Category: healing

When God Moves…

Wiwohka21 Comments

We have keys!!!

If ever this were to be considered a mountain… well, God moved it!

We do not know why, but for whatever their reason, the owners of the property chose to come back to the table and change their first decision. Basically, they completely changed their mind and lowered the cost of the apartment in order to get us approved… not kidding!

It’s small, but absolutely adorable… and clean!

Everything is new, and bright, and warm, and just perfect perfect perfect!!!

Sure, it’s empty now, but let me tell you… when the bible says that God will restore all that the enemy has stolen, I am watching such miracles unfold right before my eyes!

Some very generous donations have already arrived from God, through the many different organizations that have been with us throughout all this… I swear, I think they’re more excited than we are about things finally coming together. They’ve already ordered us a new bed, a vacuum cleaner, and a boatload of bathroom and cleaning supplies, so that should arrive at the new address within another day or so…

I’m in love with the whole color scheme that was chosen for this layout. Now we just have to wait for the mail to catch up with is… lol.

Oh, and we have to go to the V.A. this afternoon to pick up a furniture voucher, gift cards for things like dishes and cooking supplies. Honestly, I am still a bit numb about all this, as if I expect I might wake from such a dream, you know…

Oh, by the way, right in the middle of all of this going on, I got a phone call from my middle daughter… I’m gonna be a Meemaw again… AAAHHHHHHHH!!!!

Don’t babies just make everything better… oh, and cookies.. cookies make everything better, too. I have to tell you something funny in all this. After loosing pretty much all that we owned, down to the point of wearing the same outfit for the last three and a half weeks, I managed to save two items… my KitchenAid mixer and my Cuisinart, no joke! I have a mountain of cookies to bake, lol! My hubby tested the oven straight away… it’s like he knows me, or something…

And, guess what? Both my little plants have survived, thus far. I promised them both that they’d be getting new pots and soil when we get them moved in… they’ve earned them!

I know that this must have been awful for you all, having to watch helplessly as we went through this desert, but I could NOT have done this without your love, your faithful prayers, and your constant encouragement!

THANK YOU, THANK YOU, THANK YOU!!!

I am so very richly blessed!

This chapter in my journey has closed, so let us move forward to see what God has in store four the future…

If I were to say anything of value, regarding what we just endured, I would say this… God has profoundly changed this wild and angry child, carefully molding her into that which is beautiful in His eyes.

It is indescribably here, resting beneath the shadow of my Father. From here, I can see for endless miles into the future… no, I haven’t reached some weird plane of visions, so don’t start freaking out on me. What I mean is that it’s not dark any longer, as it had been for so much of this process. Oh, I still can’t see the specifics of what will come… but it’s bright here, wherever I look… I might be wrong, but I think that it’s joy, or maybe hope, but it could also be the source of all those prayers everyone has been shouting to the heavens, on my behalf.

I think it might just be all of the above!

How will I…

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The question isn’t why… it isn’t when, who or even where. I’ve been thinking on this, of late. Whenever a person goes through troubled waters, so to speak, a great many of those questions occupy their mind. Unfortunately, those questions don’t often see a viable answer.

Sometimes, maybe the real useful question to ask is “How?” I realize that it’s a rather unusual one word question, but if you think about it, all the other questions were also one word queries.

Since I tend to spend most of my time on the water, with a good many stretches of rough rapids and storms, I finally got sick of all the other questions, as they never really do me any good until after the fact.

This time… I’m finding a breakthrough!

This time… How?

How will I hold?

How will I rest?

How will I stand?

How will I exercise my faith?

How will I use all that truth I’ve been reading about?

How will I reflect my trust in God?

How will I express all the peace, hope, love, faith, forgiveness and generosity of heart that he has been creating within me?

How will I bend the knee?

How will I lay before the throne?

