Last week was an insane week at work as we prepared the mailouts of the North American/Annie Armstrong Easter Offering material. (More about that at a later date.) On Friday, we had a Christian school group to come help us with stuffing envelopes for our 250ish churches. In the midst of the craziness in the basement, someone came down and told me I was needed upstairs. I headed upstairs and there on my desk was a beautiful little arrangement of small roses, carnations, and greenery! I wondered, who in the world sent this? I opened the card and it read, "Happy Valentine's Day, We love you! Daddy, Mama, Christy, Nate, Rosalyn, Katie, and Knox"!!! I have a precious family who thought of me in such a special way! As soon as I can upload pictures to my computer, I will let you see my wonderful surprise! My camera/computer are not coorperating...
I pray you had a wonderful Valentine's Day in however you spent your day!
Smelling the roses...
Sunday, February 15, 2009
Update on my family
Thanks for praying and please continue to!
My grandmother has gone back to the nursing home and went right to sleep when they got her settled! The pneumonia has cleared, so now we'll wait and see how she does with eating normally. Mom will go the nursing home tomorrow to sign some papers about no more hospitalization, etc. Mom wonders if she got her answer from Murie last night as she had to "fight" with her to not pull the feeding tube out. The hosptial had her hand restrained.
My grandmother may realize more than we think she does!
Dad is feeling better, as he went to get a powerful shot the other day! Knox is slowly improving and my sister, Christy, thought she was getting the flu, but after some sleep, she is some better, but still fighting a cold. I had a relaxful Saturday and Sunday and am looking forward to a day off tomorrow as it's Family Day in Alberta!
My grandmother has gone back to the nursing home and went right to sleep when they got her settled! The pneumonia has cleared, so now we'll wait and see how she does with eating normally. Mom will go the nursing home tomorrow to sign some papers about no more hospitalization, etc. Mom wonders if she got her answer from Murie last night as she had to "fight" with her to not pull the feeding tube out. The hosptial had her hand restrained.
My grandmother may realize more than we think she does!
Dad is feeling better, as he went to get a powerful shot the other day! Knox is slowly improving and my sister, Christy, thought she was getting the flu, but after some sleep, she is some better, but still fighting a cold. I had a relaxful Saturday and Sunday and am looking forward to a day off tomorrow as it's Family Day in Alberta!
Saturday, February 14, 2009
Prayer for my family
Just writing to ask you to pray for my family. My grandmother Geneva (mom's mother) has been in the hospital since last Monday with aspiration pneumonia. This is caused by food going into her lungs. She is not able to swallow correctly. "Murie", as we call her, has Alzheimer's and has been in the nursing home over a year. The hospital has not given her any food via mouth since she was admitted and my mother fears that she will lose that function. The doctor wants to make sure the pneumonia is cleared. Murie currently has a feeding tube through her nose and we were told that it would only be temporary. Mom is now wondering if the doctor is going to tell them differently.
My grandfather passed away in '86 and Murie remarried in '94 to a wonderful man Gene who has been a God-send in her illness. He and my mom have been taking turns at the hospital. Pray that my mom and Gene will have wisdom in making the right decisions. My grandmother has really not spoken in over 2 years and she isn't very mobile.
Also, my dad has a terrible cold, as well as my almost one-year-old nephew Knox, and my sister! I, too, am developing a cold! Pray that all will be healed and no one else will get sick.
We are trying to trust God at this time and know that He knows best. I really don't know how to pray, but Mom says to pray that He will wrap His arms around us at this time. It's difficult for me to be so far from family at times like this, but I'm trusting God that He has a reason!
Thanks for your love, care, and prayers!
My grandfather passed away in '86 and Murie remarried in '94 to a wonderful man Gene who has been a God-send in her illness. He and my mom have been taking turns at the hospital. Pray that my mom and Gene will have wisdom in making the right decisions. My grandmother has really not spoken in over 2 years and she isn't very mobile.
Also, my dad has a terrible cold, as well as my almost one-year-old nephew Knox, and my sister! I, too, am developing a cold! Pray that all will be healed and no one else will get sick.
We are trying to trust God at this time and know that He knows best. I really don't know how to pray, but Mom says to pray that He will wrap His arms around us at this time. It's difficult for me to be so far from family at times like this, but I'm trusting God that He has a reason!
Thanks for your love, care, and prayers!
