Tag Archives: Jesus Christ

Advent Day 9: ANGELS

07 Monday Dec 2015

Posted by in Advent

≈ 2 Comments

Tags

, , , ,

My husband is a pastor. On Saturdays we serve at a mission church in a retirement/nursing home. On Halloween, the place was decorated with goblins, ghosts, skeletons, and all sorts of creepy demonic-looking decorations. There were coffins and skeletons, bowls of eyeballs, and spiders and webs hanging everywhere. I thought the holiday decor was odd and overdone in a place where people are living out their last days.

Now, in this season of Advent, this retirement/nursing home is decorated for Christmas with lots of greens and Santa Clauses. Not a nativity scene to be seen. The only “religious” Christmas symbolism I could find was the angel on top of the gigantic Christmas tree.

Angels…

IMG_0776 (1)

Photo by Holly Michael

Why is it that many accept the idea of angels, but don’t believe in God or accept Jesus Christ as the Messiah?

The angels did. They were present at the birth of Christ.

IMG_0774

Photo by Holly Michael

Angels are mentioned quite a bit in the Bible as messengers of God and beings created by God who worship God. God sent Angel Gabriel to Mary to ask her consent to be the mother of The Savior. Angels are always before the throne of God singing, “Holy, Holy, Holy.”

According to the Bible, angels are God’s messengers, God’s Warriors, God’s witnesses, God worshippers, and appointed by God to be guardians of men.

Below are some angel facts from Mary Fairchild on Christianity.about.com

Bible Facts About Angels

Angels are mentioned 273 times in the Bible. Although we won’t look at every instance, this study will offer a comprehensive look at what the Bible says about angels.

Angels were created by God:

Genesis 2:1
Thus the heavens and the earth, and all the host of them, were finished. (NKJV) 

Colossians 1:16
For by him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all things were created by him and for him. (NIV)

Angels were created to live for eternity:

Luke 20:36
…nor can they die anymore, for they are equal to the angels and are sons of God, being sons of the resurrection. (NKJV)

Revelation 4:8
Each of the four living creatures had six wings and was covered with eyes all around, even under his wings. Day and night they never stop saying: “Holy, holy, holy is the Lord God Almighty, who was, and is, and is to come.” (NIV)

Angels were present when God created the world:

Job 38:1-7
Then the LORD answered Job out of the storm. He said: “…Where were you when I laid the earth’s foundation? …while the morning stars sang together and all the angels shouted for joy?” (NIV)

Angels do not marry:

Matthew 22:30
At the resurrection people will neither marry nor be given in marriage; they will be like the angels in heaven. (NIV)

Angels are wise and intelligent:

2 Samuel 14:17
Your maidservant said, ‘The word of my lord the king will now be comforting; for as the angel of God, so is my lord the king in discerning good and evil. And may the LORD your God be with you.’ (NKJV)

Daniel 9:21-22
…while I was still in prayer, Gabriel, the man I had seen in the earlier vision, came to me in swift flight about the time of the evening sacrifice. He instructed me and said to me, “Daniel, I have now come to give you insight and understanding.” (NIV)

Angels have knowledge of, and interest in, the affairs of men:

Daniel 10:14
“Now I have come to explain to you what will happen to your people in the future, for the vision concerns a time yet to come.” (NIV)

Luke 15:10
“Likewise, I say to you, there is joy in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner who repents.” (NKJV) 

Angels are faster than men:

Daniel 9:21
… while I was still in prayer, Gabriel, the man I had seen in the earlier vision, came to me in swift flight about the time of the evening sacrifice. (NIV)

Revelation 14:6
And I saw another angel flying through the sky, carrying the eternal Good News to proclaim to the people who belong to this world—to every nation, tribe, language, and people. (NLT)

Angels are God’s Mighty Warriors

According to whyangels.com: “…angels aren’t just nice, kindly beings, they are also the mighty and powerful warriors of God. In fact there’s a dramatic description of a war in the spiritual realm between the Archangel Michael and God’s angels and The Devil/Satan/Lucifer and his rebellious angelic followers.”

IMG_0780

Photo by Holly Michael, Archangel Michael statue in the Michael Home

Though the fallen angel Lucifer was cast down to the earth, we do have hope. Jesus came into the world as an infant to be “Emmanuel- God With Us” and He will also come again: His second coming. And that is why we must prepare our hearts to receive Him, especially now during this season of Advent.