The One I believe in has been working on my behalf from the beginning, so it’s not a question of when, where, who, or why for me any longer, but how…

To answer the how,

I will hold with grace…

I will rest in complete peace…

I will stand tall…

I will share my faith with you, by speaking of all my journey, whether it is calm, harsh, beautiful, or painfully ugly…

That’s the only way that I can reflect my trust in Him…

My stories and journal entries are how I express all the good fruits that He produces within my heart for you…

I will bend the knee to the God of ages, surrendering to His rule and authority over my life, no matter where I must go, what I must endure for however long I must endure it, and regardless of why!

How?

How can I think this way, say these things, and actually stand in the face of this overwhelming mountain? I’ll tell you how…

The power of surrender, that’s how!

All that my Creator asks of me is surrender to his will, plan and purpose… and I show my obedience and complete surrender in all those HOWS… just sayin!

When you are in the darkest moments of your journey, remember…

Hold, have peace, stand tall, speak only that which is good, edifying and hopeful, trust in the one who gave you life, and no matter what, always remember that your stories are important to others… you are important! Life’s gonna do what it’s gonna do, so we have to choose who we want to be as we get through it… or better yet, how we want to get through it!

Traveling Threads…

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I’ve not been posting, as it’s far better to remain silent than to speak words of pain, anger, and frustration… things circumstantial have a way of bringing rise to my serpent’s tongue, if you get my meaning.

It’s beyond my ability to understand how many times an agency can lie to your face.. anyways, this is the reason I cannot speak of things, just now. We’re exhausted, extremely stressed, both sicker than ever with some flue (yay), so it’s clear that my judgement is somewhat compromised.

After waiting 10 days on that application to process, they finally called to say that there was still paperwork missing… and that apartments no longer available… and we still need to wait for an inspection, which God only knows how long that could take. They keep saying one thing and then just blowing right past their own promises, only to then make us feel as if it’s our fault that they can’t seem to get things done.

How does one describe the feeling of being overlooked, minimized, forgotten, undervalued, passed over, left behind, discarded by society, as no more than a burden to the world? I can tell you that these are my feelings, but I am unable to even begin to describe it’s toll on the physical body. Fortunately for me, while my body declines… my spirit is on fire!

I see His hand in the darkness, holding onto us, binding us to each other and to Him, so that’s how I endure… Jesus chose me before the foundation of the earth, died to make a way for me, and sits ever faithfully beside me, here in this wasteland… I am still NOT alone!

God Bless and keep all of you, my friends. I love you dearly and hope you are well.

Hugs

Rough Waters…

Wiwohka9 Comments

If one were to ask me how I might describe my thoughts and emotions right now, I can only say that it’s very dark and strangely unfamiliar. We’ve been wandering from motel to motel with all that’s left of our life packed into the back of our car. Feeling like you’ve been completely forgotten and overlooked by those promising to provide a resource, quite honestly, feels gut wrenching!

We were given our voucher, but then informed that it still had to be ported back to another county before we could use it. Within a day of getting the voucher, our paperwork simply vanished into the system. By the grace of God, and my husbands quick thinking, we drove two cities away from where we started to find an apartment that already passed the required inspections, which takes up to 45 days, normally. Doing things this way avoids having to wait up to 3 weeks for the portal process.

All the papers are in, application filled out… and now we wait! It could be a day… or up to several weeks for the apartment to accept our application. Though this has been a nightmare, and I will most likely never speak of it in any detail, at no time have I felt abandoned by my God! Let’s just say that this part of our journey has called for all of my faith, fully in action! And, as it says in the bible, I shall count it all joy!

God chooses my path, and in scripture it tells us that He knows our going out and our lying down. It also says that he is familiar with all our ways. If God allows me to experience these things, then there’s learning that needs to be done, and that’s growth! Of this I’m certain…growth is good, even though it can sometimes be difficult or painful.

It’s true, you know, that saying about what doesn’t kill you makes you stronger. There’s only one thing I might add to that phrase, and it’s this:… it’s our choice as to whether that strength will be fueled by faith, hope, and love, or just anger, bitterness and hatred. Each path will leave you changed, but you do have a choice in which way to climb your mountains. Personally, I desire to grow stronger on the way up, through, or around these mountains. When God calls my name… I’m going to be on my feet!

