Category: Family

The Victory

11/17/2014

All of us have or will have to experience times of difficulty, hardships, and defeat. Sometimes, when you are going through this pain it is a brutal thought to realize God allowed it. He allowed your body or the body of a loved one to be injured or have a horrible sickness. He allowed you to lose your job. He allowed you to be in a car accident. Or maybe he allowed even the loss of someone you hold dear.

Oh, and it is so difficult at these times to power through on a faith in our God. A faith that He is doing all things for good. A faith that there will be victory in this time of extreme defeat.

Its been a hard thought for me, for sure. During that rough pregnancy, the early birth and various sicknesses of our twin girls, and the continuing hardships I clung to an idea that faith would preserve me and prayer would protect me...but it didn't keep the things I feared away from me. I still gave birth early, lost a child, and had my world tossed and turned into complete insecurity.

Oh, it hurts that God did not stop it.

My perfect, holy, and loving God allowed it.

And then this morning I came across a story that put it all into new perspective for me. It was the story of Lazarus. (John 11) Jesus was told of Lazarus' sickness and chose not to go to him until Lazarus was already gone. But the death and subsequent resurrection of Lazarus was a powerful demonstration of God's power, glory, and love. Jesus, though it hurt him deeply to allow such pain for Lazarus and his sisters, knew what he was doing.

And in the end, he did all he promised to do. He saved Lazarus from death.

Then I realized that God's glory has been shown. Even in these times of hurt I have victory. And the funny thing is, to me the victory has been faith. Having survived things that could easily pull families and lives apart, we are stronger now than ever before. And then I saw it...

Faith preserved me.

Prayer protected me.

My heart was not hardened through the fire but has an even greater ability to love.

Isn't that a miracle?

My faith, though challenged dearly through this super-long and painful year that my sister accurately has dubbed "The Job Year", is just as strong and maybe even stronger.

But what brings tears to my eyes is the fact that I didn't do this. I know I didn't. There were hours of completely darkness, terrible days of weakness, anger, and despair. I did not keep myself from falling away from God.

No.

God kept me close to him and didn't let me fall.

"For in the day of trouble he will keep me safe in his dwelling; he will hide me in the shelter of his sacred tent and set me high upon a rock."
Psalm 27:5

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Inspired by a Young Author

4/15/2014

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A young woman recently contacted me, wanting to share her story on my miracles blog. Her life-story is beautiful. She had a rare sickness as a child and grew up with a strong Christian faith as she dealt with things that some adults would have trouble surviving. I asked her to write her story and introduce herself on my blog. I look forward to reading the Christian Fantasy Novel that she has published and am blessed to meet another Christian sister.

              I Prayed for the Words.
                    By E.J. Norris

I begin telling this tale by saying that we serve an incredible God; he who the mountains obey and he who parts seas is very much alive in all of us. Every day I praise him for all he has done for me.

When I was about ten years old, happy and carefree, my family and I were startled by the symptoms of a rare medical condition. On the night of the occurrence I was playing happily when suddenly my mouth filled with blood. Terrified and frantic, I rushed to the bathroom and spat into the sink, staining the pearl white red. But more blood gushed out faster than I could spit. My sister ran for my mother who was a trained nurse and managed to hurriedly stifle the bleeding. After she had calmed me she and my father got me into the car and we drove off into the night. I recall that we sang all the way to the emergency room,

Rejoice in the Lord always, and again I say rejoice,

Rejoice in the Lord always, and again I say rejoice,

Rejoice! Rejoice! Again I say rejoice,

Rejoice! Rejoice! Again I say rejoice!

Once surrounded by the white walls of the doctor’s office I was examined by the doctor on call at the time. We explained to him the stunning events of the evening and he was just as puzzled.

        “I can see she bled.” he said. Indeed it was obvious because of the stains left on my shirt. “But I can’t see anything wrong.”

There was no reason to keep me there so we returned home and I, in my child-like mind, was content to forget it. But my mother was not. After all, one doesn’t begin bleeding profusely just because. In our family, God is at the head and she prayed. She received a single, clear answer, “Call the dentist.”

She called my dentist and he said,

        “If it happens again, bring her in. We’ll leave the office open for you.”

Sure enough, what I was content to forget happened yet again. It was a winter evening, as the first incident had been, and I was eating dinner when that same ominous taste came. The second bleed was not as dramatic as the first, but just as troubling. We dropped everything and off to the dentist we went. I expected to sit and wait for awhile like we had in the emergency room, but we were ushered in immediately. X-rays were taken and the dentist looked, observing a shadowed area beneath my molars on the lower right side. Praise God that he realized that this mysterious ailment was beyond his expertise! He put up his hands and said,

“I’m not touching her. I’m sending you to an oral surgeon.”

