Prayer Circles

To ALL,
My hubby and I are leaving today for New Mexico to see the landlady who lives out there (we flew out there last June when her husband passed away). She fell and broke her hip last week and it's too wet for hubby to do any farming, so we're going to see her--(driving this time!)--and probably be gone until next weekend. I don't think I'll have access to internet while I'm there so I just wanted you all to know why I won't be posting this week. I'd appreciate your prayers for safe travel and good weather and a good visit.
Love and many (((HUGS))),
Charlene

Dear Charlene,
I'm sorry to hear about your landlord. My prayers are with her and you as you travel and help her. My your visit bring her joy and hope. I pray for a good time for you all the way, including the long ride with your hubby. Love, Jane

Hi Everyone,
Here I am asking for extra prayer again. I have a pretty bad sinus infection, along with some type of virus. Last night after work I was so much in pain I went to the 24 hr immediate care center. I didn't think I could wait until Mon to call my doc. I was right not to wait. I'm on an antibotic, a decongestion and two different pain relievers. The awful pain and dizziness in my head has improved, but the bodyache seems to be getting worse. I spent most of the day in bed because of the pain. What specifically I need prayer for is that the bodyache is due to a virus and not to my lupus. It seems everytime I have a lupus flareup, I end up in the hospital, usually with severe asthma. Fortunately I have today and tomorrow off from work so I can rest. Thank you everyone for your prayers. Love and gratitude, Jane

I came today to speak of many lost children in my area and I found many new children taken here also. Please god keep all of our (gods and ours) children safe and healthy. We have lost many children this week to shootings, car accidents and a 4 yr old that got ran over by accident by a truck. Devastating! Please also god help parents to keep a good eye on their children now that the weather changes to the better, and all drivers to be careful. You know Man made this wonderful piece of machinery that gets us from place to another and it can be a killing machine also. Please take the time needed and don't drink and drive. There was also an accident where a pregnant woman could have gotten hurt and injured her baby but the angels guided her between two poles instead of into either one of them or into the big ditch or into the house. I hope that she now knows that her and her baby are more important than "being late for work" like she said. Please god help those families that have lost a child.
Jimmy is doing good and has 50 days clean. Thank you for your prayers.
The story of Bob is wonderful. I have prayed for him . What a great way to go to heaven. wow!
God bless all the mothers and parents- caregivers here and give them the peace that they need to continue without, Amen.

Dear Chris,
I say AMEN to your prayer for the safety of our children, and comfort for those who are now grieving. I have CNN on right now and have just learned of the shootings at Virginia Tech. Please God comfort those 22 families and students involved. I pray for those 21 students that are injured, that you hand will heal them. Father, I especially pray for the parents of that young gunman. I know there won't be many praying for them, but I pray for their safety. I pray that when the sense of isolation hits them you will reveal your presence to comfort them. Father, I know this was such an evil act, I pray that you turn it around for good. I can't imagine any good will come, but with you all things are possible.

Sorry Chris, I kinda of left you. I thank God that Jimmy is doing so well. I may have missed it, but did he get his job back? Love, Jane

Dear Chris,
I just visited your Stephanie's memorial page. The picture with her in the white dress, really does look like an angel. She is so beautiful. Is that her daughter that she is holding? Love, Jane

Dear Charlene,
Yes, prayers for safe travel and sorry to read that about your Landlady, that's so nice of you and your hubby to drive there and see her, tend to her. Yes, may you also have a wonderful visit,
Much love & Hugs,
Sandy

Oh, dear Jane, I'm sorry to read you're ill again, I pray the antibiotics are working and that it is a virus that won't cause a flare-up of your lupus. Rest if you can, take it easy and know that my love and prayers are with you,
Much love & Hugs,
Sandy

Our dear Chris,
YES, I second the AMEN to your prayer for all children, it seem's we're always hearing of some tragedy, regardless of where we live.
OMG, that's wonderful about Jimmy, bravo to him and you must be so proud of him, righly so, :) Continued prayers that God give's him the strength to take it one day at a time,
Much love & Hugs,
Sandy

