We share for your encouragement!

Good morning and God's grace to each,

Thank you all for continuing to hold my Mom before Gods throne of grace in prayer. This email is to bring everyone up to date and guide our continued prayers. Again, I cannot thank you all enough for your prayers - PRAYER IS POWERFUL AND WILL MAKE ALL THE DIFFERENCE IN THIS SITUATION!

Due to complications from the emergency surgery to repair Moms perforated colon, combined with the forced inactivity of lying still in a hospital bed, fluid has gathered around the lungs and the abdomen, making breathing difficult. As Mom struggled to breathe it caused distress throughout her body. This is not conducive to healing, so the decision was made to put a breathing tube in. Mom is not unable to breathe on her own - she only requires assistance to breathe sufficiently at this time. The fluid is being drained (this very moment as I write this! They've sent me out and are doing the procedure) and Mom is mildly sedated for the time being.

By alleviating the stress of trying to breathe properly, it allows Moms body to concentrate on healing the more needful issues from the surgery, so this is not a setback, but a helpful procedure to assist her on the road to recovery. Yesterday, at her alert and awake period, Mom and I had a frank discussion, and she expressed her great desire to FIGHT to heal and return to an active life! Yea, Mom!! She has not given up and neither should we! Her days are numbered by her Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, and she believes her "homecoming" is NOT YET. I agree with her, and will continue to "fight" by her side through my prayers.

She is in a great deal of pain and that is extremely difficult to watch, however, we have been forewarned the healing process and rehab WILL take 2-4 months. Progress, any progress, is STILL progress. She is moving forward, not backward. Should that change, my brothers, sisters and I are in agreement about how that will be handled according to Moms wishes.

Thursday evening, I will be flying back to Colorado, as there is nothing more productive I can accomplish here in Florida at this time. (and I miss my husband!) When she is released from the hospital, it will be to a Rehab Center, which my brother and I are going to look at several and choose one this afternoon. Please pray Gods guidance in our decision there! When Mom is ready to return to her home, we'll look at where things are and what her needs are and make decisions further at that time.

I would request your prayers in several areas:

FIRST of course, Moms peace in Christ, and His healing hand working in her favor throughout the process - even to miraculous instantaneous healing - He is a healer, and could certainly decide a miracle in this situation!

SECOND the decisions we make as a family to be guided by the Holy Spirit. In this prayer, we need also prayer for peace between the family members - not all are believers, and we need to be sensitive to ALL her children/grandchildren- giving precedence to our Soon Coming King Jesus our Lord!

THIRD healing, restoration and SALVATION in this family! Deliverance from generational curses and negative influences! Unity in Christ to occur!

Father, I ask You in Jesus Name to make Yourself KNOWN to my brothers and sisters, nieces and nephews! I ask You to do a mighty work of deliverance, healing and restoration TO YOUR GLORY in each and every member of my family without exception! I thank You for it and RECEIVE IT in Jesus Powerful and Mighty Name! AMEN!!

Thank you and LOVE IN CHRIST to each and every one of you,
Turn the Tide Ministries

LIVE DELIBERATELY & INSPIRE OTHERS!

Rise up and WALK!

The word of God has a way of speaking, what It chooses, when It chooses, for It is living, and powerful and filled with the LIFE God gave It when He allowed mortal man to put pen to paper, or whatever writing instruments were in use at the time He first inspired Holy men of God to speak as He gave them utterance, to make the words of His heart, the words of His mind available for man to read, consider and even at times to understand. 

At this moment, I ask you to consider the historical record found in the book of Acts, Chapter 3 and verses 1 - 6

Verse 1:  Now Peter and John went up together to the temple at the hour of prayer, the ninth hour. (NKJV)
                    ; where two or more are gathered in the name of Jesus, He, Jesus will be there with them, this is a promise we also find in the Bible.  We have two, gathered in His name, and recognizing His presence and therefore aware of His power available to them as well, they are prepared to serve His purpose as and when He directs!  As you go about your daily life, are you prepared and willing to serve Him at a moments notice?  Or are you so focused on your plans you have no ear or heart for His?

Verse 2:  And a certain man lame from his mothers womb was carried, whom they laid daily at the gate of the temple which is called Beautiful, to ask alms of those who entered the temple.
                      ; how many people go daily and regularly to the places where they think they will get help and assistance only to find themselves ignored, pushed aside and left in the sorry state they began in until they have simply accepted the sorry state as their lot in life?  We assume "they" who laid him daily at the temple gate were family members, though it may have been anyone, willing to do no more for this man than put him in a position to beg for his sustenance from strangers.

Verse 3, 4, 5:  who seeing Peter and John about to go into the temple asked for alms.  And fixing his eyes on him with John Peter said "Look at us".  So he gave them his attention expecting to receive something from them.
                        ; I gather from the wording here that his seeing of John and Peter was no more than a cursory glance, a second they were in his sight as he surveyed the people coming and going, focusing on no one but himself, so hardened by time and habit that he no longer saw individuals and certainly had stopped seeking real opportunity years before, accepting his position as a lowly beggar with no further protest or even a  show of attempt to do anything for himself or to change his circumstance.

It appears he had so accepted his own place as worthless, others individuality was as invisible to him as he believed himself to be virtually invisible to others.The command to "Look at us" brought clarity and attention to not just Peter and John in his sight, but forced him to "see" himself as well!  By calling for focus, Peter was stripping away the invisibility and with it, the thoughts and feelings of worthlessness, forcing him to acknowledge and engage and be involved with not only those he had addressed, but involved with himself; what he was doing and why he was doing it! 

