Prayer Request

My family is in need of prayer. I won't go into any details as some things need not be made public (even prayer requests), but just ask that you keep my entire family in your prayers, God knows what is happening. Thank you.

My Spiritual Gifts

I took a quiz that my son brought home from his youth group. It is supposed to help you figure out your spiritual gifts. I already had an idea of mine since I watched a series that Charles Stanley did on the subject, but decided to take it and see what it said.

I scored a 15 in Mercy:

A person who is gifted in the area of mercy has immediate compassion for those suffering physically, mentally, or emotionally. He/She derives great joy in meeting the needs of others, and often has a tendency to attract people who are in distress.(VERY TRUE) He/She usually has a need for friendships in which there are deep communication and mutual commitment, and has the ability to draw out the feelings of others while also being vulnerable to hurts, both personally and to those which others are experiencing. Often, he/she would rather remove the causes of hurts than look for benefits from them. He/She has a tendency to avoid confrontation and firmness, and often closes his/her spirit to others whom he/she feels are overly harsh or critical.(SO ME) If you scored high in this area, you should consider being involved in a ministry that enables you to minister to those who are hurting and who need the sensitivity you have to offer. (I think Nursing falls into that ministry, but I also plan on visiting people in the hospital once I start working and have the time.)

I scored a 14 in Exhortation:

A person who is gifted in the area of exhortation has a special ability to encourage others in the Body of Christ by giving them needed words of comfort, courage, and counsel in times of need or crisis. (I've often thought I should be a counselor as well as a nurse) He/She is especially attracted to individuals who are genuinely seeking spiritual growth and often is willing to share past personal failures to help motivate others toward greater spiritual maturity. He/She is able to make accurate assessments of spiritual needs, and has the ability to explain truth with logical reasoning, giving step-by-step instructions which are easy to follow. If you scored high in this area, you should consider being involved in an area that enables you to use your strengths to minister one-on-one with people in need.

I scored a 12 in Prophecy:

A person who is gifted in the area of prophecy has the ability to proclaim God's truth without compromise. He/She has strong convictions and expects others to as well. He/She has the need to express himself/herself verbally, especially regarding right and wrong and may be quick to make judgments of others and to speak his/her opinion.(That's so me) He/she may be painfully direct when correcting others, possessing an unusual ability to discern the sincerity of others (Oh yeah, and Stanley really has that gift). He/She is persuasive in defining right and wrong, and is very persistent in expressing his/her feelings regarding needs for change. (AMEN) If you scored high in this area, you should look for a ministry wherein you can challenge others to live by God's standards as set forth in His Word.

I scored a 12 in Service:

A person gifted in the area of service has the ability to perform any task with joy that benefits others and meets practical needs. (I LOVE HELPING OTHERS) He/She may have the tendency to disregard personal health and comfort to serve others. he/She often has an attention for details, and appreciates having clear instructions to follow. (OH YEAH, AND FEELING NEEDED IS VERY IMPORTANT TOO.) He/She enjoys the process of serving. (YES) If you scored high in this area, you should consider being involved in a ministry in which your strengths of faithfulness and attention can be utilized. (I TRY TO SERVE OTHERS EVERY CHANCE I GET, BUT I FIND IT HARD WHEN I DON'T DO ANYTHING, AND WHEN I DON'T FEEL NEEDED OR APPRECIATED).

Things I'd Like To Do Before I Die (That Will Help Me Grow Spiritually)

Teach a Sunday School class. (young kids or young adults)
Share my testimony in front of a large group.
Walk a close friend to Christ... or several :)
Help married couples who are having problems.
Witness to a complete stranger.
Sing a solo without puking that fits my vocal range:)
Help someone in need.
Save a life.
Go on a mission trip in another country.
Sing a song with Brianna (my daughter).
Renew my wedding vowels at Rosebower.
Have the courage to do what God puts on my heart without letting others put doubt in my mind.
Show people the true me ... I limit myself and hide myself out of fear.
Work with Hospice and the Red Cross.

It's Been A While ...

My computer decided some time ago that it did not like my blog anymore because it would show an error and not let me see the front page. I think it must have gotten over it now :)

My life has been very busy of late, school is fixing to start back, and my relaxing summer will be over! But the good news is that I will be done this Decemeber!!! I am so excited!

I have a big to-do list today, so I must get ready to go. Have a great, glorious, and blessed day!

I Have Learned ...

The biggest hypocrites are not the sinners who go to church, but the sinners who go to church saying they didn't sin.

