I made this video playlist at myflashfetish.com
I remember when I was thirteen
I saw a picture on my TV screen
The Reverend Billy Graham and the people singing “Just As I Am”
And I felt like You were talking to me
And the whole world seemed to fade away
Until I heard my mother say
“Son, are you ok? Do you wanna pray?
And that became the hour I first believed
And next thing you know
I’m high and flying, next thing you know
My heart is in Your hands, next thing you know
There is no denying, next thing you know
I’m a brand new man
Well I wish I could say I always stayed right there
And I did until my freshman year
But the world was pulling me along way from thirteen
And You were calling but I didn’t hear
Still I knew there was something more
So one day my knees hit the dorm room floor
I said “If You’re there and if You really care
Come and talk to me like I was thirteen”
And next thing you know
I’m high and flying, next thing you know
My heart is in Your hands, next thing you know
There is no denying, next thing you know
I’m a brand new man
I Got a picture in my head today
Of how Heaven might look someday
I see the people there so I pull up a chair
And their stories they blew me away
‘Cause I can see it on every face
The evidence of grace
And as I listen it occurs to me
Everybody’s got their own thirteen
So what’s your story about His glory?
You gotta find your place in the history of grace
And next thing you know
I’m high and flying, next thing you know
My heart is in Your hands, next thing you know
There is no denying, next thing you know
I’m a brand new man
-Matthew West
I love this song. I've heard it so many times. I've only sung along to the chorus. I hadn't heard the WHOLE song... until last week. Then I REALLY loved it! It also got me thinking...
My birthday is coming up. I've been wanting to do a give away. I figured my birthday is as good a time as any.
So, here's the deal... I want to know, what's your 13? What's your story about God's glory? When have you seen God's hand working in your life? What's your testimony? I want to hear your stories. I want to know how God has blessed you. I want God's light to be shining through.
I can't imagine a better birthday present that to celebrate God and His blessings. How He has worked good through the pain. I'll share my story on my birthday...
I'm giving you an entire week to enter this give away. A week to share your story. A week to share about God's glory. Bring on the stories!
***Get an extra entry if you go over and say a prayer for Luke!***
**Get 2 entries for posting about Luke's prayer chain on your blog and adding the button**
**Get another entry for mentioning this give away... I want stories!**
11 comments:
Hi. You don't know me and I don't even remember how I found your blog but I have been a reader for a couple of weeks. The stories of your children coming to Christ really moved me. I only pray that we are doing what we can to direct our children (4,2, and 8 months)on the right path as well.
I love the idea for this giveaway and am looking forward to the stories of others as well. :)
I have been a believer all my life. I accepted Christ when I was about 12 years old but I can't say that I truly "walked" with Him until I was about 20. I was led astray at 18 by the mormon church. I can honestly say though that God never let me go. I heard His voice telling me I wasn't where he wanted me to be. However, by that time I had married a lifelong member and I fought God for awhile because I knew it would be the end of my marriage if I left the church. I finally realized that He was all I needed and I needed to put Him before my marriage and trust Him with the rest. So in early 2004 I left the mormon church. And you know glory to God, my husband followed me! It was definitely a rocky point in our relationship. But now we are stronger than ever!
If this wasn't enough, God recently worked another miracle in our lives. This past July I gave birth to our daughter thirteen weeks early. During the pregnancy it was suggested to us that we terminate. Because of complications with the pregnancy we were told she would not survive. We politley informed the doctors that terminating was not an option. It was because of these complications that I gave birth early but again PRAISE GOD, on Oct. 11, 2008 we brought our baby girl home from the NICU completely healthy! :)She was truly a miracle from God and has left the doctors scratching their heads.lol It has been a great witnessing tool. All of her doctors are amazed and we give glory to God every chance we get!
A just started blogging about it a few months back.
You can go here to read the whole story:
http://dancingintherain-sassy.blogspot.com/search/label/Our%20Two%20Pound%20Miracle
My prayer is that through my blog we can be a light for the Lord and reach others. My desire is to show people that He does exist! That he does answer prayers! He definitely answered ours. :)
God Bless!