Hope you enjoyed the angel facts. The fact is that you can’t believe in angels and not believe in the God who created them. And if you believe in God, then you must accept the Son of God, Jesus, whom He sent as our Savior.  And the more we draw closer to Jesus, the more we are enlightened, blessed, and made whole.

Here’s an amazing song…Angels From The Realms of Glory…love this rendition.

 

The Devil Marked Him for Death…

07 Saturday Feb 2015

Posted by in Books, Christianity, Family, Holly Michael's New Releases, Holy Catholic Church - Anglican Rite, Inspiration

≈ 9 Comments

Tags

, , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

I haven’t yet blogged in detail about that one heart-wrenching experience during our return trip to the 2004 tsunami-ravaged villages in Nagapattinam, South India.

My husband and I encountered many difficult situations and joyous ones too, but I’m writing today about the one that still nearly buckles my knees when I continue to hear statements like…

“The devil marked him for death.”

Or when a doctor friend recently said, “It is a true miracle the he survived a multi-organ failure.”

Or the heart tugging statements, said in several different ways:

“I prayed fervently.”

“I shed so many tears.”

“The spirit led me to pray deeply, like I’d never prayed before.”

(statements by even those I hardly know)

It gives me goosebumps, even now, almost three months later, when I think about what happened…in the spiritual sense of it all.

So…going back to late November 2014

…after my husband got bit by an affected mosquito.

…after we finished our mission work in Nagapattinam (my husband growing weak and feverish toward the end.)

…after we rode a bus for 12 hours from the remote villages in Nagapattinam with my beloved nearly lethargic from a spiked fever.

…after we arrived in a Bangalore hospital, my husband dehydrated with 103 fever.

…after the diagnosis of Dengue Fever (my sister-in-law died from dengue fever two years earlier).

…after we were left alone in a room with very little care.

…after I continued my attempts to communicate with the hospital staff that I didn’t think it was normal that my husband had swung from extremely feverish to unresponsive and almost completely cold (and they insisted he was fine).

…after the admitting Hindu doctor woke up in the middle of the night from a dream worried about my husband (one of maybe 200 patients she’d admitted that day) and called the ICU doctor to check on him.

…after he was rushed to the ICU blood pressure dropping and multi-organ failure.

…after I was stopped at the double doors to the ICU by a guard.

….after I sat in the empty hospital room in South India, alone, unable to communicate properly with hospital staff and no phone or means of communicating with anyone but God.

….after I’d finally got onto a hospital computer and asked for prayers through Facebook.

Which leads me to what I believe…

I BELEIVE….

…the heavenly realm, which is all around us always, was busy that night.

…the Holy Spirit touched the hearts of many to pray fervently after hearing my plea on Facebook (as many have testified).

…the Devil had slated my husband (a Bishop in the Holy Catholic Church Anglican Rite) for death.

…the prayers of the saints and all of the faithful allow me now to praise God for his full healing.

…Facebook is awesome and faithful friends and family are amazing. (I love you all).

…God is great, all the time, always!

I chronicled this experience and so much more from our trip to South India in my book, TSUNAMI 2004 – Still Wading through Waves of Hope. I share about the people and villages we visited and those we helped after the  2004 Tsunami, and the experiences upon our return, ten years later.

Ten years ago, after a major fundraiser, we went to the most devastated impassable villages in South India. My husband had a fabulous idea of asking the village headmen (hubby speaks the native language) to bring the orphans to the local bank. We established Bank CD’s in their names, so that ten years later, they would have funds to begin their lives–marriage, college.

Given the arranging of marriages and that the value of women is based on their dowry, the idea paid off literally in dividends.

I share these “then and now” stories and our experience in greater detail in TSUNAMI 2004 – Still Wading Through Waves of Hope. A percentage of the proceeds from the sales will go to support our continuing mission work in India. 

Some of our “then and now” pictures (the book also has more picture)

2004 Nagapattinam Harbor

2004 Nagapattinam Harbor

harbor now

harbor now

Nambiar Nagar boatmen discouraged, not wanting to go back to the sea. Boats are all destroyed

We had given funds to a man who owned a boat repair business. He put 50 people to work after the tsunami. Above, then...and now.

