I Now Drink My Coffee Black

I now drink my coffee black? What kind of a title is that? It means what it says but there is much more to be said and recorded onto this online bookshelf of blogged memories about a day in which I decided to get clean with my coffee sipping. So this page of musings revolves around the time that I took my determination to a whole new level and began to drink my coffee black.

It was July 1st, in the Summer of 2016 when I decided to give it another shot in the dark. Another? Yes I've quit the highly desired, beloved cream and sugar many times in the past, but never lasted more than a week or two. It's amazing how cravings never truly go away. They just get pushed back into the very depths of your mind where your hypothalamus, that part of your brain that loves to tell your body it has to have something when in fact it just likes to lie lie lie all the time, decides to sit back and let logic step in and say, "Why?" Why do you think you need it? Is it beneficial?  I had to learn to get past the lies and see the freedom in ignoring that darn craving and replacing it with something else.

Why was dropping this habit of cream and sugar so important to me, one may ask. Well those who know me know about my love for this popular high octane drink. I've even been known to have a slight hinge of disappointment after meeting someone new and thinking we could be great friends, then to find out  the discouraging news that they don't...drink...coffee...gasp. Sorry, this friendship would never work. I say this jokingly of course.

My fellow coffee drinking readers will relate when I say that it is this very drink, that comes from a tiny bean, that helps put a bounce in my first step out of bed in the morning encompassed by the excitement in knowing it's time for coffee and Jesus! I love mornings. I love to get up and have some time to talk to God and sip on my rich hot drink, before the little minions awake and the rat race begins. The only problem with this crazy habit I bestowed was the dairy and sugar that I also had been consistently consuming daily.

Prior to kicking my habit I had become aware of my need to cut back on my carb and sugar intake, creating a cleaner approach to eating. In the event of doing so I realized that I was not going to achieve a day without sugar if I indeed started my day with a spoonful of sugar. There are really two types of coffee drinkers; the ones who just have to have something in it; and the ones who drink it black and would never go back. Well I've been both of these people, obviously or I would have no credibility in writing about it. One thing that is so interesting and unexpected, is how I now crave it in its pure and natural flavor.. after extracted from the bean and mixed in water of course, but this is now my preferred way to drink it! After achieving this goal I am finding there are other things that I can go without. Things that I have had all my life but I am realizing I am better off without them. I feel better, I think better and everything tastes better. I'm not entirely gluten free but I'm seeking out ways to cook without it. Bread is a real treat but I find that I'm not craving it like I once did. It all had to start somewhere, and coffee was the first step so I'm reminded every single day, of the accomplishment of giving up something I thought to be impossible, as I begin it with a cup of black coffee and a whole lot of Jesus who really was the key to making it happen. I'm now presently on my third month of this clean drinking frenzy and I think I've created a habit in which there is no turning back. Even now after writing about it, I have set an accountability of online viewers that are sure to keep me on the black-coffee-drinking-bandwagon. Otherwise I just become a hypocrite of my own writing.

I share this blog not to brag about what may seem to some as a "silly trivial accomplishment," but in hopes that it may help someone struggling with a food addiction of any kind. It all starts with the first step and the determination and will power to do it. If you don't believe you are strong enough then that's where the power of God steps in and fills in the gaps. He is the cream and sugar in my coffee every morning and it's never tasted better!

The Most Important of all Decisions

As I look around me I see many different people groups from all different backgrounds, cultures and lifestyles. Sometimes it is so easy to get lost and forget who you are and where you came from. Especially living in a large city! What really matters is what are you doing right now. I have this favorite saying I read once, Where you are today is a result of the decisions you've made in the past. Our life is made up of an abundance of decisions that were once made which bring us to the present day and the ones not yet made that will carry us on to the uncertain abyss of the future.