I know we're all so saddened and heartsick over the magnitude of the tragedy that occured yesterday at Virginia Tech. 33 lives taken and 15 injured, some critically. The ripples of this will be felt for quite some time, especially for the families affected and also for society at large.
It's impossible for us to make any semblance of sense out of this, I can only pray as you did Jane that God bring's something good out of it. My heart and prayers are with the families who lost their loved one yesterday, Parents, Siblings, Grandparents, etc., friends, who will be forever changed by this. I cannot judge the student who caused this carnage, I can only ask for God's great mercy upon him and leave it at that. And yes, his Parents are also in my prayers.
I can't watch too much coverage of this, I was glued to CNN yesterday but it affect's me deeply and I haven't watched any of it today. I know that our God, perfect in love and mercy will be with those families as they walk that dark valley and I take comfort in that. I also take comfort for the families sake that so many, many people from around the World are praying for them.
That's all I can say for now,
Sandy

Hi Everyone, ~ just a short note to say I join all of you in praying for the victims, their families, and the entire Virginia Tech family. I also pray for the student who caused this great loss and for his entire family. We will never have all the answers. All we can do is pray and ask God to comfort all who are affected by this great tragedy, near and far; and I believe that includes all who have lost a child, other loved one or dear friend. Again, all are in my heartfelt prayers.
Love to all,
Verna

Jimmy did not get his job back. He has a part time job now and is looking for another. Yes I am proud of him. Out of the darkness comes good. This is gods way. I also prayed for the student that was so mentally ill that he could comit such an act. No the little girl is her niece who she spent alot of time with there are three of them one boy and two girls. It was our county fair parade picture and it made the front page of our local paper. She had no children. But I share my children with Mikes family.
You guys must have been praying for me again because I have been at such PEACE lately. I feel good about my mom being with my dad. And I feel them both with me often and Stephanie makes herself known to us quite often. I have one of those stories to share with you. I have been wearing a leather belt that was Steph's but it's getting pretty worn and is in need of repair. I went to our local harley Davidson store and asked about someone that sews leather. I told them that it was sentimental and why it was. When I left the store feeling good I started my car and the song playing was "Imagine" by mercy me that was played at her funeral and I have not heard it in along time. I have learned to just smile and say HI to her. I miss her but feel good that they are near me always. Love Chris.

Hi Miss V! Always nice to see a post from you, :). Hope you're doing well.
Yes, we all join in prayer for the tragedy, its the very best thing we can do for everyone involved, as we hear more news coming available about it all. Andy you're always in mine,
Lots of love & Hugs,
Sandy

Hi our dear Chris,
Glad to read that Jimmy has found some part-time employment, I pray that he find's a good job, with God leading the way for him.
I pray for everyone here everyday and I know I'm not the only one, so the wonderful peace that you're feeling is no doubt the result of everyone's prayers, including your own, thank you Lord! I know you've been having a hard time these last few months, so to experience Peace now is definitely a wonderful gift from God, happy for you!
Oh, I love getting signs too and your's was a beautiful one from Stephanie, yes, it make's us feel so good to know they are with us, even though we miss them so, so much,
Much love & Hugs,
Sandy

Hi Everyone,
This is my cry for help. All I can say is I can't stop crying and I think I'm just so totally exhausted. My work situation is horrible right now. Love, Jane

Oh, our dear Jane, I'm so sorry to read that! Prayers going out right now that the situation is turned around for you, God love you.
Thanks so much for letting us know,
Much love & Hugs,
Sandy

God, Please give Jane strength. She needs your love and attention now. God bless! Chris

Hi Family,

Thank you everyone for your prayers. I'm dealing with some pretty big abandonment issues, which was triggered by several awful days at work, where I felt really abandoned. Didn't know that until God showed me the other night. I know I have discussed this before here, so I'm not going into detail again. Suffice to say sometimes that onion never seems to peal away.