We had given funds to the man above on the left of my husband (in the blue shirt/khakis). The man owned a boat repair business, decimated by the tsunami. With funds we gave, he put 50 people to work after the tsunami. Some, (above in boat), after losing loved ones to the sea, did not want to go out and fish again.

Two friends (orphans) we'd helped then, and below now...

Two friends (orphans) we’d helped then, and below now…

IMG_0158

IMG_0498

Some then photos….IMG_0975FH000002Long lines in Nambiar Nagar for foodIMG_0832Some now photos…

IMG_0111IMG_0142

Awestruck Sabeen looking at her picture then

Seeing herself in the photo from ten years ago

IMG_0615IMG_0203IMG_0580

Below, some of the orphans we helped then…Tsunami orphans 2004 who received CD Bank Accounts for approx. $230.And some of those faces now…
Tsunami orphans now

My deepest heartfelt thanks to all of you who helped with fundraising then and all of those who prayed for my husband and to those who also support my writing. Because of you all, we can continue to do the good works that the Lord has prepared for us to do and to go wherever and to whomever He leads us. 

*Special thanks to Roger Pierce, the husband of a Facebook friend, who happened to be in Bangalore, had been praying for my husband, and showed up at the hospital later and prayed with us. 

IMG_0668

To purchase Tsunami 2004 – Still Wading Through Waves of Hope (nonfiction)

Beautiful beach and sea

and

Crooked Lines (fiction), based on some tsunami experiences. (on sale for .99 Cents now)

France…a spiritually uplifting trip

10 Saturday Jan 2015

Posted by in Books, Christianity, Holy Catholic Church - Anglican Rite, Inspiration, Journeys: In Writing and Life, Photography, Travel

≈ 21 Comments

Tags

, , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Sad to hear the news of the terrorism in France. My husband and I were just there in November–in Lourdes, a few days stop-over our way to India. The visit was amazing and spiritually refreshing.

Given the sadness of the muslim extremist’s attacks on Paris, thought it would be a good time to share some photos of the beauty and spirituality of France, in Lourdes, about a seven hour drive south of Paris.

A view from the top of Chateau fort de Lourdes

A view from the top of Chateau fort de Lourdes and below, looking up at the castle.

IMG_0179

IMG_0369

More views from the top of the castle

More views from the top of the castle

climbing a steep staircase to the top of the castle

climbing a steep staircase to the top of the castle

Love the narrow, quiet streets. Me and My husband, Bishop Leo Michael

Love the narrow, quiet streets. Me and My husband, Anglican Bishop Leo Michael

Our wonderful friends, Elisa Amati and her husband Father Don Luca drove all the way from Northern Italy to join us. We had a blast!

Our wonderful friends, Elisa Amati and her husband Father Luca de Pero drove all the way from Northern Italy – about 15 hours drive – to join us. We had a blast!

Streets of France

Streets of France. Elisa had a map. We would find our restaurant!

My husband, Bishop Leo Michael, Me, Father Don Luca, and his wife, Elisa Amati at the Our Lady of Lourdes Grotto

My husband, Bishop Leo Michael, Me, Father Luca de Pero, and his wife, Elisa Amati at the Our Lady of Lourdes Grotto

Our Lady of Lourdes grotto was our planned destination and it was an incredible spiritual experience. More photos:

In 1858 Bernadette Soubirous, a 14-year-old peasant girl said that a "lady" spoke to her in the cave of Massabielle (a mile from the town) while she was gathering firewood with her sister and a friend. Similar apparitions of the alleged "Lady" were reported on seventeen occasions that year, until the climax revelation of Our Lady of the Immaculate Conception took place. Bernadette Soubirous was later canonized as a Saint, and many believe her apparitions have been validated by the overwhelming popularity and testament of healings claimed to have taken place at the Lourdes water spring.

In 1858 Bernadette Soubirous, a 14-year-old peasant girl said that a “lady” spoke to her in the cave of Massabielle (a mile from the town) while she was gathering firewood with her sister and a friend. Similar apparitions of the alleged “Lady” were reported on seventeen occasions that year, until the climax revelation of Our Lady of the Immaculate Conception took place. Bernadette Soubirous was later canonized as a Saint, and many believe her apparitions have been validated by the overwhelming testament of healings claimed to have taken place at the Lourdes water spring.

