Oh my! As a member of the baby boomer generation, I have vague memories of the original trips to the Moon, strong memories of the space shuttle trips – including the sadness of the Challenger explosion and the excitement of the next Shuttle to land – which I got to watch in person from a LOOOOOONNNNGGG way away with about a zillion other enthusiasts.

I'm a Trekkie who prefers the Classics Star Treks, followed closely by the Next Generation and the newest movies out which mean my grandkids can enjoy Star Trek as well. AND I love praise and worship hymn songs and music, including the song, More, by Matthew West. All of this to say that I was so THRILLED to discover news that More was the song played for NASA Mission Specialist Rex Walheim on the final morning of the Space Shuttle's time in space.

What fun for this baby boomer. Talk about leaving a great spiritual legacy! He has certainly done that – for his family AND for ours. What a wonderful educational and Godly example this is for all our grandchildren. Thank you NASA Mission Specialist Rex Walheim!  

Kaye

I love inspirational Bible verses that encourage all of us in the Sandwich Generation and this is definitely one of those! My favorite part of Psalm 17:6-8 is that it says "KEEP me as the apple of the eye," or, as the NIV puts it, "KEEP me as the apple of YOUR eye."

Isn't it awesome to realize we ARE the apple of God's eye! When the responsibilities of caring for elderly parents or babysitting grandchildren seem overwhelming,  when we struggle with maintaining an even temper or our composure no matter what the circumstances, or when enemies like health problems, money woes, etc. pound at our door, we can rest in this assurance!

Pure joy!

I have called upon You, for You will answer me, O God; Incline Your ear to me, hear my speech.

Wondrously show Your lovingkindness, O Savior of those who take refuge at Your right hand

From those who rise up against them. 

Keep me as the apple of the eye; Hide me in the shadow of Your wings.

Psalm 17:6-8

For even more inspirational and encouraging Bible verses and photos to encourage you as you work hard to provide loving elder care at home or long distance to aging parents while raising your children or babysitting your grandchildren, just head on over to All You Have To Give.

Kaye

Christmas is over, New Year's Eve is next week and it's time to start thinking about New Year's resolutions. As a Sandwich Generation granny nanny dealing with the multigenerational issues of caring for elderly parents and babysitting grandchildren, I have to confess, I don't do much in the way of resolutions, primarily because I don't have a lot of extra time. I do have one spiritual growth resolution this year, though, and that is to update and reprint my prayer list of all the special people God has put in my life (including my readers!   ). Each day, I try to pray through one – three encouraging and inspirational Bible verses for all of us. Some of the verses I pray through include:

Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart Be acceptable in Your sight, O LORD, my rock and my Redeemer. Psalm 19:14

I pray it something like: "Lord, thank You for being our rock and our Redeemer. Please make the words of our mouths and the meditation of our hearts be acceptable in Your sight."

All of you be harmonious, sympathetic, brotherly, kindhearted, and humble in spirit; not returning evil for evil or insult for insult, but giving a blessing instead 1 Peter 3:8-9b,

which I pray: "Father God, please enable us each to be harmonious, sympathetic, brotherly, kindhearted, and humble in spirit. Please help us not to return evil for evil or insult for insult, but give blessings instead."

A few other inspirational and uplifting Bible verses I love to pray through:

• Seek peace and pursue it. 1 Peter 3:11
• A gentle answer turns away wrath, but a harsh word stirs up anger. Proverbs 15:1
• Do nothing from selfishness or empty conceit, but with humility of mind regard one another as more important than yourselves; do not merely look out for your own personal interests, but also for the interests of others. Philippians 2:3-4

Aren't those great things to pray for all of us and especially for elder care givers and grandparents?  The best part is that when we pray straight Scripture, right from the awesome Word of God, we KNOW we are praying according to God's will. 1 John 5:14-15 tells us, "This is the confidence which we have before Him, that, if we ask anything according to His will, He hears us. And if we know that He hears us in whatever we ask, we know that we have the requests which we have asked from Him." We may not have those requests instantly, but we trust that He will provide them in His perfect timing.

Talk about wonderful words of encouragement! Guess I'd best head off to work on that resolution! How about you? What's your top spiritual growth resolution for 2010?

