Fantastic Friday ~ Jump for Joy!! :)

The flu is gone! The flu is gone!! Woo Hoo!! The flu is gone!!! :)

THANK YOU for your faithful prayers and words of encouragement. I feel FANTASTIC!!
No cough.
No sniffles.
No fever.
No sore throat.
No ear infection.
No aches.
Can you believe it?? I'm healthy!!! Hooray!! THANK YOU GOD!!!

It's a Fantastic Friday!! I'm off to go have fun with my family!!
May your Friday be filled with much joy and laughter and celebration!!

Award Time!

I am feeling better today!! Thank you so much for all of your kind words, encouragement, and prayer support! I've actually showered, been to the store, and even worked on laundry! It feels so good to be half-way healthy today!! Woo Hoo!!

I've been blessed by a few Blog awards over the past few weeks, and now that I am feeling better ~ it is about time I pass them on!!!!

I received the Loyal Blog Award from Alisa Hope over at Faith Imagined! (Alisa Hope is a extremely gifted, Christ-centered writer. Check out her blog! You will be encouraged and uplifted...guaranteed!) Thank you, Alisa Hope, for this award!

I am giving this award to 3 Loyal, Lovely ladies:

Crissy over at Crissy Blog Design

LaVender at Momsweb

Julie at Come Have A Peace

Thank you for being such a great encouragement and voice of Truth to me!

I also received the One Lovely Blog Award on September 26th from Ann with Honoring the King. (If you are ever looking for great deals/bargains, check out Ann's blog. She highlights sales at CVS, Target, etc.. You're sure to enjoy her blog!) Thank you, Ann, for this Lovely blog award!

I am passing the One Lovely Blog Award to Chellie at Art from my Table. Chellie is an amazing, health conscious, kid friendly cook! I am so grateful she started her new blog!

True story: When I was really sick with a fever this week, I remembered Chellie had a delicious Chicken Soup recipe on her blog. I checked it out, but was too exhausted to try it that day. Instead I called my Mom, and she brought her homemade Chicken Soup right over. (Thanks, Mom!!) I'm going to make Chellie's the next time a friend is sick though!! As Chellie says "chicken soup is perfect comfort food!"

Lastly, on September 3rd, Tina at TinasBookReviews gave me this fun Beautiful Bingo Blog Award! She nominated me for being Gorgeous! (You are too kind...thank you, Tina!)

So now I have the privilege of nominating some Beautiful blog's......

B-For Beautiful JJ @ The Landii

I- For Inspirational Christy @ Danni Frain

N- For my real life Neighbor Jill @ The Diaper Diaries

G- For God-focused Sandy @ One Day at a Time

O-For Outstanding Michelle @ Lost in the Prairies...Found by God

Your blogs bless me, inspire me, make me laugh, and sometimes cry!! Thank you for the time and dedication you devote to your blog. You are doing a Beautiful job!!

Most importantly, thank you to all my dear friends for allowing me the privilege to share with you the daily lessons that God is teaching me. My greatest desire is to always point you to Jesus...for He truly is the Way, the Truth, and Life. May all Glory go to Him alone!!

Many blessings to you!

Sick Day!

Be joyful always; pray continually; give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus.

1 Thessalonians 5:16-18

I have been waiting for today, Tuesday October 20th, for months!! I was
scheduled to speak at a local Moms Group called SisterTime. I've prepared a message "Thriving on Your Motherhood Adventure". It's such a fun message, and I couldn't wait to share it and meet these SisterTime moms!

Sunday afternoon we went to a family birthday celebration. When we arrived back home, suddenly I wasn't feeling very good. In fact, I went straight to bed (shoes and all!). When I woke up 3 hours later, I had a horrible fever, chills, and a cold. I was devestated!!

I shared the news with my friends and asked them to please pray!! I went to bed early confident that I would wake up refreshed and healthy, ready for Monday night Bible Study and SisterTime on Tuesday.

Imagine my surprise when I woke up Monday still running a fever! There went my hope for Bible Study. God has provided so many great leaders to fill in the gap when I am not there, but it was still very disappointing for me. I miss my Monday night friends!!

I asked more friends to pray and trusted that if I didn't talk and just slept all day Monday, I would be fine for Tuesday. John took the day off of work to care for me and my daughter Amanda (who also has the flu). I layed low, went over my notes in my head, and trusted I'd be feeling better soon...or at least in the morning.