I was listening, uncomprehending. Oral Surgeon? What’s that?

        It was another waiting room, another office, and another doctor to try and decipher the strange problem. But I know God brought us there because when he examined my case he was stunned and exclaimed that he had just finished a book on this subject that very day! Then, for the first time, the ailment had a name: Arterial Venous Malformation. For treatment he sent us to the expert, the author of the book, in Boston, Massachusetts. That began a cycle of treatment during which I leaned on the Lord as I continued going through school and coping.

        Then came the summer of 2011, the summer before my junior year of high school, I began seeking what the good Lord meant for me to do. I wasn’t sure. Others around me were planning for college and prosperous careers. At that point my greatest love was writing. It was such fun to invent worlds and people and that summer I wondered what would happen if I let God take hold of my pen. What if I prayed for the words? So, I prayed saying,

        “Lord, the pen is yours. What do you want me to do?”

When God leads amazing things happen and within just a few days a Christian based plot came to mind with a fire unlike any story that came before it. After two or three tries at a beginning it came to life on the pages of a large, black journal and it flowed as easily as water. Nothing slowed its progress and it was encouragement and help in my healing as the condition continued. While recovering from a surgery, rather than being

swallowed by my circumstances I waited in anticipation for the anesthesia induced fog in my head to clear. Every morning I would say to myself,

“I wonder if I’ll be able to write today.”

Now, as of April 1rst 2014, that story, The Mirror and The Sword is officially a published novel. How it has grown amazes me! I am nineteen years old and an author! The story continues, for The Mirror and The Sword is just the beginning.

        In sharing this with the world around me it’s my hope that God uses it to touch the lives of all who travel through its pages and if any doubts come to my mind about the future I will try to have faith like a mustard seed and keep in mind my favorite verse.

         “I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.”

                                                  Philippians 4:13

                          God bless you all and keep a smile on.

                                                                                 E.J. Norris

Biography

E.J. Norris was born on July 16, 1994 in Blue Hill, Maine. While hop-skipping between home school, Calvary Chapel Christian School, and Bangor High School, writing evolved from a mere hobby to an obsession. It was inspired by personal beliefs and a struggle through complex medical problems. Through its publication, the author hopes that the adventures of Tenny and Anna will encourage others through difficult times. E.J. currently resides in Orrington, Maine.

Find her book at
https://www.tatepublishing.com/bookstore/book.php?w=978-1-62902-118-8

Or Click on the link below to buy a paperback copy from Amazon.

The Mirror and the Sword

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All Things for Good.... Even This

4/11/2014

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Use it all God. Every hurt, Every heartbeat. I give it all to you. You use all things for good. Use me.

As I pray those words I can feel it, like a spring bulb emerging from the soil, life is coming out of the coldness and promising beauty.

Right now, my life is in a tender season where every hurt is deep and hard and every joy is brilliant as the sun.

God, in His great wisdom, has given me identical twin girls who now a battle a rare sickness before they are even born. And this has thrown my world upside-down. I left my husband in Russia to see the amazing medical professionals here in the United States. I left my daughter with my mother-in-law while I underwent surgery this week. I lie in bed now trying not to let every worry and doubt shatter my faith into pieces.

But, with every breath, I feel strength of a new and amazing kind burn within me. God is taking me to new heights, burning away the old and replacing it with a new kind of love and power that comes from Him.

And everywhere I look I start to see the changes and am amazed. I am closer to my mother-in-law, loving and appreciating her undaunted insistence to care for her family. I see and admire the strength and love of my sister who has taken me in to care for me even as she juggles her own full life. I thank God daily for the courage and trust of my husband who always knows just what to say to take away my worries and encourage me and I can feel his loving arms around me even though we are oceans apart.

Even when I had to go to Houston for surgery and every moment was a challenge just to remember to focus and breathe and pray, I was blessed with physicians, surgeons, and nurses who cared enough to hold my hand and even hug me in the hard moments. And my brother-in-law who has no experience with pregnancies and babies, took time off of work so that he could see me though the procedure, make me laugh in the hospital, and see me safely back home again.

I can see God smiling at me through every crack in this topsy-turvey world. His love shines out at me through a thousand souls who pray for us, hug us, love us, and offer a helping hand.

So, God, let me not see this as a time of pity, but a time for your power. Use it all for Your great good. I give it all to you.

Photo by Fountain_Head via Flikr

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Old Mexico

1/15/2014

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I remember the first time I went to Mexico. I went down to visit my husband's family. We were only dating then. It was before all the problems with the drug cartels and the little border town was alive and swinging. But, back then, on the arm of my boyfriend and armed with only basic Spanish phrases, going into Old Mexico was terrifying for me.

