Praying for a Miracle

Five days ago, my best friend from Jr. High put an urgent message on my Facebook page. "Do you know what's happened to Rachel Stotler? I don't know but all I know is we need to pray HARD for her!!! RIGHT NOW!!!!" That started a quick frantic search of Facebook to find out what was happening. I followed a link to the Omaha World-Herald newspaper article that recounted a bad car accident on icy roads that led to my friend Rachel (Stotler) Clasemann to being admitted to Creighton Hospital in Omaha. I friend requested her husband, Jon, who I'd only met at their wedding about 11 years ago and sent him a message. He was kind enough to get back to me the same day, after I'd read his journal on the Caring Bridge site set up for Rachel.

She is 35-years-old, a physical therapist, and mommy to 2 little boys: Nathan and Jacob. They are too young to be visitors at the ICU where their mom is in a coma. She is recovering from a severe brain injury. So severe, in fact, that 2 parts of her skull had to be removed to relieve the pressure from the swelling in her brain. There have been some good developments in the past few days, but we are dwelling in the needed-miracle area here.

Please join me in prayer for my friend of 23 years, Rachel Clasemann. Also, pray for peace, strength, and joy for Jon and their sons, and Rachel's parents. I know Jesus has this situation in the palm of His pierced hand. I continue to lay my fear and anguish for her at the foot of the cross. I am believing for complete, miraculous restoration! She will not only wake up, but be fully healed in the name of Jesus!

“Because he loves me,” says the LORD, “I will rescue him;
   I will protect him, for he acknowledges my name.
He will call on me, and I will answer him;
   I will be with him in trouble,
   I will deliver him and honor him.
With long life I will satisfy him

   and show him my salvation.” Psalm 91:14-16

Miracle of God's Provision

Bear with me guys, this is more of a short story than a traditional blog post.

This past weekend I was making preparations for Sabina's 2nd birthday. Now, money's so tight that I was concerned that I wouldn't be able to afford the candy decorations for her Puppy Cake, but I wanted to get her one good gift. My other daughters made her a headband and necklace, I had a couple small things on reserve in the emergency gift stash for times like this, but I wanted her to have something she would love. I had a limited budget and garage sales were fruitless, so I brought my oldest son for some one-on-one time and headed out for the secondhand children's store. Sabina didn't need clothes, they've been provided in abundance; I had in mind a rocking horse, but knew we couldn't afford a new one. I wandered through the crowded labyrinth of clothes, toys, shoes and books, a rack of costumes momentarily distracted me. I searched along the tops of the clothing racks where large toys are displayed. Too little for a trike, and already using her brother's like-new ride-on toy, Sabina's gift should be a rocker.

There were cute plush ponies on plastic bases that made (shudder) noises and music. I saw a couple expensive wooden rocking horses that were probably too big for her to get on without help. The two plush Disney rockers looked too small. The three Fisher-Price spring rockers were somewhat pricey and would take up too much room at home. The one I kept coming back to was perfectly fun - a purple stuffed elephant on a wooden rocking base; low enough for her to negotiate by herself and sturdy enough for her 3-year-old brother to take a ride. $25 price tag. I looked around. I wanted to get that elephant. With a little groan, I decided to leave and take my chances at Goodwill. I took note of the store hours for the following day; if I didn't have any luck I still had a chance to come back.

Antonio and I got back in the car and traveled to Goodwill where I'd seen a cute, if worn, rocking horse a couple weeks before. I quickly scanned the toy area there, no rocking anything. Then, I started the thrift store hunt; this is when you walk, sort, and sift through junk hoping to find a treasure. I discovered a brand new, in the box, child's hair care set with brightly painted hand mirror, brush, and clips. I picked out 2 Blues Clues and Baby Einstein video tapes. At 69 cents each, they didn't have to last long to live up to their value. I discovered 2 great gifts for the small Christmas stash I've begun. Then, I dug to the bottom of the toy bin. Antonio had already bought an eagle Webkinz for less than 50 cents. He was ready to go. "What are you doing, Mom?" I think there was a rolling of eyes in there, but I was distracted. That's when I hit paydirt. I found a c-u-t-e "Boo" doll (from Monster's Inc.) Her hair still looked like it was in the original pigtails, a little smooshed from the toy bin but fixable. She laughed, talked and sang. She had a few stickers on her nightshirt. So what? I knew Sabina would love her. I was ready to go. While I was paying $8 (for all that good stuff!) I found a tiny white, new-with-tags, girly purse AND white sunglasses just Sabina's size to put inside. Now she wouldn't have to steal my sunglasses out of my purse! Another dollar plus tax and I happily went home.

