"our glorious sacramento trip"


brock, brandt


taylor, brandt, kristi, brock


brock, kristi


kristi, brock


brandt and colben, colben


colben

"
brandt

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brock,ann, taylor, colson


colson, taylor, brock

>
taylor, kristi, brock

friday's blog will especially be featuring jasmine....with brandt and colben. that trip esp. celebrated brandt's homecoming.

sorry that taylor and i are taking so long
in getting all the photos together (well, some)
for you all to have a glimpse into our sacramento
trip as a family.

we promise you the pictures are coming.
taylor is doing laundry. cooking for me. keeping
things in order. helping me with my walker. it is
an incredible gift to have four, wonderful sons who
really care about me. i've decided the physical pain
(from my feet) pales compared to being forced to
be still and quiet and look at myself in the silence of
my room. what is Jesus telling me?

well...
this i know.

"You've kept track of my every toss and turn
through the sleepless nights,
each tear entered in your ledger,
each ache written in your book....

"i'm proud to praise God.
proud to praise God.
fearless now, i trust in God;
what can mere mortals do to me?

"i'm thanking you, God, out loud in the streets,
singing your praises in town and country,
the deeper your love, the higher it goes;
every cloud is a flag to your faithfulness."
psalm 56-57 The Message

wave the flags, warriors.
wave the flags.
in celebration...and
in the shadows of difficulty.
God is love, and love promises HOPE
for EVERYTHING.

"last in series of blogs about FEET!
tomorrow: pics from family gathering."

i had to have put my brain on the
shelf when i allowed the orthopedic
specialist to operate on BOTH
feet at once. my legs are tangled.
everything about me feels incapacitated.
and jan and i, doing this surgery together?
it was a very dark decision.

something about us lying side-by-side. in dire pain.
moaning and sharing bottled water and beginning
to argue over who was in the most
misery. and neither of us being able
to have our own space and breathing room. jan got irritated
by the click of these keys on my
smartphone, and I was trying to
keep the blogs going.

christian, jan's youngest, who...as you know..was being paid by us to
come at our beck and call...tried to
become our private therapist. there
was something about our mutual
agony that literally brought out the
demons. our children now know
what their mothers are capable of.
brandt, my youngest, just bursts
into laughter at the vision of his mother and aunt carrying on like
this. three weeks down the road, and we are just beginning to forgive
ourselves. our grace toward the entire world has expanded.

thank you for your beautiful words
about my speech aired on focus on
the family. you touched me deeply.
every single one of you. you know,
after those days jan and i had, that
Jesus truly raises miracles out of
ashes. i had taylor, who has been
here, helping me, come sit on the
steps of my bedroom with me. and
i sobbed, and told him about the
broadcast that very day.

"taylor, i am not worthy of God's
annointing."

"oh, mom, yes, you are."
this is how sweet and loving my
children are. a complete mystery!

may God's vast love
cover each of you today. and may
He heal all your wounds.


taylor

three weeks into foot recovery.
pins sticking out of toes. pain.
excruciating! a walker. sore throat, and
today, i began, for the first time, to believe
i couldn't get to the end of this journey.

it just hit me.
a harsh slap across my normally-optimistic
spirits. three more weeks before i can put weight
on left leg. the toes look swollen and black. i live
with my bedroom upstairs. now, a walker. taylor
came back with me from family gathering. he
hasn't felt really well, either, but trying. to bring
me tortillias with melted cheese and avocado.
and keep me going.

i crawled down to first step landing.
"taylor," i began to sob. "please talk to me."
he settled next to me on the steps, and tears
streamed down my face.

i promise God to show far more compassion
and love to every wheel-chair driven victim that passes
my way. to anyone on a walker. to those who struggle
just to walk. i promise to let my eyes glisten in each one's face,
and to treat those with more notice and solid respect and pure,
undiluted kindness.

today,
focus on the family
played an old speech of mine.
i never listen to my own stuff, but i begged
God to somehow be glorified even though there was
nothing unusual or exceptional about my walk with Him
that made me worthy of this honor. the devil always makes
me feel tiny and miniscule on days God chooses to use my
one, inadequate, undeserving life. but love HIM? oh, that i
do, i do. i do.

i wept.
my oldest son sat and listened.
he helped me, via walker, hobble out to
back patio and feel the cold air on my skin.
to see the sky between the trees. to be standing
in God's world. to realize that my son probably had alot
of worries, too.

Lord, rain on us.
wash away our moments of panic
and sadness and fear. take us, just where we are,
and lift us to higher realms of victory. teach us how
to overcome in our darkest hours. make me a mother that
is human enough to not be perfect, but neither allow me to
lay all my woes before my sons when they have enough of
their own.

endurance is our warcry today.
may we run with patience and the
will to NEVER give up.
my deepest love to all of you who
are my friends, and running beside me in
this Race called Life.
amen. amen.

“listen now, you who know right from wrong,
you who hold My teaching inside you:
pay no attention to insults, and when
mocked don’t let it get you down…
I’m the One comforting you. I am God,
your very own God.” Isaiah 51

life is a journey of hardships and bruising.
but for every loss, there is an important gain.
always. watch for your sunrises. they are
coming. God promises!!!


colben

family goes separate ways.
what a gift and blessing for all
of us. we will never forget.
siblings must stick together.
heart to heart. side by side.

brandt laid next to me in bed
late last night. firefighter. husband.
father. bodyguard. but forever my
son. my child. he whispered. I
listened. home at last.

kristi, brock's girlfriend, with tattoos,
something I was once horrified
about. now, all I see is her beautiful
heart. yes, Lord. it's all about the
heart! she's your child, Lord. keep
my eyes on the heart.

colben got a fever. brock threw up
five times. i have two feet in casts.
taylor took orders tonight for our
food. went and brought it up to our
adjoining rooms to save room service gratuities. we so respect
and are grateful for this trip that we
tried to save what we could.

wrap the kiemel anderson family
with love...and Jesus..
and the clouds begin to part. and
we know Jesus has led us all the way. Jesus and you and love.

may we pass it on.
carry Jesus forward.
run the Race, and somehow,
win.

Ann on Focus on the Family

Ann's streaming audio, "How Can I Change", will re-air tomorrow, Wednesday February 20th. Check the scheduled broadcast time in your area at the Focus on the Family website.