~Sassy
I've been a Christian since I was 7 yrs. old, raised in a Christan home by loving parents. When Bill and I married, he was not a Christian. I ended up drifting away from church for several years. What brought me back to Him? What brought my husband to Him? Our boys. After 9 years of marriage, we finally had our first boy. Little brother followed three years later. Our oldest boy was 5 and hungry for the Lord! We started going to church again due to that hunger. Our son was saved that day, my hubby was saved 3 mos. later! It's amazing to me how God has performed so many miracles in our lives. :o)
I already left a prayer for Luke, and I have his button on my blog! Praying for him every day.
Awesome giveaway! I'll post mine later; I just wanted to stop by to let you know I read your blog entry.
I'd love to share, giveaway or not... I wrote a post about my "13" on March 24th, I'd love to share with you. It's a private blog, I'd love to give you access if you'd like, so that you can read the post.
Please email me at ladybugs999 at hotmail dot com , and I'll add you!
I'm still thinking...there are lots of stories to share, but I really want to pray about the one!
My heart IS in His hands, in a few ways...
Ten years ago on March 25th, before she had a chance to open her eyes and see this world, our baby girl, Samantha Faith, opened her eyes and saw heaven.
Ten years later, I still struggle with the words, I still fight hard to hold her close to my heart and not share her with anyone. It's too raw, too sacred, too personal.
Although I am still determined to hold her close to my heart, I can't help but share the way she has changed my life. So today, for a brief moment, I will share her spirit with you. The gift of her life is too special not to share, even if just for a moment.
For some time after losing her, I felt I had lost God too. I even stopped going to church for a while, because the first memory I have after losing her is of going to church the following Sunday morning, and not finding any comfort, feeling abandoned, feeling so cold. I had lost her, and in the process lost myself, and lost sight of God. How do you begin to climb back out of the depths of despair? Losing her broke my heart, but feeling as though I had lost Him too broke my soul. It has been said that there is no greater loss than losing one's child, but there is -- losing one's child and losing sight of God.
That time in my life is a blur, as though a fog of confusion had settled upon my life. I couldn't understand why God had abandoned me, I felt angry with Him, I wanted to know why He had given me so much pain and suffering in my life, I wanted to know if He'd forgotten about me, if He even loved me. I didn't know how to find my way back, where to begin looking for Him, I didn't know if I'd ever find God or joy again.
"And a little child shall lead them..." Isaiah 11:6
She led the way for me, all the way to God.
One of the biggest lessons I learned from her that when we feel as though God is far away from us, it isn't He who has moved, who wandered away from us, it isn't Him that changed. We have. "For I am the Lord, I do not change..." (Malachi 3:6). "Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, and today, and forever." (Hebrews 13:8). If we feel far from God's embrace, it is us who have lost our way, wandering away from Him. I have never, ever been more certain of this, and I vow never to return to that dark, cold, bitter place. I owe it to her never to forget this incredible lesson.
I have learned from her that sometimes, God comforts us, not so that we may be comforted, but for a greater purpose. So that we can use that comfort in the lives of others who need it. (II Corinthians 1:3-5) "Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies and God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our affliction, so that we may be able to comfort those who are in any affliction, with the comfort with which we ourselves are comforted by God." That was the very first scripture I memorized, and to this day, it stands for me as a reminder that God uses every part of our lives for His purpose, for greater good. For me, this ensures that she lives on in my heart, that I can use her life to help others. My work through NILMDTS is just one example. I have also applied this scripture to other areas of my life.
She taught me that God cares about all of us, no one gets left behind. "Do not two sparrows sell for a coin of small value? Yet not one of them will fall to the ground without our Father's knowledge. But the very hairs on your head are all numbered. Therefore have no fear: you are worth more than many sparrows." (Matthew 10:29-31). Even though she wasn't with us very long, God knows the hairs on her head, she is His child too, He loves her even more than I do, and because of God, her life had purpose. Her story isn't finished, and neither is mine.
