Wreck Dream

 So, it's been almost 30 years since I was in a serious car wreck and last night I had a very vivid memory dream. I call it a memory dream because only when you have a memory can you actually feel the shock of the impact, the mental  shock, the heat where you are cut open and the blood is pouring. A regular dream just doesn't bring back that terror. To add to the pain of it I also went to the front and picked up my baby sister, just like I did in reality, at first thinking she was dead, but then seeing her alive and rocking her and comforting her again and again before I woke.
 In my dream she was a baby, rather than a 4 year old, and I was thinking that it's my sister Heidi. The mind plays crazy tricks on you. Perhaps it was because I have felt so much sadness for my sister over the last several years, and so badly wish I could make things OK for her.
 At any rate, I woke  up and prayed. I prayed for my sisters and brother and I prayed for my children and husband.I also took ahold of my husbands hand and pulled him closer to me.
 It was  a reminder of how much safer I have felt since having my husband to love me. I am so grateful for my family and for life.

To Shelter is to Protect, to Protect is to Love

Isaiah 5:20 "Woe unto them that call evil good, and good evil; that put darkness for light,
and light for darkness; that put bitter for sweet, and sweet for bitter!"

In these wicked times of deception almost everything good is being called a bad thing.
While we Christian’s may recognize this in large and obvious areas such as the sanctity of life and marriage we often miss it in areas that have been more subtly engrained into our thinking.
Today I have been thinking about how this has been done to the idea of “sheltering” our children.
What is sheltering? What does it mean to shelter something? When we take “shelter” from a storm or an onslaught of bullets in battle what are we actually doing?
As a gardener, the idea of sheltering young plants comes to mind. We are especially concerned about protecting the small tender plants from strong winds, flooding, excessive heat and hail. We want them to survive the harshness of this world so that they can grow to be strong enough to resist these attacks on their own.
To shelter something is to protect it.
We do not try to protect ourselves or others from good things. We don’t “shelter” ourselves from peace, happiness or joy anymore than we would shelter ourselves from pleasant weather, good health and financial stability.
We protect ourselves from things that do harm and we SHOULD also protect our children from things that do them harm.
To protect (shelter) our children from sinful attacks, dangerous people, abuse, lies,temptations beyond their years and dangerous influences is NOT a bad thing any more than protecting them from an oncoming car, a fire or poisoning would be a bad thing!
Don’t let satan do his reversal trick on your mind. Just because we swap the word “protect” with the now negative word “shelter” we have NOT changed the true meaning.
If we do not protect our children who will?
I for one am very grateful that our father God considers “sheltering” His children to be a very good thing.
By all means parents, PLEASE “shelter” your children,
it is your sacred duty and responsibility.

Psalms 32:7 "You are my hiding place;
you will protect me from trouble
and surround me with songs of deliverance.”

Psalms 18:35 "You make your saving help my shield,
and your right hand sustains me;
your help has made me great.
You provide a broad path for my feet,
so that my ankles do not give way."

Matthew 6:13 "And lead us not into temptation,
but deliver us from the evil one."

2 Timothy 4:18 "The Lord will rescue me from every evil deed
and bring me safely into his heavenly kingdom.
To him be the glory forever and ever. Amen."

2 Samuel 22:3 "My God, my rock, in whom I take refuge,
my shield, and the horn of my salvation,
my stronghold and my refuge, my savior;
you save me from violence. I call upon the Lord,
who is worthy to be praised, and I am saved from my enemies.”

John 17:15 "I do not ask that you take them out of the world,
but that you keep them from the evil one."