Dad has traveled around the world with Hot Air Balloons. One balloon specifically is the Arky Balloon. This special shaped Noah’s Ark balloon has several animals hanging out the windows waving and is one of Dad’s opportunities to share his faith. Traveling with the Arky balloon, such a widely recognized icon, is great. Instead of Dad having to figure out how to share his faith with others through his words, people ask Dad about his faith.

Well, as it is Sunday, I felt that today’s spiel about Dad should include some sermon notes. Don’t worry, I won’t make it too deep, today I use the Message translation of the Bible.

Philippians 4:6-7 “Don't fret or worry. Instead of worrying, pray. Let petitions and praises shape your worries into prayers, letting God know your concerns. Before you know it, a sense of God’s wholeness, everything coming together for good, will come and settle you down. It’s wonderful what happens when Christ displaces worry at the center of your life.”

Well, that seems simple enough.
Dad was hurt in an accident, now what?
“Do not worry. If you feel like you need to worry, talk to me.”
OK God, Dad is still in the CCU.
“Make sure you tell ME your concerns.”
God, Dad is not doing very good. He is broken. Dad has a fever, his broken bones are causing him pain, and Mom is missing him. The entire family is struggling. Honestly, there are many people who were impacted by Dad’s accident. How do I help? What am I supposed to do?
“Be still and know that I am God.”
OK ... now what? Pray more? Why am I struggling to remain calm?
“Be STILL and know that I am God”

I try to find comfort in the fact that hundreds of times throughout the Bible, God promised, predicted, or prophesied, and every time, followed through. That tells me, God has THE plan. Now I just have to trust. Have Faith. Be still. Sitting in Dad’s room, watching, listening, praying....waiting for an understandable glimpse of God’s plan.

Jeremiah 29:11 “...I know what I’m doing. I have it all planned out-plans to take care of you, not abandon you, plans to give you the future you hope for.”


Have faith. Trust God. Believe God.
So, considering all this to be true, this accident, my sitting by his bed, all this prayer, the chaos of life, God knew before hand and somehow has orchestrated this for good. Ok, well in that case, God knows how long we will be here. So we wait for Dad to recover, but for now, we know that Dad is stable. He seemed to have a good night. His fever is still bouncing around. Today’s care plan? Keep Dad comfortable. It seems like Dad’s pain-o-meter is working overtime. His tired body has gone through a lot this last week. Dad needs his rest.
Pray for the next surgeries coming up, and for our recovery process.

~With Integrity