Praise!

We went to the Dr. Childrens' last week.  Her pediatrician had ordered such an amazing blood panel to be drawn, that the Dr. didn't need to do any further testing. (no more needle pricks BIG PRAISE!)  My little bug was asymptomatic (showing no symptoms), so at this point, the blood tests show a very low ana and a moderately low SSB which can be an indicator for Sjoegren's syndrome.  He was very thorough and spent a lot of time with us going through family history and such.  He didn't want to pigeon hole her into a diagnosis because it may just never develop.  He said that her finger problem could have been triggered by a virus & the symptoms looked similar to some of the symptoms of scarlet fever and may not have anything to do with any kind of auto-immune thing.  We will be going back to him every 6 months for the next two years, during which time, we will be journaling any eye/sweat/stomach/joint problems & calling in for any flare-ups.  She is currently on a regular diet & we will see what happens.  She is doing very well & was super chill all day.  We are all very thankful for all of the prayers over the past couple weeks.  We certainly felt peace covering over us all day.  We really like this doctor very much, and are blessed to have the health care to be able to take care of her.  I'll keep you updated as we go along.  She is back to her happy-go-lucky, baby-loving, quick-witted funny self & we are praising God! :o)

C-O-N-S-I-S-T-E-N-C-Y

 I am doing Beth Moore's "Daniel" study this fall.  The theme the first two weeks is all about obedience and consistency.  Both of which every fiber in my flesh is fighting against.  Satan doesn't have to do one thing to keep me from my Lord and God.  He only has to sit back and watch me battle with myself & feed me with thoughts like "I'm too busy", "I'll get to it later",  "I really need to be more in the Word first".  When Daniel was taken away to Babylon to go into training to be Nebuchadnezzar's service, he "Resolved" or made a commitment to no partake in all of the worldly things of Babylon like food, drink & all of the comforts that were offered and be obedient to the Lord.  I see myself right now not as Daniel, but of the other young men who were taken to Babylon, too much of this world of business & comfort, no consistency no obedience & no resolve.

I know that when I am consistent in doing what the Lord asks of me, that I am a better mom, wife, friend, sister, daughter, and person on the street.  My load is lighter, I am confident in the Lord working through me, I don't rely upon my own strength.  I am so blessed to have obedient friends, who help to give me a push, who keep me accountable to what I know God wants me to do.  May the Lord shine his face upon them today and throughout this week and bless their families abundantly for all they do for me.

 "Keep His promises on your lips, recite it day and night, that you may observe carefully all that is written in it." Joshua 1:8.
 My promises are:
"Consecrate yourselves, for tomorrow, the Lord will do amazing things among you"  Joshua 3:5,
"The fruit of my womb will be blessed", Ps 1147:13
"My children will be taught by the Lord and great will be their peace", Is 54:13
"For I will restore health to you and heal you of your wounds" Jer 30:17

Tomorrow, we take my bug to Childrens' for her apt. with the Rheumatologist.  These are my promises that I will keep on my lips, muttering day and night.  These promises have become truth for me as I step out in faith, trusting in God.  I feel that the burden has been lifted and no matter what the doctor may say, I know deep in my spirit not to fear the words that come from their mouth.  "He will not be afraid of evil tidings; his heart is steadfast, trusting in the Lord" Ps 112:7.  I also know that she will be just fine.    I pray for my little bug's anxiety that she is experiencing at this time.  She is doing pretty well, but I can tell that she is worried.  Please pray in agreement with me for her because "The Lord knows the plans He has for my bug, plans to prosper her and not to harm her, plans to give her hope and a future." Jer 29:11    I know that the Lord has much in store for her, she has such a giving heart and sweet spirit, especially for little ones.

I continue to lift up my Uncle who is adjusting to new meds and diet, that he hears the Lord speaking to his heart and that he would feel the hope, peace and the promise that only Jesus can bring.  I also praise the Lord for all my little girls that I teach in Sunday school.  They are such a blessing to me and have such beautiful spirits.  A lot of them have big prayer requests and I can't wait to see them next week to see how the Lord has moved in their lives this week.  I lift up all of my friends that the Lord has blessed me with, their burdens are on my heart as we give them over to the foot of the cross and wait on the Lord's timing to open and close doors, bring healing to bodies and spirits, to be our provider in all things and to shepherd us on our paths.  I thank God for placing us where we are, for where we have been and for the plans He has for us in the future. I am thankful for my husband and his strong faith, and my beautiful girls that He has given to us.   I am excited and wait with expectant hope for what He has in store for me. I am a changed person, I am so thankful to look back and see such a stark contrast from where I was, to where I am now.  How much more is He going to do with the rest of my life!!!   I thank you and praise You Lord for who You are, and what You have done and what You are doing.