Never tell your problems to anyone but to God or your therapist.

Some people forgive, but some don't.

We tend to always look at others sins as worse than our own, even though they are NOT.

People will judge you and choose not to like you, maybe even with no fault of your own, but it's OK. You will survive!

NEVER let others opinions of you become your reality.

You can never be too bad for Jesus, only too good!

It is possible for you to be too big for God to use, but never to small for God to use. We tend to disagree with that and think only Christians who have been in church all of their lives can do anything. We grow best by reading the Word and by working for God.

When you're accusing others of all they didn't do, their glaring lack reflects right back, and the spotlight points at you!

The Lord love the honest sinner better than the hypocritical self-righteous person.

The smallest package in all the World is a man wrapped up in himself.

Feeling Blessed & Exhausted

We just finished VBS on Thursday. I love VBS, but for some reason it wore me out this year. Possibly because we had 15-27 kids every night just in our class (5th & 6th). It was a lot of fun, especially seeing the kids getting excited about being able to put a pie in someones face for not knowing the Bible verse.

I know God was working on several of the kids that were in our class, one that we brought, but they haven't made a decision for Christ yet ... but the seeds were planted, the gospel was shared, and I had the opportunity to witness to the girl we brought, and I have faith that she will make a decision, she just isn't ready yet.

A lot of people get anxious or nervous about sharing their faith and witnessing to others. I do when it comes to complete strangers, but if I know someone, it doesn't bother me at all. I have witnessed to several people who are in my life that are lost, and I pray continually that they will be saved before it is too late.

But back to VBS ... I think all of the VBS workers did a great job this year, and the kids were amazing! When you have that many kids in one class, you expect them to act up, but they were really good considering. I feel very blessed to have been a part of it! I just hope next year that I am able to do something a little more challenging. ;-) But I thank God for the ability to help whereever needed, and for all the kids that came and heard about HIM.

My Progress

It has been a little over a month since I started going to the gym (April 22, 2009), and I still have had no major weight loss yet. The scale varies, sometimes it says I’ve lost 4lbs. and sometimes it says I’ve lost 2 lbs. BUT, I measured myself on May 6thth, and then today (May 26, 2009) and I have lost inches!!!

I’ve lost:

1 inch on upper arms
1 1/2 inches on chest
1 inch on waist
½ inch on thighs
½ inch on calves.

So I’ve lost 4 ½ inches total … GO ME!!!

I try to workout everyday, but I started when I was in school and was studying for finals, so I missed a week for that, and then I have missed several days from time to time for reasons beyond my control (gym was closing early, company coming over, not feeling well, etc.) So I would guess that I have really only went about a half of a month, so I think I am doing very well considering.

It was helpful that I listened to a CD my sister burned for me over the 7 deadly sins, and sloth and gluttony really convicted me. Our society is really pushing people to be gluttons with biggie size food and buffets. We should only be eating normal serving sizes, and not until we feel full. It is ok to leave food on our plates, really it is!

Overeating is a major cause of illness in this country … Diabetes is linked with it (type 2 that is), heart disease is linked to it, and vascular disease is linked to it, and high cholesterol and high blood pressure too, as well as other diseases, so maybe we should STOP overeating!!!

Have a great and glorious day!

[Insert Witty Title Here]

It has been a week since Austen started using his insulin pump, and things are going very well. I am thrilled at how well it is working and how Austen has taken the initiative in taking care of himself. I know how to work his pump, but he has been doing it all himself.

This is my first week of no school and I guess I am enjoying it ... it would be better if I weren't a tad under the weather with allergies, but it is better than driving to Paducah everyday. Although, I have had to drive to Mayfield for Austen's doctor appointment, and will have to again tomorrow to see the dietitian so she can adjust his insulin rates if necessary.

I have started Professor Grant Horner's Bible-Reading System, where you read 10 chapters of the Bible everyday. It is set up so that you are reading Proverbs and Acts completely through in a month, and you are also reading both the Old and New Testaments, which I like. I read my first 10 chapters last night, and plan on doing today's 10 here in a little bit.

God is good all the time, and I am always amazed and in complete awe of how he works!

ALSO, if you would be so kind to check out my sister's blog, she needs some help with getting to the Living Water's Ambassador's Academy that she was accepted into, so if you would like to donate to help her, please visit her blog. You can pay by PayPal or by credit card.

By donating you are entering in a chance to win a great book!