 I strongly dislike making decisions myself, maybe because the previous saying is always running around up there in my scattered brain, but even little things are hard for me to decide on. When Brandon and I were first dating I remember he would take me out to a restaurant and I would never try anything new. I would stay steadfast and firm with my choice of the grilled chicken salad with honey mustard dressing, which I tried my first week in college, liked it and decided to stick with it, because I knew it was safe. The reason for my madness was due to my lack of restaurant experience.  I was uncertain of everything because it was all so new to me! In my little home town of Linneus, Maine, we had one stop light and one restaurant that was almost always fully occupied. The next town with anything at all to offer was Houlton, a little town right off the end of I 95, If you missed this exit driving North, you would find yourself at the Canadian border only 5 minutes up the road! Houlton acquired a couple of fast food restaurants as well as The Asian Palace, and the Elm Tree Diner. Those were what we had to choose from, which pretty much sums up my inadequacies with new foods, and the choosing thereof!  Brandon was the first one to give me an education in "Eating Out 101" and with time, I began to branch out and try new things while on my magical dates with him. To this day, I am still the last one to decide what I want, but have come a long ways since our dating days at Liberty University.

To get back on the subject of my premise for writing, "Where we are today is a result of the decisions we've made.".....How do I implement this obvious truth into the little delicate minds of my three beloved children?  Our kids have heard us say many times, "Make good choices", but do they really know the importance and depth of this simple command? You have to live with the consequence of your choice no matter what, there is no escaping it, and there is no going back.

Today I was able to teach this lesson to my 5 year old who had to learn the hard way that when you spend your allowance one day, you can't get it back days later even though you find something better that you would presently rather have. Ava, (middle child age 7) is probably the most wise with her money. She's always careful in picking something out at the store on her birthday, where the other two will throw there items in the basket in a matter of minutes, Ava strolls through the aisles pensively, looking and hesitantly deciding. Today Ava still had the money I had given her last week for doing the dishes and folding my laundry. As she lurked around the shop looking for things within her quaint price range, younger sister Ainsley began to search and find things she that she wanted that were out of both her price range (0.00) and Ava's price range! I had to explain to Ainsley that she had spent her money the day she earned it, on a one month Animal Jam subscription for her Chrome book. I explained to her at the time that this would take up all of her allowance and that her piggy bank would be at a zero balance now. She seemed to understand, but really I think she was just living in the moment and she wanted that game!

Makes me think....How many times do we live in the moment thinking it really won't matter much in the future?  I'm guilty of thinking that maybe the consequence monster will some how miss me and forget to punish me and my fat cells for that double fudge chewy brownie desert that just had to have the ice-cream to go with it. That bowl of delish that climbed right into my belly after a dinner that was entirely and completely satisfying with no need of a sinful desert, broke my three day fast from sugar. It opened the door to invite anything lovely tasting back into my life wherever and whenever. I paid for all of that brownie and everything that followed it a week later costing me a gaining of 5lbs that could have been a loss but wasn't,  all because I decided to give into the craving in that very moment.. Oops!.. bad decision.

 Consequences just don't seem fair, there not always the same for everyone either.  Not everyone would receive the same consequence as I did for cheating on my diet and eating that brownie and ice cream. For example, Austin also used his money to purchase a month subscription to Animal Jam on his Chrome book, but was he upset that he had spent his money and wasn't able to shop like Ainsley? No, he could care less. He was very happy with the purchase he made, and has enjoyed every moment of his Animal Jam playing and had no regrets. Ainsley also  enjoyed her purchase but really badly wanted to partake in the fun moment Ava was presently enjoying as she chose what she wanted to spend her allowance on.

I don't want this blog to be an attack on my baby Ainsley since she was spoken of in a negative light, and the other two positive, but just a memory to be recorded for when the moments of their childhood slip our minds and even pictures can't tell these stories of the past. To Ainsley's credit, she is really young compared to the other two who have 23 and 45 months of life learning lessons on her.  I can only hope that she learned a lesson about being wise with her money or at least that her disgruntlement on this very day was a result of the decision she made prior.