"Now to Him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to His power that is at work in us." (Eph 3:20)
"And my God will meet all your needs according to His glorious riches in Christ Jesus" (Eph4:19)

Today, I resolve to be more like the model Daniel gave of consistency, faith, and living on purpose for my Lord.  To strive to be culturally relevant with out becoming spiritually irrelevant.  To maintain a God-centered world view so the world can view my Amazing God.

God is Awesome!

I was praying this morning after my daily reading from the Chronological Bible & a short devotional.  I was praying about my bug & what the pediatrician said yesterday at her physical and shot for 6th grade.  She said that her finger problem looked vascular & that the doctors at Children's would probably put her on a channel blocker????  Anyway, that just told me that she would be on medication and I didn't like the sound of that.  I saw a picture of her being bound to medications and I knew that I knew that I knew that it was not God's plan for her.  I said a prayer about it and knew even deeper in my spirit that there was another way to deal with the finger problems.

Just then, the phone rang.  It was my sister-in-law who had been on the phone super-early with her holistic doctor.  He had told her that just like my nephew, inflammatory things in the body are caused by diet.  He directed her to tell me about omega 3's and pro biotic supplements as well as putting her on a Mediterranean diet that has more fish and lots of veg.  No more refined wheat, only whole grain.  Mostly food that does not come out of a box & that I have prepared.  After years of watching my nephew struggle with multiple health issues and then seeing his complete turn-around after altering his diet, I knew that I needed to make a change to support healing inside my bugs body as well as help our whole family get healthier.

I love it when God answers you right away, although I know all to well, that sometimes the best answers are those that I wait for in patience and faith.  My Uncle was unable to have his surgery yesterday due to high levels of cumadin in his blood.  They will try going back in tomorrow and will need a diamond-tipped drill to get through the 70% blockage of one of the arteries to try to stint it.  If this doesn't work, then he will be scheduled for open-heart surgery next week.  I am praying that the new doctor who will be handling the surgery will be orchestrated by God, that he will have supernatural knowledge and skill in working on my Uncle.  I am also praying that he will be surrounded by people who speak life and peace, that fear would have no stronghold and that he would feel the calming comforting presence of our Father.

God Calling  August 26th
Accept Trials
Trials and troubles may seem to overwhelm you.  They cannot do more than work My Will.  Do you not see that you cannot be destroyed?  From now a new Life is opening out before you.  Yours to enter into the Kingdom I have prepared for you.
The sunlight of My Presence is on your paths.  Trust and go forward unafraid.  My Grace is sufficient for all your needs.

Prayers for my Uncle

My Uncle was admitted to the hospital last night with a rapid heartbeat.  They are going to try to put in stints today.  This is my prayer for my uncle:

Father, I thank you and praise you for all that you are and all of the blessings you give to us, especially the gift of our families.  You  are our Strength, our Shield, our Healer, our Strong Tower, our very Present Help in time of need.  We are so blessed that we are Yours and You are ours.  Father we lay before you Uncle Ert and his heart.  I ask that You would wash over him Your peace that surpasses all understanding, that he would know that You are beside him and will never leave him.  Protect him from a spirit of fear "For You have not given us a spirit of fear and timidity, but one of power." Give the doctors a "Spirit of Wisdom and Revelation" that they would hear Your voice and let You guide their hands and reveal the problem and the solution.  Father I ask You to send Your angels as a hedge of protection around Uncle Ert, that during the stinting, all of his blood vessels would be protected from any nicks or cuts during the procedure, protect his blood pressure and the rhythm of his heart, that You would protect his body from any unforeseen problems and that you would help all to go well without any problems. I speak Peace and Healing into the operating room in Jesus name.  Thank you Father for loving us, for being our shelter from the storms in this life.  Father, we claim and stand on Your promises.  You sent Your son Jesus to be not only our Savior, but also Jehovah Ropha, our Healer "and by His stripes, we are healed".  Father, speak to Ert's heart that he may know that You love him so very much and You want him to know You.  In Jeremiah, You spoke these words: "For I know the plans I have for you, plans to prosper you, and not to harm you, plans to give you a future and hope."  We thank you for your many promises to us that open up the gates of heaven so that we can experience Your love for us.  