Bernadette

Bernadette Soubirous

Night at the grotto

Night at the grotto

An amazing blessing. Look to the left of the statue, considering the crevice a mouth. Do you see the face of Christ. We only saw this on our last night at the grotto

An amazing blessing. Look to the left of the statue, considering the crevice a mouth. Do you see the face of Christ? We only saw this on our last night at the grotto. Peace and Holy Spirit filled this beautiful holy place.

During one of the apparitions, Bernadette was told to by Our Lady "go drink at the spring and wash yourself there". Shortly after the first pilgrimages began Louis Bouriette was cured. He had lost his vision and washed in the miraculous water where he regained his vision.

During one of the apparitions, Bernadette was told to by Our Lady “go drink at the spring and wash yourself there”. At the time, the spot above place was nothing but a place in the dirt. Then, the spring miraculous bubbled up. Shortly after the first pilgrimages began Louis Bouriette was cured. He had lost his vision and washed in the miraculous water where he regained his vision. Through the years, many have been cured at the miraculous water of Lourdes. The water still runs and pilgrims can collect the water at faucets near the grotto.

The Basilica of Lourdes

The Basilica of Lourdes, built over the top of the grotto

IMG_0159

Where Bernadette was baptized

Where Bernadette was baptized

IMG_0291

My husband and Father Don Luca celebrating Mass.

My husband and Father Luca de Pero celebrating Mass

Father Don Luca and Elisa

Father Luca de Pero and Elisa

IMG_0354

IMG_0309

IMG_0286

IMG_0239

Saints everywhere :-)

Saints everywhere 🙂

IMG_0362

IMG_0366

IMG_0281

Father Don Luca and Bishop Leo Michael walking up the hills toward the stations of the cross

Father Luca de Pero and Bishop Leo Michael walking up the hills toward the stations of the cross

Speaking of the Stations of the Cross, I plan to write and publish a Stations of the Cross book using some of my photos from Lourdes. Really excited about that project.  I’m also working toward finishing my sequel to Crooked Lines. (below)

Beautiful beach and seaAfter we left Lourdes, we went to South India to visit the places and people we helped after the 2004 Tsunami. After returning home, I published my then and now book, Tsunami 2004 – Still Wading through Waves of Hope. Some fascinating stories and pictures from the time of the 2004 Tsunami and after. We’d helped more than two hundred orphans after a national fundraising event. It was really great to return ten years later and visit the people and places and write their stories. Tsunami 2004 is now available on Amazon in Kindle and in print.

While in India, on our follow-up trip, we faced a horrific experience when my husband contracted dengue fever from a mosquito bite and nearly died. But, then and now, we held onto those peaceful blessed days at Lourdes and the wonderful fellowship with Father Don Luca and Elisa. ***

bookFor this weekend Crooked Lines, my novel, is on sale for .99 CENTS. Here’s the blurb: On the shores of Lake Michigan, Rebecca Meyer seeks escape. Guilt-ridden over her little sister’s death, she sets her heart on India, a symbol of peace. Across the ocean in South India, Sagai Raj leaves his tranquil hill station home and impoverished family to answer a higher calling. Pushing through diverse cultural and religious milieus, he labors toward his goals, while wrong turns and bad choices block Rebecca from hers.
Traveling similar paths and bridged across oceans through a priest, the two desire peace and their divine destiny. But vows and blind obedience at all costs must be weighed…and buried memories, unearthed.

You Will Die. What Next?

12 Tuesday Aug 2014

Posted by in Christianity

≈ 24 Comments

Tags

, , , ,

untitled (6)Robin Williams is trending today. Sadly not because of his amazing talents, but as we all know by now, his sad death by apparent suicide.

He had me at Mork. I loved Mrs. Doubtfire, Good Will Hunting…the list goes on. Who didn’t love the funny man who was also a philanthropist, raising money for humanitarian causes.

Scanning Facebook and Twitter postings, I discovered two categories. Those saddened by the loss of the dear soul from this world and those wondering about his soul in the next world.

My husband and I often travel out west. Somewhere, I think on I-70, there’s a black billboard with white lettering that reads, “You Will Die. What Next?” I always say, “That’s the most profound faith statement that can ever be made.”

Ever wonder what’s next? Do you think about what happens to a soul of a person who takes their own life? Important topics to ponder. Can lead to questions that we all need to ask ourselves.