It was a situation marinated in discomfort. I didn't know the language. I didn't understand the culture. I was young, shy, and worried about impressing an extended family that might someday become my in-laws.

That trip was a total of three days and seemed to last a lifetime.

I've went back a few times since then, and each time I've felt more relaxed and a bit more comfortable. But nothing compared to this last trip that we took back in December.

It was... to put it in one word... beautiful. My husband's family was going down to visit and to do some work on a ranch. Since I had the little one to look after I opted to stay only a few days. But it was definitely a precious experience. My daughter got to meet her great grandmother and spend lots of time with aunts, uncles, and cousins. When it came time for me to return to the states I realized that there had been no discomfort, no worries, no fear or thoughts of being insufficient. I had been happy.

What changed? My husbands family had undergone no earth-shattering transformations. The were the same sweet, welcoming people that I've known for years. The little Mexican town was altered, of course, there were new modern stores and other examples of progress on its bright-colored streets. But that didn't account for just how different I felt this time compared all the times before.

I knew though what made this visit so different... it was me. It was a shift in my motives and thoughts. That first time I'd come down all I thought about was me. I thought about how I liked the food, how strange the culture was to me. I worried about whether I was liked or accepted by by his family. All negative and all self-centered.

But this time, this time the trip was not about me at all. I thought about other things, like how precious it was that my husband's grandmother got to meet her great granddaughter. I thought about how sweet it was to share dinner with an aunt and uncle and laugh with them when my little girl ate multiple homemade tortillas. I thought about how blessed my family was to be able to come there.

How much a person can change in eight years is incredible. But, I think all my best changes have come from God. Every time I've struggled, every time I've taken on challenges, every time I've allowed faith to reign instead of fear I've been changed. Surely, I am thankful for every time God takes out his tools of change and goes to work on my heart and soul.

Photo by medea_material

Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come: The old has gone, the new is here!
2 Corinthians 5:17

What have you experienced in life that has altered your heart?

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Finding God...Again

1/13/2014

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These days I feel like everything I begged and prayed for the past few months has been coming to pass. I’ve been home for the Holiday season for the first time in years. I’ve filled many days with beautiful moments. I got to be there when my newest nephew was born and was there to share that precious miracle with my sister. I got to spend comfortable days in the home of my parents, clean and cook for them, and share in the joy and laughter as my daughter gets to know her grandparents. I’ve got to see the excited and love-filled look in the eyes of my husband’s family when we shared the news that we are welcoming another child into the world sometime next fall.

All these things… ALL these things… I have prayed for and rejoice and thank God for his wondrous blessings.

But in these days, packed with wonder, I have put something even more precious to the sideline.

Quiet.

It sounds simple and perhaps unnecessary, but it is essential to my walk of faith--Quiet time with God.

That’s when I pray, deep and simply, and wait to hear is voice.

That’s when I let life pause and feel the deep strains of God’s spirit tug me to His will.

That’s when I am renewed.

In the Bible, Jesus went away, alone to the garden and prayed. For hours he prayed. And it wasn’t the only time. Jesus went and searched for His quiet time alone with His Heavenly Father on many occasions.

It is vital.

It is important.

It is what keep the path illuminated, keeps us hearing His voice beating strong in the deep strains of our hearts.

That is where our strength comes from.

Photo by VinothChandar

Therefore let all the faithful pray to you while you may be found; surely the rising of the mighty waters will not reach them.
Psalm 32:6

When and how do you find quiet time to spend with God? Perhaps your experiences can help some of your brothers and sisters in Christ begin to spend daily time, alone with God. Please, go ahead and share.

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They're Watching

11/4/2013

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I don't know about you, but when I go to the salon to get my haircut I find it difficult submitting my head to the lady with the crazy chopped-up hair-do. Why? Because I think that if I let her start snipping then I'll end up like her.

Its the same thing with adds on TV. If I wear that shirt...I want to look like her. Or, "Surely those pills don't work...look how unhappy he is." And on, and on.

Well, guess what...you are a walking-talking-billboard for the lifestyle you lead.

I heard a story about a lady who became a Christian after ten years of marriage. She found Christ and wanted desperately for her husband to make the same choice. She pushed and pulled. She nagged and bribed. She tried everything to get him to read the Bible, go to church, and be saved.

At each and every attempt she failed miserably. Finally, she stopped trying and started praying. God told her to leave her husband's soul to Him. This lady then started to simply live her Christian life just as God gave it to her. She became happier as she learned to give her worries over to Him and to rely on His strength and guidance.

And then the miracle happened.

