
February is American Heart Month

As an active American
Heart Association Advocate, I want to devote this month’s journal to the
awareness of heart disease. As we all know, February is American heart
month! It’s a time when the health industry brings awareness of heart
disease to as many people as it can reach by bringing to the forefront
the serious consequences of this fatal disease.
I have been an
advocate for several years now, for “You Are the Cure”. It’s a
nationally advocacy program, who’s efforts are lending their voices to
influence law makers and who make a difference in their local
communities, as well as national, one day at a time.
Policy makers have
the power on the local as well as state and federal levels to advance
policies that will help fight our nation’s number 1 and number 3
killers. You don’t have to be a heart surgeon to save lives-just an
advocate willing to speak out!
Although heart
disease is sometimes thought of as a “man’s disease,” it is the leading
cause of death for both men and women in the United States, and women
account for about 50% of those deaths.
The chance of developing coronary heart disease can be reduced by taking
steps to prevent and control factors that put people at greater risk.
Additionally, knowing the signs and symptoms of heart attack are
crucial.
Conditions that affect your heart or increase your risk of death or
disability include arrhythmia, heart failure, and peripheral artery
disease (PAD). High cholesterol, high blood pressure, obesity, diabetes,
tobacco use, unhealthy diet, physical inactivity, heredity, certain
blood disorders, race and increasing age are some of the other risk
factors associated with heart disease.
Some of the heart attack warning signs symptoms is chest discomfort,
discomfort in other areas of the upper body like pain or discomfort in
one or both arms, the back, neck, jaw or stomach, and shortness of
breath, which may occur with or without chest discomfort. Other signs
may include breaking out in a cold sweat, nausea or lightheadedness.
As with men, women’s
most common heart attack symptoms is chest pain or discomfort, but women
are somewhat more likely than men to experience some of the other common
symptoms, particularly shortness of breath, nausea/vomiting, and back or
jaw pain.
If you or someone
you’re with has any of these symptoms, call 911 immediately. Don’t wait
longer than five minutes before calling for help. You need to get to a
hospital right away, because it’s the fastest way to get lifesaving
treatment. If you‘re the one having symptoms, and you can’t access
emergency medical services (EMS), have someone drive you to the hospital right away.
Don’t drive yourself, unless you have absolutely no other option.
If you’ve had a heart
attack, you’re at a higher risk of having a second attack or stroke. If
you’ve had a stroke, you are a much higher risk of having another one or
having a heart attack. A “transient ischemic attack (TIA) also is a very
strong risk factor and predictor of stroke.
Some of the stroke
warning signs symptoms includes sudden numbness or weakness of the face,
arm or leg, especially on one side of the body. Sudden confusion,
trouble speaking or understanding, sudden trouble seeing in one or both
eyes, sudden trouble walking, dizziness, loss of balance or coordination
and sudden, severe headache with no know cause.
If you or someone
with you has one or more of the stroke warning signs, don’t delay!
Immediately call 911 or the EMS number
so an ambulance (ideally with advanced life support) can be sent for
you. Also, check the time so you’ll know when the first symptoms
appeared. It’s very important to take immediate action. If given within
three hours of the start of symptoms, a clot busting drug can reduce
long term disability, or even death for the most common type of strokes.
You can reduce your
risk of heart attack and stroke, simply by becoming aware of your risk
factors, personal characteristics and habits that may increase your
chances of having a heart attack or stroke.
Some things you can’t
change or control like family history of early heart disease, men 45
years or older, and women 55 years or older; some risk factors you can
change simply by changing your daily habits or taking medicine as
prescribed by your doctor. No matter what your risk factors, you have
the power to make changes to improve your health!
For more information on heart disease contact the American Heart Association
toll-free at 1-800-242-8721 or visit their website americanheart.org.
For more information on stroke, call 1-888-478-7653 or visit their
website strokeassociation.org.
Now is the time to make plans to improve your health! Small changes can make
a big difference in your life. You can do it, so get started today on
changing your life style by knowing your risk factors. Remember
knowledge is power, so learn and live!
As always, remember our Nation, our Nation’s leaders, our soldiers, their
families and each other in prayer!
Until next time! Be blessed and be a blessing!
Journal entry February 1, 2012

Welcome to 2012!
As we are heading into a brand new year, I pray it will be a good
one for you and your family. It’s a time to not look back, but to look
forward to what God has in store for us all. 2011 is gone to never
return any more!
Don’t start out this New Year with anger, hurt or
disappointments in your life? You can’t move forward if you are stuck in
the past. If someone has hurt you, or you are holding on to past hurts
and pain, and have thoughts of evil and revenge, just forgive and let it
go.
Don’t let other people’s unresolved issues poison
your life and dreams. You can’t make people like you, or be friends with
you, if their hearts are not right with God, and they only have power
over you, if you let them. “When you forgive, you take away their
power.” By forgiving, God doubles our love, peace and joy!
We can never say or do enough for the Lord, so as
we start out a new year, we need to let our lights shine just a little
brighter, and be the best soldiers in this army for the Lord as we can
be. We need to pray for one another instead of finding fault. We serve
an awesome God. I have failed him many times, but he has never failed
me. God’s love is unconditional! Amen.
Now, an update on a few things happening in our
lives starting out in the New Year! Being the Lord’s will, we have plans
for a brand new CD and a new video, which we are really excited about. I
will also be coming out with a brand new cookbook.
We are anxious to begin our tour in 2012 as well.
God has opened some new doors for us, and we are so thankful. We are
looking forward to meeting new friends as well as seeing many of our old
friends to in our concerts this year. If we are near your area, please
come out and worship with us. We would love to see you.
Pray for our Nation, our Nation’s leaders, our
Soldiers, their families and each other!
Until next time! Be blessed and be a blessing!
Journal entry 1-1-2012
Blessings

As we are getting ready for
the holiday season, we all need to stop and count our blessings! A
blessing is a way for God to work through his people. He can do more
than any of us can do on our own if we trust in him. James 1:17 says,
“Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above.”
A blessing is something with holiness, spiritual,
redemption, divine will, or one’s hope or approval. Sometimes a blessing
is referred to as bestowing! A blessing can be great when we do what God
commands us to do. Ecclesiastes 2:26 “For God giveth to a man that is
good in his sight wisdom, and knowledge and joy.” In James 1:25 it
states, “That if we do God’s will, then we will be blessed.” We have to
remember though that every time we ask God for a blessing, we may not
receive it, because for what ever reason he knows we are not ready for
it, or the situation it might put us in. God knows what is best for us!
Blessings can come to us in many ways, and aren’t
always material things! Everyday we wake up is a day God has blessed us
to enjoy. Genesis 2:3 says that when God created the world, on the
seventh day, he blessed it? Every aspects of our lives, we should be
thankful and say our blessings, and be a blessing to others. Our biggest
blessing of all is yet to come. Isaiah 64:4 says, “Ears have not heard,
eyes have not seen all the things God has prepared for his people.”
Things can be blessed also like the food we eat,
the clothes we wear, our shoes, our homes, our crops, jobs and etc.
Genesis 1:22 tells us that God even blessed the animals when he created
them. The bible is filled with many verses about blessings that he gave
people back then, and make no mistake, he is still blessing us today. I
think sometimes our lives become so busy and hectic that we forget to
pay attention or notice them like we should.
On the flip-side of a blessing for example, if you
do or give someone something, and then begrudge it, that is not doing or
giving a blessing from the heart. I have found in my life that the
greatest blessings can be when we do or give something to someone else.