Some say, “God is mercy. Even though Robin took his life, he went to Heaven.” God is merciful, but the Bible also tell us that our salvation is our to work out, as Saint Paul says, “with fear and trembling.” Salvation isn’t an automatic given.

When my son was four years old, while in the back of the SUV, out of the blue he asked, “Mom, how do you get to Heaven.”

While I pondered how to answer this lofty question so a four year old would understand, he interrupted my thoughts and said, “Never mind, Mom. I know. Jesus comes and takes your hand.”
untitled (5)
I hope Robin Willams took Jesus’ hand and flew to Heaven. I hope he accepted Christ as his Lord and Savior, even in the last moment, like the thief on the cross next to Jesus.

I am not the judge of Robin Williams soul. But, however, when we die we will have to face one question. What next?

THE SHEPHERD’S SONG: The Writing Sisters Link Hearts Together with Psalm 23!

06 Tuesday May 2014

Posted by in Books, Christianity, Weekly Book Review

≈ 7 Comments

Tags

, , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Duffey_Myers300 (1)

I grew up reading Newberry winner Betsy Byars‘ books (the mom of these beautiful ladies on the left). Read them to my children, too. (I always liked the name Betsy. It’s my sweet daughters name!)

Imagine my excitement to discover the daughters of Betsy Byars-Betsy Duffey and sister Laurie Myers-had teamed up with their mother to write more children’s books and the two continued on as the “Writing Sisters.” They went on to become authors of more than thirty-five children’s novels.

NOW…GUESS WHAT?

Betsy Duffey and Laurie Myers (above left) have teamed up with Howard Books and have published their first book for adults, “THE SHEPHERD’s SONG,” an inspirational novel about second chances. LOVED IT! (See my review below).

The Shepherd’s Song: Follow the incredible journey of one piece of paper–a copy of Psalm 23–as it travels around the world, linking lives and hearts with its simple but beautiful message.

The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want. He makes me lie down in green pastures…

Shortly before a tragic car accident, Kate McConnell wrote down the powerful words of Psalm 23 on a piece of paper for her wayward son. Just before she loses consciousness, Kate wonders if she’s done enough with her life and prays, “Please, let my life count.” Unbeknownst to Kate, her handwritten copy of Psalm 23 soon begins a remarkable journey around the world. From a lonely dry cleaning employee to a soldier wounded in Iraq, to a young Kurdish girl fleeing her country, to a Kenyan runner in the Rome Invitational marathon, this humble message forever changes the lives of twelve very different people. Eventually, Kate’s paper makes it back to its starting place, and she discovers the unexpected ways that God changes lives, even through the smallest gestures. With beautiful prose evocative of master storyteller Andy Andrews’s The Butterfly Effect, this story will touch your heart and remind you of the ways God works through us to reach beyond what we can imagine.

WRITING SISTERS AUTHOR INTERVIEW

Holly: What inspired you to come up with this fantastic book idea?

Betsy & Laurie: The idea for The Shepherd’s Song began in a small coffee shop in Madison, Georgia, where we meet every week to write. That morning we prayed for God to reveal our next writing project. Up till that time we had written children’s books individually and together and we thought we had come to the coffee shop to plan our next children’s book.  Betsy had read the 23rd Psalm that morning in her quiet time that day. We had both committed our writing to God and began to think the Psalm would be a good subject for a book. The problem was we couldn’t see it as a children’s book. As children’s writers it was hard to imagine writing a book that was longer than 64 pages! We knew that we could only do it with God leading us. The more we talked about the idea the more excited we became and we finished drafts of the first two stories that day.

Holly: The characters and places seem so real. Tell me about your research?

Betsy & Laurie: The physical traits of the characters come from people that we see, a stranger on the street or people that we know. The emotions of the character come from our own feelings. Since we were writing about people in different cultures we used readers from each culture to guide us and help to stay true. The locations were fun to research. We used some familiar locations in the book, Laurie had recently visited Italy and Betsy lived several years in Turkey. The others we explored through video and pictures.

Holly: What is your writing strategy, working together as sisters?

Betsy & Laurie: We discovered early on that we had to have spiritual agreement to have unity on the page.  In collaboration there will be differences of opinion, which are good and bring growth and depth to the work.  It is in the resolution of the disagreements that our faith is exercised. We decided that we would never go forward in any area of writing or publishing without agreement.  We begin each writing session with prayer and are constantly submitting the work to God. Staying in harmony with God keeps us in harmony with each other.  We can do more together. As we constantly try to align our work with God’s will, we align ourselves with each other.

