... Because today is a hard day for me.
It's the eighth anniversary of the day I watched my beloved mother die and the first anniversary of surviving going "cold turkey" off of twelve different drugs. So lots of memories as you can imagine. Yet I am struck with how wonderful God is at taking care of me on a practical, daily, and miraculous level. Someday I must write a book about it, although few would believe the things that have occurred because they are so amazing.
The most miraculous is what cannot be seen with the eyes. The things that have happened inside of me due to SUFFERING! Having Mom die as well as losing every immediate family member in the following 18 months put me into the Grief Pit.
My total body paralysis (in 2019) and "cold turkey" from 15+ years of narcotic use (with absolutely no medical aid) in 2020 was physical suffering beyond description. Yet I am still alive and happier and freer than I have ever been. Oh, how I wish it didn't take suffering for me to grow and change and learn, but it does. But now I "get it". I see it everywhere and I don't shrink from it. I see and hear you too.
Right now my fellow Christian Believers (and blog readers) from all around the world are suffering intensely. Some at the hands of their fellow human beings because they are being persecuted and others under attack from satan through health, emotions, and lack of finances. But take heart in 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 person is powerful and effective."
During the first week that I was literally kicking through the worst of my withdrawal I had Dr. Charles Stanley's sermons playing somewhere in the background in the hope it would help me refocus away from the physical agony. One portion of a sermon stands out in my memory, which I went back to listen to later when I was in my right mind again. It's from a radio sermon he did many years ago during Desert Storm and I will share it with you because it is impactful. It is based on James 5:16 and Dr. Stanley says it better than I can express it.
But please know that you are not alone. Jesus is with you. He is mighty and big and we must not limit Him but ask for big and amazing things. He LOVES it when we do this and the needier we are the quicker He is to respond in whatever way we need and even bigger than we can imagine. We are His people, His children and His Bride. He will not abandon us in these Final Days of this used up, evil earth. We are so close. Endure just a little bit longer Beloved.
My "earnest" prayers go out for you too. Daily. You are my Family.
Love always, Laura-Lee
LINK Praying in a Crisis Charles Stanley
LINK The Night Mom Passed Away (former post)
