IT'S A SLOW FADE...

SUNDAY IN THE SON

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Matthew 5:8

"Blessed are the pure in heart,

for they will see God."

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Do you have pure motives? Have you veered away from holiness? Have you left your first love? Have little white lies crept in? What is ruling your life? Who is LORD of your life?

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This week's theme song is from the movie FIREPROOF. I invite you to watch the video below and read the lyrics below. Later feel free to repush play on the PLAYLIST and follow along with the lyrics again. Then, come back and join us this week as we discuss being PURE IN HEART.

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Be careful little eyes what you see

It's the second glance that ties your hands as darkness pulls the strings

Be careful little feet where you go

For it's the little feet behind you that are sure to follow

It's a slow fade when you give yourself away

It's a slow fade when black and white have turned to gray

Thoughts invade, choices are made, a price will be paid

When you give yourself away

People never crumble in a day

It's a slow fade, it's a slow fade

Be careful little ears what you hear

When flattery leads to compromise, the end is always near

Be careful little lips what you say

For empty words and promises lead broken hearts astray

It's a slow fade when you give yourself away

It's a slow fade when black and white have turned to gray

Thoughts invade, choices are made, a price will be paid

When you give yourself away

People never crumble in a day

The journey from your mind to your hands

Is shorter than you're thinking

Be careful if you think you stand

You just might be sinking

It's a slow fade when you give yourself away

It's a slow fade when black and white have turned to gray

Thoughts invade, choices are made, a price will be paid

When you give yourself away

People never crumble in a day

Daddies never crumble in a day

Families never crumble in a day

Oh be careful little eyes what see

Oh be careful little eyes what you see

For the Father up above is looking down in love

Oh be careful little eyes what you see

WHILE I'M WAITING ON YOU LORD...GIGATTAATTGIG!

KETCHUP AND MUSTARD SATURDAY

Catch Up and Must Do Saturday!

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I have 5 things that I "must do"today on this post. Please join me today in pondering God's mercy and grace and how we can extend that to others so that they too can believe that God Is Good All The Time And All The Time God Is Good!

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1. Remember little Maria, daughter of Lorraine, who we prayed for recently to have a tumor removed from behind her lungs? Her Aunt Annette is one of our "transformed moms" from Pitman. Maria's family had come to live with Annette and Dave while she was at CHOP (Children's Hospital Of Philadelphia). Things were getting back to normal this week when Annette and Lorraine's mother died. Today is the funeral. Please pray for mercy and grace for this whole family!

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2. Last Sunday I created a "Group" on Facebook: GIGATTAATTGIG! I invited my friends to invite their friends and we'd see what happened. This minute, we have 337 people who have joined. Two of those people are Annette and Lorraine...thank you, God! Patiently I will wait to see how many people on Facebook believe the statement "God Is Good All The Time And All The Time God Is Good" to really be true. If you go on the GIGATTAATTGIG Group Page, it looks something like this:

God Is Good All The Time, And All The Time God Is Good!

• We believe that although life is hard, GOD is good!


• We believe that His mercies are new every morning!

Acts 17:24-31

"The God who made the world and everything in it

is the Lord of heaven and earth

and does not live in temples built by hands.

25 And He is not served by human hands,

as if He needed anything,

because He himself gives all men life and breath and everything else.

26 From one man He made every nation of men,

that they should inhabit the whole earth;

and He determined the times set for them

and the exact places where they should live.

27 God did this so that men would seek Him

and perhaps reach out for Him and find Him,

though He is not far from each one of us.

28'For in Him we live and move and have our being.'

As some of your own poets have said,

'We are His offspring.'

29 "Therefore since we are God's offspring,

we should not think that the divine being is like gold or silver or stone-

an image made by man's design and skill.

30 In the past God overlooked such ignorance,

but now He commands all people everywhere to repent.

31 For He has set a day when He will judge the world

with justice by the man He has appointed.

He has given proof of this to all men

by raising JESUS from the dead."