I have many things I am blessed and thankful for,
but at the top of the list first and foremost, is my God, my family, and
friends. God will supply me with exactly what I need and not what I
think I need. He knows what’s best for me. I have learned down through
the years to get self out of the way, and let God lead and guide me in
the way he wants me to go. If I was in control, I know I would mess it
up, so I just leave it all in his hands.
When our boys (Shawn and Chris) were born, we
didn’t think blessings could get any better than that. Then God blessed
us with a wonderful Christian daughter-in-law (Stacey), who is more like
a daughter. She is so much part of the family that it seems like she has
always been with us. We love her and her family so much. What a blessing
it was when God then blessed us with our precious and beautiful little
granddaughter (Lexiana Faith), to add to our blessings? She is the apple
of our eye! She not only has us wrapped around her little finger, but
she has her Uncle Shawn right where she wants him, and he loves it. God
is so good!
So as this year is coming to an end, we need to
re-evaluate our lives and take stock in what’s really important!
Yesterday is gone and we have no promise of tomorrow. We should all live
for today, Psalms 118:24 “This is the day which the Lord hath made; we
will rejoice and be glad in it.”
Don’t live in the past! I have seen so many people,
who can’t move on with their lives, because they are so stuck in the
past, and they miss out on so many blessings, because they can’t, won’t,
or don’t want to move forward. Philippians 3:13 says, “Forget those
things which are behind, and reach forth unto those things which are
before.” Living in the past is just a waste of time and energy that
could be put to better use.
As this year is coming to an end, we want to take
this opportunity to thank all the churches and promoters, who had us at
their venues for concerts this past year. Thank you DJ’s and your radio
stations staff, who found us worthy enough to play our music.
A special thanks to all our fans that come out to
support us during our concerts. We love you, and you’re the best! When
we get tired and weary, you are what keeps us going? Thanks to all of
you who called, emailed, texted, or wrote to us. We appreciate it very
much. “THANK YOU LORD, FOR YOU BLESSINGS.”
My prayer and wish for you and your family this
holiday season, is to have hope, faith, love, peace and happiness, but
above all, trust in God and count your blessings.
.
Have a wonderful and safe holiday season!
As always, remember our nation, our nation’s
leaders, our soldier’s, their family’s and each other in prayer.
Until next time! I love you, and God loves you.
Journal entry: November 23, 2011
Broken
Pieces in Our Life
We all know what it
feels like sometimes, when we feel our whole world has fallen apart, and
nothing is going right. I know there have been times in my life, when I
didn’t want to raise my head off my pillow, and times when it seemed the
tears wouldn’t stop flowing. What we don’t realize at the time these
things are happening in our lives, is there is a blessing after the
storm, and joy does come in the morning.
God has our interest
at heart, and many times when parts of our lives are broken, we question
and ask God why? But I have realized that God is in control, and he
knows what he’s doing. God sees the full potential for all our lives,
and he wants a loving spiritual relationship with us.
God wants to bring
out the best in us, and wants us to experience the fullness of his love,
power, strength, wisdom and goodness. He allows us to suffer
heart-aches, troubles and trials so that we might grow and become
spiritual in mind, body and soul. As Christians, we may suffer from
others emotionally, but we have to recognize that God allowed these
painful experiences in our lives for some reason.
When were going
through battles in this life, we should never wallow in our pain, but
trust God and move forward. God will always turn the most worst vile
experiences of our lives into something beneficial, productive and
positive.
Although many times
when were experiencing a lot of broken pieces in our lives, we may think
God has forgotten about us, only to realize quickly, his presence has
been there all along. He comes just on time, and when we least expect
it. We have to remember that God said, “He would never leave or forsake
us.” There is no greater security!
When we yield to
God’s presence and purpose in our lives, and we begin to experience the
blessings that come from broken pieces of our lives, we truly then can
say, “Thank God for these trials, but Praise God it’s over.” I know
looking back on my life, I am thankful that God put me through some of
trials of life he did, because it has made me grown into a better
soldier for Christ.
When I was a young
teenager, my Mother passed away, I watched her die, and the loss of her
was intensely painful for me. I was young though, and couldn’t
understand why God would take her, and leave us without a Mother, and I
have to be honest and say, “I was angry to say the least.” But looking
back, I know God had his reasons, and through lots of prayers, I know
her time on earth was not in vain.
God has shown me so
many things about myself since my Mother died, and he has taught me
things that have made me a much stronger, wiser, and better person, It
doesn’t mean that I understand it all, and I may not fully understand
until eternity, but God has softened my heart that keeps me from anger,
hostility and bitterness. Thank God he didn’t give up on me! I have
failed God so many times, but he has never failed me.
Ever couple of
months, I will spend a few hours evaluating my life, examining my day to
day activities, and seek direction from God, on what he wants me to do
in the months ahead. Psalms 24:4 “Shew me thy ways oh Lord; teach me thy
paths.” Doing this, keeps me focused and ensures me, that I don’t become
too busy or fragmented to maintain my relationship with God. God is not
my co-pilot in life, he is the pilot! I am learning to leave total
control of my life to him.
Sometimes, I tend to
take on too much and work too hard, and I try to cram everything into a
24 hour day. My family and friends are forever telling me to slow down
and rest, and that I should just do the important things, and the less
important things, let them go. I now try to put myself in the position
where I allow God to lead me in the spirit, so that I may recognize when
I need a break or need to just let things go. My life is not mine; it’s
God’s!
I have come to
realize, none of us in this life, are likely to know perfection prior to
being with our heavenly father in eternity, but the good news, God
always is there to teach us how to grow, and is continually working in
our lives. He never gives up on us, no matter what?
So when we have
broken pieces in our life, we need to trust God, and know he is putting
us through a trial for a reason. If we trust and totally surrender our
lives to God, he will turn all of our broken pieces in this life into
blessings, and by going through them, we will be renewed, cleansed,
strengthened and refined by God.
As always, please
pray for our Nation, our Nation’s leaders, our Soldiers, their families,
and each other!
Until next time!
I love you, and God loves you.
Journal entry:
9-23-2011
Giving God
Our Time
So many things occupy
our time while we are living on this earth. Family, friends, schedules,
work and the list could go one, but one thing we all fall short on, is
the time we give to God. Time is a limited commodity and we are running
out of it as each day passes by!
Many of us can’t give
God our whole lives because we have wasted too many of those years
before we come to know Christ. An example, some people may confess their
faith at an early age, only to fall by the wayside later. Others may not
come to know Christ until later on in life, and years may pass before
realizing how much time has been wasted.
God wants our years,
days, hours and minutes, but sometimes we are reluctant to give them to
him. Psalms 90:12 “So teach us to number our days, that we may apply our
hearts unto wisdom.” While we can’t give God all of our life, because we
have squandered too many of them, we can at least make and give him the
remaining years, that we have on this earth, no matter what phrase of
life your in.
There’s an old saying
“Time waits on no one or anything” and there’s a lot of truth in that
saying. Time makes changes in all of our lives! However, some folks want
to keep things as they are when they were growing up, but that is not
realistic. Families change, friends change, nothing ever stays the same!
The only thing that will never change is God, and he’s the same
yesterday, today and forever.
If you’re like me,
sometimes it hard to get everything done you need to get finish in a 24
hour day. Were always checking the clock to make sure we are staying on
schedule, but that is how our lives will be until God calls us home. In
Heaven, there is no measure of time! In 2 Peter 3:8 it says, “One day is
with the Lord as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day.”
Ecclesiastes 3:1-8
“To every thing there is a season, and a time to every purpose under the
heaven.” There’s a time to be born, a time to die, a time to plant, a
time to pluck up that which is planted. A time to heal, a time to break
down, and a time to build up; A time to weep, a time to laugh, a time to
mourn and a time to dance; A time to cast away stones, a time to gather
stones together; A time to embrace and a time to refrain from embracing;
A time to get, a time to lose, a time to keep, and a time to cast away;
A time to rend, a time to sew; A time to keep silence and a time to
speak; A time to love, a time to hate, a time of war and a time of
peace.”