Holly: Besides your mom, which writers inspire the two of you?

Betsy & Laurie: We have been readers all our lives from our first book mobile! During the writing of The Shepherd’s Song two books stand out as significant. First, Andy Stanley’s Visioneering. We read and worked through this book together as we defined our vision for writing and learned how to work together. The second book was Mark Batterson’s Draw the Circle, The 40 Day Prayer Challenge. We used this devotion together for forty days to develop spiritual unity in our work. We also love to read for fun and are constantly sharing books as we meet each week. Christian classics and contemporary fiction are our favorites.

Holly: Next projects?

Betsy & Laurie: When we decided to write for God we chose a verse to be a mission statement for us: We will tell the next generation the praiseworthy deeds of the Lord. Psalm 78:4 We love using fiction to show how God works in the world and we are continuing to write using Scripture as a catalyst for change in our stories. Our next book focuses on the Lord’s Prayer and we are learning so much as we study and research this great prayer.

sheepMy review: Get ready for an inspirational journey across the world with The Shepherd’s Song, a well-crafted novel that uses the 23rd Psalm, written on a slip of paper, to bring well-developed characters and readers close to the heart of God. Like me, you’ll want to keep this captivating book on your nightstand with your Bible. After you read it, you’ll pick it up again and again.

The prose is exceptional. The characters, believable.  The plot, inspiring.

My blog’s theme is based on connections. I love how Duffey and Meyers used the 23rd Psalm to masterfully connect the characters across the globe.

Though the twelve stories are short, the writing sisters creatively and ingenuously draw the reader into the lives of seemingly real people. Their emotional journey becomes yours as you feel for them in their struggles and cheer them on when they grasp the love God expresses to them through the lines of the psalms.

The Shepherds Song is a great book to give as a gift or to use for a Bible study or book club discussion group. I can’t give it less than five stars!

So happy to share this blog about The Shepherd’s Song after Good Shepherd Sunday!

LINKS

www.WritingSisters.com

www.facebook.com/WritingSisters

The Shepherd’s Song

Miracle Mom Story

24 Thursday Oct 2013

Posted by in Family, Inspiration

≈ 30 Comments

Tags

, , , , , , , , , , , ,

Packing for a church visit to St. Peter’s Anglican in Albuquerque, New Mexico I was stressing over several chapters and a nonfiction proposal due to an editor in a few days. My husband assured me he’d drive there and back so I could write.

Then the phone rings.

My sister Jane.

Bad news.

Our mom had a A-Fib heart event that landed her in the ER, then the ICU. Jane said she was lucky to have survived because her heart had been pounding like crazy for too long. Here she is in the hospital:

mom

She looks happy and healthy, doesn’t she? Though the condition is chronic and she’ll have to take meds for life, the doctor said it’s a miracle she survived.

Miracle # 1

I spoke to my mom via Facetime. Jane sent the above picture, assured me she was fine and advised me to go ahead with my travels.

A few days after the event, the condition flipped and my mom’s heart went back to normal. No more meds. She’s fine.

Miracle #2

Then, that evening, my mother had a major stroke, was without speech and paralyzed. She was rushed to a larger hospital in Green Bay, given meds that they said could:

1. Kill her.

2. Heal her

2. Do nothing at all.

33% chance any one of those things could happen.

Thank God, the medicine worked.

Miracle #3

Here she is two days after her stroke, about to be released from the hospital:

mom1 Again, doesn’t she look happy?

The baby in her arms?

My youngest brother’s wife had a baby in the hospital the same day my mom was admitted (a hospital an hours drive from her home). Grandmother and grandson were released on the same day. A great-grandchild was born a day later.

Miracle # 4

Can you see God’s grace in all of this?

I phoned my mom yesterday, planning our visit home to Wisconsin. There was something different in her voice. A peacefulness I hadn’t heard in years.

When I asked her how she was feeling, she said, “In a lot of ways, better than before all of this happened. Not only physically, but something has changed in my heart…in ways I can’t even explain. All of this was meant to happen.”

The truth is, there have been family issues, wounds from the past plaguing her and our entire family.

My mother said that from her hospital bed she saw hugs between her children that she never thought she’d see.