She helped me understand that there has never been sorrow without joy. "For His anger endureth but a moment; in His favor is life: Weeping may endure for a night, but joy cometh in the morning." (Psalm 30:5). "And ye now therefore have sorrow: but I will see you again, and your heart shall rejoice, and your joy no man taken from you!" (John 16:22). God never promised us that we wouldn't suffer, but He promised that joy would always return. Even beyond that, I know now that if I guard my heart and keep the Lord in my heart, joy will never leave me again, even when there is sorrow, there is unspeakable joy. I know this because when I lost Mercy & Grace, I was put to the test, and the lessons God taught me through Samantha were right there in my heart. I never lost sight of Him, or the joys and miracles in the midst of the circumstances. How can we hurt so deeply and yet feel joy? God, pure and simple. Sorrow will come and go, sometimes it's inevitable, but it is my choice to make sure that joy never leaves again, just as I will make sure that I will never wander away from God again. God is joy... He never said "Grieve in the Lord always", he said "Rejoice in the Lord always. Again I will say, rejoice." (Philippians 4:4) There are no words that explain how profoundly this lesson has changed my life.
There are too many lessons to share, too few words to paint them with... My words are weak, merely a rough sketch of the glorious work of God, but I will leave you with one final thought. Through her, I learned not to fear death. Only the Lord knows the number of our days, and no matter how many days we're given, even less than one or more than a hundred, our life is short when compared to eternity. Every moment here on earth is temporary. "For what is your life? It is even a vapour, that appears for a little time, and then vanishes away..." (James 4:14). "No eye has seen, no ear has heard, no mind has conceived what God has prepared for those who love Him, but God has revealed it to us by His Spirit" (1 Corinthians 2:9-10). Although our mind can't fully comprehend the beauty of eternal life, He gives us a glimpse of life's glorious sunset in Revelations 21:4... "He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away." Rejoice!! What is there to fear? I will continue to serve Him on either side of the veil. I want what He wants for my life, no matter many days or years I may have left. I live for Him just as much as I would die for Him.
God creates beauty from ashes. The way God blessed me through her short life leaves me breathless. Oh the joy of seeing them both face to face on the other side of the veil and being able to thank them both for trusting me with these immeasurable gifts: Her for leading me straight to God, and God for choosing me to be her mother, and His daughter.
The glory is His, and His alone.
I received Christ when I was about 8. I walked with Him and I walked away many times in my life. He has been with me all along the way. Molding me and shaping me for when He would be able to use me. God showed up in a very real way… a way that I was unable to move to the left or right to miss Him.
We had just had our second daughter who lived in me for 35 weeks and then went to be with the Lord just before she was born. That was the beginning of the realness of God for me. When I had nothing else He was there. I didn't know that I had built my foundation on The Rock until the wind came and I didn't waver. As I think back over the last almost 2 years I see God's Hand in everything. I didn't have eyes to see before my attention was directed back to Him. After Hazel died it was like my spirit man took the wheel and drove because I was unable too. They Holy Spirit in me tuned my ears and eyes to the things of God as if I had never seen or heard Him before. I know that I did hear God before her death.. I just didn't know that it was Him. I thought that it was just my thoughts. After she was born God was whispering in my ear. When we were in the hospital fully prepared for our daughter to make her entrance alive... we weren't prepared for her arrival stillborn. We didn't know what step to take next. God orchestrated it all for us. All we had to do was act it out. Each thought that I had in the hospital I attribute to God because these were things that I never would have planned. We took video of us holding her and telling the video camera as it sat on the table what had happened that day. We had casts of her had holding my husbands thumb and a cast of her little foot. These were things that if I hadn't thought about doing I would have huge regrets that I missed out on doing with her. God in all His love gave me through everything NO REGRETS about those 21 hours that we had with her. There is not one thing that I wish I could go back and do. There is such peace in that. I thank God for being there for us every minute of that day. We had so many people praying for us in the months after that we could truly feel it.