Sunday, January 4, 2009
A Collage of our Trek Across Canada
I'm experimenting with Picaso and trying to show a lot of pics at once. This is a start for me and will give you a glimpse into our (Becky and me) trip across Canada in August. It was probably the experience of a lifetime for both of us and I will blog about it soon enough. If you click on the picture, you can see it better. Oh, you might notice a couple of pics of a turkey. Those are not from our trip, but from my August trip to a NAMB writer's conference in Georgia and I thought I had taken them out of the collage. Oh, well! Anyway, the NAMB building is surrounded by woods and this turkey kept making a visit.
Sunday, December 14, 2008
A Deep Freeze
Well, winter has arrived in Calgary! This is the second Sunday in a row with snow, snow, snow. The snow started last Sunday during church. It wasn't forecasted, so we were taken by surprise. I sat in a Sunday School class and watched the snow falling outside. The fresh fallen snow is beautiful and the untouched snow always reminds me of God's beauty and purity! Thankfully, it wasn't terribly cold last weekend. Boy, has that changed! Another winter storm hit Friday and I actually left work early. I knew I better get home when I could, as my car had been giving me problems. I will have to get winter tires! It's these times when I have to ask God to remind me of the calling He has placed on my life to be here...
The snow came and came and came, as well as falling temps. Calgary hasn't seen this much snow in awhile, especially in December. It will definitely be a White Christmas here! The temps have been sitting at -25C/-15F or lower and that's not counting a much lower windchill!! Brrrrr....
Needless to say that I have been hibernating all weekend, though I did venture out for church with the couple I am staying with. I am hoping my car cranks in the morning! It is to be bitterly cold for a few more days.
Poated above are a few photos of the beautiful snow covered trees outside the office. The trees were just beautiful one morning! The sun wasn't fully up yet, so it made for an even prettier sight.
Speaking of snow, how crazy that parts of the Southern US had snow last week! I couldn't believe it when my folks called and told me. Mom headed for work, but had to turn around. That's two snowfalls in less than a year! Dad said, "I think we must be in Canada."
FYI: You know it's extremely cold when you walk outside and your nose hairs freeze!
Thursday, October 23, 2008
Prayer for Friends
We never know what life will throw us.
I found out last week that a dear friend in PEI is in the hospital with some psychiatric issues. Please pray for her healing! Barbie is one of my closest friends and we've traveled a journey together since June 07. We have a special bond and it was very difficult on both of us when I left. I know God is in control and He will heal her!
Just this past weekend, a precious woman in my life passed away from a short, but aggressive form of cancer. Karen Harris, in Vancouver, was called Home and we'll celebrate her life this Saturday. It was her daughter, Becky, who traveled with me across North America. This family is so very precious to me and took me in as one of theirs 10 years ago. I will write more about Mom Karen at a later date...It is all surreal for me. Please pray for the family and friends at this time. All were trying to adjust to the news of the cancer and death came so soon. She was diagnosed when Becky and I were on the road. Becky found out the day she got home and Mom Karen called me the next day. She had been undergoing chemo and radiation for just 2 weeks. Death is such an ugly thing, but praise God that we have victory in Jesus!
If there's one thing that God is teaching me it is that LIFE IS SHORT AND FRAGILE! We can't take anything for granted. I could not imagine going through this time without the Lord. How do folks cope without Him? If you are reading this and you've not made Jesus the Lord of your life and accepted His forgiveness for your sins, so you can spend eternity with Him in Heaven, I pray you will! Life won't be perfect, but God will be with you each step of the way!
I'll be in Vancouver from Friday-Monday. Pray that it will be a sweet time with the family and friends and that I'll grieve as I need to.
I found out last week that a dear friend in PEI is in the hospital with some psychiatric issues. Please pray for her healing! Barbie is one of my closest friends and we've traveled a journey together since June 07. We have a special bond and it was very difficult on both of us when I left. I know God is in control and He will heal her!
Just this past weekend, a precious woman in my life passed away from a short, but aggressive form of cancer. Karen Harris, in Vancouver, was called Home and we'll celebrate her life this Saturday. It was her daughter, Becky, who traveled with me across North America. This family is so very precious to me and took me in as one of theirs 10 years ago. I will write more about Mom Karen at a later date...It is all surreal for me. Please pray for the family and friends at this time. All were trying to adjust to the news of the cancer and death came so soon. She was diagnosed when Becky and I were on the road. Becky found out the day she got home and Mom Karen called me the next day. She had been undergoing chemo and radiation for just 2 weeks. Death is such an ugly thing, but praise God that we have victory in Jesus!