My sister says she’s different. “Everything is different, ” Jane said. “You’ll see when you come home.”

Miracle #5

I haven’t been home for a very long time. We’re looking forward to going back.

Miracle #6

Trust

29 Thursday Aug 2013

Posted by in Christianity, Diabetes, Family, Football, Inspiration, Jake Byrne, Prayers Needed

≈ 16 Comments

Tags

, , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Proverb1Big dreamers must be equipped with bucket loads of trust; trust they will see their dreams to fruition. They need to mix that trust with hard work, confidence, and a little brain power, too. BUT the most important ingredient needed to bind all of this together to really whip that big dream into a reality you can sink your teeth into: God!

We must trust in God. Have confidence in God. And use the brain power He gifted us with to know that ultimately, we can do nothing without Him.

I never understand how people disregard the power and strength of God while struggling to make their dreams become reality. Last night, during a Bible study at our church, St. James Anglican, our facilitator, Dan Hartshorn, drew our attention to Isaiah 40:12 which describes God: Who has measured the waters in the hollow of his hand and marked off the heavens with a span.

Now, if you can measure the waters of the earth in the hollow of your hand and measure the heavens with the span of your hands, you have some really big hands! And these big hands are not only big, but loving hands. Why would we ever want to do anything without those big hands helping us? Seems pointless, really.

I’ve been working hard to finish a third novel and prepare for a very important writer’s conference. I’ve got really big dreams that I want to become reality.

My son Jake, a rookie in the NFL with the Houston Texans has big dreams too. He’s playing a very important pre-season game tonight (Texans vs. Dallas Cowboys) where he will be put in to play the entire game to really prove himself. Both of us realize that we need to rely on God’s power and strength so much now. Jake is a type one diabetic. He will surely need God’s strength tonight and always. Please pray for him. #89

BR-aibGCEAA-E60

Funny, but reading the above verse, verse 12 in Isaiah 40, I read a little lower to verse 27 and had to text it to Jake. It begins with God addressing Jacob, so appropriate for my Jacob, too: 27 Why do you say, O Jacob and speak, O Israel, ‘My way is hidden from the Lord, and my right is disregarded by my God’? 28 Have you not known? Have you not heard? The Lord is the everlasting God, the Creator of the ends of the earth. He does not faint or grow weary; his understanding is unsearchable.29 He gives power to the faint, and strengthens the powerless.30 Even youths will faint and be weary, and the young will fall exhausted;31 but those who wait for the Lord shall renew their strength, they shall mount up with wings like eagles, they shall run and not be weary, they shall walk and not faint.

Jake’s text response: “Love it! Thank you. I should be good to go for this one!!”

Yeah, I think we’ll all be good to go, trusting in our God.

Proverbs 3:5-6: Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways submit to him and he will direct your path!

And thanking God for daughter Betsy getting an internship this week. (below, left of big brother Jake)

557949_10200217333786269_1176007128_n

…and getting ready for the next football game. younger son Nick (University of Louisiana-Lafayette-Ragin Cajuns), also a tight-end, will play against the Arkansas Razorbacks this Saturday! We’re pretty excited about that, too! Go Nick!!!

headshot_1_Bryne,%20Nick%202013

untitled (9)

God bless you all and I really appreciate your prayers and support!

Pleasing Who?

04 Sunday Aug 2013

Posted by in Christianity, Inspiration, Writing

≈ 6 Comments

Tags

, , , , , , , , , , , ,

Kristen Lamb blogs about the pitfalls in our writing careers when we try to please everyone. She references Aesop’s Fable: The Man, the Boy and the Donkey. The moral of the fable, below, is worth considering in every aspect of our life.

First, here’s the Aesop’s Fable Kristen referenced: A Man and his son were once going with their Donkey to market. As they were walking along by its side a countryman passed them and said: “You fools, what is a Donkey for but to ride upon?”

So the Man put the Boy on the Donkey and they went on their way. But soon they passed a group of men, one of whom said: “See that lazy youngster, he lets his father walk while he rides.”

So the Man ordered his Boy to get off, and got on himself. But they hadn’t gone far when they passed two women, one of whom said to the other: “Shame on that lazy lout to let his poor little son trudge along.”

Well, the Man didn’t know what to do, but at last he took his Boy up before him on the Donkey. By this time they had come to the town, and the passers-by began to jeer and point at them. The Man stopped and asked what they were scoffing at. The men said:

“Aren’t you ashamed of yourself for overloading that poor donkey of yours and your hulking son?”

