Dad went straight to bed (he was sick, too), and Jenni threw up and also went straight to bed. A few minutes later, the housekeeper returned home with Landon (the middle child), who barely made it in the door before throwing up all over the floor. Poor kid. He went to bed. I was sent to Target to fetch some "pear sauce", and after coming back unsuccessfully, I was sent once again and told to look with the baby foods. I found the item, headed back to the house, and was sent out yet again to retrieve anti-nausea medicine. I won't go into the rest of the day in detail, but to sum it up: I ran errands, held trashcans while kids threw up in them, cleaned up puke, ran around the house getting stuff for Dad, and finally was sent to deposit a check in their bank on my way home. Mom finally returned home after six and a half hours. I did feel sorry for the kids. It is never fun being sick (and they need their mom to care for them when they are!). But I left the house yesterday with an intense feeling that this is NOT what I signed up for.

I hate ending on a bad note. It really has been a good week. Yesterday marked six months of marriage for Andrew and I, and what a glorious six months we have enjoyed. God has truly provided "grace upon grace."

In Christ alone,
Mary Rachel

Grace Upon Grace by Sandra McCracken

In every station, new trials and troubles call for more grace than I can afford
Where can I go but to my dear Savior for mercy that pours from boundless stores?

Grace upon grace! Every sin repaired, every void restored, you will find Him there
In every turning He will prepare you with grace upon grace.

He made a way for the fallen to rise; perfect in glory and sacrifice
In sweet communion my need He supplies
He saves and keeps and guards my life.

To Thee I run now with great expectation to honor you with trust like a child
My hopes and desires seek a new destination
And all that You ask your grace will provide.

Grace upon grace! Every sin repaired, every void restored, you will find Him there
In every turning He will prepare you with grace upon grace.