walk, don’t run.

July 1, 2014 Kam 1 Comments

I’ve never been a runner. Heck, the nickname given to me in high school was “Clyde.” As in Clydesdale. Yeah, the horse. The one who trots along through life. But while I may not have been a runner, I walked fast! And with purpose. Even now, I somehow manage to leave my poor husband in the dust. At the mall, I realize he’s several steps behind me. My children consistently ask me to slow down when holding my hand. Because I’m my mother’s daughter and well, she walks with purpose too. Quickly.

So in the physical sense, I’m kinda power walking through my day. Multitasking. Spinning plates, juggling balls. But in a spiritual sense, I’m a runner. A serious runner. God gives me a task or a conviction or a plan and y’all, I’m all over it. Like they taught me during our three years in Texas, I’m “on it, blue bonnet.”

And you wanna know something? I don’t believe God calls us to run all the time. Run away from temptation? YES. Run to Him? Always.

But in the everyday, mundane? Friends, it’s a walk.

Have you ever contemplated how many Scriptures encourage us to walk? Verse after verse. Passage after passage. Walk.

This year in particular, has been a struggle between walking and running for me. Which is so funny since we aren’t adopting right now and I, like some of you, am guilty of trying to run like mad through an adoption!

Our first son, adopted at age 3, struggles with comprehensive speech delays as well as some learning delays. I’ve posted about him a few times before in regards to these things. But as I was recently sitting in the dentist’s waiting area {four children = cleanings X four twice a year…ugh!}, I read this article. And it reminded me again just how much these babies endure because they are born too early.

image

Three of our children were preemies. Joel was the most significant at 28-29 weeks. He experienced several surgeries as an infant due to a perforated bowel {very common in preemies} as well as Reactive Airway Disorder because of immature lungs. He was on a vent for several months which seems to have given him some level of sensory issues too. And while I’m amazed at the level of care he was able to receive in the country of his birth, it’s clear that these things, coupled with being institutionalized until he was three years old, have conspired to set him up for some hard days as far as learning and schooling goes.

And in like fashion, I wanna RUN. If he’s only reading at an F level, I want to blaze through and get him to an H. “Forget G! We can skip it! Let’s just read H books and see how you do!”

But many times with our babies, who’ve come to us with delays, it’s a walk, not a run.

And then there’s our Gabe, {AKA, the Little Prince, my Gabey Baby}, whose urological/genital defects were so extensive that he will endure the 6th surgery on his nether regions alone over a two year period this October. MY plan was to shore this up in two surgeries. Which is laughable to consider now. And the fact that Gabe’s hypothermia at abandonment has contributed to terribly poor skin and healing quality, doesn’t at all help my need to RUN. It has caused the opposite to happen.

With Gabe, we seemingly crawl.

And I see this with so many other adoptive parents {and bio ones too of course!}, who love their babies more than life and they want this stuff to be OVER. We want to be DONE. We want our children to be CHILDREN and not in the hospital or in pain or unable to do things that others can easily do.

But again y’all, it’s a walk.

He calls us to a walk. Our kids don’t need sprinters. They need walkers. Consistent, steady, faithful walkers.

Oh, sure, I’ve got my tennies tied and my hair in a ponytail. I’m ready if a run is ever the best option. But for now, I’m on a walk with Him. And that’s more than okay. Because He’s God of the walk.

“And I will walk among you and will be your God, and you shall be my people.”
Lev. 26:12

 



One response to “walk, don’t run.”

  1. So sweet, Kam. A much needed reminder for me. Always encouraged through the courage of your example.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

© 2024 No Hands But Ours

The content found on the No Hands But Ours website is not approved, endorsed, curated or edited by medical professionals. Consult a doctor with expertise in the special needs of interest to you.