When this life is
over, it won’t matter how rich or poor you are, you couldn’t buy, or ask
for another second from God. We need to put on the full armor of God,
press forward, and give him the time he deserves, and above all, don’t
ever look back? We need to be the best soldiers we can be, in this
mighty army for the Lord! We won’t regret it, and it will be worth our
time in the end.
A couple questions
and something to think about!
How much time do you give God out of your daily life? How much
time daily do you waste on irrelevant things, which could be better
spent doing God’s work?
As always, please
pray for our Nation, our Nation’s leaders, our soldiers, their families
and each other.
Until next time!
I love you, and God loves you.
Journal entry 9-7-11
Have you
ever wondered?
Have you ever wondered how a $20.00 bill seems like
a large amount when you donate it to a church, but it’s such a small
amount, when you go shopping?
Have you ever wondered how 2 hours seems so long
when you are at church, and how short those hours seem, when you are
watching a good movie?
Have you ever wondered, how you can’t find a kind
word to say when your praying, but have no trouble thinking, what to
talk about with a friend?
Have you ever wondered how difficult and boring it
is to read one chapter of the bible, but how easy it is to read hundreds
of pages, of a popular novel?
Have you ever wondered, how we believe everything
that the magazines and newspapers say, but we question the words in the
bible?
Have you ever wondered, how everyone wants front
row tickets to a concert or a game, but will do whatever possible, to
sit in the back row at church?
Have you ever wondered how difficult it is to learn
fact about God to share with others, but how easy it is to learn,
understand, and repeat gossip?
Have you ever wondered how everyone wants a place
in Heaven, but how many don’t want to believe, do, or say anything to
get there?
Have you ever wondered why everyone who doesn’t
believe in God, when they get sick or are in trouble, usually the first
thing they say is, God please help me?
Note:
This was sent to me, and I thought I would share, because there’s
a lot of truth to it! I don’t know who the author was.
Angels
I walked into a book
store the other day, and the first thing, that caught my eye, was all
the things they had pertaining to angels. I saw paintings, gold pins to
pin on your shoulders, necklaces, earrings, bracelets, books, movies,
and hosts of other things. This put me to thinking about how the Bible
tells us, for the believer nothing happens outside God’s control,
and that his angels continually watches over us, and are all
around us. They work in our personal lives each and everyday. Psalms
91:11 (For he shall give his angels charge over thee, to keep thee in
all thy ways).
I know for me, the
first thing I do when I open my eyes of a morning, is to thank God for
blessing me to see another day. I know that while I was even sleeping,
that God has his angels watching over me. I can feel them spiritually,
and know they are encamped all around me in all aspects of my life.
Knowing this brings me peace and contentment to my life!
A couple of
experiences, that I know angels were watching over my kids, were when
our youngest son was about 2 years old, and we were visiting one of my
husband’s friends at their house. Not knowing the lay-out of the house,
being our first time there, our son opened up a door off from the living
room, and immediately fell down a flight of stairs leading to a
basement. Needless to say, my heart just about stopped as I watched in
horror, as he was tumbling down those stairs, and by the time he reached
the bottom of the last step, he landed sitting up. While I was in panic,
he looked up at us and said, “Angels stopped me from getting hurt.” I
just looked up and praised God, and I to knew angels were surrounding
him.
Another time, was
when our oldest son hadn’t been driving to long, and was on his way to
his part-time job after school. It had been snowing and a lot of ice was
on the roads, and right before he got to work, his car slid off the road
and was left dangling from a bridge. When he called me, he said, “I slid
off the road, and my car was dangling from a bridge, but I am out of the
car and safe.” Yes, again I looked up and praised God, because I knew
God’s angels were right there with him.
The word “Angel”
comes from the Greek word “Aggelos”, which means messenger and the
Hebrew word “Mal’ak has the same meaning.
Angels are mentioned at least 108+ times in the Old Testament,
and at least 165+ times in the New Testament.
There are many
descriptions of angels in the Bible, and one can be found in Matthew
(28:3) which said, “His countenance was like lightening, and his raiment
white as snow.” We can also entertain angels and be unaware! In the book
of Hebrews (13:2) it said, “For thereby, some have entertained angels
unaware.”
No one knows whether
every angel does the same job, or whether some of them do different
things. The Bible does speak about classes of Angelic beings like
“Cherubim” (Ezekiel 1), “Seraphim” (Isaiah 6). Two of the most notable
names we know are “Michael”, known as the archangel (Daniel 10:13, Jude
9) and “Gabriel” (Daniel 9:21, Luke 1:19, 26).
I do believe that God
uses angels in answering prayers of his believers. One example can be
found in the book of Daniel, 9:21-22 which said, (Yea, while I was
speaking in prayer, even the man “Gabriel”, whom I had seen in a vision
at the beginning, being caused to fly swiftly, touched me about the time
of the evening oblation. He informed me, talked with me, and said, O
Daniel, I am now come forth to give thee skill and understanding).
We read in the Bible
about how angels care for the believers at the moment of death. One was
the story of “Lazarus” (known as the beggar) Luke 16:22 (And it came to
pass, that the beggar died, and was carried by the angles into Abraham’s
bosom).
We read of other
tasks that angels did in the Bible like how the angles gave instructions
to Joseph about the birth of Jesus (Matthew1-2), how they protect us
like in the case of Daniel in the lions den (Daniel 3), how they
delivered the apostles from prison (Acts 5), how they encourage the
apostles to keep preaching (Acts 5-19-20) how they told Paul that
everyone on his ship would survive the shipwreck (Acts 27:23-25). God
has used his angels to provide needs such as food for Hagar (Genesis
21:17-20, and Elijah (1 Kings; 19:6).
Angels also
encouraged Joseph to return to Israel with him family (Matthew 2:19),
they ministered to Jesus after his temptation in the wilderness (Matthew
4:11), they warned Joseph to flee from Herod’s plan to kill Jesus
(Matthew 2:13), they foretold to Zacharias the birth of John the Baptist
(Luke 1:11-20), told Mary that she would bear the Christ (Luke 1:26-38),
they announced Jesus’ birth to shepherds near Bethlehem (Luke 2:8-15),
they appeared to Jesus in the Garden of Gethsemane to give him strength
(Luke 22:43), told the women at the empty tomb, that Jesus was alive
(Matthew 28:2-6), They promised the crowd who were observing Jesus’
ascension, that he would return in like matter (Acts 1:10-11), they
released Peter from prison (Acts 12:7), they struck down Herod for not
giving glory to God (Acts 12:23), and these are just some of verses in
the Bible of what the angels did. Angels serve as messengers to
communicate God’s will to us all, if we only believe. They are also
known for worship and praise which is an activity that is portrayed in
Heaven. (Isaiah 6:1-3).
We don’t worship or
pray to angels, just God. Revelation 22; 9 (Angels were created by God,
and our creator is the only one worthy of our prayers). Matthew 4:10
(Thou shalt worship the Lord thy God, and him only shalt thou serve).
Angels do exist; they
are created and spiritual beings. Angel’s primary job is to be servants
to God and to minister to human beings. They deliver God’s messages and
bring peace, comfort and protection to God’s people!
None of us know what
each day may hold, but we need to make everyday count, and not put
anything before God. We have to let go of yesterday, live fully for
today and look with excitement for tomorrow. We need to take each day,
every hour, and each moment to be thankful for what God has, and is
doing in our lives, and to always know, that we have angels watching and
looking out for us. Thank you God!
