Prayer warriors....

I need your prayers for my brother-in-laws cousin.

Here is the email I got this morning from my baby sister!

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This is Greg's cousin that is going through cancer treatment. Please put him on your church prayer list. He is such a great guy. They would drop in at our new house when we were remodelling just to say hi and see how things were going. They are really great people.

This is the 2 recent entries from a journal that she is keeping online through a hospital service....

THURSDAY, APRIL 22, 2010 7:37 AM, CDT

Calling all prayer warriors. Art is a very sick man as his nurse told me this morning. They are doing dialysis but the machine keeps clotting and they have to change the tubing. His oxygen in his blood is in the 50-60 percent range even though the monitor says it is 90%. He has gained 15 lbs in fluid in the last 24 hours. So---we need the dialysis to work better and his lungs to work to take in more oxygen.

Please pray.

Connee



WEDNESDAY, APRIL 21, 2010 8:37 PM, CDT

What a day we have had. Very, very busy. We started the day with a broncoscopy with lavage. I think this is the correct spelling. This means they put some saline solution in his right lung and then drew some of that out. They will then set up some cultures and see what grows. They will know the results of these cultures in the next couple of days.

They did find the bacteria in his blood and put on yet another antibiotic. His temperature right now is NORMAL!!!! They have taken him off of one of the meds that was helping to keep his heart rate regular and have cut back on the med that keeps his blood pressure up. His heart now is a bit irregular but is still at less than 100 bpm. As long as this remains true they will not take any action. If the heart rate goes above 100 they will have to add the med back.

Since he has the infection in his blood they decided to remove the trifusion catheter that has been used for chemo, blood draws, transfusions and medication since we started here in January. The thinking was that it was contaminated with the bacteria. They then put in a new line in his neck in the jugular vein. They did some checking that this new line was working and then removed the old line.

His kidneys are not functioning or perhaps minimally functioning so tonight they are going to start him on dialysis at a very slow rate. This does not mean that he will be on this permanently and this not unusual for this to happen with transplant patients. In order to do the dialysis they had to put a port in his groin since both sides of his chest have now been used.

An echocariogram was also done and an ultrasound of his liver. These results will probably be available tomorrow sometime.
Fortunately, I had several visitors since I could not be in the room much of the time.

I'm spending the night again tonight but if everything goes well I may go home for a while in the morning.

I found out several more churches are praying for us that I didn't know about before today.

Please keep prayers coming. Hopefully Art will be off all this stuff by next week and we can tell him some of the funny things he did and said before he went on the ventilator. Those of you who know him well will appreciate that right before they started this procedure I entered his room and one of the nurses said, "Here's your wife." To which he replied, "That's not my wife, that's just a woman I picked up!!" Good thing he grinned right after saying this-----ever the jokester.

Will update you tomorrow and let you know how things are going.

Love,

Connee

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I will try and keep everyone updated. And will keep in touch. Thanks!

Oh--has it been That long?

He is Risen!

Thank you Jesus, for the pain you endured for me!!! I am so unworthy!

And the road came to a fork, and I truly beleive God is pointing the difficult road, but I take it, because I have turned my life over to Him and MUST trust! It's called faith!

Luke 9:23-27 (New International Version)

23Then he said to them all: "If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me. 24For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for me will save it. 25What good is it for a man to gain the whole world, and yet lose or forfeit his very self? 26If anyone is ashamed of me and my words, the Son of Man will be ashamed of him when he comes in his glory and in the glory of the Father and of the holy angels. 27I tell you the truth, some who are standing here will not taste death before they see the kingdom of God."

I will follow!

So now I start a new journey--or at least a new path. I am excited, yet very apprehensive. But I walk it not alone--which is so re-assuring. The footprints are there--sometimes two--sometimes four--but His are always there--I thank you Jesus--for being with me--even sometimes when I don't even give you notice.

Thank you for your love!

Amen

I have someone to stand by me.....do you?

This is awesome! Please take the time to watch and listen to it!



The LORD is my light and my salvation— whom shall I fear? The LORD is the stronghold of my life— of whom shall I be afraid?
Psalm 27:1-3


Yes, He stands by me--and lives inside me!


There are so many ways I can go with this post, but this is the WORLD asking for someone to stand by them!!!

People are not perfect, and at sometime they are going to let you down!

God is constant! The same yesterday, today and tomorrow! The same as when He put the stars in the sky. He knows the number of hairs on my head!!

And when there are not two sets of footprints in the sand, only one, oh yes, that is when my Lord carried me!

God has recently changed my heart towards foriegn missions. It started with a sermon about the Kingdom of God.

Matthew 24:14

And the Good News about the Kingdom will be preached throughout the whole world, so that all nations will hear it; and then the end will come.


Then whom shall I fear?




