Thoughts from Mark "Hat" Rackley

Praise the Lord.
Praise God in his sanctuary;
    praise him in his mighty heavens.
Praise him for his acts of power;
    praise him for his surpassing greatness.
Praise him with the sounding of the trumpet,
    praise him with the harp and lyre,
praise him with timbrel and dancing,
    praise him with the strings and pipe,
praise him with the clash of cymbals,
    praise him with resounding cymbals.

Let everything that has breath praise the Lord.

Praise the Lord.

• Psalm 150:1-6

There are many verses that could be used to praise God at this moment, but our son is an elementary music teacher and he went to work today, first time since November 1, 2019, and he stayed at work all day. He had a couple of class periods for a break, so it was not a hectic day. Wednesday is his hectic day, but the paperwork required to return didn’t have the right information on it. Was that a coincidence or, as our daughter-in-law thinks, the hand of God making a smoother path for our son?

He only taught music to the first-grade, third-grade, and fourth-grade children. All the kids, even the older ones, wanted to hug the bear in the wheelchair. The teachers came by when they could to wish him well and welcome him back. Since he is a support teacher (not reading, writing, and arithmetic), he won’t see all the children until he works a full week. And he got back to work in time to get a paid holiday next Monday. He can ease back into his work schedule slowly. The important thing is that he feels good after completing his first day at work, a confidence builder.

On November 2 last year, our son had a seizure at a weekend workshop, required to maintain his certification as a teacher. He was sent home without pay until he was ‘cured.’ As therapy progressed, he got worse instead of better, but with the start of EMDR therapy just before Christmas, he has started to make dramatic improvements.

It is odd that the initial therapy set off seizures, but even through this torment, the therapists discovered what his traumas were and the triggers. The EMDR goes to the same places in his memories, but it helps him see the good in the trauma instead of the pain. It is thought that the EMDR therapy will continue for six months, but some of his issues seem to be totally cured already, and the medicine has the rest under control.

The EMDR therapy mirrors what God provides us as we are faced with stress, pain, suffering, and tests of faith in our lives. We can wallow in self-pity and pain, or we can see God in the situation and glorify Him. Our son is learning that now, although he has been a Christian for some time now.

But then again, I have been born-again for 50 years, and I was learning that same lesson along with our son. I see God in the tough times as well as the good times, but this was my son. That seemed to hurt deeper, and I could see the affects of this trauma in his children, my grandchildren. And the financial strain could have destroyed us as well as my son’s family, since we were paying his bills on a fixed income. Note: His in-laws paid the lion share of his therapy bills. If we’d paid that also, we’d be totally broke and no means of getting out of debt. That was a monumental test of faith.

God had this, and He saw us through it. God still has this, as our son will continue therapy and continue to ease back into a full work schedule.

Soli Deo Gloria.  Only to God be the Glory.