Today's Verse: Galatians 6:2

"Bear one another's burdens, and so fulfill the law of Christ." (NKJV)



'Burden' must be the word of the day for a lot of us out there in the blogosphere. Maybe it's just because several of us are floating around in the same circles, I don't know. I just feel this cry coming up from myself, from humanity, and it just overwhelms me. As I sit here writing this, I can think of no less than four marriages that are either recently divorced or embarking on divorce, two friends who are battling depression tooth and nail, four people dealing with biopsies, diagnoses, and treatments, and so many other hurts and stresses I could probably never remember them all.



I won't get into the 'whys' here. Only One knows the answer to any of those questions anyhow. What I want to say here is this: with all this hurt in the world, I think we could all use for a little less impatience, road rage, and being too insecure to "put ourselves out there." In the immortal words of John Lennon, "All you need is love."

I think of a friend in particular, S4J to be exact. She, among several others but her especially, have really ministered to me over the years. One of her many talents and spiritual gifts is that of empathy. She will literally take on your pain with you and suffer right alongside you. She might not be able to take away your pain, but she will yoke up next to you and slog through the swampy rice paddies of your problems right there with you.

What, then, is the law of Christ? I believe it is this: "A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another; as I have loved you, that you also love one another. By this all will know that your are My disciples, if you have love for one another." (John 13:34-35, NKJV) By being there for each other during these times, we are doing exactly what Jesus commanded us to do. Sweet -- we're killing two birds with one stone! Seriously, no one needs to feel isolated or unloved at any time, much less when they don't know how they will make it another 24 hours through whatever they're struggling with at the time. And I think, if we pay it forward, it comes back to us tenfold.

I want to take a minute to highlight a couple of ministries that I think do just exactly this: Jenster and her amazing crusade through the murky waters of being a cancer survivor just unveiled yesterday a website specifically designed for women who are simultaneously living with cancer and all that comes with it, in addition to mothering a family. Someone saw a need for support in this ever-growing demographic, and now there exists a site where women can come to saddle up next to other women for prayer and encouragement. This new site, just unveiled yesterday, is called Mothers With Cancer. Please take a minute and go visit this site, and please pass it along to help get the word out.

Another group of people that I happen to know personally is HUGSS, Helping Unite Gold Star Survivors. This group of women specifically offer support to those individuals in the greater FT Hood area who have lost a loved one who was in the military, either to wartime loss, terminal illness, accident, or any other imaginable way. Most of the people I have met through HUGSS are similar to me -- young, have kids, widowed. This group does support parents, siblings, and anyone else who has lost a soldier, however. And some of the widows are older than me. Unfortunately, many of them are younger, and guys, I'm not that old. This organization began when one of the volunteers, whose husband is actually still living, began to see close friends of hers widowed and falling through the cracks. She was completely unwilling to allow this to happen. Long story short, HUGSS now has their own building ON POST at FT Hood, we have our own Gold Star parking at the commissaries (grocery store) and PXs, and many other kindness thanks to their activism. Please go visit them here.

(And BTW, if you're wondering what all this "gold star" stuff is about, you can read more about just who is a Gold Star Wife here. Basically, most of you have probably seen a service flag. The star in the center represents your service member. Once that person dies, their star changes from blue to gold, hence the term "gold star.")

Lastly, there is a cool site I have not personally used but have heard of through at least one person. It is called the HysterSisters. It specifically offers support to women going through hysterectomies and follows up with support for not just recovery, but over time. A hysterectomy is so much more than surgery. It can mean loss of feminine identity for some. For others, it can be a second chance at life. Go check 'em out...

In closing, I don't know who sings this version, but I found a great clip on YouTube, as usual, of some mission work in Cambodia, set to the tune of, "They'll Know We Are Christians By Our Love." Most of us know without having to talk about it just how mission work, both at home and abroad, falls into this category. So I'll leave you with this...