This is a story that my daughter, Jennie sent me this past weekend. Read on and be blessed! :)
This morning a family stopped by and placed Easter eggs full of goodies along with a basket for my daughter so that she could have her own Easter egg hunt. They didn’t make their presence known, and if it weren’t for the fact that we were in front of the house and we saw shadows, we wouldn’t have even known they were there. Although I’m sure they would have rung the doorbell before darting off.
This took me back to when I was a child and young adult, when my parents used to hide my sister and my baskets till that Sunday morning. It was something we always looked forward to.
I’ve been sick since literally the beginning of this year, but it’s been 5 weeks now that my husband has had to stay home to care for me and the kids. Some days are better than others but most of it has been confined to the house. Since the beginning, we have seen an outpouring of Love in so many ways that to list them all would take too long. However, to see this family creating this special moment for my little girl, knowing that we could not do it ourselves, moved me not only to tears but to write and tell this story.
You see, this Sunday is not about eggs and games, however fun they are to do and play. It’s about sacrifice and the Resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ. In this gift of the egg hunt for my daughter there was love and sacrifice from someone else, which is what Jesus did for us.
So to this family, words cannot express our gratitude for the moment of enjoyment that you gave our little girl. I can only muster a simple thank you with a heart overwhelmed and tears from an appreciative parent.
Although we most likely won’t be able to join our congregation tomorrow, we will celebrate here at home and in our hearts and give thanks to the one who gave unselfishly.
Thank you all for your continued support and prayers,
God Bless and Happy Resurrection Day!
Jennie
I strongly believe that God will many times let us know that HE has NOT forgotten us. He might seem so far, when He's really very near. In the little and seemingly insignificant things in our lives, He still cares enough to grant us these small pleasures and reassurances! It's as if He is gently caressing us by using those around us! We thank God for this small "Easter Miracle"! That even after 2000 years have passed since giving Himself to us sacrificially, He continues to give us more than we deserve!
James
4/5/10
Please continue to keep her and her family in your prayers!
Monday, April 5, 2010
Thursday, April 1, 2010
TRIALS; WHEN GOD’S LOVE, MERCY & GRACE COME THROUGH!
It has been a trying time for my family in the last year or so. Our oldest daughter, Jennie, has gone, and is still going through some really tough times. On July 31st, 2009, she had her second child, Nathaniel Isaiah. Immediately following that joyous moment, Jennie was found with DVT, or Deep Vein Thrombosis. This is caused by the appearance of blood clots in the legs. The danger being that if a clot were to break off, it could eventually travel up to the heart and lungs causing major problems and even loss of life! Of course, we instantly alerted all our family and church family members to pray for her. She was put on blood thinner medication, which brought along its own issues. She had to be extra careful not to cut herself and she could not undergo any surgeries at all. Jennie was unable to go home with her baby, and that was a more hurtful experience for her than her own physical pain! Through all this, she knew and we knew that God is faithful!
She was finally able to come home after about a 2 week stay at the hospital. The troubles did not end there, however. She began to experience other complications, such as a kidney infection, pneumonia, and due to the clots, she was in severe pain. She was flown by helicopter to Albuquerque, New Mexico to get better care. While there, she was found to have rheumatoid arthritis, which had hidden itself during the pregnancy. Another thing to add to the pot! She stayed in Albuquerque for about a week and finally came home again to her husband and 2 children! All this time, she had not been able to enjoy her newborn son or her 2 year old daughter! In all this spiraling of events and stress, we knew God was faithful and had not abandoned her!
With all this going on within her, she had to deal with the multiple medications she had to take just to get through her day. This is all very bad news, to say the least, especially for any of us who are parents and grandparents. It is very difficult to see our children suffering in such a way! And being miles away here in Chicago, the feeling of helplessness was even more intense. Regardless of the bad news, we continued in prayer and seeking the Lord’s guidance and pleading on His mercy to bring relief to Jennie and her family! Her husband had to go on family leave from his job and wasn’t getting paid. He was even going through a physical ailment of his own with a back problem that made it difficult for him to do a lot of physical activity.
Now, this is where it gets interesting. With no income, and without being able to do a lot physically, God was faithful and merciful! Her grandparents and her mom went to stay with her for about a week and a half, and were able to restock her fridge to the hilt and give them money that was needed to pay other bills plus help with the kids! The Calvary Chapel Roswell church family was also there to provide groceries, money, and other services that were needed! God was truly in the midst of it all!
It reminds me that it is in the midst of the trials when we are able to see what God can really do for us! Some of her diagnosis has changed for the better. She had also been diagnosed with Fibromyalgia and the possibility of Lupus, but the other real bad stuff is no longer an issue. Her blood clots have dissolved and she is off her blood thinner meds. Her kidney infection has gone and so has the pneumonia.
During this time of Holy Week or Easter, as we call it, it becomes more meaningful since all that Christ did has much to do with the benefits and blessings we receive today. Because of His death and resurrection, we can hold fast to a truth, that no matter what comes our way, we know that our redeemer lives and that one day He will pick us up from where we have fallen! I am reminded of a song that Kathy Toccoli recorded some years ago entitled, “How Would I Know”. It talks about what God promises to do for us, but how can we know this if we do not experience the opposite? The chorus goes like this: How would I know You could deliver? How would I know You could set free? If there had never been a battle, how would I know the victory? How would I know You could be faithful to meet all of my needs? Lord, I appreciate the hard times, otherwise, how would I know?