Insulin Pump - Day 1

Well Austen's first day on the pump was uneventful. He seems to be learning the ropes really well. (Good thing because mom doesn't know how to use it, but I am learning on my own, just in-case) His numbers weren't bad yesterdy, except for one, and that was because he took it off to do some exercise at the BCC and then misread the glucose reading and thought he was low and didn't cover for the food he ate.

They told us Monday night to only get half of his long acting insulin, and then eat breakfast Tuesday morning and not take a shot. Once we arrived at the hospital, she went through the teaching and then he checked his blood sugar and then he put on the pump and gave himself a bolus of insulin. Here are his numbers for day one: (May 12th)

2 hours after breakfast 222
Before lunch 176
2 hours or so after lunch 152 (he thought it said 52 so he ate while at the BCC)
After he got home from BCC 431 (around 8 PM, took a bolus of insulin with the pump)
Bedtime 220
1 AM 209 (May 13th)
3 AM 213
6 AM 186

Because of his age and hormones, they want him to be between 100-140. Once he becomes an adult, they will change that to 100-120.

His monitor that goes with the pump is so cool. As soon as he checks his blood sugar, it sends it straight to the pump without having to do anything. And the bolus wizard calculator on the pump keeps track of all of the bolus' he gets and keeps him from stacking insulin and going too low. It tells him how much insulin was for correction, and how much was for food, and how much is active. It is really a neat invention! Thank God he finally has it. I think Austen will take better care of himself now, because it is easier with the pump.

God Does Answer Prayer

Today at 9:30 AM we go to JPMC in Mayfield to meet with the Dietitian/Diabetes Care Center Coordinator to have Austen's insulin pump hooked up. It took 5 years of prayer, but God finally answered.

I have plenty of snacks and juice cartons just in case we need them, and I have his Glucagon kit in case of emergency. I need to stop by the store today and get some icing in a tube to keep in my purse. If he is unable to swallow but still conscious, you can put icing in their cheek and it will absorb and keep them from going into a coma.

Austen will love it if he constantly has to eat to keep his blood sugar up, I will be ready to admit myself into a mental hospital ... but that is the difference between a mom and a kid I guess. Kids don't realize how scary this disease is, but as long as you are educated and know what to do, then it helps to be more comfortable. I just don't want him to go so low in the middle of the night that he slips into a coma, that is really all I am worried about.

I know it will be a little scary at first. I will be getting up during the night to make sure he doesn't go too low, and I will be a nervous wreck until he gets leveled out, but it's worth it. God has protected him from eye and kidney damage thus far, so I wonder what God has in store for him.

Please pray that Austen stays in a normal range so that both him and I keep our sanity :) Have a great, glorious, and blessed day! Oh, and don't EVER give up on something you have prayed about, keep praying because God might say yes in His time!

Thank God It's Friday!

I don't know why I am TGIF for, I have to study this weekend for my lab final in medical micro. I think I'm running out of creative names for my posts :)

I've been going to the gym since April 22nd, and one week I had to miss because of studying for nursing exams and finals, but as of today I have lost 4 lbs!!! I know that doesn't sound like a lot, but it is spot on where I should be, as you are not supposed to lose more than 2 lbs. per week.

I have changed the way I eat. Right now I am just trying to keep my calories under 1500. That means no seconds, and no real fatty foods or junk food. But other than that I am eating what I want. I'd really like to be eating healthy, but eating healthy is expensive. Those changes will have to be made slower. I consider it great progress to lower my calories and go to the gym everyday to work-out ... AND drinking a lot more water than usual :)

PLUS, I've been in God's word everyday since Saturday, which helps to get me spiritually in shape. I know I need that more than being physically in shape. Especially right now, when even though I know I have been forgiven by God and the people I hurt, I feel like there are some who have not forgiven me, and only a few people knew what was going on so that has me puzzled. I am trying hard not to take it personally, and will be praying for God to work in those situations as well. Maybe it's me, I don't know. God got a hold of me and showed me where I was wrong, so I know he can fix anything.

Have a great, glorious, and blessed day!

Waiting To Exhale ...

I have my last final exam on Monday, May 11th at 8:00 AM. It is the lab exam for Medical Microbiology, and it consists of being assigned an unknown bacteria and applying different stains and doing different procedures to find out what bacteria it is. EXCITING! [enter sarcasm here]

I have a very busy week this next week, so please keep me in your prayers. My son gets his pump on May 12th, so he will need your prayers as well since it could cause him to become low at first, and is very scary. My birthday is May 14th (I'll be 35) ... I sometimes feel much older than that. Then on May 15th I have a renewal CPR class. After that I have the summer to rest and recuperate. :-)

Starting in August, I will have one semester left of nursing and then I will be studying for state boards. I cannot wait! I've been in school now for two and half years, and I'm ready to be finished and working in the hospital. It's almost over! Thank God!