Give to Sharron, Tina, Elsie, Brenda, Mary and the rest of the family Your peace in knowing that Ert is Your child and You love him more than any of us ever could.  Plant in their hearts the knowledge that he is in Your hands and so are we.  You are our comforter during the hard times and we praise You that You are their in good times and in times of storms.  Amen

We are going in to the pediatrician today for my little bugs shots for 6th grade, & I'm sure we will chat about her fingertips.

Going Forward

"So do not fear, for I am with you, do not be dismayed, for I am your God.  I will strengthen you and help you; I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.  For I am the Lord your God, who takes hold of your right hand and says to you, Do not fear, I will help you." Is 41: 10,13

I went online today and filled out a request for an appointment at Children's in DC for my little bug.  I wrestled a bit between an appointment with a pediatric rheumatologist and an appointment at Children's.  Fairfax is closer, DC is a pain, Children's would have a team available & is up on the latest research.  So, I chose Children's, I am getting past the whole drive thing and doing what I feel is best for my bug.  If this is where I am not supposed to be, then, I know that God will make that apparent with many road blocks and difficulties.  Then I will go down another path.  For now, I am feeling a bit of peace about it, letting God take my right hand for I know He will help us through this.  Through Him, I will shed the apprehension about the future because I know He has plans to prosper us and not harm us, plans to give us hope and a future.  It's funny because that is the shirt I am wearing today.  :o)

This is the reason my little bug will be going to Children's:  At the end of June all 10 fingertips became flame red, swollen, hot and felt like they were being stabbed.  This happens now every 2 weeks and the pain is severe enough to wake her from a dead sleep.  After the swelling goes down, they seem to collapse & deep cracks or crevices are all over her fingertips which is very tender and sore and then they all begin to peel.
After getting back from Illinois (it happened 2x there), it occurred again & I took her in to her doctor who ordered a bunch of blood tests and said that it looked vascular and indicated auto immune problems.  This was really confirmed in her mind when I told her the family history of Lupus, MS, and Rheumatoid arthritis.  She thinks my bug may have Raynaud's phenomenon and is sending us on to Children's in DC.  We shall see what the doctor's have to say there.  I am praying that if what is occurring is not to be broken off, that the Lord would give the doctors a Spirit of Wisdom and Revelation to get to the bottom of this and figure out the triggers and give us direction as to how to relieve the symptoms.

The blood tests came back with a low positive ANA as well as SSB.  I really don't know what that means, but God is so good!  He has given me family that understands what these are and can walk with me in faith, sooth my spirit and show me that there are many in the family who have these readings as well and are doing just fine.  I am so blessed!  My little bug however, is a bit ruffled.  Her daddy had her all chatted up that she has super-powers and an ability to light things on fire with her fingertips.  She really wasn't interested that others in the family have similar problems and are doing fine.  She wanted to be "different". :D  She cracks us all up!  You never know what will come from her mouth.  I do believe that there is relief at some level that the family members are living just fine & she is not going to keel over and die. (I am too!)

"Because he loves me, I will rescue him; I will protect him, for he acknowledges my name.  He will call upon me, and I will answer him; I will be with him in trouble, I will deliver him and honor him.  With long life will I satisfy him and show him my salvation." Psalms 91: 15-16

Learning to be steadfast in heart, trusting in the Lord (Ps 112:7)

"Pour out your heart like water before the face of the Lord, lift your hands toward Him for the life of your children."  Lamentations 2:19

I was feeling like I had been on the "happy train"  for too long of a period without a trial or test to test me, prune me, grow me.  I had this feeling inside that something was coming, an unsettled feeling.  We have been through a few blessed tests and trials.  Times that changed who I was and grew my relationship with the Lord.  I thank God for these times, I am so thankful that He walks beside me and is always there.  Lord, I want to press through this time, press ever closer to You.  I want to keep my eyes focused on Your promises and not on the "facts" of the world.  Even more important Lord, I want this to be a time that my babies will see Your face, feel Your love and peace, watch and wait with hopeful expectation for how You are going to move, and learn to love You with their whole hearts, minds.  "All my children will be taught by the Lord, and great will be my children's peace." (Is 54:13)

We have gone through so much with my firstborn "bug".  The Lord has taught me so much through her.  I know how much He loves her, so much more than I ever could.  He healed her three years ago, and I know He has His hand on her now.  She  is an amazing child and I know He has great plans for her.  I am going to stand on my promises that God gave me, and put my faith, hope and trust in Him. 

 "When you pass through the waters, I will be with you and through the rivers, they shall not overflow you.  When you walk through the fire, you shall not be burned, nor shall the flame scorch you. (Is 43:2)