One day she was cooking up supper after a long day at work and after having to redirect the poor attitudes of their teenage boys. As she cooked she hummed one of her favorite hymns, praying for her family, and finding peace in the quiet of her little kitchen. "Wow." She heard her husband whisper and looked up to see him watching her. "I don't know how you do it." She stopped and stared at him and said, "Me neither, but I'm thankful."

That Sunday her husband actually drove the family to church. Later he confessed that he'd been watching her for years. He'd thought the whole "being saved" thing was a joke. He said he didn't understand why his wife kept insisting that Christ was wonderful and powerful and life changing. All he saw was an unhappy nagging wife with nothing about the Christian life that seemed worth adopting. But when she'd let it go and allowed God's love and peace to reign, she became positive advertisement for the Christian lifestyle.

I love her story. I think of her and tell myself, "Remember, they're watching.

Photo by Leonid Mamchenkov

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Idols.....Really?!

10/27/2013

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I had no idea. I'm very careful about this, so very careful. After all, it is the most important commandment to love God with all your heart and all your mind and all your soul and to have no other idols before Him.

Oh, but I did. The Devil crept in sneakily and placed a nasty little seed that grew and grew. And it seemed so benign at the time, it even felt like I must be a good person for feeling it. Do you know what it was? Guilt. Nasty-little-you-should-be-doing-better guilt.

Okay, my husband and I have been traveling abroad for years now. When I evaluate it objectively and pray about it, I always know that this is God's path for us. Sure, I remind myself that we won't always be skiing the Andes and scuba diving the Great Barrier Reef. At any moment life can change and take us in a different direction. It will be fine as long as we are careful to listen to God's voice.

But, even though I love my life, exhilarate with each beautiful experience and each precious life that touches us, here lately I've felt worry, doubt, and guilt cloud my heart. Because, there are people whom I love deeply who I'm not helping by being away from them. And so the evil thoughts grew. I stopped listening to God's voice and started praying for what I wanted. I wanted to fix my life so that all my ducks were in a row, everyone was happy, and I wasn't doing anything wrong. And if and whenever I quieted my fervent prayers long enough to hear His voice He kept telling me, "Your place is with your husband. You are where I want you to be." Over and over he would reassure me but my worry fought him, my guilt started to drown out his reassurances, and then came the horrid nightmares tormenting me even in my sleep.

Then, it happened. Yesterday, we were driving to church. The sun was shining on the surreal green hills of Tumbarumba, the little town where we are staying. I looked out the window and the beauty of it all took my breath away. Yet, running on the heals of that joy was a wave a guilt and those prayers started again. "God, show me how to help my loved ones. Create a path for me that will allow me to serve them. Please God." His reply came quietly, with peace.

You're place is with your husband. You are his helpmate. This is where I've placed you.

"Oh, but God, show me how to help my loved ones. Help me to help them."

And then came words brilliant, clear and chastising. And, so, so, simple.

I am your Master.

The words of my Heavenly Father--perfect in their simplicity. Those four words showed me how I tugged and pulled and rejected His will for me with every worry and guilt-filled thought and prayer. The well-being of my loved ones had become an object between me and God.

Ouch. And I think I even felt proud that I was thinking of loved ones and cared about them. How sneaky of the Devil to take a seed of guilt and make it grow into a valley of thorns between me and God.

So, I'm changing my prayers. I'm changing my thoughts. I'm slowly clearing away the thorns and that means I must let God have the well-being and happiness of my family. I'm putting them in His capable hands. I belong to God and He will use me as He will.

My heart sings an old Hymn this Monday morning, "Have thine own way, Lord. Have thine own way. You are the potter. I am the clay. Mold me and make me, after thy will. 'Till I am waiting, yielded and still."

I can't wait to call my parents and tell them how much I love them. Now I can say it without feeling guilty. I can call my siblings and tell them how beautiful and amazing are their lives...they don't need me. God has them. God loves them. He's watching over us all.

Have thine own way, Lord! Have thine own way! Thou art the potter, I am the clay. Mold me and make me after thy will, while I am waiting, yielded and still.
Have thine own way, Lord! Have thine own way! Search me and try me, Savior today! Whiter than snow, Lord, wash me just now, as in thy presence humbly I bow.
Have thine own way, Lord! Have thine own way! Wounded and weary, help me I pray! Power, all power, surely is thine! Touch me and heal me, Savior divine!
Have thine own way, Lord! Have thine own way! Hold o'er my being absolute sway. Fill with thy Spirit till all shall see Christ only, always, living in me!
Have Thine Own Way, Lord
Adelaide A. Pollard, 1862-1934

Photo by Walter Stoneburner

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Miracles Happen Everyday

The Victory

Inspired by a Young Author

All Things for Good.... Even This

Old Mexico

Finding God...Again

They're Watching

Idols.....Really?!

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