I don't know how many of you watched Crossroads tonight. I cried most of the way through it, even the commercials. However, when Bruce himself spoke at the end it was overwhelming for me. He stated his faith gave him no choice but to forgive the young man responsible for the deaths of his wife and daughter. If he could forgive that, who am I to hold on to unforgiveness? Very powerful movie and I was surprised the network allowed Bruce to speak of his faith, since there was no message of it in the movie. Anyone else have any thoughts about it? Love and gratitude, Jane

Well hello stranger! I thought we'd lost you to the Grief & Loss Board (I check it out once a week to see what the Community is talking about) and saw your posts over there :)
You're very welcome, I hope the prayers helped. That's too bad our dear Jane about those issues coming to the forefront again, I pray that God help's you peel those layer's slowly so that in time they are finally put to rest for you.
No, I didn't watch the Movie, it was such a glorious weekend here, summer weather, so we stayed out and enjoyed it to the last :). It sound's as though you really enjoyed it though, with a theme of forgiveness in it, who's Bruce?
Much love & Hugs,
Sandy

Hi ALL!
I didn't watch the movie because my hubby had control of the remote; it looked like it would be really good, though, and I'm sorry that I missed it.
JANE, I'm glad that you're doing better; it's hard to learn from our 'lifelessons' isn't it? I've had to deal with some of that already this morning, and confess and repent so my Heavenly Father could help me start anew this morning. I won't go into the details, but it's something that creeps into my thoughtlife every once in a while and it's been a long while since it's come back to affect me.
We got back from our trip to New Mexico about 2 p.m. Sat. afternoon; I've been so tired that I've napped off and on while going through the mail! LOL! I haven't even started on the unpacking and laundry yet, but that's on my schedule for today; at least I want to get started on it today. Our landlady was SOOOO glad to see us! When I first saw her, I could tell that she'd lost a LOT of weight since last June. After talking with her a while, I learned that she was still grieving for her husband and had just lost her appetite and 'drive' since he has been gone. She's diabetic and hadn't been eating right for several months; hence, the dizzy spells and her fall that broke her hip. We left here on Sunday around noon and arrived in Albuquerque on Monday around 3 p.m. Mountain Time. We didn't go see her until Tuesday morning and she was so excited that she was already up and dressed when we got to the hospital at 8 a.m. I think we did her some good because she seemed to have better appetite by Wednesday evening and ate everything on her tray that night and the next day. I've called her twice since we've been home and she still has her appetite back. I'm hoping and praying that she keeps it. She's supposed to go home tomorrow and a lady friend of hers will be staying with her to help her for a few weeks. We got to drive around in Albuquerque each day while she was doing her rehab exercises and it was very interesting to see the sites there. Then we would go back to see her in the afternoons and spend the evening with her. She was sad to see us go, but going home herself will be something for her to look forward to. That's the first time we've driven out there since our trip with Carey Grace and her cousin in 2004. It brought back a lot of memories! The first night we stayed in a motel in western Oklahoma and ate at the motel dining room the next morning. I think all motels have the waffle irons now and a lady was having trouble figuring out how to 'work' it. My hubby was explaining how to pour the batter in, etc. and I had to tell her that he wouldn't even know that if our granddaughter hadn't taught him how to do it. That started the tears big time, remembering how she made the waffles for all of us on our trip through Texas in 2004. She burnt her finger once and I wish I had paid more attention and 'babied' her more. I can't even stop the tears now since I'm remembering and thinking about it. But I know that these tears are cleaning me out and are good for me to express. You all have helped me SO MUCH! by teaching me to let it all out when I need to and not holding it in. Everything was better after that and we had some good laughs with our landlady about memories of the kids when we visited her and her husband in 2002 and 2004.
Gotta go! I hear that laundry calling my name! :o)
It's good to be home and back among my sisters again.
Love and (((HUGS))),
Charlene

I just found out that my mother is having cataract surg. on Wed. and she'll probably be staying here after her surg. I'd appreciate your prayers for her (and me). Thanks!
Love and (((HUGS))),
Charlene

Hi Everyone,

Boy, do I have to be careful. Big sister is looking over my back! LOL No fear Sandy, you won't lose me here. This is a place where I know that prayers are being said. It's just that sometimes I'm not sure what's appropriate to post here. If I just want to vent I use the boards. And there were a couple of days I was pretty quiet there also. Actually, I found the coping boards when months ago you asked us to join Amy's DG. I don't know if or where she is posting because she sort of dropped out of the DG. But I did meet people there who asked me to join them on the boards. Really though, I like the fact that you have been reading my posts elsewhere, so you know how to most appropriately pray for me. And that's what I need the most now. I must have one huge onion to peal!

