Kristin Hill Taylor

Seeking God as the Author of Every Story

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Remembering beyond a single moment

April 19, 2017 by Kristin 10 Comments

Less than 24 hours after Ben’s face and hands were burned, his face was so swollen his left eye could barely open. The doctors and nurses at Vanderbilt’s burn unit kept telling us to give his skin two weeks to heal. In a single moment looking at my boy who didn’t look like himself, two weeks seemed so far away yet like not enough time for his wounds to heal and his new skin to grow.

But they were right.

It’s not that I doubted them, they’re experts. But I couldn’t see very well beyond that single moment.

Since then, we’ve been overwhelmed by both hard and good moments.

Really, that’s the essence of life. Circumstances happen and sometimes startle us from our normal. But then goodness gets mixed in with the hard parts. For that first week after Ben’s injuries, I pushed down emotions because I needed to take care of him and the rest of my family. The second week my emotions overflowed more easily, and they’re still overflowing.

Time is fickle and fleeting yet
offers perspective on what God has done.

{Tweet that.}

On Easter 2016 after church and lunch, my family of five explored the 33 acres we had recently purchased. A renovation was almost underway and we wouldn’t move for a few more months, but Greg reached out his arm and took our picture in front of our new-to-us house. For me, that moment held so much hope of what was too come as we set our on this country living adventure together.

I made my family assemble in similar pose this past Sunday before we went to the breakfast potluck before our church service. It was Easter again and time was nudging me to pause and remember.

I remembered I was a little nervous about moving to the country – where friends and stores aren’t quite as convenient. But then I think about how friends have showed up for small group, nights filled with Settlers of Catan, lunches with other adoptive moms, and when my son was healing.

I remembered how Rachel learned to climb stairs before we moved and how I was grateful for a single-level home for my fearless girl to explore. She walked in the living room four months after we moved in and hasn’t stopped getting into things yet.

I remembered how dreams change and God binds together his people.

I thought about how we didn’t live here in the spring last year. We stopped by to check on things periodically, but living here as the grass and trees are becoming greener and flowers pop up in places I didn’t expect is lovely.

Many adventures and surprises can happen in a year, or even two weeks. People grow and change, the kids outgrow their shoes and pants and then lose teeth, and the baby becomes a toddler with more hair. There are good days and hard days, but God remains unchanging with us during both.

Take a few minutes to look beyond whatever moment you’re in. Remember where you’ve been and where God is leading you. Remember how the hard days didn’t last forever and good was mixed in even when you may not have expected it.

*****

Kristin Hill Taylor - Porch Stories
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Filed Under: Porch Stories Tagged With: faith, life, reminiscing

Comments

  1. Susan Shipe says

    April 19, 2017 at 8:06 am

    I love this for all the right reasons – it’s real. Bless you, Kristin, as you “family” well!

    Reply
    • Kristin says

      April 19, 2017 at 8:12 am

      Thanks, sweet friend. xoxo

      Reply
  2. Tara says

    April 19, 2017 at 10:35 am

    I have been thinking about you and your family. Ben seems to be healing nicely from looking at the picture. I cannot even begin to imagine how scary that must have been. God does redeem our ashes. It’s a beautiful reminder that life not death and light not darkness have the final word. Christ is risen. He is risen indeed. Alleluia! Love you sweet friend.

    Reply
    • Kristin says

      April 19, 2017 at 3:09 pm

      Christ is risen indeed. So thankful for that and the ways He’s made Himself known in our lives. Thank you for your thoughts & prayers.

      Reply
  3. Lyli says

    April 19, 2017 at 12:10 pm

    Oh, Kristin, that last paragraph is gold! Thank you. I needed to read that today. Hugs

    So glad that Ben is healing up nicely! Yay!

    Reply
    • Kristin says

      April 19, 2017 at 3:08 pm

      I’m so glad you could be encouraged here today, Lyli!

      Reply
  4. Tiffany Parry says

    April 19, 2017 at 5:09 pm

    I love this so much. I’ve been doing some remembering and it always convicts me about just how much I forget His faithfulness in my momentary trials. He is good and so very faithful. So glad that every day marks recovery for Ben and a chance for you to see His promises comes true. xoxo

    Reply
    • Kristin says

      April 20, 2017 at 11:01 am

      Remembering is always so good for my soul. I love how you said every day marks a chance to see His promises come true. I need to have that perspective more often. Thanks for your encouragement, Tiffany. xo

      Reply
  5. Becky Hastings says

    April 21, 2017 at 8:00 am

    It’s so easy to think that the moment we’re in is how it’s always going to be. But God sees so much more than the moment! Grateful for His grace as the seasons ever change.

    Reply
    • Kristin says

      April 21, 2017 at 8:31 am

      So easy – but, yes, I’m so thankful for God’s grace and the ever-changing seasons. Thanks for being here, Becky!

      Reply

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About Me

Telling stories is my therapy and I love sharing them with friends on my porch.

The main characters in my stories are my entrepreneur husband, our high school girl who never forgets, our middle school boy who has no fear, and our joy-filled first-grade girl. As we live out our stories, we seek God as the author of them all.

Learn more about my story here.

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🎶 All throughout my history / Your faithfulness 🎶 All throughout my history / Your faithfulness has walked beside me / The winter storms made way for spring / In every season, from where I'm standing / I see the evidence of Your goodness / All over my life … 🎶 @joshbaldwin in “Evidence”

I love summer. But my summer has started off busy: appointments, book edits deadline, establish new habits with the kids at home. All that’s necessary and good, it just cuts into my down time beside the pool. 

Today we have two open gyms for our basketball players, my book study with a few friends, a new weekly high school girls’ book study at our house, and a monthly dad-son character study. 

I long for a little more white space on the calendar, but I also wouldn’t change a thing because the kids are only 16, 13, and 7 once. This summer will only be this summer once. And I’ve already learned time flies with big kids. 

So here we are finding out footing, singing praises with church friends on our porch, grilling delicious chicken, and squeezing in the wide-open spaces when we can. This is evidence of the good stuff. 

#84daysofsummer #poolpeople #momlife #momconfessions #faithlife #livingfaithfully #favoritethings #choosingJOY #countryliving #reallife #PorchStories
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“The moments you collect may not be loud or flashy. They might be quiet or covered or a far-off view you were lucky to catch. But this I know to be true: A moment savored says to your soul, ‘You have lived something beautiful.’ And it keeps you buoyed. It sustains you when you’re running empty. It lifts you up and carries you forward.” — Joanna Gaines in @magnolia summer 2023 journal issue no. 27 

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