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Saturday, March 30, 2013

For His Purpose


Jesus loves me! Every day I try to stop, remove my thoughts and mind from the world, and show God and His love. Regardless of what I’m going through, nothing overshadows His love. He proved it to me, and the world, on the Cross at Calvary.

Love is often demonstrated by giving. Anyone can claim to adore us. Words might come easy, but the display of affection shows us the true testament of the heart. Jesus didn’t want to die on the cross and suffer, but He did it anyway. It was God’s plan for Him. The very reason He lived.

I can’t even imagine the battle Jesus faced in the garden. The Bible tells us that He prayed until His sweat became as great drops of blood. It was there, alone with God, that He decided to go all the way—to fulfill His purpose.

We are all faced with that same decision and choices.

Serve God or Serve the devil

Go to church or Stay home

Try or Give up

Give or Take

God’s will or Our will


We are capable of more than we realize. I was in the grocery store yesterday and the pain in my legs and feet was so bad that I wanted to sit down in the floor, cry, and call my husband to come carry me out the store. Through my tears, God reminded me of the power of obstacles. It is easy to claim what we think we might do in certain situations, but how do we actually handle these circumstances?


I prayed and asked God for strength. Then, I used every ounce that He gave me to put one foot in front of the other. I wiped my tears, smiled, and reassured myself with every breath and step that I could walk out of there with my groceries. God helped me to overcome my adversary and showed me His unconditional love.

I keep waiting for some advancement in technology or a miracle drug to ease the hardships in my hands. One of my biggest fears as a child was the loss of movement or function in them. I remember crying as a little girl, with the pain in my hands and shoulder. The doctor would always tell me it was bursitis and arthritis. I hated those terms as a child.

Now, it’s much more than that and it will never get better. Gosh, it’s so tough to say those words and realize they are true. The joint spaces in my fingers are narrow and certain movements, such as writing and typing, make them rub together or stick. Because nothing actually works correctly in my hands, they get fatigued and cramp from overusing them. Some days this happens after only a few minutes. The only way to prevent this is to stop using them.

These past few weeks, I’ve thought about my life and ability. My mind and heart have contemplated the tough questions and answered them honestly. I’ve heard every plea for me to stop, take it easy, and rest. Concern and love etched in the faces of my family and friends touches my heart, and shows me love.

At the end of the day, it comes down to God and me. He understands and knows the formation and challenges of my hands and foot. After all He is the One who made them. And He showed me they are perfect to do His work!

God doesn’t excuse me from doing His work; no discharge in this war. I was born for His purpose. He has prepared me my whole life for this. He will never give me something to do for Him, and not help me do it.

My heart has so much to give. I want to help people and make differences in this world, and do everything He purposed for me to do. The harder the enemy fights to stop me, the more I want to do for my Lord.

When I autograph my books it is hard for me. Some people tell me to get a stamp, but that would be taking the easy way out. Love and prayers go with each book and signature, and I’m so thankful for the opportunity to do each one.

I do as much as I possibly can, but at the end of the day I often fail and come short.

Please help me get my message out there! I don’t do any of this for me. I do it for God, and all the ones He blesses my story to touch.

· Share my blog with a friend or on Facebook Twitter, Pinterest, etc.

· Review my books online or post them on your blog to reach even more people.

· If you have a business, carry my books in your store.

· If you have friends in the media, ask them to do a story on me.

· Interview me for your blog or allow me to guest blog on your page

· If you know someone with Amniotic Band Syndrome, Autism, Asperger’s Syndrome, Cancer, Cerebral Palsy, Deafness, Emotional Disturbances, Limb differences, or any other difference, please tell them about my books.

I pray that my circumstances never stop me, but that God always blesses me to overcome them.

P.S. As I prayed for God to heal my scarred hands as a child, Nick Vujicic prayed for God to give him arms and legs. It certainly puts things into perspective for me. I may have pain and challenges in my limbs, but I’m so thankful to have them.

Wednesday, March 20, 2013

The Battle


I’m officially tired of “RESTING”! I don’t like yoga pants, ice packs, or my back pillow anymore.  My husband told me he can tell the kind of day I’m having by how I smell. Meaning if it’s a bad day, my perfume of choice is Camphor, Menthol, and Eucalyptus Oil. (Haha)

This Friday will be a month since I became injured. The constant pain and limitations just get on my nerves. Standing, sitting, and lying down are all challenging. I can’t seem to find comfort anywhere. And if all that weren't bad enough, I got my right hand caught in the door yesterday at the post office. It was one of those crazy things where my hand didn’t do what I expected it to do. Now it’s swollen and painful.

Having said all of that (and thank you for giving me a few minutes to whine), I’m not allowing it to stop me today. I’m still working and typing and trying to climb from beneath the rubble to declare that I’m alive and, despite the attacks of my enemy, well.

My adversary wants me to go to bed, pull the covers over my head, and give up. Well, that’s not going to happen today or any other day. I tried that a few years ago and it didn’t really work out for me, so I learned then to get up and push through the pain—despite my circumstances.

That’s what has been so hard about this injury. I’m not accustomed to resting and taking it easy, nor giving into the pain. If I stopped every time something hurt, I would never do anything again. I’m more of a smile through the pain and always keep going kind of girl.

The devil is in my face, trying his best to stop me. When one obstacle doesn’t work, he throws ten more at me. And sometimes the realization that he will never stop trying to defeat me, scares me and makes me worry. All of the sudden I start focusing on the problems of tomorrow and forget about the blessings of today. Life has a huge array of “what ifs”, and I know better than to allow them to affect me badly.

That’s why it is so important for me to lift my eyes toward God and focus on His promises and goodness. Regardless of what happens, he will never leave me nor forsake me. When I reach the end of my strength, and I’ve pushed as far as I can push, that’s when my God steps in and takes over. He shows me that I’m capable of so much more than I realize.

When we fight and keep going despite the enemy’s attacks, we glorify God. The battle may make me bloodied and bruised,  but I’m alive. I have another day to tell people about my God and all that He does for me.

It is amazing to stand before of crowd of people, with my legs shaking from fatigue and pain, and witness my words touch their life. When I see tears fall or understanding flicker in their eyes, I know God placed me there. He got everything ready for me. The people in the crowd are not there by accident or coincidence. He put them in my path and gave me the words to help them. And I’m always so humbled and thankful that God helped me overcome my obstacles.

As I’ve said before, it’s not about me. My life should always be about God and His purpose for me. When my eyes are on God, I’m thankful for my suffering. I can see His hand working and I know everything will be just fine—better than it was before.

The enemy might knock me down, but he can’t hold me there! God and I have work to do. And I know that the devil is only trying to stop me. He doesn’t want me to make appearances or write books for my Lord. When I go beyond my limitations and do it anyway, it is like spitting fire in the devil’s face. And I rather like that image.

Last week I made front page of The Daily News. http://middlesborodailynews.com/bookmark/21981358
 

Author shares message through Zippy the zebra