Barnyard Building…

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While restorations are still ongoing at the barn, I thought to go exploring in the woods this morning just for the fun of it. I’ve also been wanting to take Bailey back to the area where Tilly discovered her beneath that log. For the life of me, I haven’t been able to figure out how the puppies managed to escape from the lobby in the first place, only to then end up in the woods behind our farmhouse. It just seems really strange, you know?

So off we went, the three of us, back down the path from which the mouse and puppy had come, in search of some answers. Well, I went in search for the answers part, while the mouse and puppy mostly chased one another around trees and beneath bushes. Several times, I found myself just watching them play, rather than doing any searching. It actually worked out in my favor, though, because it was during this game that we discovered a hidden trail, just off the main path we’d been traveling.

Being curious, we decided to follow the new trail, though I had to crawl on my hands and knees on several occasions. You try following the path of a mouse, or even a puppy, for that matter! I’m just sayin that it isn’t that easy, that’s all.

Anyways, we didn’t have to travel that far before my eye caught a glimpse of something shiny, further down the path. You’re never going to believe what we stumbled upon, not half an hour’s walk from the farm?

The very carousel that I’d been suggesting we could restore into a garden or something, sat before us in a small glade… for no apparent reason! There was no trace of a carnival passing by, in fact, no roads could be seen anywhere nearby.

While I stood staring in confusion, over why someone would abandon an old piece of machinery in middle of the woods, both Tilly and Bailey disappeared around the back of the carousel. I called out to them, but there was no reply from either… as if they’d simply vanished!

I ran round to where I’d last seen them heading and nearly tripped over my own shoe in surprise…

I kid you not! There was a doorway on the backside of the carousel, standing wide open! Logic said that my two little ones had probably gone through the open passage that I too, felt compelled to enter…

At first, all I could see was a dark corridor with little light available, aside for several ceiling lights that mostly just flickered on and off. I did see a small doorway ajar, further down the passage, and could hear the distant whispers of my two tiny compadres.

When I got to the doorway and pushed it open… everything about the disappearance of the puppies finally made more sense…

Did you know that the Lobby had a back door? I didn’t! Apparently, back behind the archive section is an open doorway… no wonder the puppies got out that way!

I hope you weren’t expecting me to explain all this, because I’m just as confused as you probably are…

Well, at least now we know it’s within easy walking distance of the Barnyard… if you were of a mind to visit, of course!

Just follow the path …

I’m Going Home…

Wiwohka2 Comments
Daily writing prompt
If there were a biography about you, what would the title be?
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Well, I wouldn’t actually use that as a title, but I have no intention of giving you the actual title before I’ve actually gotten it published! That would be silly of me. And, I’d be more likely to use this picture for my cover instead of the one above…

Now, I’ll distract you with some cookies…

Wednesday Words…

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Rollin, rollin, rollin… keep this mower mowin…. mmmhhhhmmmmhhhhhhmmmmmm….

I bet you never knew that Eustace could sing, and quite well, I might add!

Somebody has to mow all this grass, so it might as well be Eustace. He does get to eat all the clippings, so it’s a win win for all of us, don’t cha think?

Tuesday’s Tinkering…

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You didn’t think that I’d forgotten about our missing little ant, did you?

Not a chance! Do try to keep in mind, however, finding an itty bitty little ant in the forest is far from easy. I had all the little ones out searching the woods frequently throughout each day; calling out her name, in the hopes that it might lead her back to the new farm house. I took it upon myself to make another visit to her family, being sure to leave her a message that include directions to our new location. Aside from that, all we could do was wait, and hope.

Even in the darkest of nights, when all seems lost to us, there is always hope!