Be content with what you have; for God Himself has said, "I will never, never let go your hand: i will never never forsake you." Heb 13:5

Oh no--you never let go--even when I fought to get away! You stood next to me constantly! Thank you God for loving me when I even didn't love myself!

EXPIRATION DATES...........

How close do you go by expiration dates?

I tried to find some cleaver pictures, but I guess they don't want to show those!

Would you use shampoo with an expired date? Dog food for your puppy? How far from the date would you go--24 hours--48 hours? How about film for a camara? Would you trust precious memories of a wedding or baby christening to film past it's expiration date?

What does that mean? Expiration date! Does everything have an expiration date?

Have you seen the commercial for a Cancer treatment center, where the lady was given weeks to live? Her sister convinced her to go to the treatment center. After a examination from the doctors, she asked--how long--they answered--we didn't see an expiration date stamped on the bottom of your foot.

Do you believe you have an expiration date?

Well, my shell, my body will cease to work, someday! So, yeah, it will expire. But my soul, my spirit--what makes me~me--I don't believe will expire. How do I know this?

John 14:2 (New International Version)
2In my Father's house are many rooms; if it were not so, I would have told you. I am going there to prepare a place for you.

And those that don't believe this--oh--you don't have an expiration date either! But it won't be Jesus' fathers house--it will be Satan's den!

As many times as I have tried to invision what Heaven will be like...I've never concentrated on what Hell will be like....but maybe I need to....why....so I will know what I am trying to save people from. I need to invision that eternity so I will spread the word to those headed that way!

Something to think about.......................

I'm putting blinders on.......

Yup.....

What I worship....
I'm putting blinders on

My Holy Father....My God....My Abba Father!!!!!


Why, because in the majority of my life I have worshipped things or people that ALWAYS let me down....why....because nothing is perfect forever........

EXCEPT GOD!!!!

I'm learning perfect doesn't mean my way!

Why!

Because I'm not perfect!! (hope Laura--my daughter--isn't reading this!)

And why do people fear death sooooo much?

I know where I am going---- PARADISE

That doesn't sound scarry to me!! Now--how I die--that's another story!!

But I've got some cleaning to do before I die!

Rob Bell- 007 Luggage


This was shown at our church on Sunday. And at the last scene--my hand flew up to cover my mouth as I gasped!!!

I have unfinished business, and I don't know how long I have to get it done--so it starts today!

All of you that I have wronged, I'm sorry.

All of you that I love, I want to say, 'I love you'!

And all of you that are on the fence, thinking there is plenty of time, YOU DON'T KNOW THAT!!!

King of Kings

Ever make a list of your troubles?

I've got a long one!

Husband with heart problems.
Husband with circulation problems.
I have Type 2 diabetes.
I have fibromyalgia.
I have osteoarthritis.
I have hypothyroid condition.
I have a teenage daughter (but she's not trouble--just a concern).
and the list could go on.....but

which ones of those can God not take care of?

Ah---that's the great part--and even if it ends in the death of my body, I get to go to PARADISE!!!

Got problems--??? All God's children have problems--it's called life!

But I truly believe fear---true great fear is lack of faith. Concern is normal. Even a little fear, but stifling fear is should be handed over to God.

Am I completely good at this....NO! But it has been a long time. Even when Terry had his episode and died (and came back) I had this most AWESOME peace from above!

So---as the song above goes---God never lets go--so hang on with all your stregth, and even if you fall....He'll give you a soft place to land! He's great like that!


Footprints In The Sand
by Mary Stevenson (1922 - 1999)

Footprints in the Sand

One night I had a dream.

I dreamed I was walking along the beach
with the Lord..

Across the sky flashed scenes from my life..
For each scene, I noticed two sets of
footprints in the sand,
one belonging to me, and the other to the Lord..

When the last scene of my life flashed before me,
I looked back at the footprints in the sand.
I noticed that many times along the path of my life
there was only one set of footprints.
I also noticed that it happened at the very lowest
and saddest times in my life.

This really bothered me
and I questioned the Lord about it:
"Lord, you said that once I decided to follow you,
you'd walk with me all the way.
But I have noticed that during the most
troublesome times in my life
there is only one set of footprints.
I don't understand why
when I need you most you would leave me."

The Lord replied:
"My precious child, I love you and would
never leave you.
During your times of trial and suffering,
when you see only one set of footprints, it was then
that I carried you."



by Mary Stevenson






Just as I would not get behind the wheel of my car without insurance.....I won't get out of bed without my God! I praise Him for who He is! My Savior, who paid for my sins with His life....Jesus Christ....Lord of Lord and King of Kings!

I had a touch of the stomach flew Satuarday night, so I missed church, but I had Terry (hubby) bring me the program and had him tell me about the service. Here was the video they showed!



AWESOME!

Now I will go to thebrookchurch.com and listen to todays sermon! Technology can really be awesome!