Let’s all thank God
for his angels, and let’s all be rooted in love! In Paul’s prayer
Ephesians 3:17 (That Christ may dwell in your hearts by faith; and that
ye, being rooted and grounded in love).
Remember, God who created all things is still in charge!
As always, let us not
forget our Nation, our Nation’s leaders, our Soldiers, their families
and each other in prayer.
Until next time!
I love you and God loves you.
7-20-2011
The
blessings of being a Mother:
One of the greatest
blessings God ever gave me was my children, Shawn and Chris. He sent
them from Heaven, and entrusted them in my care. They were indeed a gift
from God. Both touched my soul deeply when they were borne. There’s an
old saying that talks about when a Mother looks at her new born baby
that says, “I never appreciated my life until I gave you yours”. They
have filled my life with so much love and joy. One of the first things
their Father and I did, was dedicated them to God, and asked for His
guidance as they grew.
In the beginning, you
fret over the least little things, and your mind wonders in many
different directions, because you want things to be as perfect as they
can be. Well raising children is a trial by error situation. Some things
you will do right and some things not so good. You mainly have to rely
on your instincts and God, no matter how many books you read, or what
other people tell you.
The dreams you have
for them seem so far away when they are little, but oh my, how time and
the years go swiftly by, and before you know it, they are grown and out
on their own.
One thing I did know
for sure is that I wanted them raised in a good Bible believing church.
I wanted them to know of God’s love, and how he will always be there for
them during their life. Proverbs 22:6 “Train up a child in the way he
should go, and when he is old, he will not depart from it.” Each night
as my sons were growing up, we always read Bible stories to them, and
said prayers with them when they went to bed. To this day, I still
remember their little voices lifting up their prayers.
Chris told me a cute
story about Lexiana (his and Stacey’s little girl, our grand-daughter),
how he and Stacey were teaching Lexiana her prayers, and the other day,
Stacey was going through the check-out line at the grocery store, and
Lexiana looked up and said, “Jesus, prayers.” Stacey had to stop, fold
her hands and pray with her. How cute is that? These are memories that
Chris and Stacey will hold dear and remember, even after Lexiana is
grown, and will be told for generations to come.
I remember clearly
the first time each one of my sons, as babies first looked up and said,
“Mommy.” I cried then, and it still brings tears to my eyes when I
remember it today. Now I know, I wasn’t perfect, which none of us are,
but I tried to be the best I could be.
I’m sure I made many
mistakes along the way, but its just part of the learning process when
you’re raising your children. Life won’t be perfect, because there’s a
lot of bumps and curves in the road of life, but believe me, the best
time of your life, is when you are raising your children. I wouldn’t
have traded it for anything!
I have watched with
pride, how the boys have grown up through the years, to become great
loving, kind and caring fine young Christian men. No credit to their Dad
or me, because all the glory and honor belongs to God. I love them very
much. Now we’re abundantly blessed with the most precious
daughter-in-law, anyone could have, Stacey.
She is a daughter, not a daughter-in-law in our eyes, and I know
she and Chris will be the best parents to Lexiana that they can be, and
she will be raised in a loving Christian home.
But at the same time,
I know I am no different than any other Mother out there, who once their
children are grown, always looks back and wonder, if they should have,
or could have done more. The following poem you can find in a lot of
book stores, but I don’t know who wrote it! The ones I have seen say,
“Author Unknown”. It brings tears to my eyes every time I read it. I
hope it’s a blessing to all you Mothers out there as well.
My Grown Up
Son
My hands were busy through the day,
I didn't have much time to play
The little games you asked me to.
I'd wash the clothes, I'd clean and cook,
But when you'd bring a picture book
And ask me please to share your fun,
I'd say a little later, son.
I'd tuck you in all safe at night,
Hear your prayers, turn out the light.
Then tip-toe softly to the door...
I wish I'd stayed a minute more.
For life is short, the years rush past,
A little boy grows up so fast.
No longer is he at my side,
No precious secrets to confide.
The picture books are put away,
There are no longer games to play.
No good-night kiss, no prayers to hear.
That all belongs to yester-year.
My hands once busy, now are still,
The days are long and hard to fill.
I wish I could go back and do,
The little things you asked me to.
Author Unknown
Remember, Mothers and
Fathers alike, soak in every moment with your kids you can as they are
growing up, because before you know it, they will be grown, and moving
their lives forward, as it should be! In the meantime, make as many
memories with them as you can!
Continue to remember
our Nation, our Nation’s leaders, our Soldiers, their families and each
other in prayer.
Until next time!
I love you and God loves you.
God Will Deliver
While reading my
Bible the other day, I couldn’t help but think about how God delivers us
from whatever trouble and trials we go through in life. Just a few
examples, Job was a Godly man, but knew sorrow, and had a great deal of
pain in his life. God heard his cries and delivered him out of the
misery he was going through.
Now what faith David
had when he face the giant Goliath? Most of us would have just backed
away, but he knew God was on his side, and he would claim victory in the
name of the Lord.
When Daniel was
thrown into the Lion’s Den, he never gave up on God. He prayed every
morning, noon and night. God heard his prayers and delivered him out.
Paul and Silas were thrown in jail, and sang praises to God all night
long, because they knew God would hear and deliver them from their jail
cell, and he did.
Then there were
Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego who were cast into the fiery furnace,
and God brought them out. They all knew they would come out victorious
and would not be defeated by their enemies.
In life, we all will
have pain and loss as we traveled down this road of life, but just like
the people in the Bible, God will be our deliverer.
We’ll have storms of life, but there is joy. Nehemiah 8:10 said,
“For the joy of the Lord is your strength”.
We are all just
vessels for the Lord, and he is the Master Potter. If we put our faith
and trust in him, he will mold, cleanse, polish, redeem, make us one of
a kind, and we’ll shine in his image.
When life gets me
down for what ever reason, I know I can call on him anytime day or
night, and he will be there to deliver me out of any trials, hurt or
pain I might be enduring. God is my comforter and guide. The Bible is my
refuge! When I read his word, tears fall like a river sometimes, because
he loves us so much.
No matter what you
have done in your life, or how unworthy you may feel, God is standing by
with out-stretched arms, wanting to deliver you out of your hurt. You
just have to accept the invitation! The Bible said, “Come unto him, and
he would make your burdens light”.
There’s a wonderful
saying about the Bible, that I read once which said, “It’s like an
artist brush, it will hold many colors. If the colors aren’t applied to
the canvas of life to create a masterpiece, then it will never bring
forth life”. Something to think about!
Remember, when things
look hopeless, and you see no way out, God will deliver!
Still remember our
Nation, our Nation’s leaders, our soldiers, their families and each
other in prayer.
Until next time!
I love you, and God loves you.
6-10-2011
To say the month of May for the
Shannons
has been a little trying or stressful, would be putting it mildly. First
it started with Lexiana being sick, Shawn being sick, Stacey having
surgery, and me winding up in the hospital for a few days. But through
it all, God brought us through everything, and we all are on the mend.
James and Chris so far, have avoided any health problems.
When there is sickness I often think about the
verse in the Bible, James 5:15 which says, “And the prayer of faith
shall save the sick.” Thanks to everyone who said a prayer for us.
Thanks to all who called, sent flowers, cards, emails, and etc. Your
kindness is appreciated very much.
While I was lying in the hospital, a lot of things
went through my mind. My mind wandered back to a dear christian lady
named Gwendolyn. She is a very spiritual person, and seems no matter
what you are going through; she is the first to be on her knees praying.
I remember a few years ago, going through some
battles, and she wrote me a letter. She told me to just remember how
much God loves and is with me. She told me how she found comfort in
repeating the 23rd. Psalms to herself when she was ill, or
going through a trial. To this day, I do that, and it has brought me
much peace. What a wonderful lady she is? Thank you Gwendolyn for being
a light to me in my life!