If there's one thing that God is teaching me it is that LIFE IS SHORT AND FRAGILE! We can't take anything for granted. I could not imagine going through this time without the Lord. How do folks cope without Him? If you are reading this and you've not made Jesus the Lord of your life and accepted His forgiveness for your sins, so you can spend eternity with Him in Heaven, I pray you will! Life won't be perfect, but God will be with you each step of the way!
I'll be in Vancouver from Friday-Monday. Pray that it will be a sweet time with the family and friends and that I'll grieve as I need to.
Back in Alberta
Thanks to all of you who prayed for me during my immigration process and my time at home in Mississippi. I was at a point in my life that I had not been in before--totally not knowing what was going to happen. Now, I know that God is control, but when I thought I had it all figured out, I felt like my whole world was turned upside down--to a degree. I had no idea how long the process would take, but praise the Lord that the document I needed came in just over 2 1/2 weeks. God always goes before us and He knew that I needed that break. I had been running full steam since June and really was not ready to learn the ropes of a new job. Once something is behind you, you see what God was doing. I had a great time with my family and even ended up getting to take a beach trip with my sister and her crew. We had a blast and it was so relaxing.
I arrived in Calgary on September 26 and had no problems getting my work permit for two years. God is good! I was in training for just over 2 weeks and have been on the job 'by myself' for a week now. It is a huge transition for me, but I know that in due time that I will get used to things and make this ministry my own. I am working with a wonderful group of people and look forward to developing even more friendships. For whatever reason that God doesn't allow me to be closer to family in the States, He is allowing me to be back in the place that had become home to me after 5 1/2 years. I am thankful that this is not a totally new place for me and I know folks already. I was wanting to live in Cochrane, where the Convention office is, but I'm in Calgary, about 20 minutes from work. I've got a nice little basement suite with a kitchenette in the home of a couple who works at the Convention. It is a blessing and very reasonable rent.
The most challenging things for me are a more "structured" life and handling the finance part of my job. When I am frustrated with numbers, etc, I have to tell myself that we need money to advance the Kingdom, so keeping track of it is very important! I love the missions side of things--reading the stories from the field, getting things together for our International Mission Offering prayer guide. In conjunction with the material that the International Mission Board distribute, we do a Canadian guide/poster as well. We will focus on those Canadians on the field, whether they are directly with our Convention or have connections with Canada in some way. I look forward to seeing it all come together. I'm glad that there is another person who can design the prayer guide because that is not my area! I just provide the information and give my ideas! This will be my first big project, so you can pray for that. We'll get those ready for mailing out the first week of November.
It is wonderful to be in the Rocky Mountains again! Last week while driving to work, I had the moon in front of me, the mountains beside me, and the gorgeous sunrise colored sky behind me!! I spent most of last weekend in the mountains and it was just breathtaking. Oh, I also have the mountains in the distance at work! Who could not look at it all and say there's not a God?!
When you want to come visit, just let me know. I love taking folks to the mountains!
I arrived in Calgary on September 26 and had no problems getting my work permit for two years. God is good! I was in training for just over 2 weeks and have been on the job 'by myself' for a week now. It is a huge transition for me, but I know that in due time that I will get used to things and make this ministry my own. I am working with a wonderful group of people and look forward to developing even more friendships. For whatever reason that God doesn't allow me to be closer to family in the States, He is allowing me to be back in the place that had become home to me after 5 1/2 years. I am thankful that this is not a totally new place for me and I know folks already. I was wanting to live in Cochrane, where the Convention office is, but I'm in Calgary, about 20 minutes from work. I've got a nice little basement suite with a kitchenette in the home of a couple who works at the Convention. It is a blessing and very reasonable rent.
The most challenging things for me are a more "structured" life and handling the finance part of my job. When I am frustrated with numbers, etc, I have to tell myself that we need money to advance the Kingdom, so keeping track of it is very important! I love the missions side of things--reading the stories from the field, getting things together for our International Mission Offering prayer guide. In conjunction with the material that the International Mission Board distribute, we do a Canadian guide/poster as well. We will focus on those Canadians on the field, whether they are directly with our Convention or have connections with Canada in some way. I look forward to seeing it all come together. I'm glad that there is another person who can design the prayer guide because that is not my area! I just provide the information and give my ideas! This will be my first big project, so you can pray for that. We'll get those ready for mailing out the first week of November.
It is wonderful to be in the Rocky Mountains again! Last week while driving to work, I had the moon in front of me, the mountains beside me, and the gorgeous sunrise colored sky behind me!! I spent most of last weekend in the mountains and it was just breathtaking. Oh, I also have the mountains in the distance at work! Who could not look at it all and say there's not a God?!
When you want to come visit, just let me know. I love taking folks to the mountains!
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