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I've asked those who have joined the group to

"Please join me in spreading this

string of 13 upper case letters across Facebook.

GIGATTAATTGIG

Let it feed people's curiosity to find out what it means.

Post it on your status...

end your comments and emails with it...

Eventually, people may end up here to read this

and read your comments/testimonies.

PLEASE...leave your stories below...

tell how even in the hard times...

the difficult times...

the unbearable times...

you have eventually seen that God is good all the time.

There's a world out there who needs to hear WHY

you believe that God is good ALL the time!!!!!

It is often through TESTing that we have a TESTimony!

3/8/2009: GIGATTAATTGIG started

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If you are not on Facebook, I ask you to use these letters in the same way to get people started thinking about what's really important!

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3. Please continue to pray for Nan, Ron, Brennan, and Braden Deal. You can click on their pictures over on the right.

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4. If you have not followed this blog this week, you have really missed out. Did you know that Lauren got a heart delivered to CHOP and then at the last minute the transplant team determined that it was not a match? You can read my version of the story on this blog, Tim's version of the story by clicking below, or Cristi's version by clicking on her kids picture over on the right. I'm picking up food and taking it to Cristi for dinner today...we'll hang out and eat together...I forgot to ask her if she want ketchup or mustard...

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I posted a comment on Tim's blog this morning in relation to all of this:

http://simplefamilycomplexlife.blogspot.com/2009/03/false-startfive-yard-penaltyrepeat.html

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5. This is fast becoming one of my favorite songs...I know it is really ministering to Cristi Schwamb. No matter what...a hurting child...a broken relationship...a wounded heart...financial shambles... please, wait on the Lord and know that GIGATTAATTGIG.

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You can go back up to the playlist, push play, and follow along with the lyrics:

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I'm waiting! I'm waiting on You, LORD!
And, I am hopeful. I'm waiting on You, LORD!
Though it is painful. But patiently, I will wait.
I will move ahead, bold and confident,
taking every step in obedience, while I'm waiting.
I will serve You, while I'm waiting!
I will worship, while I'm waiting!
I will not faint!
I'll be running the race, even while I wait.
I'm waiting! I'm waiting on You, LORD.
And I am peaceful. I'm waiting on You, LORD.
Though, it's not easy.
But faithfully, I will wait.
Yes, I will wait.
I will serve You while I'm waiting!
I will worship while I'm waiting!
I will serve You while I'm waiting!
I will worship while I'm waiting!
I will serve you while I'm waiting!
I will worship while I'm waiting on You, Lord!
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GIGATTAATTGIG!
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Please join me tomorrow as we begin a new week:

"Blessed are the Pure in Heart...for they shall see God!"

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I'M WAITING ON YOU LORD...TO SAVE MY FAMILY...

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As a transformed mom, you and I want the very best for our children. They are already our children but there is nothing that surpasses when they become our spiritual children. To know that we can live on earth with them and then be confident that we'll be in heaven together is simply wonderful!

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For some of you, it takes years of waiting and waiting on the LORD before your children make the decision to become part of Jesus' family. For others, as soon as your children begin to reason and really start to comprehend right from wrong, they want to please God and be in a "right" relationship with Him.

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Wednesday night, we got to celebrate with transformed mom, Dawnna, in a big way. Austin, the second son of Waverly and Dawnna, made the decision to become part of God's family through confessing Jesus as his LORD and being baptized for the remission of his sins. Austin asked if his older brother Trevor could baptize him. What a joyous occasion it was! Their parents, his little brother Garrett, and his new spiritual family looked on.

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Kristi, a new christian and transformed mom, emailed me yesterday and asked about the words to one of the songs that we sang after Austin's baptism. The church circled around the auditorium and shared stories about Austin, congratulated Austin and his family, prayed, and sang. Dawnna read Austin a poem that she had written entitled, "A letter from God". Below are the words to Dawnna's poem, the song that Kristi requested, and a few scriptures for those of you who might be wondering about what the Bible says about how you and your family can be saved for eternity.
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Luke 1:46-50
And Mary said: "My soul glorifies the Lord and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior... From now on all generations will call me blessed, for the Mighty One has done great things for me- holy is His name. His MERCY extends to those who fear Him, from generation to generation...."

