I want to dedicate this post to the most amazing lady that I know. She happens to be my wife whom I affectionately call 'Kam'. It is said that the husband of the Proverbs 31 wife "praiseth her", so I want to take a moment to honor the lady of my life.
Since October 2013, our lives have dramatically changed forever when Kami became ill. The final verdict?...Chronic Lyme disease. I have watched her body deteriorate over the past couple of years, to the point where her pain gets so intense that she puts an icepack on her chest just to be able to breathe. It is debilitating at times and in the quiet moments when she thinks no one is looking, I can hear her crying from the pain. But you would never know it, for she never wants her pain & suffering to take the spotlight off of her Savior, Jesus Christ.
What makes this lady so special is her love for the Lord. Her body may slow her down at times, but her spirit is unbreakable! She reminds me of the verse in Proverbs 18:14 The spirit of a man will sustain his infirmity...
There are a lot of folks who use their sufferings as a 'reason' to quit. Kami has learned to draw strength from the Lord in order to keep serving Him. I want to share with you an excerpt from a basic week of a woman who suffers physically:
She is raising 6 children of all various ages & directs all of the homeschooling.
She collapses at the end of the day, exhausted from the Lyme disease yet arises before anyone else to be able to read her Bible and spend time with God alone.
She fixes breakfast for the family and begins the daily chores which includes much laundry!
She plans and cooks the majority of the 3 meals per day.
She prepares her Sunday school lesson and craft each week for her class.
She practices for the special music for church for every service.
She orchestrates the cleaning of the church every week for Wednesday & Sunday meetings.
She plans the nursery schedule and also works in the nursery every week...which includes preparing Bible lessons for the nursery children.
She plans, coordinates, and prepares her Bible lesson for the Ladies' Bible Studies at VSIBC.
She spends time with each child daily, sometimes playing UNO, taking them outside to play, or taking them on field trips.
She sends notes and words of encouragement to different ladies in the ministry throughout the week.
She takes time to answer questions or counsel other women from around the country who contact her throughout the week needing help, encouragement or just needing a friend.
She makes sure to plan one-on-one time with her husband.
She goes on visitation with me or takes another lady from church with her. (This past Saturday, we spent 6 hours on visitation together.)
She bakes goodies for ladies or church families to be a blessing.
She plans the entire month of meals and does the weekly grocery shopping, running to 2-3 different stores every week in order to save her family money.
She always keeps Gospel Tracts in her purse and hands them out wherever she goes.
This week, she managed to fly to Michigan to take care of her Grandmother after her surgery and spoke & sang at a Senior Ladies' Luncheon, was tasked to write an article for a Christian magazine with only a 24 hour notice, was able to sing several specials at her Grandmother's church and cooked and cleaned for her grandmother.
Through pain, she exercises each day with Elisabeth and Brenna...why? Because as she says, "I want to keep looking good for my man!"
She is indeed my hero...and I just want to say,
"Thank you Kam, for your Christ-like spirit, your smile, your always dressing like a Christian lady, your love for our children, your love for our church folks, your love for God's Word, and that sparkle in your eye when we look at each other. You have my heart."
