Tuesday, October 18, 2011

A Mother's Heart....


For those of you who attended the women's retreat at Alton Bay, this is a post from Jody, the mom of Rachael whose testimony I shared with you.  If you have a child going through a difficult time, listen to this mother's heart.  Pray! Trust God! Act when He prompts you!  Watch for the miracle!
 
I don’t normally post on here but as I reflect on the date today, I am so thankful and have to share this. Three years ago, I had just flown into Monroe, Louisiana, to see our daughter, Rachael. We had been out of contact with each other for over 5 months. We had been told the week before that Rachael’s life was becoming very dangerous with her choices and the drugs she was using. As I sat out ...in front of the restaurant where she was working, I took a moment to reflect on why I was there. Because of the phone call the week before, I knew immediately that I was to come and love on her unconditionally. We were done with all of the screaming, the groundings, the rejections, and all of those hurts. God had been doing a work in me and now it was time for me to show Rachael God’s love....through me. As I sat in my car, I received a phone call from a good friend, Deenah Findley. We had not talked in a while, but she was calling to check on me, and see how Rachael was doing. God is so good. He let Deenah call me and pray with me at the exact moment I was going in to see Rachael. I walked into the store and in the back was a thin and very hard-looking girl. MY BABY GIRL!!!! She saw me and the look on her face was priceless!!!!!!! The biggest smile and a look of relief on her face. We hugged and cried and I shook all over as we held each other for minutes. Priceless!! She took a break and we sat and talked. As I looked at her arms, there were bruises and marks from needles. Hard to take in, but I was there to love on her unconditionally!!! I was there to let her know of our love for her, and God’s love, BUT if she did not make some definite positive changes in her life, that her life would be taken from her. It was very heartbreaking. There are not words enough to describe how difficult it was to say goodbye to her every day, not knowing what that evening had in store for her. Each night as I was preparing to go to bed, as dusk came over that city, I could feel a heaviness like no other as evil began their practices under the cover of darkness. Sounds spiritual and all? Yeah, it was.....you can only read this and wonder, but I assure you, it was there and it was powerful. Everyday, for 4 days,I would see Rachael, and share my concerns and tell her how much we loved her, and that God loved her. She felt so unworthy, so undesirable. The last day came, and we said our goodbyes. I did not know.....AT ALL....if I would ever see my “baby girl” again, but I was confident in what God had done in MY life. He allowed me to love her, to love her unconditionally.....like He does for us. I was victorious in that strength. I was victorious every night knowing that evil was all around my daughter, but I could trust in the one who was with her in the midst of all of that evil. It took 9 more months for Rachael to realize that God was the absolute answer. She finally came to the end of herself, and it was not death, but it is LIFE. This past week, Rachael, was in Nashville at the Mercy Ministries Home giving her testimony of God’s faithfulness in her life. I wanted to take today and sound out my testimony of God’s faithfulness of praying parents, but more so, that in the midst of this storm, Anthony and I, chose to be obedient and to trust God with our daughter, to love her, and to let Go and to let God have his plan. I am so thankful for that today.

Wednesday, October 12, 2011

Eyes Wide Open

Today started like a normal day.  Ed was scheduled to go to a Home Depot project site - translation: a community work project. They were going to paint a Veteran's facility in East Liberty.  As I got ready to go to work, I said, "Have a great day, today, Babe.  This just may be a divine appointment."  Well....around 1:00 I got a call from Ed.  The first words out of his mouth were, "It WAS a divine appointment!"  He sounded so excited and so animated.  It ends up that he was assigned to a Homeless Veterans Facility. Not only that but the guy he was working with from Home Depot had once been homeless and had gone through the Veteran's program.  WHAT AN AMAZING DAY.  He was able to speak to the Director and connect in ways that we will be able to volunteer.  Ed may have an opportunity to do some interning there for his MA.  This place has a drop in center (those who know us, know that that is our dream) where they can shower, watch TV, do laundry, get a meal.  They also have a facility where those who have jobs can live to transition from homelessness to living freely.  They take classes on computer, resume writing, interviewing, managing finances and there are programs for those addicted to alcohol or drugs. We have been seeking God for direction since several homeless ministry doors have closed.  The passion is still there for us, we just needed God to show us where.  It never ceases to amaze me that when we have our eyes open to the things of God, He will allow us to glance through HIS.  Today, Ed's eyes were wide open, and he experienced the words of the song, "...give me your eyes for just one second. Give me your eyes so I can see......give me your heart for humanity....."  We are so excited about the lives we may come in contact with.  AND Ed's coworker is going to spend time with us helping us understand what it truly is to be homeless.  We see God in this.....now we pray that He will continue to lead us to where He desires us to be!  Can't wait to see what happens tomorrow!!!