Acts 2:38-39 "Peter replied, "Repent and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins. And you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. The promise is for you and your children and for all who are far off-for all whom the Lord our God will call."

Romans 10:8-13 "That if you confess with your mouth, "Jesus is Lord," and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved..for, "Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved."

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Acts 22:16 "And now what are you waiting for? Get up, be baptized and wash your sins away, calling on His name."

Galatians 3:26-27 "You are all sons of God through faith in Christ Jesus, for all of you who were baptized into Christ have clothed yourselves with Christ."

2 Corinthians 5:17-18 "Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come! "

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1 Peter 1:3-4 "Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! In His great MERCY He has given us new birth into a living HOPE through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, and into an inheritance that can never perish, spoil or fade-kept in heaven for you..."
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The words above can be found in the New Testament, a book filled with HOPE...

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POEM WRITTEN TO AUSTIN:

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LETTER FROM GOD TO MY CHILD

My child, if perfection was an option

and we could choose to simply skip our mistakes

I am sure it is the choice that most of us would make

But our God said, Just listen to me, I have a different plan

Walk beside me and let me take your hand

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He said the christian life isn’t easy, it’s a heavy load

You see there is no perfection on this earthly road

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Remember your heavenly father who can bear it all

And know that I will be there with you, if you should start to fall

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Don’t forget when you fall to go down on your knees

Simply pray for forgiveness and lay your troubles at my feet

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I am with you always, God

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Written by Dawnna Hale

March 11, 2009

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SONG LYRICS REQUESTED BY KRISTI:

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I'VE BEEN REDEEMED

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I've been redeemed! (I've been redeemed!)

By the blood of the Lamb! (By the blood of the Lamb!)

I've been redeemed by the blood of the La-a-a-a-amb.

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I've been redeemed by the blood of the Lamb.

Filled with the Holy Ghost, I am!

All my sins are washed away, I've been redeemed.

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And that's not all! (And that's not all!)

There's more beside! (There's more beside!)

And that's not all! There's more beside.

And that's not all, there's more beside,

I've been to the river and I've been baptized!

All my sins are washed away, I've been redeemed!

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You can talk about me! (You can talk about me!)

Just as much as you please! (Just as much as you please!)

You can talk about me, just as much as you please.

You can talk about me just as much as you please.

I'll talk about you down on my knees.

All my sins are washed away, I've been redeemed!

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GIGATTAATTGIG!!!

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I'M WAITING ON YOU LORD...GOD HAVE MERCY...CHRIST HAVE MERCY...

TRANSFORMING THURSDAY

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It's 5:54 p.m. on Thursday as I sit here typing this and the tears fall. The words to this week's theme song once again pierce my heart...

• I'm waiting on you LORD...
• I am hopeful...
• though it is painful...
• patiently I will wait...
• I will move ahead bold and confident
• I'll be taking every step in obedience...
• I will serve you while I'm waiting...
• I will worship while I'm waiting...
• I will not fail...
• I'll be running the race even while I wait...
• I am peaceful...
• It's not easy...
• Faithfully, I will wait...
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During one of the most difficult times of our adult lives, a brother in Christ asked Steve if he could come and pray over him. His prayer continued for over 30 minutes with these words, "God have mercy...Christ have mercy...God have mercy...Christ have mercy...God have mercy...Christ have mercy...."

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Today, I pray the same prayer for the Schwamb family, wanting them to continue to remember that no matter what GIGATTAATTGIG...

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God

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Is

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Good

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All

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The

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Time

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And

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All

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The

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Time

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God

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Is

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Good

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1. Today at 4:05 p.m. Cristi Schwamb posted on Facebook: "Cristi is hopeful...praying for a successful transplant..." They had just received word that there was a heart on it's way to the hospital for Lauren "if it was a match"....


