Wednesday, October 5

:: Help Others to Help the Pain ::

Yesterday was a really emotional day for me. Some days are just like that. The minute I open my eyes I want to go back to sleep and forget that this is my life. I want to hide in bed all day and go back to the blissful, unaware state of sleep. Thankfully I don't have a choice but to get up and struggle through the day. Working out helped, but that doesn't mean I wasn't crying while I was doing it! And of course, everywhere I went there were tons of PRECIOUS, PRECIOUS babies which made the gaping hole in my heart tear open even wider. (Note to self, if having a very bad day, don't go to Target-babies are everywhere!)

Then last night as I was lying in bed I started flipping through my devotional book (The One Year Book of HOPE, by Nancy Guthrie) and stumbled across a page with the title, "One Thing to Help the Pain." Desperately needing some salve for my hurting heart I read on and this is the verse she expanded on:

"Don't think only about your own affairs, but be interested in others, too, and what they are doing." Phillipians 2:4

I had been overwhelmed with all we've had to do with the move, Olivia Charles Antiques, the foundation, and prayer pagers for several days, but on Sunday I took a time out and left everything around me in chaos to sit down and mail the pagers to our next recipients. In writing letters to each of them and sitting to pray and think about their different struggles, I felt the peace that comes with putting the menial, unimportant stuff on the back burner to minister to others in the name of Christ. Then a few days later I read that devotional verse and I realized that sometimes the best thing you can do to ease your pain is to love and serve others unselfishly.

So with that in mind, I am posting the names and numbers of the newest prayer pager recipients.
  • 334-705-9216 - Cindy Shafer - she lost her husband Shelby in a boating accident and has three young children
  • 334-705-9217 - Jacob Dubois - a precious 3-year-old boy battling Pre-B Cell Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia (ALL) - visit his caring bridge site here
  • 334-705-9218 - Donna Brown - mom to one of our dearest friends Karl - was diagnosed with colon cancer recently - she is doing both chemo and radiation now with surgery to follow
  • 334-705-9219 - Lauren Nickles - mom to 2 very young children who is battling a very aggressive and rare form of cancer called Desmoplastic Small Cell Cancer with round blue cells - visit her caring bridge site here
  • 334-705-9220 - Elliot Williams - mom to two precious young children and friend of mine from our days working at Southern Living who is battling ovarian cancer - visit her caring bridge site here
The 800 number to dial and page all of the pagers at once is: 1-800-684-0998, when the voicemail message begins, dial 111# and then hang up.

"Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God." Phillipians 4:6

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