Isaiah 53
4Surely he hath borne our griefs, and carried our sorrows: yet we did esteem him stricken, smitten of God, and afflicted. 5But he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon him; and with his stripes we are healed.
You’ll have to really bear with me today as you can tell my mind is “out there” somewhere! See, this week has been mixed with everything from
basketball practice
to a healing service where Nick was lifted up
to visits from new ministers and old friends
to gifts arriving in the mail from a professional football player (thank you, Donnie Nickey for the Titans helmet and jersey and sweet card! WOW!)
to being rear-ended yesterday while at a red light by a girl who was living out of her car…..and who ended up coming to our home for a shower and to do laundry. I am praying that she will be coming to church Sunday (PLEASE PRAY-Our church is now trying to help her get an apartment and furniture) and PRAISE GOD-My van shows no signs of the impact!
to subbing
to being the mom my healthy kids need
to being the mom Nick needs
and the list goes on and on and on………………….
So as I sat here today wanting to share what is on my heart, the word “STRESSED” just came into my mind so quickly that I had to do a little image search. When I found the picture above, I couldn’t help but feel it was a little comedy relief from God!
See, one of the ministers who prayed with Nick this week used the verse above (“with His stripes we are healed”) in his prayer and when I saw the picture of the zebra with the stripes falling off due to stress, I had to laugh out loud.
Serving a Savior who allowed His stripes to heal us can sometimes lead to a little bit of “earthly stress” where if we were zebras, we may very well LOSE OUR STRIPES!
I think that’s what serving Him is all about……
Losing ourselves in order to find Him!
I don’t know about you, but sometimes when I try so hard to “lose myself” in Him….the devil just loves to add a little stress!
So, I have decided that the next time I feel shortness of breath and a slight headache from all the things facing me, I am going to remember the picture of the zebra and smile.
And then I am going to remember what Jesus did for me on the cross.
Trying to lose my stripes and remember His!
In December of 2007 as our youngest son, Nick, was fighting brain cancer, I began to blog. Writing provided a way for me to release all of my questions, fears, and doubts. It also allowed me to share the ups and downs of Nick's journey with people who were praying for him all over the world. When Nick went Home in November of 2008, my blog became my way of searching for God in the midst of my deep heartache. My heart was broken and grief brought to the surface every emotion imaginable. Being able to release those emotions through my writing brought a sense of purpose to my pain. Having already walked the road of grief in 1992 when we lost our daughter to SIDS, I knew I needed a way to keep from falling into a pit of depression and despair. I had walked close to the edge of a bottomless pit when we lost our daughter,and I knew I couldn't let myself get that close to the edge again. This blog has been and continues to be my tiny corner of the world where I can share My Heart as I journey through God's Word.......thus the name........ My Heart His Words. Thank you for taking time to share life with me. If we do not meet while here on earth, I look forward to hearing all about your life when we reach our final destiny.........Heaven! Email me anytime at 
Wow – what a week!! I’m so glad you are still finding your sense of humor. The zebra thought was cute..and one that will stick with you. – probably never look at zebra the same again. Love ya much – Jennifer
Tammy, gosh what a week you have had, but isn’t it great to know God is on your side, and yes I know from experience that our wonderful Lord has a sense of humour.
When I feel down sometimes and I just know it is the enemy, I say to him, “you are as thick as two bricks, you are trying to pull me down, but hey the more you try the closer I get to my loving Saviour Jesus Christ,” and it works as I do end up giving praise and thanks to Him, so my friend hang in there your not alone, and give Nick a big hug, and I am sending you one as well. God Bless. Mary
Such a good analogy. God is so good–He gets us through whatever our weeks turn out to be. Good thing we don’t know ahead of time what we will be dealing with. I will always remember Cori Ten Boom writing in “Hiding Place” that when she was little, she always wanted to hold the train ticket early, but her father always told her, “I will give you what you need, when you need it.”
So like our God. Praying and knowing that God will give you what you need–today!
Praying!!!
I just love the story of you getting rear-ended. What a faithful servant you are. I know you weren’t searching for kudos for what transpired there, but if you had not been obedient…well who knows what would have happened to that girl. I just lovew stories like that. Oh, how the Lord is using you!