To say I am blessed, is not a stretch. While I was
in the hospital, my family hardly ever left my side. Our two sons were
such a comfort to me. I remember looking at them, and thinking how
blessed I truly was, to have them by my side. I love them so much. Their
love, prayers and sense of humor kept me going, and kept me from
thinking about how sick I really was at the time.
To all the ministers who came and prayed with me, I
felt your concern, and thank you. My friends were wonderful to me, and
to the ones who visited, or called me, I love you for that. You all are
truly a blessing in my life.
During this time, we have had to re-schedule some
of our bookings for May to a later date, but we should be back on
schedule starting with the June’s bookings. For a complete list of
bookings, just contact us by phone or email, since we do not list a lot
of the churches on our tour page until a couple weeks prior on the
website, we will be happy to email or mail you out a complete list for
the remaining year.
Please remember our Nation, our Nation’s leaders,
our soldiers, their families and each other in prayer.
Until next time! I love you and God loves you.
5-21-2011
Stand Your
Ground:
Recently a good
friend of mine, called me and she was in tears, because a so-called
friend of hers had said some negative things about her, which wasn’t
true, and it hurt her real bad. My advice to her was to just ignore it,
and don’t waste her time worrying, or getting upset about it.
As I told her, no
matter what you do, or how good a person you are, as long as we live on
this earth, there will be people who will find fault and be critical of
any, and everything you do. We
will always have negative people who will come into all of our lives, so
why fret it? All we can do is pray for them! Luke 6:27-28 “Love your
enemies, do good to them which hate you, bless them that curse you, and
pray for them which despitefully use you.”
I learned a long time
ago; not to waste energy on the nay-sayers of the world. There are
people who will always gossip and try to make you look bad, no matter
what? Life is too short, so
don’t get drawn into those types of battles? Rise above it! Focus on the
positive, not the negative in your life!
Don’t let these types
of people steal your joy? You can’t please everyone, so don’t even try?
When you bow down and try to fit into these people’s mold, then you
loose your power! People like this, have problems of their own, and the
only way, they have any joy, is when they are putting someone else down.
I believe God will
surround you with true friends to cheer you on in life, and who will
stand by you through the good times and the bad times. They will not try
to destroy you! Friendship isn’t about who you have known the longest,
it’s about those who came, and never left your side.” One of the best
gifts on earth we can receive is the love of friends in our lives. True
and caring friends are treasures and precious indeed!
If you have friends
who are constantly being critical, jealous, gossiping, and can’t say
anything positive about you, then they are not your friends. Don’t waste
your time on small-minded people. Shake the dust off your feet, move on,
and rise above it!
When people like this
come against you, just ignore them, pray for them, and keep running your
race, because God will be there cheering you on. God is on your side,
and will fight those battles for you. He sees and hears all! You can’t
prove to people, you’re a good person, because some people are going to
find fault with anything you say or do. Remember, these types of people
do not control your destiny!
I try to be
selective, as to what I give my time and attention to. Personally, I
don’t have time to dwell and worry whether or not, people like me, or
what they say or do? I want everyone to like me, as I told my friend
when she called me, but if they don’t, I refuse to waste my precious
time, that God has so graciously given me on earth, worrying about it. I
believe everyday is a gift from God, and that’s where my focus is. I
want to be all that I can be, and anything that other people might say,
I know God is right there to fight my battles, and I don’t have to.
There were many in
the bible that had nay-sayers rise up against them, no matter how much
good they were trying to do. Jesus, for example, was criticized, mocked,
scorned, and etc., but he never let it bother him. He stayed focused on
the positive, ignoring the nay-sayers.
Noah was gossiped about and made fun of, when he was building the
Ark, but he kept pressing forward, and he to
ignored the nay-sayers. Nehemiah, Saul, and many others in the bible
were talked about as well, for the things they were trying to
accomplish, and the list could go on.
In life, we have to
remember, don’t look to the right, or to the left, but keep looking
straight ahead. Stand your ground, ignore the nay-sayers, and don’t
waste energy on negative people, who are truly not, nor ever have been
your friends.
Timothy 11-13 “Follow
after righteousness, godliness, faith, love, patience, meekness. Fight
the good fight of faith; profess a good profession before many witnesses
We need to live the
best we can, and don’t sweat the nonsense of life? God wants us all to
succeed, be the best we can be, and to put our trust in him. Deuteronomy
6:5 “Love the Lord our God with all thine heart, and with all thy soul,
and with all thy might.”
After talking to my
friend, I thought I would share a little of the conversation with you,
and if it shines a little bit of light to just one person, then it’s
been worth sharing. Thank you God, for my true friends, which their
friendships will remain forever unbroken!
Let’s continue to
remember our Nation, our Nations’ leaders, our soldiers, their families,
and each other in prayer.
Until next time, I
love you, and God loves you.
4-17-2011
Planting Your Garden by the Signs of the
Moon:
Growing up, my Dad
and Mom planted their garden by the signs of the moon, yes, the signs of
the moon. Some of the old timey farmers called it planting by the signs
of the moon and they would swear by it. They would start their planning
of gardening in the winter, even while the snow was still on the ground.
I remember everyone in our community went by the signs of the calendar
and almanac!
As a young kid, I
didn’t pay a whole of attention to this and wondered how the moon could
have an effect on my vegetables. As time goes by, I realize there is
something to this saying, and I have personally tested it out and have
become a fan of lunar gardening’.
What I have learned
is, we know the moon affects the tides of the ocean, and many
professionals who work with the public, and they will tell you, that the
full moon does have an effect on people.
How does all this
work you say? Well history of planting by the moon says the waxing of
the moon, which is, new moon to full moon, that’s the time to plant all
your plants that bare their fruit above ground, like beans, corn,
tomatoes, cucumbers, melons and etc. Farmers call this the light of the
moon
The waning of the
moon, which is full moon to new moon, that’s the time to plant all your
root crops like, potatoes, radishes, turnips, carrots, peanuts and etc.
farmers called this the dark of the moon.
An example of this
would be tomato plants planted in the dark of the moon wouldn’t bear as
much fruit as the tomato plants that were planted in the light of the
moon. I have tested this theory out, and I am a true believer. I planted
tomato plants both from the same batch of plants on the light of the
moon and dark of the moon. The tomato plants planted on the dark of the
moon had smaller tomatoes than the ones I planted on the light of the
moon, which produced good size tomatoes.
At one time, I
shrugged my shoulders at these things, but now I truly believe those old
timers knew what they were talking about, because before the gadgets we
have today, they lived in nature and went by the signs of the moon, sun,
stars and seasons. Old timey farmers most always reaped great harvests’.
Back in the south
where I grew up, our gardens was our lively hoods. We enjoyed all the
goodness of the vegetables in the summer, and during the season, our
parents would can as much as they could, filling gallon, half-gallon,
quart and pint jars of vegetables.
Not only did we can
the vegetables, but many different kinds of fruits as well, as they
become into season. We dried different types of plants like, spearmint,
peppermint and etc. to make tea with in the winter. I am not a tea
drinker, but many in my family were.
As I have stated
before, canning was not one of my favorite things as a kid growing up,
but we all had to take part in it whether we liked it or not. Of course,
in the winter when the snow, rain and cold winds came, we were grateful
for all the wonderful dishes of food our Mom would make, and somehow, it
would all be worth it when we gathered around the kitchen table to eat.
Come spring it would start all over again!
So I hope as we began
this spring season, that those of you who can, will plant a garden,
whether it be large or small, and just watch God’s hand at work. The
rewards will out number any work you put into it!
