He gives hope to the HOPELESS

     

Isaiah 41:10

¹⁰ Don’t be afraid, for I am with you.
    Don’t be discouraged, for I am your God.
I will strengthen you and help you.
    I will hold you up with my victorious right hand.

   Last night, I was so tempted to blog about some exciting news but I chose to be wise and be attentive to my family. Instead, when I got home from taking Nick to his piano lessons, I baked my husband cookies because he wasn't feeling very well. While baking the cookies, Nick was playing his guitar along with a song that was playing on the computer. It was an oldie but goodie, Nothing but the blood of Jesus, it was Andy Cherry's version of it. The words kept playing over & over and Nick was so into it, he said that this was by far his favorite song right now. I also gave Olivia a bath. She told me, "Mom, I have been praying for my friend all week". You see, last week she met a new friend but this friend had been ugly to other kids and Olivia's little merciful heart was so bothered by it. She said that she told her that, that wasn't nice. This gave me the chance to explain to her on how to give a hard word (in a very sweet 8yrs version ) in a loving way. She seemed to "get it" but she told me, I will just pray for her all week Momma. So when she told me last night, that she had been praying for her friend, it made my heart glad. After these things  had all happened within 30 minutes from each other, I had to praise the Lord for making me wise enough to slow down & be more attentive to my family because had I came home & blogged, I wouldn't have experienced such sweet blessings last night!
   Now on to my exciting news but first I have tell you about the week that has lead up to this news! This is about my friend Kelly that I have been blogging about. I honestly am not sure where I left off, so excuse me if tell a story twice. Last Sunday, Kelly came to Church with me. She was dressed so pretty and so excited to be going to Church. She  made it through worship, she even laid hands on Mike & I individually while praying in the spirit. About halfway into the sermon, I noticed that she was having a hard time staying awake, so I suggested that she go to a room in our Church that has a couch in it, to rest her eyes. After Church, she went to lunch with me, my kids, my Mom & friend Regina. Mom & Regina fell in love with Kelly and immediately started reaching out to her. Kelly got teary eyed when Olivia just reached over, hugged her and thanked her for coming to lunch with us. Kelly said, I miss my children and grand kids so much. I told her, God is wants to restore those relationships but until then, HE is supplying you with grand kids (my kids), he is supplying you with a daughter (me) and he is giving you sisters (my Mom & Regina). After lunch, Mom & Regina went shopping for things that they heard Kelly talking about, things that Kelly uses at home, some needs. This last week, Olivia & I have visited Kelly a few times, just dropping in to say hi and spend some time with her, this seemed to bring such joy to her. My sweet Mom was also lead to drop in on Kelly this week & even took her out shopping to spend the day with her. All of these things have been building up, they have been seeds that God has asked us to plant so he could pour water on, seeds on dry & abandoned soil. Kelly's air went out last week, it just so happened that we had a unit sitting in our garage  not being used. Did I mention that her meal Sunday was free? When I pulled my punch card for the El Cabrito, my card was full, which meant I could get a free meal. All of this to say, God has been providing for Kelly in huge ways, he has been showing out and she realizes it too.
   Last night on our way home from Nick's piano lessons, I went by Kelly's to drop off a lamp that I wanted to give her. I was taken back for a moment. I listened carefully as she talked about the day that she had spent with my Mom, she was beyond happy. Kelly acted just like she did 15yrs ago. There were not any slurred words, she was moving around without swaying back & forth, she was even laughing differently. She showed me some of her creative things that she has been making and told me funny stories about her day too. I also realized, Kelly hasn't been walking nearly as much lately. She hasn't been that lady that you would see walking  down our very busy hwy, burning up from the heat and in her own little world. She was living a more normal life, a life that 2 weeks ago she cried about wanting but a life that she didn't think could ever happen again. After taking all of this in, I told Kelly about the changes that I was seeing. She said, "I haven't taken my medicine". I questioned if that was the right thing to do but she assured me that it was what she felt that she needed to do. You see, about 2 weeks ago, when she hadn't had her medicine, she would borrow a different kind from a friend because she said she felt too nervous without taking it, she couldn't function without it, this is why she walked so much because she couldn't sit still. You see, both her medicine & her friends medicine seem to be too strong for her. She said, "I just feel like I want to be normal, I feel like I can do without it today". I told her, "GOD is restoring you Kelly, I am not sure if you need the medicine or not but we need to be careful and wise to this". I could not get over how different she was.
   I started thinking of all of the things that God has done for her in the last month or so, things that he used my family to do. What if, I had been too busy to listen to God or what if I had listened and just offered a little financial help and not the family that she needed. What if I hadn't believed God when he said, get out of your jeep and declare this prayer over her life, that GOD wanted to use me to help bring restoration to her life. What if I had been too scared to believe that, after all, she did seem so out of control. I was also reminded of everything while listening to my son sing these words, what can make me whole again, nothing but the blood of Jesus. I feel like he is making her whole, he is restoring her life!!  It reminds me of the verse
Jeremiah 31:25

I will refresh the weary and satisfy the faint