What a beautiful picture life is when we are given that peace in knowing the results of our past decisions are turning out precisely to our benefit. My husband gets up in front of crowds of people on a weekly basis to talk about life principles, and eternal things but really everything that he talks about always comes full circle back to one thing. That one thing being, the most important decision we could ever make, one that our eternal destination rides on and no one is exempt from. We will make many mistakes here on earth and have to pay the consequences for them, like Ainsley's allowance story and my craving mishap-but really all of that pales in comparison to the most important decision that we each have to make for ourselves on this side of eternity and that is to die to self and live for Christ. Where you will be in eternity will be the result of the decision you made in the past. 

May His Face Shine Upon You

The past year has been a whirlwind of glorious events. A tad bit complicated to put into human words, but the end result always makes enormous sense. What a beautiful picture life is - as the greatest artist known to man -- the one who holds creation in His hands, is the one painting ours.

Like an artist knows the picture he has in mind before the first stroke of the brush, only God knows what the future holds in the picture He is painting of our life. 

I recently gave a devotional to a group I was leading and I felt I had so much more to say to them but only a small amount of time to convey the point that God was trying to make as I shared with them James 1:2 (“Consider it all joy, my brethren when you encounter various trials….”) so I just had to put it all into writing.

It’s commonly said that you are either heading into a storm, you’re in the middle of a storm, or you’re coming out of a storm. That’s life and it’s true for everyone who’s ever lived it. Whether we can detect any of those three segments or not, right now it is certain that we are all living in one of these events! I think I can speak for most people if I were to say that “coming out of the storm” would be the number one choice of where we would all like to be, but you can’t deny the beauty of a storm and all of its Glory!

My close friend and I had been going through separate storms together. These storms, although extremely different in nature, had one standard ground that kept us from drifting apart in the strong winds – one common denominator that reminded us of why we were there.  The solid Rock that never moved, was never shaken, and girded us with strength as the enemy tried to destroy – was none other than our Lord and Savior. 

I find it amazing how God places people, things, and situations perfectly into our lives. We can’t clearly see or understand the foreshadowing of it but always smile when we realize the end result. I love how God does that. He has a way of leaving us with a smile on our face after His mission is accomplished and that is the true joy of a believer.

Last Sunday, my husband spoke on seeking God’s face, not just His hand in our lives.

We are always asking for God’s hand in every situation, for his mercy, for his blessing, but one thing we lack as a society especially in American culture is seeking God’s face.  Truly seeking Him on our knees in prayer is really something that can’t be found in the calming sweetness of life. Seeking Him is not something we naturally do as human beings.  We are fleshly, and we personally have free will, but God has the final say and controls all of our surroundings.  It is He who gives the enemy permission to attack us and it is He who gives us the strength and power to pull through anything and it can only be done in His name. It all belongs to Him! He is the Artist, He is the great Creator – the One who tells the seas to part, waters to fall, winds and storms to arise! The mountains in our life tremble when his presence is near.

As my friend and I journeyed through our separate storms together – we cried tears, shared laughter, prayed many prayers, and dissected scripture – all of which were so pertinent in getting us through. We likened our learning experience to a diamond with many facets, rich with so much beauty to bestow.  Isn’t that just how God is? We told each other time and time again that nothing in life could match up with this great intimacy with God. He was teaching us so much and we were seeing Him in every single thing that we experienced. He was holding our hands as we were seeking His face. In the midst of this storm the most precious times of the day were found filling up on the Word of God and giving the Holy Spirit full reign in our lives. We would joke that we had an addiction. Yes, an addiction to God and our time spent with Him. I remember my 6 year old making the comment, “Mom, all you talk about all the time is God!” She seemed frustrated but I smiled knowing she really didn’t know Him yet, but her time would come. One thing was for sure, she knew He was a friend of mine and very important to me.

Here in the present I long for that again. I still seek Him, I still digest His word, but the storm has past, and the calming has now come. I remember feeling that my storm was almost over and I expressed to my friend how it kind of made me sad that the journey was coming to an end for me, she agreed and empathized with this deviating feeling. It wasn’t the ugly storm I was going to miss, obviously. It was knowing that the precise closeness to God and daily dwelling in His presence may not quite be the same in the days to come. This made me sad and lonesome for heaven.

