Thin skin and thinning hair...

I joke with my hair dresser regularly that some people have bad hair days... myself, I've had a bad hair life.  I wasn't blessed with long flowing tresses, golden locks or thick, glorious strands.  Rather, I was blessed with thin, fine, tangly hair.  I started going gray at the age of 19 - yes, that's right.  Those who know me know I'm chemically dependent, that I color AND highlight... So, as my hair begins to thin, it's really not bothering me as badly as I anticipated.  I bought the cutest wig, and the color and highlights actually match my own.  It's just way more hair than I've ever had.  Who knew that cancer treatments would give me the best hair ever, that I wouldn't have to style it, that I could just hop up and put it on in the morning.  So, as I wait for the inevitable, I am looking forward to my wig.  

I noticed this morning that my skin is starting to feel "thin" as well. I was applying my moisturizer and realized how saggy my skin was looking.  Holy Moly!  So, as a quick trick, I ran my face cloth under very hot water and applied it to my face for a minute or so.  The steam de-wrinkled me and seemed to plump up my saggy-ness just a tad...at least that's what my eyes wanted to see. 

Metaphorically, I find the people closest to me becoming increasingly thin-skinned as well.  Little things that didn't bother them before are starting to well up within them.  A small, minor situation happened over the weekend, and although it really wasn't a big deal, to one family member, it was larger than life for a few minutes.  It occurred to me that to this lovely, everything in their world seems out of control right now.  There is uncertainty, worry, fear, stress, a need for normalcy... and this one thing that seemed to be "under control" was suddenly not... and to this lovely, it was just another reminder that things are not normal right now, that we are just pretending.

It is difficult to watch my loved ones go through this with me.  I would save them from it if I could.  But, there is purpose in the journey, of this I am sure.

1 Peter 1:5 says, "And through your faith, God is protecting you by his power until you receive this salvation..." NLT.

The corresponding devotion says this:  "In life, we'll face many struggles.  Nothing will ever be truly secure.  But, God never changes.  He's holding an inheritance for us in heaven.  No matter what we go through on earth, we can believe in God's promise of heaven.  He'll enable us to make it through all the hard times and help us see that this life is only temporary.  He only asks us to trust Him because the true life He offers is awaiting us."

This was particularly impressive to me today.  It goes right along with everything else in our life right now:  hair is temporary; so is hair loss.  Stressors come and go.  Minor emergencies are fleeting.  Wrinkles and sagging skin may not be temporary, but they are so unimportant...  

What continues to get us through the hard days, the tough times and the tight spots is our faith that God is protecting us by his power and that we will receive a promised salvation.  

Only By His Grace,

Billie