2. At 4:20 p.m. I got a phone message from Vanessa while I was teaching...


3. At 4:38 p.m. I listened to the message..."Tim's headed from DC to Philly...they have a heart for Lauren...it will need to pass all the tests to be a match...if it's a match the transplant team will do it tonight..."


4. At 4:42 p.m. I called the Pitman church phone. Katherine answered. I asked her to compose an email to send out to encourage everyone to pray.


5. By 4:47 p.m. Katherine had composed an email message that, in part read... "Patti has just received word that a heart is being delivered to CHOP tonight for Lauren Schwamb. We are asking that you pray fervently for the success of this transplant. Here are several specific things to pray about. First, another child had to die before this heart became available. Please pray for that family. Second, doctors will not know until later if this heart will be a compatible match for Lauren. Please pray that she can accept this heart. Third, it is possible that Lauren would not survive this surgery. Please pray for her life....We are their away-from-home church family. Thank you for taking a moment to pray for them."


6. At 4:59 p.m., before the email was sent out, I called Tim to see where he was. He soberly responded, "I'm not! The last test on the heart proved to not be a match..."


7. At 5:10 Cristi posted on Facebook, "Cristi is waiting for another day and a more perfect heart..."

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God have mercy, Christ have mercy on this family...

. Trans...

...is a Latin noun or prefix meaning:

• across
• over
• beyond
• on the other side
• on the opposite side
• to move

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God have mercy, Christ have mercy and give Lauren the perfect TRANSplant!

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God have mercy, Christ have mercy...give each of us a TRANSformed spiritual heart... a TRANSformed mind!

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In both a TRANSplant and a spiritual TRANSformation there must be both movement and "perfection" involved.

GIGATTAATTGIG!

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WHILE I'M WAITING ON YOU LORD...I'LL FOLLOW YOUR WORD...

DIRECT MY FOOTSTEPS ACCORDING TO YOUR WORD...

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"Blessed are the merciful,

for they will be shown mercy. "

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LET NO SIN RULE OVER ME...

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Is it a sin to not extend mercy to others?

What is present when there is no mercy?

Judgment?

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WHILE I'M WAITING ON YOU LORD...I AM THANKFUL...

He'll be 28 years old next month. It hasn't always been easy! Uterine starved and low birth weight had the baby (who had lost weight in utero) looking more like a little shriveled monkey at birth than anything. He was born by c-section after a day of labor for his mom.
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The first year was filled with not sleeping through the night...allergies...a trip to the emergency room after crawling over to the open stove door and putting his hands palms down...then there was the high fever with his eyes rolling backwards which sent him into the hospital...pneumonia and an oxygen tent followed... During times like these, most young parents wonder what the future will hold...




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That is a snippet of our first year with our first born, Jordan. Each year thereafter had enough drama and difficult circumstances to write a book and yet God gave our family GRACE FOR EACH NEW DAY AND BRIGHT HOPE FOR OUR TOMORROWS. He proved over and over again that God Is Good All The Time And All The Time God Is Good! GIGATTAATTGIG!
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Steve and I are so grateful for God's faithfulness in Jordan's life. Today, I would like to share with you a few pictures with comments so that you will know the WHY of this post.
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As a little guy, Jordan did not like being held facing whoever was holding him. Here he is at four months old with Steve and me. At a very early age he was into seeing the world and taking it all in.

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Here he is a few months later...very into checking out what is going on around him...and thoroughly enjoying it!

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A few months after that he entertained the family in song with Grandpa Klein joining in. He was into music at an early age.


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Grandma Klein and Jordan got a lot of reading time in. He was into books, newspapers, and words at an early age.


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In the next picture, Jordan stands near the stove helping Daddy do dishes. The stove is where he had been severely burned months earlier. At an early age, Jordan was into helping.


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Here is our last picture taken in front of the apartment building where we had lived for 7 years. We moved to a house with a yard and a dog because, as you can see here, Jordan was into getting down and exploring his world. He would soon be doing it with his sister.

