I Once was Blind

As Jesus walked with his disciples, they came upon a blind beggar. The disciples asked, "Master, who did sin, this man or his parents, that he was born blind?" John 9:2. Thankfully Jesus replied with great compassion, "Neither hath this man sinned, nor his parents: but that the works of God should be made manifest in him" John 9:3

I am a cripple. That's what people used to call it. Now the politically correct term is "disabled". What ever you may choose to call it, I don't walk well nor do I walk any distance to speak of. I've used my cane, my walker, my wheelchair and my scooter for mobility assistance. My grand children have been around it their entire lives.

Every one of my grandchildren has at one time or another played, "hide the cane". Last winter we were out checking on the greenhouse and they played "lock Nana in the greenhouse". I make light of my disability but demand respect for it. They have fun playing with me but they also know the limits of how far to take it. They don't see "Nana the cripple, they just see Nana". I'm very proud of how I've helped them accept people with disabilities. Treat them with respect and compassion.

My RSD is a means by which God's work should be made manifest. I don't look sick. I look "normal", but my testimony is that I CAN WALK! I took action in regards to my diagnosis of "sorry, but you will not walk again" and "Went to the pool of Siloam" (John 9:7) . I spent painful weeks in physical therapy and was able to actually bend my knees without surgery!

John 9:8"The neighbours therefore, and they which before had seen him and he was blind, said, Is not this he that sat and begged?"

Yep! That's me. Praise God when Jesus said Go, I went! I washed, and I received! (John 9:11) I once was "blind" but now I "see"!!!

Each of us has a Handicap. Mine is RSD. I didn't ask for it. It is not a result of sin or lack of faith. It is NOT my parents fault. My RSD is a way for God to be magnified through the compassionate touch of my Lord. I can see that now.

One Minute Each Night

During WWII, there was an advisor to Churchill who organized a group of people who dropped what they were doing every night at a prescribed hour for one minute to collectively pray for the safety of England , its people and peace. This had an amazing effect as bombing stopped. There is now a group of people organizing the same thing here in America .
2 Chronicles 7:14..'If my people, which are called by my name shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land.'
Do you believe we can take God at His word? Call upon His name, then stand back and watch His wonders to behold. This scripture gives us, as Christians, ownership of this land and the ability to call upon God to heal it. I challenge you to do so. We have never been more desperate than now for God to heal our land.
The United States of America and our citizens need prayer more than ever!!! If you would like to participate, each evening at 9:00 PM Eastern Time (8 PM Central, 7 PM Mountain, 6 PM Pacific), stop whatever you are doing and spend one minute praying for the safety of the United States, our troops, our citizens, for peace in the world, the upcoming election, that the Bible will remain the basis for the laws governing our land and that Christianity will grow in the U.S.


This was e-mailed to me and I felt led to post it here. Don't know who started it but it is Bible based and according to His Word.

Take ONE minute........join me!

The Heart of the Fathers

"And he shall turn the heart of the fathers to the children, and the heart of the children to their fathers," Malachi 4:6

Strength of God

Today I am overwhelmed by the Strength of God. My earthly body is consumed with wretched pain, yet I look to my God for a little umption in my gumption! (to function!!)

"But I will hope continually, and will yet praise thee more and more.

My mouth shall shew forth thy righteousness and thy salvation all the day; for I know not the numbers therof.

I will go in the strength of the Lord God; I will make mention of thy righteousness, even of thine only.

O God, thou hast taught me from my youth: and hitherto have I declared thy wondrous works.

Now also when I am old and greyheaded, O God, forsake me not; until I have shewed thy strength unto this generation, and thy power to every one that is to come." Psalms 71:14-18.

Some days are better than others. The days of my weakness remind me of His strength! Maybe my "purpose" in life is to teach the generations of my children to rely on God's powerful strength.

Some of the things that I remember teaching my children, (and I trust they still remember!) is that they can do or be anything they chose. The correct choices, the proper priorities, and sacrifices lead to ultimate goals. The strength of God should be the foundation of the future. Lean on God's strength to overcome ANY obstacles.

I want to be that person that other people can see God's power through me. When you truly understand the pain and suffering that I endure 24/7, and that I can overcome that through the strength of God, my "purpose" is a resounding example of God's greatness! Let that be my joyful song.

Rambling in Pain

I've not slept well. Now I'm rambling. Is that the purpose of having this blog? I get so very distracted when I'm in this much pain so I turn to Scripture as often as I'm able for peace and comfort.

I find in Jeremiah 16: 18 "Why is my pain perpetual and my wound incurable, which refuseth to be healed?"

God's reasons are RIGHT. My pain is NOT a result of my unfaithfulness, quite the contrary. My pain is endured BECAUSE of my faith.

"So that we ourselves glory in you in the churches of God for your patience and faith in all your persecutions and tribulations that ye endure:
Which is a manifest token of the righteous judgment of God, that ye may be counted worthy of the kingdom of God, for which ye also suffer:"
2 Thessalonians 1:3-5

Vesper Chime

Saturday was my 51st birthday! I realize time is passing so quickly for me and I don't want to miss a thing! God's precious gifts are all around me.

My husband bought me some windchimes for my birthday. They are called Vesper Chimes. The card that came with them tells the story:

A vesper bell is a bell rung to call worshippers to Vespers, or evening prayers. Traditionally, in both the Roman Catholic and Protestant liturgies, Vespers includes the Song of Mary - know as the Magnificat -from the Gospel according to Luke, in addition to several psalms and prayers. This chime is specially tuned to sound like the ringing of distant curch bells.