The Bible Says ...

Get rid of all bitterness, rage and anger, brawling and slander, along with every form of malice. Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you. - Ephesians 4:31-32

A lot of people told me that it took a lot of courage for me to get in front of the church and apologize to someone I had hurt. I only did what God commanded of me to do. But, in my opinion, it took a lot of courage for the person I hurt to forgive me, because forgiving someone that has hurt you is very hard.

This scripture makes it clear that we are not to be angry, and that we are to love one another, and yes, forgive others the way God forgave us.

Have a great, glorious, and blessed day!

Update On Obeying God

As mentioned in my previous post, God made it clear to me yesterday morning that I was to apologize to a brother in Christ. I did not know how exactly I was going to do it and at the last minute came up with a plan. I told the person I wanted to talk to them after church, but, I had a deep feeling that I was supposed to go down during the invitation and make a public apology. (something I really did not want to do, and I was trying to improvise) God said uh-uh.

Our Pastor preached on obeying God ... is that not a God moment? ... I was like "OK, I understand, I will do this, just please help me do it graciously." I wanted to do it, I needed to do it, I was just scared to death!!! At the time of the invitation my first thought was to just ask the person to come down with me so that I could apologize to both him and the Pastor (another way to improvise), but again, God said no, he had other plans ... I did not have a plan of what to say ... I just asked God to take over and help me do it.

I ended up making a very public apology in front of the whole church, and afterwards hugged my brother in Christ and apologized again. He apologized to me too, which I had not expected and would have been fine if he hadn't of, but it assured me that God had gotten to us both, and that now everything would be OK.

The only downside to this is that I don't think I apologized to my Pastor, and I had intended to, but once I was put in front of the church with a microphone in my hand, I almost forgot my own name ... I don't speak well in front of large groups. Anyway ... Wednesday I plan on making sure to apologize to my pastor as well.

We felt very welcomed back to our home church. I was hugged by tons of people, and it blessed my heart to know that even when you do wrong, your brothers and sisters in Christ will forgive you and love you anyway! God is good, and all I know is that even when it's tough and not the way you want to do something, listening to God is always the best way. I feel so much better now, and I know that both God and my brother have forgiven me, and now I can be back into fellowship with them both!

Obeying God

Yesterday I was thinking about how God has not given us a clear answer about where to go to church yet. I picked up my In Touch magazine and started to read the daily devotionals and then read some in my Bible. I prayed last night, again, for God to give us an answer we would see. This morning we were watching Faith Center on TV, and then Charles Stanley came on and talked about anger, and how it doesn't matter what someone does to us, we must let go and forgive. Then he told a story about a man that stayed out of church for 5 years over something that Charles Stanley said that made him angry.

I felt so convicted, like God was telling me that in order for me to be forgiven for letting my anger keep me out of my church, I needed to apologize to someone, even though I feel they should apologize to me. I know I have said and done things that have hurt them, and so how can I expect them to do the right thing if I don't? It doesn't matter if they do the right thing or not, I have to do what God says regardless.

I don't know if this means we go back to our church for good, I know the kids really like Pathway, and if it gets them to listen and get fired up for God, than that's fine, but I don't feel like Pathway is home to me. And we have been less involved in church since leaving our home church.

Anyway, I have deleted all of the posts that I made that could have been hurtful to the person I need to apologize to, and if I see more, I will delete them too. I guess I was fooled into thinking that it was OK as long as I didn't mention names, but God knew who I was talking about... I have been very emotional all day since watching Charles Stanley, and even everything that Pastor Mike said seemed to enforce what Charles Stanley said, even though he wasn't saying anything even close ... so I know God is wanting this. Now I just have to swallow my pride, humble myself, and do the right thing ... and that is the hardest part. Please pray for me!

3 Semesters Down, 1 To Go!

Well today was my last day of nursing 203. We had a potluck dinner and it was delicious! Everyone passed this semester, no one failed, THANK GOD! These people are like family, we spend more time with each other than we do our own family's, and so when we lose one it's hard ... but we didn't, so that's great!