P.S. Beth Moore has more inspirational and encouraging Bible verses for us to pray through in one of her books, Praying God's Word: Breaking Free from Spiritual Strongholds. To find out more about it, click here.

Kaye

Working on my Bible study this morning, I was thoroughly enjoying learning more about the very beginnings of John the Baptist and Jesus. I am currently working through Beth Moore’s Bible study book, Jesus – The One and Only. I really appreciate and enjoy her ministry of Bible teaching. Both in listening to her and reading what she’s written, I have learned so much. She always digs down and discovers the most interesting little details I would never think of. And they always interest and intrigue me!

Even more, I appreciate how God can take passages I’ve read dozens, if not hundreds, of times, and make them fresh and new to me each time I read them. Today He did that several times and it was so encouraging!

Today I enjoyed reading passages from 1 Samuel 1, where I read Hannah’s prayer of praise. Some of the verses that especially touched this caregiver’s heart included:

My heart exults in the Lord.

I rejoice in Your salvation.

There is no one holy like the Lord. Indeed, there is no one besides You. Nor is there any rock like our God.

The Lord is a God of knowledge and with Him actions are weighed.

The feeble gird on strength!

Not by might shall a man prevail.

As a Sandwich Generation senior home care giver and grandma, those last two were especially nourishing to my spirit. Too often I try to do everything myself. Then God has to remind me that I am trying to take over HIS job. I don’t know about you, but I often feel pretty feeble. How encouraging to know that our God, our ROCK, will gird us with His strength.

I hope this will encourage you as it did me. I pray that your week will be blessed by God, by His hope, by His strength, and by His power. And to help in that, I wanted to share this lovely video from Beth Moore’s Living Proof Blog. Enjoy

Living Proof Live – Springfield IL from Rich Kalonick on Vimeo.

One of my goals for SandwichINK is to provide encouragement for all you wonderful Sandwich Generation Senior Home Care Givers and Grandparents, as well as myself. When I spotted the Word-Filled Wednesday meme, I thought, “What an encouragement for all of us.” After spending the last few evenings reading the various sites’ entries, I have to say, “WHAT A BLESSED ENCOURAGEMENT FOR ALL OF US!”

Each night I would spend a few minutes enjoying the various photos and reading the verses and devotionals and God would lift my spirits, give rest to my soul, and a couple of times He even used them to point out some weak areas that needed fine-tuning. My favorite was the adorable picture of the ostrich with the Bible verse Ephesians 4:29:

Let no unwholesome word proceed from your mouth, but only such a word as is good for edification according to the need of the moment, so that it will give grace to those who hear.

or as the Good News Translation puts it,

Do not use harmful words, but only helpful words, the kind that build up and provide what is needed, so that what you say will do good to those who hear you.

I’m using it to remind me to speak helpful words to others, even when life is throwing me one frustration headache after another!!!

I’m going to print out my favorites each Wednesday to make some Words of Encouragement booklets using these wonderful inspirational Bible verses for my grandkids and I to enjoy reading together.

What a great way to put into practice Deut. 6:7:

“You shall teach [God’s Words"] diligently to your [grandkids] and shall talk of them when you sit in your house and when you walk by the way and when you lie down and when you rise up.”

What were your favorite photos and Bible verses? We’d love to hear. Also, be sure to sign up for the SandwichINK free email for more info, grandkid craft ideas, and encouragement!

Cold and flu season was in full swing. After a particularly difficult and exhausting week of senior home care giving and grandparenting, I was sitting in church listening to the pastor read a passage from the Bible, Matthew 14:22-33.

He told of the time after Jesus miraculously fed a multitude of people. He had sent the crowds away, sent his disciples off on a boat, and gone off on His own to pray. Later that night, the disciples were still on the boat, when it was caught in a major storm, with the waves pounding against it. All of a sudden they saw Jesus coming towards them on the water and they were terrified, thinking He was a ghost.

…they cried out in fear. But immediately Jesus spoke to them, saying, “Take courage, it is I; do not be afraid.”
Peter said to Him, “Lord, if it is You, command me to come to You on the water.” And He said, “Come!” And Peter got out of the boat, and walked on the water and came toward Jesus. But seeing the wind, he became frightened, and beginning to sink, he cried out, “Lord, save me!” Immediately Jesus stretched out His hand and took hold of him, and said to him, “You of little faith, why did you doubt?” When they got into the boat, the wind stopped. And those who were in the boat worshiped Him, saying, “You are certainly God’s Son!” Matthew 14:26b-33

Did you notice something in that passage? Jesus immediately spoke words of comfort to them when they were in the midst of being buffeted by the waves, and He immediately reached out to grab Peter when he became afraid and started to sink in the water. BUT the storm kept going on! It did stop when He got on the boat, but not sooner.