Charlene, so glad your trip was good and that you're back with us. Yes, when emotions catch us off guard, it's always best to release them if we can. When things were so bad at work, only one customer saw me cry, and that's because she was so kind! Otherwise, I either held it together or walked away for a minute. During these times what I hold on to is the hope/reality that through these rough periods, I am being conformed more into the image of Jesus. Sometimes during the pain I lose that focus, then I can sink very quickly. So when I put a general help cry out, it's usually during those times. I know that I'm sinking, and can no longer focus. For me that is a very scarry place to be. I have spent about 10 years there and never want to repeat that. Sometimes personal growth is relatively easy and exciting, other times it is extremely painful and the excitement happens when we look back and put everything into perspective.

Charlene, my ex husband just had cataract surgery and he was angry with himself that he put it off for so many years. He had to make the choice of giving up his licence or have the surgery, since the cataracts caused him to be legally blind. Scarry things was it took a week to get him to surgery and he drove the whole time, only during the day because he does have a night restriction. Now after less than a month he sees clearly and will not have that night restriction on his licence. I will be praying for your mother, both for a successful surgery and for a short recovery period. Somehow, I'm sensing to pray either for a deeper bond or a new beginning for both you and your mother while she is recovering with you. Don't know if that means anything to you.

I see that I have begun to ramble. So thank you Sandy for watching over my shoulder, and everyone who is praying for me. Chris I pray things are still going well with you and Jimmy. Selva, I pray life has calmed down, now that most people have their taxes filed. Kathy, you're still in my prayers, and you're missed here. Verna, thank you for all your words of wisdom. We desparately need them. Anyone that has recently posted and I forgot, I'm sorry. Love and gratitude to all, Jane

Hi Again,

For those who don't know Crossroads is story based on true events. It's about a man (Bruce) who lost his wife and daughter to a terrible auto accident. He actually saw his loved ones burn in the van. At first, the police department called it an accident and his wife was responsible. Bruce and his sons wouldn't accept that. So Bruce hired an attorney to look into all the facts. They discovered a young man (Justin) was drag racing and that caused the accident. At first Bruce was out for justice for his wife and daughter, and wanted this young man put away for 30 years. However, he had a face to face meeting with Justin and discovered Justin wasn't the monster he thought he was. Half way through the trial Bruce asked the DA to make a deal with Justin. If Justin changed his plea to guilty and would talk to a high school he would only serve 15 yrs. At the end Bruce again went to the DA right before sentencing and asked that the charge be changed so it wouldn't be a felony and Justine wouldn't have to serve anytime in prison. The real power of forgiveness was shown at the end. The part where you have to read the follow up. Bruce and Justin are still going to schools and Justin is still telling his story, even though his community service time is over. The students are hearing first hand from the victim and the offender of the dangers of drag racing. After the movie the real Bruce states that his faith required him to forgive Bruce. What really hit me was because Bruce chose to forgive Justin, many lives may be saved because the students really listened and received Justin's story. The movie is available at Hallmark stores, and I'm sure soon will be available to rent. The book is already out. Hope I didn't ruin it for anyone by giving a short version of it, but it is a very powerful story. Love, Jane

I taped it and watched it the next day. Yes very good, I'm going to make my son watch it (the hot rod). That was a good short version. The beginning of the accident was so strong I sat on the edge of my seat with every muscle clenched tightly. I may have to go back and watch it again (with the comercials!) My daughter told me they were good and I fast-forwarded through them. I will watch it again.