I had just started Bible Study Fellowship earlier that year. A friend had asked me to go with her and check it out. I had heard of it because it was something that my mother-in-law had done when my husband was a child. My 1st daughter was 9 months when I started. The book we would be studying was Romans. Another reason I decided to start the study was that I was tired of being in a desert filled spiritual life. I was dry as a bone and didn't feel anything. I was waiting for God to get me out of the desert. I had enough and decided I would get out on my own. BSF was my 1st step toward awakening my spirit again. A few weeks after I started BSF I found out that I was pregnant with our 2nd child. (cool little God detail... the weeks of the bible study were in unison with how far along I was... week 8 of BSF... week 8 of pregnancy etc.) Anywhoo...I persevered through the bible study. Each week I did my lesson but I really didn't feel like I was getting anything. I would take notes during lecture... again not really "feeling" like God was talking to me. I didn't know what I know now.. God was talking to me. After Hazel was born I went back and looked through my notes and God was speaking to me loudly about suffering. I didn't even know why until I was in the middle of suffering and I had tools that HE had gave me on how to see Him in the middle of it. Cool Huh.
God has seen me through what some would consider the worst thing that could happen. The death of a child. Don’t get me wrong… it was terrible. But God had her days numbered at conception and she served the purpose of her life. She has ministered to so many people… most of whom I may never know how until Heaven. She is ministering to her older sister and her soon to be born younger brother from Heaven. If they want to meet or know where their sibling is, it requires me to tell them about the Awesome God that we serve and the choice that they have to make with their life in order to meet her. We had not planned to get pregnant with Hazel. Really… I had a 9 month old. It was one of those God planned things that I just got to be a part of. We knew that she would be a girl and we had not decided a name for her. Only once we found out that she was already in Heaven… I knew what I wanted to name her. Hazel…after my husband grandmother. She had just gone to be with the Lord the week before. I wanted to name our 1st daughter that name.. but it didn’t play out that way. I had lobbied for that name with the 2nd pregnancy but couldn’t get my husband to warm to the name….nor any members of my family. Hazel in the Hebrew means “One who sees God”. And that is our surely our daughter.
God is in the details.
He is always talking… the question is… are we listening?
Hebrews 11:35
Women received their dead raised to life again.
Ephesians 1:11
In Him also we have obtained an inheritance, being predestined according to the purpose of Him who works all things according to the counsel of His will,
Romans 8:28
And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose.
Psalm 34:18
The Lord in near to those who have a broken heart.
And saves such as have a contrite spirit.
2 Chronicles 15:2
The Lord is with you while you are with Him. If you seek Him, He will be found by you.
The first time I read this, I figured I wouldn't leave my story, because it's not flashy, it's not exciting. But then I figured, it's mine and decided I would go ahead and share. I'm always intimidated and have a feeling of inadequacy in terms of my spirituality, especially when I hear other people's stories. I feel as though I must not have had my moment with the Big Man yet, but then when I look at my life, I realize that I have always been walking with Him. And I can see where He has worked his will in my life: In my childhood when I had the support of a family like church complete with youth bible study and outings. In High school where I miraculously walked a sound and wholesome path, all be it not church based. In college when I was inspired by my room mate to seek His words in the face of conflict. When I met my husband and started a long walk to love through our friendship. When my dad made it to my wedding and walked me down the isle after a week long stay in the hospital, leaving this world for heaven less than one month later. When I was pregnant less than one year after that and brought home a beautiful baby girl that next summer. When we decided to move to Portland and found out a week later that I was pregnant with baby girl #2 who would make our family too big for our tiny San Jose house. Every step of the way, we have trusted God and asked him to show us His path. The path he has designed just for us. I guess my moment with God has been a lifetime, one that was started early with the support of my family. I was introduced to him young. I don't often doubt Him. I know He's with me all the time and I am thankful for the power of His presence in our lives.
If there is one point in my life where God has become more of a focus, I have to say it has been through my marriage. I never dreamed that my husband would be my biggest support in my faith walk. I never expected my love for God to be renewed and reflected through the love I share with my husband. Being married to a faithful man has encouraged me to be more faith centered in my life, building a family that is growing in His love.
I wasn't going to post my story because you already know it. But per your request, I will. Happy Birthday, My Friend!
I became a Christian when I was 9. My sweet little friend Amber led me to the Lord on her own one afternoon while we were playing in the front yard. My parents were not believers. They weren't against it, they just didn't embrace it. But all through my life, God strategically placed people in my life who would encourage me and guide me towards Him.