I love how God held my hand through the storm. I love how He continued to reveal Himself to me.  But most of all I love how He did it all to get me to the next step I needed to take.  Just as a parent eventually lets go of the back of their child’s bike so he can take off on two wheels all by himself – our Heavenly Father gives us the training wheels we need until its time to let go and send us on.  He doesn’t go anywhere – His presence is still hovering over us – the only difference is that now, He has given His child the ability to spread His wings just a little further than before. God is allowing us to see the world in an entirely different way, with different set of eyes, with much more wisdom and understanding.

We experience a unique closeness to our Creator that can only be experienced in the midst of a storm.  He revealed Himself to me in a way that was so powerful that the very memory of it is embedded into my mind, soul, and spirit – never to be forgotten. This left me with more faith, more power and more strength to make it through the next storm whatever it may be. So consider it all joy my friend… and when those storms in life come….May His Face Shine Upon You!

Season Four- Six- Eight!!!

Each stage of child raising has its challenges, I loved my babies being babies, but right now I have to say that their current ages happen to be mine and Brandon's favorite season! So independent these little boogers have become yet still little enough to be cute and kind of innocent...sort'a kind of:)

Park Party of 5 had an amazing summer! We didn't really do anything wild and crazy like that of the previous summer,  buying and renovating a house, but sure enjoyed every moment of our family time together. The highlights would have to be Austin getting up on Ski's and Ainsley taking off with swimming and learning to ride her bike without training wheels! I cant leave Ava out... well she just continues to make us proud to be her parents. Her and lil sis Ainsley became the best of friends and decided they wanted me to combine their rooms so they could share bunk beds. It makes my heart melt to see how much they love each other. I pray it continues through the years, although realistically I know there will be those times when they will want to kill each other. 

School has started and Ainsley is my last one home. Ive decided to relish in this last year with her by keeping her home from pre-school and dropping the part time job...This was really not a difficult decision to make seeing how fast the last 8 years zipped by.  I know next year I'll have all the time in the world to work or do whatever it is the Lord is leading me to do once my world completely changes and all three A's get swallowed up by the little brick school building where they will spend a good chunk of their childhood...

In the morning after waving goodbye to Austin and Ava on the bus, Ainsley and I go for a bike ride for her PE of the day:)  She rides and I run. She is a great little rider and does well staying on the side walk except for this one day. I was shortly behind her and was at that, "sweet spot" of my run. For the non- runners, thats the mile where your legs just carry you, there's no pain, no cramps or breathing issues, just endorphines being released and a blissful breeze as the pace is just right to go with the beat of the song coming through the earbuds in perfect rhythmic harmony.  Meanwhile, bike rider Ainsley had somehow for a split second lost focus and was heading straight for a pole that wasn't even on our trail..! I saw it happening only milla-seconds before and was unable to prevent her crash into the dead center of the very large pole. As soon as I saw she was ok, I couldn't hold it in...I had to laugh, because it was so darn funny, and something only a child with Carrie Ann Park's DNA could do. I actually laughed a couple times throughout the day. It was just so unexpected and I really don't know why in all of our rides, her bike has never reared off into the grass, but this one time it did, there just happened to be a giant pole sticking up out of the grass. Its like a magnetic force was pulling her towards it.

After my laughter calmed down and I returned back into my running mode I started thinking of how much that pole placed before Ainsley is just like the obstacles God places before us in life. Things can be going so smoothly but at that moment when we feel the reflection of God's face shining down on us and everything seems perfect and peaceful, BOOM we run into a giant plank that throws us off our current path and out of our comfort zone, requiring us to brush it off, refocus, get back on the ride of life and start again. Could the pole have been avoided had Ainsley been more focused and paying attention? Sure, but thats the thing about life, God doesn't present these little obstacles to us when we are entirely focused on Him, seeking His face in all we do, and gripping tightly to His hand just to make it through each day. The obstacles come when we have our guard down, and it can be anything from a temptation from the devil, to a hiccup that keeps us from pursuing something that God just doesn't have in His plan for our life.