I still have Medical Microbiology until May 11th, May 12th Austen gets his insulin pump installed, then May 14th is my birthday, and then the 15th I have CPR renewal. But after that I am done until August 17th, so I can relax and study 2-4 hours a week to keep up on everything.

I am tired, no I'm beyond tired, I'm suffering from severe information overload. I'm going to go take a nap and then head to the gym ... I haven't been able to workout all week, and I'm ready to burn off some stress!

Why I Hate Mondays

We have a 2003 Ford Windstar. Yesterday we were on our way to Wal-Mart to buy groceries when all of a sudden the RPM's went up and the van would not go. We pulled off the side of the road, and then it started going again. Apparently it will go as long as you keep the speed below 40 mph.

Stanley called his dad and asked him if he would sell us his 2003 Taurus and let us pay for it with income taxes next year, otherwise we would be without a vehicle and I would have no way to school. We are still plan on fixing the van, as it has a great motor, it doesn't use a drop of oil, but times are hard right now and we do not have the funds to put another transmission in.

We stopped by his parents house to get the car, and I went in to check on my mother-in-law. She had a stroke two weeks ago and her blood pressure has been running high. I checked mine to be able to gage how accurate her monitor was. My BP usually runs 100-110/60-70 so when it said mine was 110/78 I knew it was pretty accurate. She checked hers and it was 201/100, I immediately told her how dangerous it was for her BP to be that high. She said it had been higher than that and nothing happened ... my father-in-law had tried to get her to go to the hospital over the weekend and she wouldn't go.

I told her she was a ticking time bomb waiting for something to happen, and she needed to call her doctor or go to the hospital, I pleaded with her. I called her doctors answering service and they said to go to the emergency room, so my father-in-law took her, and she is still there this morning, but she may get to come home today. They got her BP down to 170 over something, that's better, but it is still way too high.

Please pray for my MIL, pray that God will direct her doctors to make some good changes to her BP meds and it will start keeping her in a normal range, otherwise she could have another stroke, or even a heart attack.

Hip Hip Hooray!

Austen's insulin pump was delivered via UPS today ... PRAISE THE LORD! Talk about an answer to prayer, and a 5 year prayer at that. It just goes to show you that it is all in HIS time and not ours.

The box was huge and contained everything we could possible need for a while. It even has a device that inserts the IV cannula into his belly fast so that he doesn't have to do it manually. AND it came with a blood sugar monitor that sends the readings to the pump, is that cool or what?

They calculate that he will use 20% less insulin with the pump, and he will definitely get better control. We just have to be diligent about keeping snacks on hand and a Glucagon kit in case he goes too low. But WOW! After 5 years, he finally has the pump!!!! I'm so EXCITED!!!! We just have to wait to use it until we go to the dietitian and get taught how to use it and she has to set it up for him.

I'm amazed at God's mercy and grace, His love is awesome!

Counting It Down

We have two exams left in the next week of nursing school, and then we are out for the summer. Medical micro will continue thanks to our lovely professor who always changes things on us. Our last lab exam is now on May 11th ... PFFFT!

The pump people called yesterday and they are shipping out Austen's insulin pump. It sure took them long enough!!! It should be here in a few days and then we have to go see the dietitian for her to set it up.

Now ... it's my bedtime, I have worked out for a total of 2 hours and 50 minutes and I'm dog tired :) Have a blessed sleep!

Busy Couple Of Weeks Ahead

The next couiple of weeks are going to be crazy. I have set up mobile blogging so that I can do it from my phone, but I'm not sure how much time I will have. This is what the next couple of weeks looks like for me. Your prayers would be appreciated, THANKS!!!

Monday April 20, 3009

Medical Microbiology @ 7:45-9:30
Nursing Exam #5 @ 3:30

Wednesday April 22, 2009

Medical Microbiology Lab Exam @ 7:45-9:30
Comprehensive Pharmacology Quiz @ 3:30-4:30

Friday April 24, 2009

All Meds Publishing Campus Labs are Due

Monday April 27, 2009

Disaster Lab

Tuesday April 28, 2009

Nursing Exam #6 @ 2:15-4:00 Anderson Technical Building

Wednesday April 29, 2009

OFF FOR STUDY DAY

Thursday April 30, 2009

HESI Nursing FINAL EXAM @ 2:15-5:15 Anderson Technical Building

Friday May 1, 2009

HESI SCORE REVIEW
Class Potluck

May 4, 2009

Medical Microbiology Final Exam @ 10:00 Waller Hall (LAST DAY OF CLASS)