Indeed, how would any of us know for sure that God will come through for us in any of our struggles? It would be hard for us to claim “God is good!”, if He didn’t help us with the bad! It would be hard for us to tell others, “God is faithful!” , if God would not or could not give us the victory over our circumstances! It would be extremely difficult for us to claim that “God is Life!” and has promised us eternal life, if He had not risen from the grave! It would all be worth nothing if He had not done what He did back in Calvary two thousand years ago!
My daughter Jennie has experienced this a few times already. Yesterday she was telling me about how when she came back from a doctor’s appointment, she found her fridge filled with food, again! They also left her with a glucose meter for her hypoglycemia. Yes, another thing to add to her many ailments. But through it all, God is merciful! She also told me that some of her doctors thought she had a problem with her serotonin levels. The good news is that after much prayer, her serotonin is no longer a problem! It all has scaled down to a stomach flu virus and her fibromyalgia, for which they can now treat her for. Things are truly looking up considering the many other complications they had found in her! That, along with the free groceries, and her church paying her husband his salary while he is home tending to her and the children, has been a real demonstration of God’s Love, Mercy, and Grace!
It is indeed true that our lives are in His hands, especially when we allow Him to put us there! There can be no better place for those who trust in Him! May we remember at this time the sacrifice of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ!
Happy Resurrection Day!
James
4/01/2010
She was finally able to come home after about a 2 week stay at the hospital. The troubles did not end there, however. She began to experience other complications, such as a kidney infection, pneumonia, and due to the clots, she was in severe pain. She was flown by helicopter to Albuquerque, New Mexico to get better care. While there, she was found to have rheumatoid arthritis, which had hidden itself during the pregnancy. Another thing to add to the pot! She stayed in Albuquerque for about a week and finally came home again to her husband and 2 children! All this time, she had not been able to enjoy her newborn son or her 2 year old daughter! In all this spiraling of events and stress, we knew God was faithful and had not abandoned her!
With all this going on within her, she had to deal with the multiple medications she had to take just to get through her day. This is all very bad news, to say the least, especially for any of us who are parents and grandparents. It is very difficult to see our children suffering in such a way! And being miles away here in Chicago, the feeling of helplessness was even more intense. Regardless of the bad news, we continued in prayer and seeking the Lord’s guidance and pleading on His mercy to bring relief to Jennie and her family! Her husband had to go on family leave from his job and wasn’t getting paid. He was even going through a physical ailment of his own with a back problem that made it difficult for him to do a lot of physical activity.
Now, this is where it gets interesting. With no income, and without being able to do a lot physically, God was faithful and merciful! Her grandparents and her mom went to stay with her for about a week and a half, and were able to restock her fridge to the hilt and give them money that was needed to pay other bills plus help with the kids! The Calvary Chapel Roswell church family was also there to provide groceries, money, and other services that were needed! God was truly in the midst of it all!
It reminds me that it is in the midst of the trials when we are able to see what God can really do for us! Some of her diagnosis has changed for the better. She had also been diagnosed with Fibromyalgia and the possibility of Lupus, but the other real bad stuff is no longer an issue. Her blood clots have dissolved and she is off her blood thinner meds. Her kidney infection has gone and so has the pneumonia.
During this time of Holy Week or Easter, as we call it, it becomes more meaningful since all that Christ did has much to do with the benefits and blessings we receive today. Because of His death and resurrection, we can hold fast to a truth, that no matter what comes our way, we know that our redeemer lives and that one day He will pick us up from where we have fallen! I am reminded of a song that Kathy Toccoli recorded some years ago entitled, “How Would I Know”. It talks about what God promises to do for us, but how can we know this if we do not experience the opposite? The chorus goes like this: How would I know You could deliver? How would I know You could set free? If there had never been a battle, how would I know the victory? How would I know You could be faithful to meet all of my needs? Lord, I appreciate the hard times, otherwise, how would I know?
Indeed, how would any of us know for sure that God will come through for us in any of our struggles? It would be hard for us to claim “God is good!”, if He didn’t help us with the bad! It would be hard for us to tell others, “God is faithful!” , if God would not or could not give us the victory over our circumstances! It would be extremely difficult for us to claim that “God is Life!” and has promised us eternal life, if He had not risen from the grave! It would all be worth nothing if He had not done what He did back in Calvary two thousand years ago!
My daughter Jennie has experienced this a few times already. Yesterday she was telling me about how when she came back from a doctor’s appointment, she found her fridge filled with food, again! They also left her with a glucose meter for her hypoglycemia. Yes, another thing to add to her many ailments. But through it all, God is merciful! She also told me that some of her doctors thought she had a problem with her serotonin levels. The good news is that after much prayer, her serotonin is no longer a problem! It all has scaled down to a stomach flu virus and her fibromyalgia, for which they can now treat her for. Things are truly looking up considering the many other complications they had found in her! That, along with the free groceries, and her church paying her husband his salary while he is home tending to her and the children, has been a real demonstration of God’s Love, Mercy, and Grace!
It is indeed true that our lives are in His hands, especially when we allow Him to put us there! There can be no better place for those who trust in Him! May we remember at this time the sacrifice of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ!
Happy Resurrection Day!
James
4/01/2010
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