The Man and Boy got off and tried to think what to do. They thought and they thought, till at last they cut down a pole, tied the donkey’s feet to it, and raised the pole and the donkey to their shoulders. They went along amid the laughter of all who met them till they came to Market Bridge, when the Donkey, getting one of his feet loose, kicked out and caused the Boy to drop his end of the pole. In the struggle the Donkey fell over the bridge, and his fore-feet being tied together he was drowned.

After reading Kirsten’s blog, then reading this fable again, I considered that we should apply this lesson to all areas of our lives–especially today, on a Sunday, to our spiritual life.

Over the years, I’ve seen different church’s teachings swing in liberal directions because of the sway of society. Prayer books tossed and rewritten. Liturgy changed. Reverence to God diminished.

imagesCAFBP7I0The world has changed from how it was when I was a child. I’ve seen friends dump their entire belief system because they were told their thinking was “old-fashioned.” I once heard a grandmother say, “Well, I used to think that way, but now I go with the flow.” It made me sad to think a woman, so late in her life, would throw away what she’d believed for her entire life to “go with the flow.” I’m talking about moral teachings that society has maintained for….well….I guess since Jesus taught them to his disciples, or actually since Moses brought them down on tablets from Mount Sinai.

untitled (8)Not to say there wasn’t sin in the world since the beginning of creation, but for the longest time on earth, most people could agree on what was right and what was wrong.

I was raised in a conservative home. By the time I left home for college, I knew right from wrong. That didn’t mean I always did the right thing (I was a typical college kid) but when I did wrong, I certainly knew it.

imagesCA5ORRNF

Then, something happened to me during my first semester at college. I had a shift in my thinking. My professors challenged my beliefs by teaching moral relativism and all sorts of other nonsense. I thought I was gaining an open mind. I wasn’t. I was losing myself and giving up all that I’d learned in Sunday School, all that my grandparents and parents taught me. I was losing my groundedness and my faith.

imagesCAN0ZHHDA few years later, maturing and following Jesus’ teachings brought me back to my original belief system. Whew! (Thank you Jesus, for never letting go of me.)

imagesCAIY7KCL

And my lesson in this post is the same as Aesop’s with an added bit of wisdom: When in doubt about anything in your career or life, don’t be like the father and his boy in Aesop’s Fable. Seek the wisdom of God. Don’t follow what society dictates. Don’t always listen to your peers. Follow Jesus’ teaching. That way, you’ll never be carrying a donkey. untitled (2)

Have a great week!

imagesCA0M2UU0

NYT Best Selling Author Don Piper is coming to speak to us! “90 Minutes in Heaven” is an Amazing Story!

04 Tuesday Jun 2013

Posted by in Books, Holy Catholic Church - Anglican Rite, Inspiration

≈ 10 Comments

Tags

, , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

On his way home from a church conference in 1989, Don Piper’s Ford Escort was struck head-on by an 18-wheeler. He was killed instantly — pronounced dead by four sets of paramedics.

90 Minutes in Heaven - Don Piper crushed Car on Bridge insetBut God worked a miracle and sent Don back to a broken body. To date, 34 surgical procedures have taken place. He walks only as a result of miraculous and in some cases medically unexplainable circumstances. During the time he was dead, Piper was granted the extreme privilege of glimpsing Heaven itself.

Ninety minutes after dying, Don Piper came back to life where he faced a long and grueling recovery. Don travels across the country and around the world sharing his amazing story of hope and healing. His message is simple … We can have a better life now and an eternal life someday through faith in Jesus Christ! Don has appeared and shared his miraculous story in numerous national media outlets, including Fox News, CBN, “The Today Show” on NBC and Newsweek.

Here’s a video about his experience: 

And guest what? !!! DON PIPER has agreed to come to our little church in Kansas City!

St. James Anglican Church  (Holy Catholic Anglican Church-Anglican Rite) is pleased to announce best selling author and speaker, Don Piper, as its special guest on June 13, 2013 @ 12:00 noon or 7:00 pm.  

DPTo purchase 90 Minutes in Heaven, click here

To Purchase Heaven is Real, click here

To come and hear Don Piper’s talk, come to St. James Anglican church on June 13th. Yay!!!