God is ALWAYS with us in the middle of our trials, whether they be from caregiving or from other situations we may be dealing with. He is always ready to speak words of comfort and encouragement to us through His Word, through hymns and praise songs, and through sermons. But the trials do NOT always stop immediately. Sometimes they go on for a few minutes or hours, like here. Sometimes they go on for days, as happened for Lazarus’ sisters when he died. And sometimes, as Paul discovered, trials, such as prison, beatings, illness, and thorns in the flesh can go on for months or even years!

It’s vital for us to cling tight to Him no matter how long our trials endure, trusting Him and praising Him. As Paul tells us in Philippians 4:

Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, rejoice! Let your gentle spirit be known to all men. The Lord is near. Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all comprehension, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.

I pray that you will each be blessed this week with the comfort of His presence and the encouragement of His Word as you go about your Sandwich Generation senior home care giving and grandparenting!

The great dragon was thrown down, the serpent of old who is called the devil and Satan, who deceives the whole world; he was thrown down to the earth, and his angels were thrown down with him.

Then I heard a loud voice in heaven, saying, “Now the salvation, and the power, and the kingdom of our God and the authority of His Christ have come, for the accuser of our brethren has been thrown down, he who accuses them before our God day and night.

“And they overcame him because of the blood of the Lamb and because of the word of their testimony, and they did not love their life even when faced with death.

Rev. 12:7-11

As a Sandwich Generation senior home care giver and grandmother, doing a sit down Bible study daily is both a vital necessity and a luxury. Many times I opt instead for a great sermon or two on my ipod as I drive on various errands.

Today I was blessed to spend solid time reading through Revelation as I continue to work on Kaye Arthur’s Revelation Precepts course. As I read the passage above, I realized my lamp was shining right into my eyes. At first it was more of a subconscious thought that led to a feeling of irritation. Then I focused on the issue and realized that all I needed to do was turn my chair a bit. Problem solved.

Another example was a game my grandkids and I enjoyed. They loved it, but it was a bit too frustrating for them at their age. We brainstormed and adjusted the rules. Problem solved and positive new lessons are now being worked on as we play it.

Then again, some things can NOT be changed. When an aging parent is placed in the Hospice program or has developed dementia, you can change many of the circumstances, but some things are difficult and even downright unchangeable.

When nothing else can be changed, we have to choose to submit it all to God and rest in His promises. Not that I shouldn’t have submitted the first two issues as well. I’ve learned I need to submit everything and all of me to Him.

Submit therefore to God. Resist the devil and he will flee from you. Draw near to God and He will draw near to you. James 4:7

When I’ve hit those solid walls of a one-way situation and feel like I am wedged in tight – no way in or out and the walls are getting closer and closer – that’s when my submission takes on even deeper meaning. When we can’t look anywhere else it makes us look at Him. If we are already looking at Him, it makes us look deeper into His eyes.

Sometimes these occasions will be huge, like hospice. Sometimes tiny, like a room arrangement we can’t change that is driving us nuts. Regardless of size, we will be blessed when we hold it out to God and let it go to Him. I’ve even done that physically and dramatically to help myself. I’ll hold out my hands and tell the Lord, “Here is my situation. I give it to You. Please make sure I leave it with You!”

As John points out in Revelation, we in the Sandwich Generation will be blessed when we choose to submit everything to God even when faced with unchangeable circumstances including death.

Aren’t roses wonderful! So many of them have such a rich, wonderful scent. Their beauty has been recorded over and over by words, photos and famous paintings. And, of course, roses are great to encourage all our beloveds, from senior parents down to sweet grandkids. Famous sayings about roses are popular as well. My favorite is, “A rose by any other name is still a rose.”

I guess my love affair with roses comes honestly. My grandma had the most gorgeous rose gardens at both her houses. When my girls were older and I had more free time, I was able to follow her delightful example a bit with 35 rose bushes at one house and 40 at another.