 I love how Ainsley cried for a couple seconds, mainly due to embarrassment, but then got right back up and started riding again! Thats what God expects of His children as well, so many of us give up before we actually make it to the finish line, but if we faithfully allow him to carry us through, then we will see the glorious unfolding of what he has set before us. Life is hard, some of those bumps are more like mountains, but with each mountain we climb, God brings us closer to Him, more like Him and better equipped to help fulfill the Great Commission of Christ and purpose for why we are here in the first place! God loves us and he doesn't want to see us fail thats why he sent His son to die for our failures and sins so that we can have a relationship with Him! That relationship is what God desires of us the most. He wants our full undivided attention because He's up to something all the time and if we're not paying attention, praying fervently, and in the Word, we will miss it!! 

Tid Bits from Above

    Hello blog friends! I feel like I have taken a very long siesta from blogging, but I'mmm backkk!! My blogs may have a different twist to them this time around but I look forward to sharing with everyone some ways God has been speaking to my heart! Lately I have taken advantage of the "notes" app on my iPhone. This way when I have a thought or word from God I can record it not to be forgotten! Heres a sneak peak thats short and sweet!  So glad to be out of my writer's block and back to blog life!!
 
     God has a plan for each of our lives if we choose to do Gods will. The devil also has a plan for your life. A plan to destroy. What we need to do as Christians is be one step ahead of the devil, be on guard for what that plan may be... Flee it, seek God for help and you will and can conquer sin! In this, God will be glorified and your life quality will be enhanced. But you must be wise and be watching at all times. The devil wont make it obvious it will be what you least expect..But sometimes it may be something you always knew in the back of your mind. Stay in the word. Pray fervently. The effective prayer of a righteous man can accomplish much. Be waiting and watching for His return always!

    Yes, this is certainly some deep food for thought, but I will have a wide range of writings and some comical reads as well.

A Journey of Prayer

Too much time has passed by since I last had the inspiration and the mental focus to sit down and display the recent trail of events taken place in our lives! In this entry I am going to attempt to unravel just a few highlighted events from the amazing prayer journey we ventured out on six months ago to seek God's perfect will for the life and future of our family.

In December Brandon and I began to feel somewhat of a release from our ministry in Miami at Wayside Baptist Church. Im really at a loss for words to explain what prompted that feeling. And why both Brandon and I both felt it simultaneously, but regardless of what it was, it put us on our knees in prayer, for the will of God to be made crystal clear as  to where we needed to be in life.

One of the first things we felt the need to do was put our house on the market. We really didn't feel it would sell, due to all of the other foreclosed homes that had been surrounding us for months but we wanted to get a head start so if the right buyer came along we would be ready and available. Well, after being on the market for only 4 days, at its appraised value, we had our first viewer, who following his visit to our home instantly wanted to buy. (Sounds funny that we would feel prompted to sell our house when we didnt even have a place to go. Had we turned in our intelligence for the looney bin or was God up to something?)This was a shocker to us as only one could imagine! We were excited, but at the same time needed a place to go depending on when this man would need to move in. Our only option would be to rent a home with short term lease agreement when that time arrived. Of course this was only if that time fell short of our time here in Miami.

We continued to witness numerous confirmations in our lives that told us our time here in Miami was nearing an end. There were other churches brought to our attention, but nothing clear and confirming from God. Today it seems so incredibly hard to make such a huge life-changing decision that requires wisdom and discernment, and waiting on the Lord. I admire Brandon for how patient he was in this process. We leaned on each other and leaned on God more than ever before. At times we became utterly frustrated and at those moments we just wanted God to drop a sign from heaven saying this is exactly what you need to do and where you need to go. I remember Brandon and I both breaking one morning before he headed into work. As we buried our heads in each others arms we fell to our knees and cried out to God a need for confirmation and clarity beyond our understanding. We didnt want to make a mistake and choose the wrong path due to our own fleshly desire but only what God desired for our lives. In other words, we didn't want "options" from God, we wanted closed doors, one direct path, and a clear answer, so clear that there was no possible way we could be making a mistake.

