What's so Great About Monday?

The title for this blog was inspired by the book Crying on Sunday by Elaine Herrin Onley. In her book, Mrs. Onley describes the series of events that led to her husband's forced resignation from the church where he was pastor. One of the saddest paragraphs in the book describes their trip to church on the rainy Sunday when he resigned.

I wish I had the book here now -- I'd type out the quote for you. It's so sad. It makes me cry because I've made that trip. I've sat in a too-silent car as my husband drove us toward the Sunday morning service when he would resign as pastor. I've sat in my seat and held the tears back as I watched him resign from the only job he's ever truly loved. My journey has included many, many tearful Sundays. For the first year after the resignation, I cried every single Sunday. Even now, almost two years later, I still have Sundays that I cry.

For me, while Sunday is synonymous with pain, Monday somehow symbolizes hope. Hope that someday the hurt will be just a memory. Hope that someday the hole in my heart will not ache so badly. Hope that God has wonderful, beautiful plans for our lives and that he is working out those plans, even though right now it doesn't seem like it.

So, I'm waiting for Monday. Thanks for waiting with me!

Bad Dreams

I had a bad dream last night.

Seems I have one every month or two.

My bad dreams aren't about skeletons or ghost pirates like the ones my children have. In my bad dreams, I relive the storm that broke our hearts and forced us away from the body of believers we love so deeply. It's funny:: although the key players are the same in my dreams, the events that force my husband to resign are always different from the actual events. The emotions, though. Oh my! The emotions are always the same.

The sting of rejection;

the numb shock of betrayal;

and the sadness.

Deep, soul-saturating sadness.

On the nights that I have these dreams, I always wake up in the morning feeling exhausted physically and emotionally.

It's hard to start the day crying.

It's hard to keep waiting for Monday.

Welcome to Waiting for Monday. I'm so glad you stopped by!

Let me introduce myself. I am a 30-something woman. I am a wife and a mother. I am, first and foremost, a daughter of God. I am on a journey - a life journey toward His heart. My journey has taken some very painful turns - turns I never expected!

Waiting for Monday is my place to explore my family's journey through what is commonly known as a "forced termination" from the church where my husband was serving as pastor.

Like the story of your own life, my story cannot be told in just a sentence or two. But if you stick around long enough, it will come together, like the pieces of a complicated, often confusing puzzle.
I have started this blog as a way to share my story. I know that there are many, many others who are experiencing what my family and I are going through. I hope that, by sharing our journey, they might be encouraged in their own. I feel that, if I can help just one or two other hurting people, my pain will all, somehow, seem a little less pointless.

I have decided to share my story anonymously. This will let me share the details of my story without pointing fingers at specific individuals.

If you connect with my story, I would love for you to leave me a note and tell me so.

If I can share your journey by praying for you, please let me know. I would covet your prayers for me and my family!

Please call me