One intriguing thing I learned with each of my gardens was that they flourished when I pruned them each winter. I still remember the reaction of my sweet hubby the first time we had to “whack back” his favorite Iceberg rosebush. He was convinced it would never grow back, but we decided we needed to follow the rose book’s directions. We gave it a major pruning and guess what? In just a few short months it was bigger and bushier than ever. He never worried about pruning again and, in fact, often cut it back even further than I might have.

All of that pruning experience helped me better understand the words Jesus spoke in John 15:1-5:

I am the true vine, and My Father is the vinedresser. Every branch in Me that does not bear fruit, He takes away; and every branch that bears fruit, He prunes it so that it may bear more fruit. You are already clean because of the word which I have spoken to you. Abide in Me and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself unless it abides in the vine, so neither can you unless you abide in Me. I am the vine, you are the branches, he who abides in Me and I in him, he bears much fruit, for apart from Me you can do nothing.

The year my dad’s Parkinson’s Disease progressed and he was put on hospice, I spent almost no time with my roses. They got no pruning and very little trimming through those long months. They were still pretty but there was a decided difference in the amount of blooms and the health of the plants. I could see that, if I continued to ignore them year after year, they’d be looking pretty sad in just a few short years.

The same is true for our spiritual growth. Just as we need God to feed and water us through His Word, prayer and regular fellowship and teaching, we also need Him to prune away bad habits and pesky little sins that love to creep into our hearts and lives. Without that pruning, our spiritual lives will start to fade away.

It’s not easy to stay up with all this when caregiving duties are hot and heavy. But when we tell God we surrender ourselves and our all to Him, He will give us the strength to do so. And while the pruning may seem difficult when we are going through it, when we look back at it, we will see that both our rose bushes and our spiritual lives are more beautiful as a result.

Don’t you find that, as a Sandwich Generation senior home care giver and grandparent, you generally find it easy to obey Paul’s charge in 1 Thessalonians 5:17, “pray without ceasing,” since there are so many needs to pray for? Do you ever find yourself so stressed, worried, upset, frazzled, drained, or just plain exhausted that you can’t find the words to pray, but you NEED to pray? I’ve been there many a time. Illness, emotions, death… And those are just some of the reasons. I do have a great solution for that, though, and it’s easy. I pray Scripture.

I often carry a list of favorite verses in my purse as well as having a Bible tucked into my car. I even have the whole Bible in my cell phone along with an audio version (including the great free one from Christian Audio this month) in my mp3 player. That makes it easy for me, no matter what my situation, to latch on to a favorite verse or five and pray them to God over whatever my heart is troubled by.

Many of my favorite passages are in the Psalms and most of my Bibles have several comforting passages underlined, and sometimes even re-underlined! Using Psalm 91 as an example, I would pray something like:

Father God, Thank You that You have led me to dwell in Your shelter. Help me to always abide in Your shadow, Lord, no matter what the trial. Oh Lord, thank You that You are, indeed, my refuge and my fortress, My God in Whom I trust! Please deliver me from the snare of fear and please deliver my loved ones and myself from the deadly pestilence. Please cover us with your pinions and help us each to seek refuge under Your wings. Thank You that Your faithfulness is a shield and bulwark. I rest in You, my precious Savior.

Please deliver me from the terror by night and the illness that stalks in darkness. Thank You for leading me to make You, Lord, my refuge and that You, the most High, are my dwelling place. Thank You that You are with me in trouble. I rest secure in You!

I don’t try to use every verse. I just scan through and use the ones that fill my heart with prayer or praise for my particular situation.

I have found that God uses this to calm me and focus me on Him, at least for a bit. Sometimes I’m afraid that I’ve been in such a dark valley, it’s definitely hard to even do this. Those are the times when all I can do is grab one verse and say it over and over and over. Even that has proven to be a blessing and a help.

Truly, I have seen Him walk by my side even closer as I walked “through the valley of the shadow of death.” I pray you, too, will find this to be a comfort and an encouragement in difficult times.

In honor of Grandparents Day,

I have for you a Smilebox card and song.

Have a blessed day and enjoy praying for your grandkids

and being a special and integral part of their spiritual heritage,

whether they live close or are far away!

Make a Smilebox greeting