On May 21st Brandon received a call from the head of the search committee at FBR. It was later in the evening when he got home, the AAA's had already gone to bed. He walked in the house and told me about a call he just received from Kansas City, Missouri. He had a look of pleasant peace on his face that was so soothing to my heart as he told me, I think this is it! I listened as he shared his prior phone conversation with me. We went on line and checked out the church's website along with some views and facts about the Kansas City area. I went to bed and slept so well that night but Brandon was too intrigued to sleep. He stayed up doing further research on the church and its website and in his research he came across a picture of the church. He couldn't believe his eyes as when he recognized the picture. It was a picture he had used 6 years ago for a doctoral class at Liberty. He used it for the front cover of his Church ministry portfolio. Never knowing the name of this church or anything about it, he just happened to like the looks of it and just happened to place it as the front cover of his portfolio. He laughed at the thoughts of it. I couldn't believe he didn't come wake me up instantly to tell me this, instead he waited until morning.

Our Journey of Prayer continued only slightly different this time. God was giving us confirmation after confirmation. The peace and sovernty of God was pouring down on us like a rainstorm in Missouri after a season of drought. After our second trip to Kansas City we entered into the final process of being voted in. In a church the size of FBR it is almost unheard of to receive a unanimous vote, but God continued to give us what we wanted up until the last moment of our visit. In that moment, we were ushered out to a crowd of people to find they had voted us in unanimously to come be a part of their family at First Baptist Raytown. This was such an overwhelming feeling of conformation and completion, that I cant even begin to describe exactly how we and the search committee were feeling that night, but I know it was all from God and He answered our prayers indeed!

People, Politics, and Our God Given Rights

There are times I am inspired to write but I don't, and then there are time when I am just caught up in a wonderful moment thats just too amazing to even express with words ( those moments almost always involving my triple A's ;-)... Well this is one of those times I've been inspired to write and so that I will do. I have a lot of passion behind what I am going to write about, so bare with me as I may carry on for quite a while, (on what some may call) "touchy subjects"!

I was recently invited to a prayer breakfast with guest speaker Janet Huckabee (wife of Gov. Mike Huckabee). I had prior plans to attend my weekly BSF class, but decided this would be an excusable absence from the class with such a strict attendance policy. Some may chuckle as BSF is only a bible study, but it is not just a bible study, but an intense in depth study of God's word that thousands of women all over the world come together one day a week, not to socialize, discuss church politics, or current politics for that matter, but to learn more from the Book that was written for us to use as our map and guide in this gracious life we were given. So yes, it kind of was a big deal to skip:) I accepted the invitation and responded to the RSVP, changing my Wednesday morning plans.

As I excitedly entered into the building where I was soon to meet one of my favorite Christian leader's wives, I found myself sitting at a table of strangers. Among them was a 19 year old girl named Zoya, who introduced herself, displaying a very Russian accent. We all carried on introducing ourselves, but centered in on Zoya, who began to share with us how Russia was a Godless society.  I was immediately intrigued by her as I love to hear about other cultures and people's stories of how they came here, and especially how they came to know Christ in spite of communism! I could tell by her talk she was a Christian and asked her where and how did she learn about Jesus and she told me it was in an orphanage. Her parents, young brother and older sister had died in a car accident when she was three, so she and her twin brother were sent to an orphanage. I was instantly burdened at the thoughts of this but I knew this story would only get better as the happy ending was sitting, in person, right before my very eyes! She asked me If I had heard of Samaritans Purse, and the Christmas shoe boxes. Of course I had! We shopped for three orphans last year and placed a picture of each of our A's in each box. She told me how Samaritans Purse is only allowed to come to the orphanage twice in a life time, but each time they present the gospel. The first time she did not accept Christ, maybe because of fear, maybe because she wasn't ready, but the seed was planted and the second time when they came she prayed, giving her heart and life to the Lord! In her prayer she requested for a family in America to adopt her and her twin brother soon so they could worship the ONE true God in a God honoring country. (He will give you the desires of your heart, when He is what your heart desires!...Just one of my all time favorite quotes I had to slip in there) Back to her story. Six weeks later, her and her brother were adopted to a family in Missouri.