A year ago last March, it was revealed to me that the man who I was always told was my father, was in fact, not. This is a bit complicated, so follow closely: My birth certificate says that my mom's 1st husband (we'll call him 'R') is my biological father. But they divorced and my mom remarried when I was very young to a man we'll call 'C'. All my life, I knew that C was technically my step-dad, but I always called him dad, he's who raised me and he oficially adopted me when I was about 7. I never had contact with R. I just knew him from pictures.
Before I reveal the rest of the confusion about who my biological father really is, let me explain something else frist. My mom was not a Christian for most of her life. She finally accepted Christ as her Savior on Easter 2006. Then she passed away, unexpectedly 14 months later. I praise GOD that my mom came to Him before she died. I have such peace knowing that she is in Heaven and I will see her again someday. But she made some REALLY bad choices in her life. I hesitate to share this about her because I don't want others to think ill of her. I want to protect her from your judgement. But this information is really a big part of my testimony. My mom had several abortions before I was born. And while she was married to R, she was having an affair with a man we'll call 'D'. She ended up getting pregnant by him, but never told him and let R believe that the baby (who is me) belonged to him. I don't know why she didn't abort me. But I believe that God whispered into her heart to "keep this one".
All my life, God has had a hedge of protection around me. I was spared so many ugly things that my life could have easily encountered due to my mom's poor choices. But He protected me and guarded me from those things. I grew up in a pretty normal family, as far as I could tell. I am on only child. My parents were in love with each other and we always did fun things as a family. But when I was a freshman in college, my parents divorced. A big part of it is because of another poor choice my mom made, but my dad (C) is not without fault either. My mom moved on to another man and they eventually got married. But this was not a healthy relationship. I believe that my mom felt trapped and she began escaping to church. She lived very close to the church I attended when I was living at home. This is where she eventually accepted Christ. I don't want to pat myself on the back and say that she became a believer because of me, but I do believe that God used me as a witness to my mom. I never hesitated to share my faith with her and always encouraged her to seek God. And she knew how important God is in my life.
Getting back to who my biological father is, C is actually the one who revealed to me that my mom thought D was my biological father (my mom was already in Heaven when this was revealed to me). I was shocked. At first I didn't think I wanted to contact D. But eventually, I did. We spoke on the phone for the first time in September 2008. That is another very long story in and of itself, but I am so happy that D and his wife are in my life. We have not yet met in person, but communicate via email and phone often. We can't wait to meet face to face. D and his wife are amazing believers who have come through this all with such a strong faith in the Lord.
As each piece of the puzzle is revealed to me, I just see God's perfect and sovereign timing. I praise Him and thank Him for the hedge of protection He placed around me. Thank you, Lord! You are an amazing God!
I'm late, I'm late, but I was having computer problems. Here I am.
I truly accepted Christ when I was 17 after going to a Bible study that one of my friends held at his house. That's when it all made sense to me and after that I was baptized.
I went to college and well, let's just say I fell off the wagon. I didn't find a church home and I slipped into things that I should not have...living with Rondell being the biggest regret.
After Ron and I were married we tried for a child and got pregnant with Jamison. I had always wanted a child and was so excited to be pregnant. But during the pregnancy I got very sick, just shakey all the time, couldn't eat a lot, very tired...I lost 23 pounds. I ended up having a C-section after 26 hours of labor.
After a month I went to Cleveland for my sister's birthday. I started to have a terrible headache, which then led to a strange twitch and then a stutter (like I was having a stroke). I went to the ER and it was determined that I had post pardum depression and I was experiencing an anxiety attack from all of the depression. Tough times.
I did have some healing but not completely.
I got pregnant with Caleb and about my third trimester started having severe depression symtoms and decided, with doctor's approval, to start taking an anti-depressant. It helped.
The moment when God truly stepped in, and grabbed me tight was shortly after Caleb was born. Rondell decided that he wanted to go to a conference in Atlanta. Without hesitation, I told him to go and enjoy. That was nothing but God because I tended to rely on Rondell very much. So, he went and God showed me that I was a good mom and very capable of being independent, not independent of Rondell but just that He had given me the tools to be the kind of mother He designed. My eyes opened up to Him that weekend and I will never forget it. He broke through a wall I thought I could never tear down...and I can't...not by myself but with Him. God is so good and He showed me that and from there, there's no turning back!
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