Meeting the Supernatural

I didn't know whether I believed in this before it happened to me.  After telling my Pastor, who called it an epiphany event, he gently said some people may not believe me and may even think I'm crazy.  I'm willing to risk that, if telling my story leads even one person to Christ. 

Let me set the stage; I had brain surgery on Wednesday, February 27th.  I was in ICU overnight and on Thursday was transferred to the neurological recovery unit.  I hadn't slept well on Wednesday night and was very tired and droggy, so decided I needed a nap.  Travis needed a break, so Danielle came in to sit with me.  She said I was asleep only about 15 minutes, but let me tell you, this was the best sleep of my life! 

I met the supernatural, right there in my hospital room!  I can visualize it like it was today; I was sitting there with an image, a lighted being.  I can't describe it to you any other way.  This creation was just simply a bright light.  I'm not sure if this was an angel or Jesus, but no matter which, he was sent to my room from God.  He reached out with his hand and firmly grabbed my hand in comfort and gently whispered, "Alicia, go back."

I quickly rose from my sleep and all I could do was smile and stare at my hand.  Danielle was alarmed and asked if I was alright.  All I could do was say "I just met Jesus" and smile.  She just sat there and listened as I shared with her what had just occurred. 

Then, she shared how the night before my surgery, she had done some meditating in God's Word in order to have some verses to share with me.  Our plan had been for me to call her that evening if I needed encouragement or for her to pray with me.  The verse that God kept placing on her heart was Isaiah 41:13; "For I am the Lord, your God, who takes hold of your right hand and says to you, do not fear; I will help you." 

God works in amazing ways.  He shows us His power and strength through every opportunity.  He uses everything in believer's lives- and often the difficult things- to remake them, to transform them into being more like Jesus.  Everything that happens to us-the good, the easy, the difficult, the grief, the joy, the pain- has one purpose and that's to shape us into being more like Christ! 

I am absolutely sure that God was showing me through this meeting with the supernatural that He needs me down here on earth; to show more people His love and to teach people that this life isn't all there is.  And He will walk with me, holding my hand as I go.  Because of that meeting, I am more on fire than ever. 

My prayer now is that of Paul, when he asked the church in Ephesians 6 to pray that his words may be from God and bold.  I pray that God gives me boldness and His words, as I go out and speak as an ambassador for Christ!  Please pray this prayer for me as well.  Thank you, friends.

God bless,
Alicia

Lucas' Surgery

Please pray for Lucas, as he will be going into surgery tomorrow morning to get his adenoids removed and to get ear tubes put in.  He has been struggling with ear infections; he's had five rounds of antibiotics in the past three months.  He has pain, a stuffy and runny nose, and is my little grumpy gills.  We have been battling this sickness for three months constantly and his pediatrician finally said he's had enough.  We visited with the ENT last week and she wanted to get him in quickly, since he had just finished a round of antibiotics and was as healthy as he has been in awhile.  Yay!  So here we are, looking at a 30 minute operation tomorrow.  Of course, as his mom, I am nervous and a bit anxious about my baby boy being operated on.  I know this is the right thing to do, though, as I don't want these infections to cause permanent damage to his hearing or balance. 

I keep reminding myself, as Lysa TerKeurst would say: "if this is the worst thing that happens today, it's still a good day."  Although this is a bump in his health, we are so blessed for all that we have!  He is alive, without major defects, active, and the most smiley toddler I've ever met.  We are so thankful to God that we have the good health that we have.  So, if this is the worst illness that Lucas has today, it's still a super great day!  :-) 

Please pray for a quick recovery for him!  Thanks friends! 

God bless,
Alicia

Women's Conference and Adoption

Danielle, Angie, and I went to see Lysa TerKeurst LIVE in Pella, IA today!!  It was such a wonderful day!  Not only did I get to spend time with my bestie and new-found friend, but we were challenged by God's amazing words spoken through Lysa.  I have been leading these ladies through Lysa's book, Unglued, and it has been a challenging study for all of us.  I tend to show all four of the "unglued" tendencies, in my various relationships- exploding and blaming others, exploding and shaming oneself, stuffing and building barriers, and stuffing and collecting retaliation rocks.  Although not much that Lysa spoke about at today's conference was new information (because we have been going through the book already in the past five weeks), one story she told deeply touched me.

