A Life of Gratitude

Several years ago, I was diagnosed with a rare autoimmune disorder called Ankylosing Spondylitis. As part of my treatment plan, I receive infusion therapy every six weeks. There have been many times over the years when my insurance has denied paying for the infusion for various reasons. Each time that happens, it causes a lot of issues for me physically including a very serious, painful eye condition that can lead to blindness.  On Thursday I received a letter in the mail from my insurance company saying they were no longer paying for my infusions. Immediate panic set in because my appointment was scheduled for today, Monday. That gave me one business day to figure out how to keep my appointment from being cancelled. One business day is typically not nearly enough time to get insurance to do anything. I began preparing myself for the possibility of not being able to get my infusion and therefore, enduring the painful results of that.  Late Thursday night I decided to stop fret...

This morning, I came downstairs and discovered my English Bulldog had been sick in the night. As a result, he was lying in a huge mess inside his crate. I felt so bad for him! I immediately let him out of the crate, began washing my pup, and cleaning up the mess. It was so bad that I had to take his crate outside and throw his bed away. As I was cleaning, I noticed my almost one-year-old dog cowering in fear. He was ashamed and afraid because of what he had done. I wasn't mad at him, and it broke my heart to watch him cower in fear. He doesn't normally cower because he doesn't have a reason to fear us. In fact, that puppy is perhaps the most loved, spoiled dog in the world! The fear he felt seemed almost instinctual, not something we've instilled.  As I scrubbed the floor and assured my dog that I wasn't angry at him, it occurred to me that we often respond the same way when we find ourselves sitting in a huge mess we've created. Regardless of what caused the si...

Each day before my family begins homeschooling, we spend time reading a family devotional and praying over various things. One morning I requested prayer over an upcoming weekend healing retreat, hosted by Not Forgotten Ministries twice a year. I asked for protection over the volunteers and the participants. I explained that the enemy always tries to distract, deter, and destroy before a retreat. My kids remembered specifically a time when I broke my foot just hours before leaving for  the retreat. We also discussed other attacks of the enemy our family and those who attend the retreat have experienced.   Evan, my twelve-year-old son, volunteered to pray over our retreat. As he prayed, he said, “God, please put Your angels around everyone going to the retreat. We know You don’t put holes in Your angels so with them all around, nothing can get through and nothing can touch anyone coming.” I was so touched by his prayer and his faith.  Adults often pray with a little “g...

Last week our van was stolen in the middle of the day, right in front of a busy bowling alley parking lot. As we realized our van was missing and dealt with all that followed, I experienced an array of feelings. I was angry, frustrated, and worried, but still had a very real feeling of peace and assurance that everything would be ok. Just a couple nights later the police called, telling me to come pick up our van. They said they "caught the thug who stole it" and that he was currently in holding. When I went to pick the van up, the officers said that without a doubt, this man would be going to prison. Not only did he commit grand larceny by stealing our van, but he also used our van to haul a plethora of other items he had stolen out of other cars and homes throughout 5 or 6 counties. They actually found our van while he was actively burglarizing another vehicle. As I drove home that night, I realized, I was literally taking back what the enemy had stolen! Then, it occurred t...

Have you ever felt distant from God? If so, you're not alone. I've experienced that feeling and over the past few weeks, several of my friends have expressed feeling that distance as well. Even David, a man after God's own heart, felt distant from the Lord at times. He actually expressed feeling far from God many times, one is recorded in Psalm 71:12 (NIV) which says, " Do not be far   from me, my God;  come quickly, God, to help   me." But David also writes in Psalm 16:8 (NLT), " I know the   Lord   is always with me.  I will not be shaken, for He is right beside me."  So, if David knows that God is always with him, why does he also often feel distant from Him? In David's life and in ours, feeling as though God is far away, could result from many things. Sometimes distance occurs when we're distracted, feeling overwhelmed by life, going through difficult times, not spending time in the Word or in prayer, isolating ourselves from like-minded peop...

While visiting Mount Vernon a few years ago, I was awestruck as I walked through the museum, observing how George Washington's life played out. One statue was engrained into my mind as I read the plaque alongside it. It told of a battle on July 9, 1755, during the French and Indian War. Colonel George Washington was only twenty-three years old but was an officer, riding on horseback, delivering orders to the troops. Out of eighty-six officers, Washington was the only one not shot down.  In a letter to his brother following the battle, George Washington wrote, "By the all-powerful dispensations of Providence, I have been protected beyond all human probability or expectation; for I had four bullets through my coat and two horses shot under me, yet I escaped unhurt, although death was leveling my companions on every side of me!" At his young age Washington had no idea what his future held but this battle confirmed God's call on his life. As we look back on history, we ca...