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A sister came...then, a brother...and then, another sister... Here Jordan is into celebrating being the oldest of four as our family poses with Aunt Pam and Uncle Dalen.
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Jordan continued to be into reading as he got one book club order after another.
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Here Jordan is into enjoying life as big brother. He and Caleb play "cowboy waiters" for their sisters' tea party.


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Jordan was and is very into having a humble heart. At the age of 9, he listed the things that he needed to work on. Notice his list of three things is written under a map he drew of the "Holy Lands".

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Jordan was very into enjoying his siblings.

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In 1994, as I prepared to have surgery, Jordan was very into learning how to manage the kitchen while I was out of commission. Jordan was very into being responsible.

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The years flew by and Jordan went to York College where both Steve and I taught. He thrived in the christian environment and loved being in the York College chorus. Jordan was very into christian friends and christian music.
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On my birthday, in December 2001, Jordan came home from campus to be with the family. He ran into the house yelling, "Mom! Mom! Get a camera! Come quick! God has given you an awesome birthday present!" We took this picture! Jordan was and is into articulating how God blesses and blesses...


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Jordan found a wonderful soul mate named Jacqueline while at York College. He was into her meeting his extended Sikes' family...

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Jordan was into Jacqueline meeting his extended Klein family including his Granny Carron.


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Jordan was and is into Jacqueline...

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Jordan remained into his studies and graduated from York College. He celebrates here with Dad and Mom, friends Grant and Fletcher, and Papa and Mama Sikes...


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Jordan waited on his bride to finish college and then he got into medical school and they moved into their first of several Chicago apartments...

After the first year of medical school Jordan got into his white coat at the "White Coat Ceremony"...




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Last week Jordan took his boards. Yesterday, Jordan received his letter of acceptance for a three year residency in Kansas City, MO...

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Jordan and Jacqueline are into love, faith, hope, perseverance, endurance...because they know that in it all and through it all God Is Good All The Time And All The Time God Is Good! GIGATTAATTGIG! Thank you, Jesus. We are so grateful!

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For the rest of the story go to http://jordandjacqueline.blogspot.com/

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For other GRATITUESDAY posts, check out: http://heavenlyhomemakers.com/blog/category/gratituesday

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WHILE I'M WAITING ON YOU LORD...I AM HOPEFUL...

MEDITATION MONDAY

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Powerful! If you live in my world, I see HOPE all around me! HOPE has power! One big reason is that I live around alot of people who patiently wait on the LORD. I live around alot of people who extend mercy and grace. I shared this picture with you last week and the story behind it. Now, I've added this week's theme song with the words...

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"I'm waiting! I'm waiting on You, LORD!
And, I am hopeful.

I'm waiting on You, LORD!

Though it is painful. But patiently, I will wait".

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RANDOM THOUGHTS TO PONDER...CONNECTING SCRIPTURES TO MEDITATE ON...

• Jessica lives with us and suffers excruciating migraines....she patiently waits for mercy, healing, and hope to come her way...13 years...oh, there have been others who have waited long or longer...
• 12 years for the woman with the issue of blood...Matthew 9 "And behold, a woman who had been suffering from a hemorrhage for twelve years, came up behind Him and touched the fringe of His cloak; 21 for she was saying to herself, "If I only touch His garment, I shall get well." 22 But Jesus turning and seeing her said, "Daughter, take courage; your faith has made you well." And at once the woman was made well. "
• 18 years for the stooped woman...Luke 13 "And behold, there was a woman who for eighteen years had had a sickness caused by a spirit; and she was bent double, and could not straighten up at all. 12 And when Jesus saw her, He called her over and said to her, "Woman, you are freed from your sickness." 13 And He laid His hands upon her; and immediately she was made erect again, and began glorifying God.".
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• Cristi sits in the hospital room with her three year old daughter Lauren and patiently waits for a heart transplant for Lauren. Cristi, Tim, Addison, and Brennan were with us at Pitman Saturday night in our showing of Fireproof. Grandma Schwamb sat with Lauren in the hospital. It was Cristi's first night away from Lauren in a long time. I sat next to Cristi and handed her kleenex as we both cried through the movie. After I posted one of the movie's theme songs as our song of the week on this blog, Cristi commented on yesterday's post: "Thank you for the music that I need to hear today! I'm going to copy down the words to hang in our room. I saw something about the song that credits Psalm 40:1 as part of the inspiration. It'll be my verse to memorize this week."
• Psalm 40:1-4 "I waited patiently for the LORD; And He inclined to me, and heard my cry. 2 He brought me up out of the pit of destruction, out of the miry clay; And He set my feet upon a rock making my footsteps firm. 3 And He put a new song in my mouth, a song of praise to our God;Many will see and fear,And will trust in the LORD.
  4 How blessed is the man who has made the LORD his trust..."

