Homeschool- Renew, Restore, River House!

"Create in me a clean heart, O God. Renew a loyal spirit within me."-- Psalm 51:10

I cannot believe that it is time once again to begin preparing for my annual river house retreat with my girlfriends as we pull away from television, telephone and distractions for five full days as we wait upon the Lord.  

 

 We arrive filled to overflowing with our bibles, curriculum and coffee. 

Every year the Lord gives me a theme.  

 

 Last year, He gave me two specific verses:

 

 “Come, let us return to the Lord.
   He has torn us to pieces;
      now he will heal us.
   He has injured us;
      now he will bandage our wounds.
   In just a short time he will restore us,
      so that we may live in his presence.
   Oh, that we might know the Lord!
      Let us press on to know him.
   He will respond to us as surely as the arrival of dawn
      or the coming of rains in early spring.”-- Hosea 6:1-3

 

I had been hospitalized so many times for kidney stones that I had kidney damage.  I had just made the decision to leave my urologist after 5 years because his answer to everything was narcotic pain medication and I wanted the stones to stop producing and for total healing to take place.

 

Jesus has been faithful this year to do exactly what He promised. 

 

 

“But forget all that, Mary—
      it is nothing compared to what I am going to do.
  For I am about to do something new.
      See, I have already begun! Do you not see it?
   I will make a pathway through the wilderness.
      I will create rivers in the dry wasteland."-- Isaiah 43:18-19

 

I began seeing a new holistic M.D. (Dr. John Young) who began doing I.V. therapy and put me on daily protein shakes.  I changed urologist and this one saw that my kidneys were not filtering like they should so he put me on a diuretic that changed everything.  

 

Together these doctors did begin something brand new.  I am no longer presenting with kidney damage according to my labs.  I still have a ways to go because my proteins are still on the cusp but they are oh so much better.  Praise the Lord from whom all blessings flow!

So, as I prepare my heart for this coming year the verse the Lord has given me comes from Psalm 51:10-12:

Create in me a clean heart, O God.
      Renew a loyal spirit within me.
    Do not banish me from your presence,
      and don’t take your Holy Spirit from me.

   Restore to me the joy of your salvation,
      and make me willing to obey you.

This year I am still going to hang onto Isaiah 43:18-19 as I do begin something new, but the bigger theme, the one that I am most excited about comes from the above verse.  It's all about renewal and restoration!