As always, let us
continue to pray for our Nation, our Nation’s leaders, our soldiers,
their families and each other!
Until next time!
I love you, and God loves you.
The other day, I was
thinking about the bible and how it has been so instrumental in my life!
Growing up, Mom
always had a bible on the shelf or table, and would read it practically
every day. As the years went by, the pages became worn, torn and
tear-stained, but the message was still there. Mom always said, “Let God
be your guide in life, and the bible your roadmap.”
The bible is the most
selling book in history, and has been translated into many languages.
The stories and messages it contains are enormous. Many topics from the
bible have been made into movies and documentaries, and I am sure it
will be the topic of discussion until the end of time! Pro and con’s!
One of the stories in
the bible is, on how to become a Christian? What does that mean? One of
the phrases many ministers use is “Born again”. Have you ever wonder
just what that means? Jesus used the phrase in a conversation with a man
named Nicodemus. John 3:3 “Verily, I say unto thee, except a man be born
again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.” To believe in Jesus is to be born
again!
Being born again,
simply means, that a person admits to God that he or she is a sinner,
repents of their sins and believes in Christ. The Holy Spirit will
convict us when we have done wrong. Because of sin we are spiritually
dead, according to the Bible.
The bible said, “All
persons are sinners!” Romans 3:23 “For all have sinned, and come short
of the glory of God.” By praying
and asking God to forgive us for our sins, we then have a new spiritual
birth. Acts 2:21 “Whosoever shall call on the name of the Lord, will be
saved.” or as many would use the phrase “Born again.” Jesus died on the
cross for your sins and mine. John 3:16 “For God so loved the world that
he gave his only begotten son, that whosoever believeth in him, should
not perish, but have everlasting life.”
We should all show
the world, we as Christians, walk by faith, believe in God, and let our
light and lives shine no matter where we are. We should never be ashamed
to lift our hands up and praise God, and thank him for all he does for
us. We serve a loving, wonderful and powerful God!
I remember when I was a child all our family and friends always had
bibles in their homes, and out in plain view. There were no dust on
them, because believe me, they were read regularly. I grew up in the
country, and on a still night where our family lived, it wasn’t anything
unusual to hear your distant neighbors praying, and on a Sunday morning
to hear the church bells ringing.
It would all start after supper with the family reading stories
from the bible, praying and sitting on the front porch singing those
wonderful old hymns, and just praising God. What glorious and special
memories for me? It’s still special to me today!
One memory that I
hold very dear to my heart about the bible was, when I was growing up
and in school, we had two missionaries who came to our little country
school once a month, and they would tell bible stories. In one of their
visits, they told us if we would read the first four books of the New
Testament, that we would get a new bible on their next visit. I read
mine right away, and sure enough, when they came back I got a new bible
along with others in the school. I remember, I couldn’t wait to go home,
and show Mom and Dad my new bible. Believe
it or not, I still have that bible. Yeah, I know it’s not allowed in
schools today, but thank God, it was as I was growing up! My own
opinion!
I am glad today to
see that many churches and organizations still hand out bibles to
people. Who knows who lives will be touched by it, in the present and in
the future? I am so thankful today, for the bible being in our home when
I grew up, and I still carry on that tradition today, with several being
in my home. I pray that my children and grandchildren will always use
the bible as their roadmap, and God as their guide, just like I was
taught when I was little.
As always, let us
continue to pray for our Leaders, our Nation’s Leaders, our Soldiers,
their families and each other.
Until next time!
I love you, and God loves you.
The Power of
Prayer:
The other day, I was thinking about how strong the
power of prayer really is in our lives. I don’t know how God chooses the
time, place in which prayers are answered, but I know if we pray in
faith believing, that they will be answered.
The power of prayer is so strong that it can humble
the strongest soul, conquer sin and can even soften the hardest of
hearts. It can bring hope to those who feel there is none, and bring
comfort to those who are in pain. Prayer can turn your tears into joy.
Psalm 30:5 said, “Weeping may endure for a night, but joy cometh in the
morning.”
We all have days that nothing seems to go right,
and it seems for every step forward, you take two steps back. You are
just looking for that little bit of light! Well, I have found that if we
keep praying and pressing on, that God is listening to our every word,
and he will come just right on time, not our time, but his!
He may not give you everything you pray for, but he
will supply your needs, because everything he does, he does for our own
good. There is strength in God’s promises and love!
Sometimes in life, when we pray for something or
someone, and we just have to be patience and wait upon the Lord! Isaiah
40:31 said, “But they that wait upon the Lord shall renew their
strength.”
Four little words, Stop, Look, Listen and Go, are
the way I look at my prayers when I pray, and the way God may, or may
not answer them. God says, “Stop, when he knows it’s not the best for
me.” God says, “Look, move slow when the timing is not right.” God not
answering our prayer is not him delaying, or saying he won’t answer
them, it’s just he will do it in his on time.
“Listen, is just God’s way of telling me to be
cautious, have tolerance, and grow in courage, confidence and
compassion.” “Go, is when God says everything is alright, and that he
will send miracles, that we can see happen.” God always answers prayers.
It’s just sometimes we don’t understand all the reasons why he answers
them when he wants, because we get a little impatient. If we just leave
it all in God’s hands, he will take care of everything.
Let us all this day, remember in prayer, our
nation, our nation’s leaders, our soldiers, their families, and each
other. God is good! There is power in prayer!
Until next time!
I love you, and God loves you.
Forgiveness and Letting Go:
I’ve been thinking a
lot lately about the word
“Forgiveness.” It is such a
powerful word, and I thought with the Christmas holiday coming, and so
many families and friends getting together for dinners and reunions that
I would express a little of how I feel, not only for this season, but
how to be throughout the whole year!
I guess the main line
I always was taught by my parents as I was growing up was,
“When you forgive, you take away
the power that people have over you.” I was fortunate to have great
parents who taught us right from wrong, and how to treat other people in
our lives.
I know that when
people betray you, and you hold a grudge, you only hurt yourself.
Forgiveness doesn’t by any means, mean you excuse or condone someone’s
behavior; it just means you are letting it go in order for you to reach
a greater destiny in your life.
If only one person
and injustice in your life hurts you in some way, it can ruin the rest
of your life. It is much better to forgive and let God be your
vindicator. Hebrews 10:30 said, “Vengeance belongeth unto me, I will
recompense, saith the Lord.” He sees every person who has hurt you, and
if you turn it over to God, he can settle it all.
No matter how people
treat you, he won’t allow his children to suffer for long. People who
hurt other people, have unresolved issues of their own. God is a just
God! It rains on the just and the unjust.
God is faithful and
will never ask you to do something that he won’t give you the power to
do it. Take your life to a
new level, pray for your enemies that they be healed, forgiven, and
their salvation restored, and then move on with your own life.
What ever you do, don’t let other
people poison your life and your dreams.
If you are always
looking and hoping for people to acknowledge the hurts and pains they
have caused you in your life, it probably won’t happen, but you don’t
have to let it destroy the wonderful life that God has in store for you.
When people come into your life, hurt you, walk away from you and etc.,
it doesn’t necessarily mean they are a bad person, but it just means,
what ever the reason, their story in your life is over. Let it go, and
move on.
I have always told my
kids, and I have tried to live by it myself, “That if someone hurts you
and can’t treat you right, love you back, and see your worth, then maybe
that person isn’t supposed to be in your life, so just let it go, and
God will always open another door.” Remember
the old saying, “When one door closes another one will open.” How true
that is?
Let’s all put the
word “Forgiven” in our hearts his holiday season! If someone has angered
you, hurt you, or if you are holding on to past hurts and pains, and
have thoughts of evil and revenge, just let it go! Forgiving will indeed
set you free in more ways than one.
