A Not So Fun 4th and Tough Week for Faith

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The other day Faith and I were standing in line at the pharmacy, and someone asked her, "How was your 4th of July?" She responded quite honestly, "Terrible!"  Yes, it was definitely not a very fun 4th. In fact, this whole week has been one challenge after another. The only thing we really did for the 4th was go to Art in the Park in Mandan, which was last Friday. Faith found a new tie-dye t-shirt, and I enjoyed a yummy root beer float.  Art in the Park in Mandan on the 3rd I had actually gone with the goal of getting an Indian taco, but it was so humid, I didn't feel like eating anything hot. Because it was so warm, we only stayed for an hour before heading back to Bismarck. That night, I noticed that Faith seemed uncomfortable in her chair, almost like she was having pain. She told me she needed to get out and lie down. I thought maybe being out in the high humidity had been too much for her or that she was having muscle spasms. After she lay down for a bit...
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Faith's Fourteenth Birthday

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Last year I had a tough time getting used to the idea that my daughter had somehow turned into a teenager. This year, I'm having a hard time believing that my daughter is 14 years old. 14!

How in the world did that happen?

Admittedly, her birthday started a little rough with Faith waking up saying she didn't want to celebrate. I chalked it up to her being really tired due to her long day on Tuesday which had begun at 7:30 a.m. If you know Faith, you know that is really early for her.

Somehow in the midst of her crankiness, we managed to get her up and into her chair for her first feeding of the day without the occurrence of any major battles.

When Faith heard her auntie Joh singing Happy Birthday to her while leaving a message, her mood shifted to being happy and joyful. We called Joh back, who had taken time during her lunch break to make the birthday call. We also talked to her grandparents in Canada, which helped as well. After the phone calls, she decided she did want to celebrate her birthday after all, which included going ahead with her party (Thank goodness!).

Knowing Faith would probably be tired (she has a big day on Tuesday which involves a homeschooling group), we decided to have a smaller party with her grandparents and some people who live in our building that we have befriended. Since a few of the people have disabilities and don't drive, we figured the community room in our downstairs lobby would work well.


 


Faith did well for most of her party but began running out of steam toward the end. After we cleaned up, we asked her if she wanted to go to church. New Life had been having a special speaker all week and Wednesday evening was the last service.
 
She totally surprised us by saying she wanted to go! So off we went to continue her birthday celebration. She even wore her "Birthday Girl" ribbon that had been pinned to her shirt for her party, so several people from church wished her a Happy Birthday - which she loved! 

Toward the end of the message, nearly everyone in attendance went to the alter for prayer. After Faith had gotten prayed for, a friend of ours on the worship team asked if she wanted to go up and worship with her. Faith hesitated at first, but when she realized I would go with her, she decided to give it a try. She wasn't too sure what to think at first, but she eventually relaxed.

After a little while, a man who had come with the speaker, came up to us. He kneeled down next to Faith in her chair and prophesied, "You're going to walk out of this building tonight." What a perfect birthday gift! 

We stayed as long as we could, but eventually had to leave. And no, Faith didn't walk out of the building. Maybe the guy hadn't heard correctly from the Lord? Or maybe there was some unbelief in my heart that caused it not to happen? I don't know, but I do know that Faith seemed frustrated when we got home. 

It certainly was an odd ending to a fun day. 

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