As I sat the kitchen of our farm house this morning, quietly enjoying my first needed cup of coffee, my thoughts were suddenly disrupted by the distinct smell of cotton candy, floating in through my window. It surprised me so much that I nearly dropped my coffee in my lap! No, I wasn’t surprised that the the air was deliciously fragrant, just because of the candy smell. That would be silly, don’t you think? There are a myriad of glorious smells floating through the forest, at any given moment, and in any given season!

My surprise at the smell of cotton candy goes much deeper than just a yummy breeze, but you may or may not recall the reason, so I’ll explain. For those of you that don’t remember, there was a strong smell of cotton candy in the air, on the very day that miss Lilly first floated into our barn. Now, it probably makes a great deal more sense, as to why I nearly dropped my coffee when I noticed the air… I smelled Lilly!

I don’t know what most people smell when ants are around, but our little girl smells just like cotton candy! I jumped up out of my chair and ran out the back door, as fast as my legs could carry me, scanning the meadow from one side to the other! Seeing nothing with my eyes, I decided to try following my nose.

There, amidst the dandelions in the meadow, sat a strangely familiar looking creature…

Yes, anyone who knew her from the beginning will recognize those beautiful eyes…

Even if I’d been confused about the eyes, when the tiny ant began smiling at me… it removed all doubt from my mind! She may have gone a bit wild ant/bunny on us while out in the wilderness, but it’s still our Lilly! You try braving the wilds all by your onesie’s, and then let’s see what you look like when you finally get home. I know that I’d probably look a mess, to say the least…

Monday Messages…

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It sure has been a journey these last few years, to say the least!

We’ve gone from, losing our home and all we owned during the COVID Shutdown, to living in an RV for three years (the last year had no working toilet or shower, nor any hot water). And here we are now, spending the last four months in a motel room, awaiting a housing voucher. So, ya… it’s been a journey!

Well, guess what?

We’ve been approved!!!

I know this is only the first part of the actual process, but it’s a start!

Now, we must attend a special orientation class, before we can actually be presented with the needed voucher. The class is on the 18th and our last approved night in this motel is the 17th, so it’ll be a little dicey between the time of getting said voucher and getting into an appropriate housing situation. But hey, God’s the one driving this bus, right?!

My job is to simply wait until the bus stops, gather myself together when the door opens, and step out in faith! Why do some folks think that the hard part is walking through the door, or stepping out in faith when you can’t see what’s there? Personally, I’ve learned that the hardest part is the waiting…

Tick tock, tick tock…

The silence of waiting can be deafening, at times.

The thing that I’m learning is, mountains take time to move over, under, around, or through… depending on what God wants you to see, learn, and/or do along the journey.

Anyways, if you are curious how we got here from the top of this post, I’ve brought you thus far, so that I might say thank you! Thank you for loving me, for praying for me, and for sticking with me through the thick of things, if you will. You’ve made this whole excruciating difficult process, a great deal easier! Your comments, laughter, and visits to the lobby have been so vitally instrumental in the encouragement department, if that makes any sense.

It’s funny, the prompt this morning was asking what I’d do with good news? Well, I already did my praying and praising God for his faithful provision. Now’s the part where I share said good news, celebrate, and have a grateful heart!

The first place I wanted to bring my joyful news was here, in this very lobby! I thought to share it with all of you… my family!

Bend a knee…

Wiwohka4 Comments
Daily writing prompt
You get some great, amazingly fantastic news. What’s the first thing you do?
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The first thing we should be doing when we get some great, amazingly fantastic news, and even down to the smallest of blessings, is to bend a knee to the God who made it possible!

Why is that such a hard thing for us to do, I wonder?

Why can’t God get the first, and most important thank you, before we go patting ourselves on the back for a thing we think we deserve the credit for? It’s rather simple, really! Just stop and thank Him! Then, go do the next thing we do with good news… tell somebody about it, celebrate, and have a glad heart!

At least, that’s what I like to do.

Here, have a cookie…

they might not be great or amazingly fantastic, but they’ll do in a pinch!