Peter called him to attention!  Hey!!  Don't blindly continue on as before!  Look and really SEE - engage with, pay attention to who and what and why and where!  Wake up from this stupefying slumber of routine and dull acceptance of what has been and LOOK at the possibilities around you! Wake up from blind acceptance of what has always been, from the senses dulled by same old same old and open your eyes and your heart to what could be, what might be,  what is right in front of you if you would just step out from fear and receive it! 

Look past the low expectations of others and see what is being offered if you'll only move out of the shadows of "living everyday life" into the LIGHT of LIFE!  Peter was filled with the Holy Ghost, he had "Christ in him, the hope of glory!" (Colossians 1:27) and Peter knew and understood that he, Peter was the LIGHT and the SALT of the world as an Ambassador for Jesus Christ. 

Peter knew he had the power of real life available and he refused to allow the ways of the world to dictate his behavior.  He knew this man wanted nothing but a few coins and move on so I can get to the next few coins and so EXIST until my feeble and broken and damaged body finally gives out and I can quietly die as if I never lived at all, and Peter REJECTED that stance and insisted this individual "look at us!"  Peter chose not to just give a few coins and assuage his own conscience but instead to boldly insist on a full reckoning "LOOK AT US!" 

WHAT WILL OTHERS SEE IF THEY REALLY AND TRULY LOOK AT US, LOOK AT OUR LIVES?  Will they see Christ?  Will they see the love and mercy and grace of God being lived out in our words and actions?  I know in my life, TOO OFTEN in the past anyone would have been hard pressed to see true evidence of my being light and salt to anyone in any situation!  They'd have expected the few coins and nothing more.  As a Christian, we have so much more to offer - if and as we allow the Holy Spirit to work through us.  While it is true that we ourselves have no more than the worldly things to offer, getting out of our own way and yielding to God, surrendering to Him, He then offers all His good gifts to others through us!

Verse 6:  Peter said "Silver and Gold I do not have but what I have I give you; in the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth rise up and walk!"

It is not recorded that they preached the Gospel to him, invited him to church, took him to Bible Study.  They didn't hand him a tract, sing him a hymn or lecture him about his sin and the error of his ways.  Freely they had received the glorious gift of abundant life that Jesus gave, and freely they offered it to one in need.  No strings, no conditions, no condemnation, no judgements and no criticism.  They didn't insist he change his life, stop begging or anything else.  They gave what had been given them.  Hope through Jesus  the Savior.

Silver and gold are things which have only a temporary effect on our lives.  Good for purchasing things like food and houses and clothes.  But they have no lasting, eternal value whatsoever.  It isn't that they are bad or evil - they aren't.  Money is the system by which we function in life.  The point is not to let the "system" become your God!

We are to WALK – by faith and NOT by sight.  Our spiritual journey is a WALK - continual action moving forward!  As silver and gold, we are to be purified in the fire of God so we are of value in this world, but we are to understand the value goes BEYOND this world, that we are to lay up treasures in Heaven and NOT on this earth!  Jesus is our DAILY BREAD, our NEED – not the things of this world which are passing away!!

We seem "hell bent" on emulating and imitating the things of this world, rather than giving the world a reason to imitate us who claim Christ as our Savior!  We are called by God to be "peculiar people", and yet we insist on "conforming" to what the world finds acceptable, we have allowed the desire to "fit in" to overcome our hearts.  We have not obeyed the objective to "be NOT conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind." (Romans 12:2)  We haven't renewed our minds to the word of God, that it may transform us into His ways but instead have tried to contort the word of God to fit into the mold and image of the worldly ways.  The message of Christ hasn't changed.  Cultures have changed, people's hearts have changed, but even as Paul the Apostle entreated so many many years ago, so I now entreat you:

"Behold NOW is the accepted time, BEHOLD now is the day of salvation." (II Corinthians 6:2b)

In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, I urge you to rise up and walk!

bawlk - bawlk - bawlk!

A man, an individual citizen of the United States of America speaks his mind, which is his RIGHT in the USA unless they've changed yet ANOTHER law without us ordinary citizens being aware - and suddenly, it's CONTROVERSY with a capital "C - h-i-c-k-f-i-l-A".

If you don't like chicken, fine, don't eat at Chick-fil-A.  If you don't like the owners politics, fine, don't eat there and don't agree with him.

BUT...

If you are going to deny a person's right to freedom of speech without crucifixion, then don't you DARE use that very freedom yourself to do it!  That is hypocrisy at it's WORSE!

That is the rottenest of rotten double standard and most INTOLERABLE action imaginable!

You want "tolerance"?  BE TOLERANT!!  You want freedom of speech?  ALLOW OTHERS TO SPEAK FREELY!

This isn't about "gay rights" or homosexuality, or moral right or wrong - THIS IS ABOUT APPLYING TO YOURSELF THE SAME STANDARD OF MEASURE YOU APPLY TO OTHERS! 

I've never eaten at Chick-fil-A.  I like their billboards and their advertising.  Very clever.  I don't plan to make any major changes in my life because of this FAKE controversy.  And it is fake.  No one "boycotted" President Barack Obama for saying EXACTLY this same thing.  And no one should pay attention to or boycott Chick - fil - A, either.

Say what you will - that's the BEAUTY of the FIRST AMENDMENT!

and I'm so glad I have the right to say so!