Finally about 7:00 PM last night, I was on the couch praying. I was asking God for His best for SisterTime. All of a sudden it hit me...His best might not include me!! I would be devestated if I shared any of my sick germs with these moms. Was it His best for me to go when I was not feeling well? What did He have planned??

I prayerfully decided I better call the SisterTime Coordinator. In case I wasn't able to make it, I wanted to give her advance notice. I should let her know how I was feeling.

Amy, the SisterTime Coordinator, was such a blessing. She cared about me and wanted me to have another day to "stay in my jammies". Amy didn't mind coming up with a Plan B. (In fact, she thought maybe they'd watch a Beth Moore video. Oh boy, did that give me PEACE. What a perfect plan!). Amy decided it'd be best just to reschedule (rather than waiting to see how I was in the morning), so that I could have another good night of rest.

After I hung up the phone, I cried. I was so sad. I said to John, "Do you think the enemy won since now I'm not going?" John very firmly said, "No, he didn't win. You've just been blessed!".

As I shared with John more of my conversation with Amy, he said, "I want to write her a Thank You note. Wow! What grace and love she extended to you. You've been blessed!!"

How am I this morning?? Although I no longer have a fever, I still have a sore throat and bad cold. I just called a friend and she said "Oh Cindy, you sound horrible!" (I thought I sounded better ~ shoot!). All 3 of my little kids are home with me (their school is closed due to the flu!), so perhaps we'll watch Camp Rock (again!) and have a Terrific Tuesday here in our jammies.

Thank you, SisterTime Amy, for your grace and care.

Thank you, John, for your support and love.

Thank you, Mom, for my care package on the door this morning (and yesterday too).

Thank you Monday night friends, for all of your notes and prayers.

Thank you, Facebook friends, for all of your kind words and support.

Thank you, Jackie and Jen and Jill, for stopping by and helping and brightening my day.

John is right ~ I am blessed.

How are you doing today?? Has the flu hit your home/school?? How can we pray for you today??

On Forgiveness ~ Part 3

This week I've been sharing about Forgiveness on my blog. It started here when I shared a very powerful letter I received from "Dee". In my last post, I shared my response to Dee's e-mail. And for today, I will share Dee's follow-up e-mail.

When I asked Dee if I could share her notes on my blog, her response was, "Yes, you may share my journey. Cindy, your website has helped me and I have found the Truth there. In these days, we need to hear more of the truth. And if we can reach someone on the computer, then glory to God." Isn't she amazing??

Again, my hope and prayer is that if you (or someone you know) wrestle with thoughts of self-condemnation, perhaps the correspondence Dee and I have shared will encourage you on your journey towards freedom and wholeness in Christ.


Dear Cindy:
You are right—I need to slam The truth at the devil!! I have let the devil take some control, and now I am going to push him out of my thoughts!!

I have been praying that God will show me how to forgive my self, and He told me the slate has been wiped clean each and every time I come to Him and confess my sins.

You know when my husband died 7 years ago I did make those lists of people I was upset with or mad at. Or have wronged. And I did start praying for them, and my anger towards them left. Actually I did have a lot of pain that I was holding on to and God did help set me free. Now I can see them as people who God loves and that I love and pray for.

I have asked a couple of my friends to pray for me too. Each morning when I look at myself in the mirror I tell myself that I am Forgiven. When I made the choice to stop doing drugs I was making a good choice. And God did help me overcome the desire and need for drugs.


You know my Pastor that being a Christian is hard work. The devil works extra hard to push us off the path a touch.

I have much peace and joy this week. I am sleeping better also.
I can hardly wait for Monday night to get here. Thanks for listening. Prayer is so powerful. The privilege of prayer, lets God do his Powerful thing!! See you Monday at Bible Study.

Sisters in Christ, Dee

Isn't it awesome to watch God work so powerfully in Dee's life?? Go back and read her first e-mail (here) which was written not even a week prior. Only God!!!

And if He can do it for Dee, He can (and will) do it for you!! :)

P.S. On my next post, I'll conclude this Forgiveness series with one final note from Dee. You won't want to miss it!!

P.S.S. Let's pray... Oh God, we are so thankful for the forgiveness that we have in You. I pray You would help us to live and walk in complete freedom in You. Lord, thank You for "Dee" and her willingness to share her journey with others. I pray You'd continue to work powerfully in her life...for Your purpose, for Your Glory. We bless You, Lord!! In Jesus Strong Name! Amen :)