My soul proclaims the greatness of the Lord, and my spirit rejoices in God, my savior, For he has looked with favor on his lowly servant Luke 1:46-48

http://64.106.200.92/data/memimages/228599/sound/VCS.mp3

I hope the link works to listen to the beautiful melody! I hung the chimes on the carport because that is where we sit in the evening playing with the dogs. The sound of the chimes remind me that my spirit DOES rejoice in the Lord!

Reflex Sympathetic Dystrophy

"Reflex Sympathetic Dystrophy Syndrome, RSDS, is now referred to as Complex
Regional Pain Syndrome, CRPS. It is a progressive disease of the Autonomic
Nervous System .
RSD/CRPS is ranked as the most painful form of chronic pain
that exists today by the McGill Pain Index.
There are FOUR Main
Symptoms/Criteria of CRPS/RSD:
1) Constant chronic burning pain (includes
allodynia - extreme sensitivity to touch, sound, and vibration) 2) Inflammation
(this can affect the appearance of the skin, bruising, mottling, etc.) 3)
Spasms-in blood vessels and muscles of the extremities 4) Insomnia/Emotional
Disturbance (includes the major changes to the limbic system such as short-term
memory problems, concentration difficulties, etc.) "

copied from http://www.rsdhope.org

Well, welcome to my world! The list of symptoms can go on and on. I have been blessed with all of the above mentioned at one time or another and sometimes all of them at once! Lucky me!

"Ye know how through the infirmity of the flesh I preached the gospel unto you at the first" Galatians 4:13 Paul was physically challenged and yet continued to preach and praise. I think I shall do the same in what ever capacity the Lord leads. For the moment, Blogger seems to be the path to follow. Maybe someone will be searching for answers about this horrific affliction and stumble upon teachings of the Word! In spite of the pain, I shall praise!

Sometimes you can close your eyes and hear the tape recording of quotes or little sayings you've heard all your life. The following is a list of quotes that I hope my children have heard over and over....

• NEVER sing "Standing on the Promises" sitting on your butt!!


• You ain't gotta like it, you just gotta deal with it (I still hear Andy saying it! Thank You, Bubba)


• Christians aren't perfect, just FORGIVEN!


• Know WHY you believe WHAT you believe!

I'm sure my children's tapes play out differently than I remember but I pray they are positive, loving, and kind recordings. As children, Craig and Cristie were both, at times themselves like tape recorders and spued forth at unexpected times. Example:

Sunday morning. Craig was about three years old. We were visiting a new church. The sermon was awesome and I was still shedding tears of repentence when we got to the car.

Craig: "Mommy, why are you crying?"

Me: "Son, the preacher really stepped on Mommy's toes and I needed to hear the things that he had to say."

That afternoon we decided to return to the church for the evening service. Again, it was wonderful and as we were leaving, the preacher was at the door shaking hands with everyone leaving.

Craig: "Mister, please don't step on Mommy's toes, she cried all afternoon!"

The preacher LOVED it!!!

We tend to forget that children watch examples better than they listen to sermons!

BabyDoll Angel...

Well, I guess I should start at the beginning. My first memories of my life and childhood were about my grandparents, my babysitter, and believe it or not, my biological father, Lee. By the time I was three or four, my mother was a single, very hard working, goal oriented, (and Beautiful, if I might add! and still is to this day!!) mother.

I spent most of the week at my babysitter's house, or she would come to our house. First it was, "Cocoa, toast and cereal" for breakfast, tuna or macaroni for lunch (I was the "official taste tester"!), a nap in front of the fan on the floor (still can't sleep without a fan - who needs a blankie?) and then do it all over again the next day.

On the weekends, I went to my grandparents' houses. I now think it was because my dad lived with his parents and he was supposed to have visitation. Sometimes he was there and for the most part he wasn't. But I certainly remember the times he was!!

On the one hand, I saw things that NO child should EVER see...the fights, the drunkedness, and it was all out in the open. My brother knew the telephone number for the police department (we didn't have 911 back then!) by heart. It became a weekend ritual.

On the other hand, when Daddy was sober, I had so much fun. He was attentive, caring, and so focused on teaching me things like how to express my opinions. He was so very intelligent when he wasn't drinking. I learned important things by the time I was four or five like how to order a cherry in my coca-cola, how to make a great Chef-boy-ardee pizza, why you should always eat an appple when you have popcorn, you know, the IMPORTANT things!

Hebrews 12:9 "Furthermore we have had fathers of our flesh which corrected us, and we gave them reverence:..." Yes, the Bible requires us to be reverent to our "fleshly" fathers. In spite of all of Daddy's flaws, there was always respect, reverence, and obedience.

I was his "Baby Doll Angel" and Andy (my brother) was "Butch". No one ever called us those names except Daddy. Until,...I met Dennis, my husband. He used to tell me that I was such a doll. I think I would cringe when he would call me that. He is so observant that he realized it upset me a little. Now he calls me "Baby".

Several years ago when I first got an internet account, my daughter, Cristie helped me set it up. I thought she was so clever to come up with the name "Denzdoll". Get it? (so many people don't, that is why I'm blogging about it - Ha). Well, it's "Den (Dennis) z ('s) Doll (me)!!!!! I've had so many people ask me about that screen name and when I explain it, some feel dumb for NOT getting it because it really is CLEAR! But, NO, Dennis does NOT refer to me as, "Denzdoll"!