As I was showing Nick the gifts I'd picked out for Sabina, he was pleased with them, but frustrated that we couldn't get the rocking elephant I'd loved. With a grumble, he said, "Well, God's her Daddy and if He wants her to have it, He'll provide it. Maybe someone will give you some money tomorrow at church and you can go back to get it." (A short word: As intercessory missionaries, we live by faith. We have monthly pledged supporters, and are blessed by others unexpectedly.) The next morning, Nick was guest leading worship at another church. As it was a Spanish church, I figured the kids wouldn't get much out of it so we went to the Sunday celebration service at OHOP as usual. After the service, I had a few people ask where Nick was and how were we doing, as the kids swirled around me and I picked up the little ones from the nursery. One of these kind souls put folded up cash in my hand. I thanked and hugged him, and put it in my purse without looking.

When the dust had settled at home, after lunch and getting the 3 youngest down for naps, Nick called on his way home. "How was church?" "It was good. Oh, J--- blessed us with money." "Really?! How much?" "I don't know, there was a 20 and a 5, I think." "You think?!" "I'm checking." There was actually 2 $20 bills and 2 $5 bills. Doubly blessed! My eyes filled with tears because I knew without a doubt that God had provided this for Sabina's $25 purple rocking elephant. He is a good Daddy.

It was the hit of the party. Sabina wouldn't even stop rocking long enough to talk on the phone to her grandparents; I put it on speaker. She had to be coaxed off to have cake and ice cream. She love, love, loves it. She liked all her gifts, but that purple elephant will always have a special place in her room, her memories, and my heart.

Verse for the day:
"Then it shall be to Me a name of joy, a praise, and an honor before all nations of the earth, who shall hear all the good that I do to them; they shall fear and tremble for all the goodness and all the prosperity that I provide for it." Jeremiah 33:9

Birthday hangover...

Yesterday was Sabina's 2nd Birthday. It was fun, joyous, and slightly sad for me because my baby isn't really a baby anymore. She's a KID!
After gift preparations and a made-from-scratch cake, a stressful day, and late party time because of Daddy's work, I have a birthday hangover.
I wanted to post on the birthday and put the cute pictures up.
I wanted to talk about the miracle of God's provision.
I wanted to eat a little more cake before it dried out.

It's late. I'm going to keep you all waiting just a little longer. I know you're all on tenterhooks - I'm truly sorry. (insert appropriate sarcasm.)
Tomorrow. I will be blogger mom again. Tonight I'm just tired out mom. Love to you all.

YAY!

Can you feel the glee? I don't have time to post tonight because I'm going out for some q.t. with my charming husband Nick. Woo-hoo!
Thank goodness for free events like Winter Garden's Music Festival this weekend. Loving it!

Pressing In, Power in Prayer

It is sometimes a difficult thing, staying close to family from so far away. I rarely get a chance to visit my extended family in Oklahoma, and I don't talk to my sister enough. I blame my kids for that. They just have no respect for phone calls. Now, I am in this strange heart place of prayer for family. I love them, I know them in a somewhat detached family way, and now I am pressing in for healing for two beautiful children who I am delighted to be related to. I know God is a loving father who only wants good things for His children. I know Holy Spirit is capable of miraculous healing. I know Jesus Christ bore those stripes in His flesh so that we can live in health; and He died so that we can live. I feel these truths. My heart is crying out for their divine healing. I am pressing in because there is power in prayer. Please join your prayers with mine for Coleman and Hope.