Tears flooded my eyes as this 19 year old told her astounding story with little to no emotion herself. What was really heart wrenching was her mentioning how those gifts were the only two they had ever received while at the orphanage. She said it was so important that we put a picture in it, because each orphan would take that picture ( if they got one) and place it over their bed to remind them that someone really does care and someone loved them enough to send them a present. What a perfect entrance to display the knowledge and truth that there is also someone who loved them (these orphans) enough to die for them and the shoebox is how we as Christians, "little-Christ's" are able to exemplify just a very very small attribute of His love for mankind. For me, this young lady's story took the significance of Operation Christmas Child to another level. Sometimes we do things so routinely that you have to wonder, is it really making a difference? Well on this day I couldn't help but walk away thinking, the little things that we do that sometimes can seem so small and quaint for the cause of Christ, in the end, work together for His Kingdom in a very big way!

In speaking of Christian love, I don't want to forget about another testimony I was privileged to witness while attending this event. This one is very different, but I am going to tie the two together in the end. Mrs. Huckabee called a lady to come to the microphone and share her story and testimony. This lady was a little hesitant, but she went up and began to speak. She was a victim of abortion. She had aborted her baby years ago and since has had two beautiful little girls. She talked about how God has forgiven her, but is reminded often throughout her life of the missing person that isn't there to share life with the remainder of her family. What an emotional yet brave thing for her to get up in front of so many and share her story without holding back. I made my way to talk to this lady after it was over, and told her about a memorial service we held at our church in Miami. This was for all of the babies who had lost their lives and the hurting moms who were suffering with the memory of what was allowed to happen. I expected this woman to say she has heard of this sort of thing, but tears came to her quickly as she said she never had and how amazing that would be to have an opportunity for closure. She told me that in the past she had thought republicans hated her for what she had done, but it wasn't until she met Todd Akin who approached her in a very loving and accepting manner, that she realized we only see them as a victims of this holocaust. This woman, who is a believer now, said she will deal with the consequences of this for the rest of her life, but she has peace knowing she will see her baby one day in heaven, and God has forgiven her. People are so deceived when what they think is a right or a choice, is the very thing robbing them of the CHOICE...the choice should come when the baby arrives. Every mom should have a chance to look her baby in the eye and decide whether or not she wants to keep her baby or give it up to a family in need.  What is so hard about that? There is no killing involved and a family gets blessed while another is relieved of the responsibilities of being a parent. There are so many couples wanting to adopt, and have so many hurdles to climb in their efforts to do so. I even know of some who have spent $35,000 dollars in this process. In spite of what they spent, that adopted child is priceless to them.  How is it possible that in the same country where the demand for babies is so high, thousands of babies are being killed everyday? We sure are one blinded society.

Both of these woman I was so privileged to meet and hear stories from bring together my two biggest reason's for why I am voting Romney-Ryan this coming election. A godless society says it all when Zoya spoke of socialist Russia and what she knows and has experienced to be true there. If we continue in this direction, I'm soon not going to be able to post blogs using the name of Christ. Our freedoms will be stripped away from us piece by piece and God's hand of protection will strongly be lifted away from us as a nation. I don't think there really is an answer for all of the mess we are in, but if we continue in this blinded chaotic spiral to destruction, it will only get much much worse. Our children will only dream of life as we once knew it and our country will no longer be the special sought-after land it once was. Yes, we need to take care of our planet. Yes, we need to help others in rightful need. But no, we do not and cannot do it right without God... One Nation Under God...Obama, you can work towards taking away our freedoms, but I will die before allowing you to rob my family of my Faith.