Lysa told the story of her adopted son when he still lived in Libya.  Simply put, she shared how her son only had one meal each day, but was asked one day to stand up and say why he was thankful.  He simply was unable to think of anything to be thankful for, because of the conditions he lived in and the dangers he faced.  Instead of professing a thanksgiving, her son stood up and sang a praise song to God, in the midst of his terrible circumstances.  The next day, the orphanage leader asked another boy to stand up and say what he was thankful for and the young child also couldn't think of anything, so he followed Lysa's son's lead and also sang a praise song to God.  Lysa's son joined in.  This happened each day until all of the boys were all standing singing praises to God; on that day, it just so happened that a person from America was visiting the orphanage and found a way for those beautiful-sounding boys to come to America on a tour to raise money for the orphanage.  The boys did do that tour and Lysa and her husband went to one of their concerts; that's how they met the boys that later became their sons.  Now, Lysa's church and community have adopted dozens of boys from that orphanage, changing the future for them and their country.  All this occured because one young boy sang praise songs to God!  Amazing!! 

Re-reading the story how I speak it doesn't come close to how powerful this story really is.  Lysa's words had a profound impact on me today, especially since I have felt for some time now God tugging at my heart to consider adoption.  You see, I have been praying about it and have even researched it online.  I bought a book about it (that book is on my reading list- see yesterday's post)... I have put a great deal of thought into adoption.  But I haven't acted on what I feel is God's quiet nudge.  Travis is open to adoption.  I am very open to adoption.  So, why haven't I taken the next step?   I make excuses.

I feel inadequate; I don't feel like I'm capable.  We don't have enough money to afford it; adoption could cost us over $20,000.  Our house isn't nice enough; it will be inspected and we will fail and get denied.  I'm too busy; I don't have enough time to devote to another child.  The list goes on and on with all the reasons why I feel like we can't adopt a child. 

Today, it hit me that none of those excuses matter to God.  If I come to God with obedience and a willingness to do as He desires, He will provide all those other things.  With His power, he can make wonderful things happen; I just have to be willing to obey Him.  Wow! 

I'm sitting here on my couch bawling like a baby.  I'm scared and nervous, knowing in my heart what God is calling us to do.  But I'm happy and relieved that I have finally come to accept that God will move mountains if I just obey Him.  Please pray for us.  Pray that Travis and I listen, obey, and move.  Pray that God opens doors for our family.  Pray that the right little person come into our lives at the right time. 

Here I am, willing and ready to listen to God's calling for my life...  Let's see what He has in store...

Faithful in Prayer

"Be devoted to one another in brotherly love.  Honor one another above yourselves.  Never be lacking in zeal, but keep your spiritual fervor, serving the Lord.  Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer."  (Romans 12:10-12)

In this verse in Romans, it speaks about our commitment to one another and how in that commitment we need to stay devoted to prayer.  Pray for one another.  Prayer is so powerful.  In our leadership roles for FOCC, Danielle and I remained very faithful in our prayer- that God would give us the right board members, that our 501c3 would get approved, that we would receive monthly sponsors and find the right location.  Christ has blessed this organization because of our commitment to serving one another through prayer.  We have also remained loyal to each other by praying for the others' family, struggles and sins, careers, and patience.  You've heard the saying "A family that prays together stays together," well I firmly believe this holds true for friendships also.  "The friends that pray together stay together."  I am thankful that I have a friend who prays for me, encourages me, listens to me vent, and gently smacks me in the face when I need it. 

In the coming weeks, I will be super busy putting the final touches on my full-time employment at FOCC in order to jump on board with another fabulous organization- the Alzheimer's Association.  Preparing paperwork and training my team members on day-to-day functions will be stressful and will keep me busy, but I know that my best friend is there in the background cheering me on and more importantly praying for my strength, patience, and spiritual walk.  I am so glad that I have such an amazing accountability partner, and although we have not spent much time together this week, I deep-down still feel her presence as I go through my day. Thank you for praying for me, Danielle.  Know that I am praying for you too.  I love you and thanks for being my best friend! <3
God bless,
Alicia