Just pray and say to
God, “You know what I’ve been through, all my hurts and pains, but I am
forgiving and getting rid of any baggage that might be in life, and mark
the account Paid in Full. Then our faith can be restored, free and
whole, and we can move forward and be a light to our family, friends and
this world.”
You can’t move
forward, if you are stuck in the past! The battles are the Lord’s! God
loves each and every one of us, and he will watch over us day and night.
He knows what’s best for us!
We just have to trust and believe it him. By forgiving, God will
definitely double our joy, peace, love and contentment.
He promised he will never leave or forsake us!
I have often thought
that God lets us walk down roads of disappointments to make us stronger.
I believe that’s just his way of telling us how much he loves us.
God will give us strength to climb the highest hill that we have in our
lives. I also believe that his
love is so much above our understanding!
So as we gather
around with our friends and families this Christmas season, lay
attitudes aside, forgive and remember that “Jesus is the reason for the
season.”
Please continue to
remember our Nation, our Nation’s leaders, our soldiers, their families,
and each other in prayer!
From our home to
yours, we wish you a lot of love, joy and peace, not only through this
holiday season, but throughout the coming year and always.
MERRY
CHRISTMAS, and a very HAPPY
NEW YEAR!
Until next time! I love you, and
God loves you
Calming your mind and body with certain
types of foods:
As many of you know,
I have authored several cookbooks. Many recipes are traditional ones
that have been given to me by my family and friends that I want to be
handed down from generation to generation. The majority of my recipes
are what they call, “Comfort foods.”
Growing up in the
south in a large family, we ate whatever we could. Times were hard, but
there were always something to eat. We grew our own vegetables, had our
own fruit trees, berry bushes, raised our own pork, chicken, and beef.
All kinds of dishes could be made from all this, and believe me, it was
good!
As I grew up, I
started to study more on how certain foods can affect our body and mind.
For example, we all know it is natural to crave many foods like
chocolate cake, pies, ice cream, and when we are all stressed it seems
to improve our moods for awhile. What happens is after they give us a
temporary lift, it can also send you crashing when the sugar high goes
away, but we all go there, don’t we?
Have you ever
wondered why you are so calm and a little sleepy after eating that big
Thanksgiving turkey dinner? It’s because turkey contains tryptophan, an
amino acid found in many protein-based foods that can have a very
calming effect on the body. Serotonin is a chemical in the brain that
definitely has a positive effect on our moods. An increase level of
serotonin can give the body a sense of good relaxation. Some foods can
help with serotonin levels, while others help with muscle relaxation.
Many sources of
tryptophan includes milk, cottage cheese, animal proteins such
lean beef, poultry, fructose
that’s found in fruit and foods containing B6 such as avocado, bananas,
tuna fortified cereals, spinach, whole grain breads, oatmeal and etc.
These types of foods
have a very positive effect on the serotonin production we have in our
bodies. As we all know, serotonin is a chemical in the brain that
definitely has a positive effect on our moods. An increase level of
serotonin can give the body a sense of good, calming relaxation, and can
reduce the stress levels our bodies may feel from time to time.
Eating foods that
contain calcium and magnesium have also been shown in medicinal studies
to have a relaxing effect on our muscles, and as many people may
experience, too little calcium can cause muscle tension and spasms in
our bodies. Good sources of calcium are low-fat or fat-free diary
products, like milk, yogurt and etc. Some good sources of magnesium are
almonds, green leafy vegetables, oatmeal, soy, whole grain cereals and
dairy products.
Many of these foods
not only will calm the mind, but relax the body’s muscles and reduce
stress. However, everyone reacts different to foods that make them feel
better or even worse when they are experiencing a lot of stress or
depression. If changing a lot of your foods and snacks doesn’t make you
feel better, then you need to talk to your doctor by all means.
Many ingredients in
recipes can be change by simply substituting low-fat and fat-free
ingredients, using spices for flavoring, low sodium broths, sugar
substitutes and the list goes on.
Please have a
wonderful and safe holiday season, and when we all sit down at the
Thanksgiving table this year, please say a prayer for our Nation, our
Nation’s leaders, our Soldiers, their families, and each other.
THANK YOU GOD FOR
YOUR BLESSINGS ON US ALL!
Until next time!
I love you, and God loves you.
Anyone who knows me,
know I like to hear and talk about the history of songs. While in
concert in Michigan recently, I met a man and his wife (Ken and Cheryl)
from Iowa, who were visiting friends in Michigan.
As we started talking, I had no idea where they were from!
We begin to talk
about old hymnal songs, and as fate would have it, I brought up the old
song “Little Brown Church in
the Vale, also know as,
“Church in the Wildwood”.
They just smiled and begin telling me a little about the history
of the song, and have since, sent me some literature on it. I thought I
would share a little of it with you!
The song was written
by New York native named William S. Pitts in 1857. When he was about 27
years old, he took a stagecoach from his home where he resided in
Wisconsin to Fredericksburg, Iowa. The stagecoach made a stop in
Bradford. Mr. Pitts was strolling around and he was so impressed by the
hills, and how they seemed to form into a small valley, with the Cedar
River flowing so peacefully among the beautiful trees and wildflowers.
When Mr. Pitts
returned home, he couldn’t get the imagine of the beautiful setting he
had seen out of his mind, and he composed the words and music to the
“Little Brown Church in the Vale.” He just put it away and did
nothing with it.
Approximately 5 years
later, Mr. Pitts, now married, moved to Iowa to be near his elderly
in-laws. He took a job teaching music at the Bradford Academy. Since his
trip 5 years earlier, a church had been built in the spot, he had become
so found of on his previous trip.
The Civil War was
still going on, and Christians in the community were growing weary
having to meet in abandoned store buildings. In 1862 the building was
up, and since the economy was hard, the people painted the church with
the cheapest paint they could afford, which was brown.
Once Mr. Pitts saw
the church, he retrieved the song he had written years earlier and sang
it at the Church’s dedication in 1864. He later sold the song to a
publisher in Chicago for $25.00, which was a lot of money back then. He
used the money to attend Rush Medical College. He spent the remaining
years of his life as the town’s physician in Fredericksburg, Iowa, about
fourteen miles from Bradford.
The Church is a
tourist location for thousands of people each year. It’s located in
Nashua, Iowa, and is famously known for hundreds of weddings, baptism’s,
and etc., that’s held in the church each year. Its membership is near or
about 100 people.
This song is known
throughout the world, and some people who have recorded it are: The
Chuck Wagon Gang, Jim Ed Brown and the Browns, Carter Family and many,
many others, which are to numerous to mention. It is such a peaceful
song!
To learn more about
the Church, click on the link under the picture below!

http://www.littlebrownchurch.org/song.cfm
Please remember our
Nation, our Nation leaders, our soldiers, their families and each other
in prayer.
Until next time!
I love you, and GOD loves you….
The Trail of
Tears we all have:
Have you ever
wondered how many different types of tears we shed during our life time,
and what they mean? I for one, cry more than I would like to admit. I
don’t look at it as a weakness, but as a way of letting my feelings out,
how I feel in my heart at the time.
I was listening to
the radio the other night, and I heard a song called, “Trail of Tears”.
I couldn’t get those words out of my head, so I started thinking about
the many different types of tears we shed during our life time. I
started thinking about the people in the Bible who cried tears of joy,
of love and sorrow just as we do today!
How many of us heard
as we were growing up, now don’t cry, be a big girl or boy.
I remember in school many who let
their feelings show, were teased by the other kids and called, “Cry
Babies”. As we grow up though, we realize that in many situations, tears
are warranted language.