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• Nan, a transformed mom, lost her wonderful christian son Connor last month at the age of 12 to MRSA. Only those who have lived through something so tragic can testify to her through mercy and grace of the hope that is in store for her. I encourage Nan to grieve, cry out to God, be angry...
• Psalm 88:1-7 "O LORD, the God of my salvation, I have cried out by day and in the night before Thee. 2 Let my prayer come before Thee;Incline Thine ear to my cry! 3 For my soul has had enough troubles,And my life has drawn near to Sheol. 4 I am reckoned among those who go down to the pit;I have become like a man without strength, 5 Forsaken among the dead,Like the slain who lie in the grave,Whom Thou dost remember no more,And they are cut off from Thy hand. 6 Thou hast put me in the lowest pit,In dark places, in the depths. 7 Thy wrath has rested upon me,And Thou hast afflicted me with all Thy waves..."
• How does Nan find HOPE?

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• John Mark, a visiting speaker told his story yesterday morning in our Bible class. It was a powerful lesson filled with HOPE. A story of a man who lived feeling these three words:
• FORSAKEN! How could God love him when his wife of two years died and his sixteen year old son died?
• FAILURE! How could God love him by allowing a divorce between him and his second wife?
• DEFICIENT! How could God love him if he could never "get it right"? ...when he always felt inadequate?
• Then, John Mark shared of his awakening to a different look at how God views His children...He takes away the old names that we call ourselves and gives us new names...here is one of the powerful scriptures of HOPE that merits much meditation..
• Isaiah 62:2-4 "...you will be called by a new name that the mouth of the LORD will bestow. 3 You will be a crown of splendor in the LORD's hand, a royal diadem in the hand of your God. 4 No longer will they call you Deserted, or name your land Desolate. But you will be called Hephzibah (My Delight), and your land Beulah (married to God); for the LORD will take delight in you..."

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• Married couples all over this world are struggling. They are not "getting" what it means to truly "love and respect" one another. Our church family is addressing the needs. Sunday mornings and life groups the next six weeks will be spent on this topic. The movie FIREPROOF articulates words that are often heard in homes acround the world...
• "You constantly nag me and drain the life right out of me..."
• "If you can't give me the respect that I deserve than what is the point of this marriage?"
• "I don't understand her, she's so sensitive!"
• "He's so insensitive!"
• "If there's a God out there, He's not interested in me!"
• "Something tells me that you're doing just enough to get by!"
• "I have taken her insults and sarcasm..how am I supposed to show love over and over to someone who constantly rejects me?"
• "How are you an honorable man? Looking at those pictures on the internet does not show that you honor me!"
• TAKE THE LOVE DARE FOR FORTY DAYS: DAY ONE: James 1:19 "But let everyone be quick to hear, slow to speak and slow to anger..."

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If you have not seen the movie FIREPROOF...run to see it...rent it...make sure your friends and family see it....get involved with a church group that is discussing it. We are at Pitman for the next 6 weeks. Buy the LOVE DARE book and do it for 40 days!

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Start today by extending mercy at home...and then look around you at a world in need of mercy, grace, and hope...

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"BLESSED ARE THE MERCIFUL,

FOR THEY SHALL RECEIVE MERCY."

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