Coleman - age 9

This is the email I got from my Aunt Nona, Coleman's grandmother:
Michele has asked that I try to keep the family updated on Coleman's progress. Please pray for her and Brian as they deal with this and having to keep the other kids going.

I believe it has come down to Diffuse Large B-cell Lymphoma. You can find out more about this cancer by going to the Lymphoma Research Foundation web site www.lymphoma.org

Coleman had test ran on his bone marrow and a spinal tap. The Spinal fluid was clear and the bone marrow looked clean. They are sending the bone marrow off for testing just to be safe. So this is good news.

Monday he will have an x-ray of his head and neck to see if there are any tumors in that area. Then a scan of the whole body will be done later in the week. They are waiting for the insurance to approve this scan. Friday is the date set to enter the hospital to have a shunt put in for the chemo treatments. He will have his first treatment at that time. He will probably be in the hospital for the weekend.

Some of you already know this but Coleman has a web site. It is www.hotshot99.com if you want to check this out.

Thank you for your prayers and kind words. Please keep praying for all of us.

Nona

Please pray for complete healing for Coleman - a miracle by faith to glorify God! Strength and peace and love over Coleman and his family. Wisdom over his doctors and nurses.

Baby Hope (now 2 months)

As I've written before, my new little niece, Hope was born without an ear canal in her right ear. When I visited my family in July, I took note of her ear being somewhat misshapen and smaller than her left one. It looks a little smooshed. Otherwise, she is baby perfection and quite cuddly. The initial tests they ran came back all fine. Her appointment with the specialists at Boys Town is on September 25th, then it will be determined if her inner ear is developed and where she goes from here. I know that's still a little ways off, but I am believing for a total creative miracle before then. I am praying that her ear is completely healed before that appointment. Thank you, Lord!

Thank you all for your prayers. I know that they are worth more than gold.

Verse of the Day:
"'Now, Lord, look on their threats, and grant to Your servants that with all boldness they may speak Your word, by stretching out Your hand to heal, and that signs and wonders may be done through the name of Your holy Servant Jesus.'
And when they had prayed, the place where they were assembled together was shaken; and they were all filled with the Holy Spirit, and they spoke the word of God with boldness." Acts 4:29-31

Double Edged Sword

I am so excited to be an aunt again! This is my newborn niece, Hope. Her momma is my sister Holly. She was born Monday evening after a WAY TOO LONG labor, but short delivery. A big baby at 9 lbs, 6 oz, the is healthy and doing very well. The pregnancy went smoothly and there were no anticipated problems.

However, when she was born, it was discovered that her right ear is somewhat different. When I talked to Holly on Tuesday, she said, "She was born without an ear canal. They are going to run tests to see if her inner ear is developed, or not." Yesterday, they did an ultrasound on her kidneys and heart. They were only concerned about the kidneys because they develop at the same time as a baby's ears. They also did x-rays to see if there was evidence of genetic problems that could affect her ear. All these tests came back with great results! She is totally healthy. Her daddy, Michael said, "It just looks like she has a wrinkle over her ear." Now, they have to wait for an appointment with a specialist to find out about her inner ear.

Now, being an intercessor and a part of the Orlando House of Prayer, as soon as I heard those first words from Holly, I started praying for that sweet baby. In fact, I was already praying for her because of health problems my other niece had as a result of a traumatic birth. But when I found out about her ear, I mobilized! I sent an email prayer request to the OHOP missions base; I sent out emails to family and close friends; I got on Facebook and Myspace to spread the word out across the country further than I know. This baby girl, Hope is being lifted up for health, creative miracles in the name of Jesus!

Hope is a gift from God - creative miracle in herself! She is fearfully and wonderfully made. She is already a blessing to so many. And yes, it is tragic for her and my sister's family to have to deal with this, but there is another side to this. Right now, there are so many people praying for her, interceding for her, investing their heart in her, that she will always be blessed & loved!

And, personally, I am already blessed by Hope! :D

Please, when you read this, say a prayer for my little niece. You can never get too much of a good thing.

Verse for the Day:
James 5:16 "Therefore confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous man is powerful and effective."