In Sunday school
class growing up, we learned about the tears of Hezekiah, who was sick
and about to die, how he turned his face toward the wall weeping and
praying unto the Lord. God saw those tears, and in
Isaiah 38:5 God said, “I have
heard thy prayer, I have seen thy tears: behold, I will add unto thy
days fifteen years”. God
does see our tears, and is not unmindful of them. He sees them through
compassion.
Jesus even shed
tears of sorrow while standing at the grave of Lazarus. The shortest
verse in the bible is John 11:35
said, “Jesus Wept”.
I guess one of the
first things that come to my mind about tears, is when the sinner woman
stood weeping, and washed Jesus’ feet with her tears.
Luke
7:38 said, “and stood at his feet behind him “weeping, and began to wash
his feet with tears, and did wipe them with the hairs of her head”.
Many heroes of the
Bible wept tears. Jeremiah was known as the “weeping prophet”, David who
said, “My tears have been my food day and night”, and Paul who said, “I
serve the Lord with great humility and with tears and the list goes on.
We will endure
different emotions of tears in our lives, but one thing we have to
remember, is God will wipe them all away one day. God promises us that
there will be no tears in Heaven, no sorrow and no pain, but only peace,
joy and love. Thank you, God.
One of the hardest
things to me is to watch someone you love, go through some of these
battles. Even people you don’t know, when you hear about the situations
they are going through, will definitely bring a tear to your eye, and in
this day and time, we are living in peerless times.
I have found God’s
comfort many times through my tears no matter the circumstances. So many
times, tears have fallen upon the pillow where I laid at night, but
through it all, I could feel God’s hand reaching down to help me in my
time of despair.
One memory of tears
comes to mind as I write this, and that’s as a kid growing up, I
remember my Mother many times reading the Bible, and I would see tears
falling from her eyes. I knew as a child, this book she was reading, was
a very important book.
One of the stories
in the Bible that brings tears to my eyes every time is
John 3:16 which said, “For God so loved the world that he gave his only
begotten son, that whosoeverbelieveth in him should not perish, but have
everlasting life”. The fact
that God send his only son to die on an old rugged cross for your sins
and mine, is enough to bring tears to our eyes forever. Such boundless
love he had for us all!
Tears are just a
part of being human, and it’s more than O.K. to let your feelings out
sometimes, instead of keeping them all bottled up inside.
Psalms 125:5 said, “Those who sow in tears will reap with songs of
joy”. Sometimes when we cry,
it allows others to see our heart and allows God to see our sincerity!
I think there is a
time for everything in our lives including tears. Ecclesiastes 3:4 said,
“A time to weep, a time to laugh, and a time to mourn”.
Every one of us has
a cross to bear in life, and even though our crosses are different, we
should always be there for each other to lend a hand, or a shoulder to
cry on. We are all part of that wonderful family of God.
Let’s continue to
remember our Nation, our Nation’s leaders, our soldiers, their families
and each other in prayer.
Until next time!
I love you and God loves you…
I was thinking the
other day, about the many roads we walk as we journey through this life;
the roads we travel take many directions. First and foremost, we can’t
walk it alone. We may think we can, but soon we find that so many twists
and turns of life, we are unable to find our way.
We all will encounter
shattered dreams, tears, pain, illnesses, failures, heartaches, toils,
trials, mountains too steep to climb, valley’s really low and etc., but
God is always there when we call on him. He will give us strength
and faith to get us through wherever the road may lead us.
Sometimes all the
frustrations of life may overwhelm us and our confidence is nearly gone,
but if we just look up, we can feel
God’s love inside us, and
feel him holding our hand. It’s then that we know, he’s walking right
there beside us. When we stumble and fall, he will lift us up, and put
us on the right path.
Psalms 143:8 said, “Make the way known to
me wherein I should walk, for I have lifted up my soul to thee”.
The best road I took in this life, was when I chose to travel the road
that would lead to God, and I
don’t regret a mile that I have walked for the
Lord.
I have found in life
that the narrow roads we take, somehow eventually turns into one, if we
don’t waver and loose our way. The roads may become rocky, but
God will make our pathways smooth again if we just trust in him and
let him walk beside us.
Now many times we
feel like there is no hope and life get seemingly hard, but through all
those dark and dreary days, a light will somehow shine through. Each
portion of our lives is going to be filled with trials and blessings,
but God is right there to strengthen us and give us hope.
Psalms 116:8 said, “For you, O
Lord, have delivered my soul from death, my eyes from tears, and my feet
from stumbling”.
When life’s burdens
start getting me down and I don’t know which way to turn, I just
remember Isaiah 41:10 which
said, “Fear not, for I am with you.. I will strengthen you.. I will help
you”. I just remember with the help of
God, all things will fall into place!
Ecclesiastes 3:1 says, “To every thing
there is a season, and a time to every purpose under the heaven”.
The roads we go down and have to endure is just seasons of our life.
Psalms 126:5 said, “They who sow
in tears shall reap in joy”. The way I like to look at life is, our
life has many pictures and all of them are like a piece of art work. It
will all come together in the end.
God
sends us many blessings everyday and so
often we may over look some of them. We tend to dwell on the bad instead
all of the good. We just have to remember, that there wouldn’t be any
rainbows if it wasn’t for the rain! We need to count our blessings one
by one as we travel through this journey of life, and we’ll find out
that we are blessed more than what we think!
I just hope and pray
when my life is over, if I’ve left but one person on this earth, whose
life was touched by mine, by something I said or done, then it would
have been worth it all! Romans
8:18 said, “For I reckon that the sufferings of the present time are not
worthy to be compared with the glory to come, that shall be revealed in
us”.
Let’s keep our lamps
burning and the love of God
in our hearts, so the world can see
Jesus in us as we travel
together on this journey through life. GOD’S LOVE IS MAGNIFICENCE!
Keep praying for our
Nation, our Nation’s leaders, our soldiers, their families and each
other.
Until next time!
I love you and God loves you….
Exodus 20: Verse 12 in the Bible said, “Honour thy
father and thy mother, that thy days may be long upon the land which the
Lord thy God giveth thee.
I was very blessed to have a loving and devoted
father on this earth, who cared deeply about his family and God.
My father farmed and worked in a Saw Mill to
support his family. He never had the finer things in life, but he worked
hard to put food on the table, clothes on our backs, and shoes on our
feet to the best of his ability. We never went hungry although at times
the pantry got very low. God always seemed to know exactly when and what
we needed!
Now that I am grown up, I look back and see all the
sacrifices my Dad made for our family. I look through old photographs,
and realize all the gratitude, respect, love and admiration that I had
for him.
Yes, Dad was always on our family’s side through
the good times and the bad. He could take any situation and see
something good in it! He taught us to always think positive about life.
After my Mother passed away, my Dad had his hands
full finishing raising all us kids, but there’s not enough words to
express how grateful we all are to him for what he did. He devoted the
remainder of his live after we all grew up to just loving and enjoying
his children and grandchildren. He was definitely a winner as a father!
No, life was not always easy growing up, but I have
learned down through the years that many times when we want sunshine,
God sends us the rain, and many times when we are looking for a
mountain, valleys are all we see, but that’s when we have to have faith
in God. He knows what’s best for us, and he will supply our needs, not
our wants, but our needs!
Happy Father’s Day in Heaven Dad, and thanks for
being there for us kids. We loved you dearly and your memories will live
on forever through our families.
So, as we celebrate Father’s Day, let’s not forget
to celebrate our Heavenly Father, who makes all things possible. He is
our greatest Father of all!
Continue to pray for our Nation, our Nation’s
leaders, our Soldiers’, their families and each other!
Until next time!
I love you, and God loves you.
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