((the follwing post is like one huge prayer request for those willing to lift my family and i up.))
i cannot begin to explain this life around me. it seems like everything was falling around me, and as soon as God pulls me up from my mess i realize all the other people there who are dealing with a lot of, well, CRAP.
i think back on some hard times and feel like i made such huge dramatics of all of them. what i experience as a young american adult seems to be nothing compared to the trials of others. i start to think that perhaps it’s not that our problems are insignificant, but it’s just a part of our lot in life and some things just DON’T go all that well for some. i am thankful for all i’ve been given and could not ask for more. however, one day, all i have can be taken away from me, so taking things for granted and not using my gifts to perservere in what God has given me is not the wisest direction. i need to be more aware of others and how i can SERVE.
just last week i was worried if i would get a job. this was ongoing for awhile because i was out of a job for a few weeks with very little money left. i finally managed to snatch up something… actually was blessed with a job that will meet my needs time-wise. it is very flexible and will allow me to pursue my future goal of studying music education. even though i will be struggling financially for the next few weeks, i still feel like things have gotten significantly better. but then i realize there are a good deal of people in my family dealing with massive problems. i had practically forgotten about them. i don’t know if it’s an attack over my family, but this year their have been significant issues with finances (especially considering our market), health, and well-being. i have never seen such a huge struggle for us all to maintain sanity.
my parents are struggling with their business and facing large amounts of financial problems. my sister is as well, and her husband has to work every day, almost all day, to make ends meet. she has been sick this week and my nephew has a virus that has led to ulcers in his throat. Luckily, these two sicknesses should be gone within the week.
On top of this, this year, two of my aunts have faced looming health issues with heart disease. my father has had to have a heart catheter…
not only this, but the two largest issues: a cousin of mine, Vanessa, has a had a huge battle with her family. Her husband, Matt, broke his leg and arrived at the hospital to find out that not only had he broken it, but he had stenosis, which led to a blood clot. the blood clot was unrelated to the broken leg, so he was very fortunate he had even broken it. Otherwise, he might have dropped dead one day. They had to put him on blood thinners which has slowed the process of his healing. this disabled him from working, and vanessa had to get a new job. she had previously been a stay at home mother. but with two kids and looming bills, this made it difficult.
it doesn’t stop there. come to find out, vanessa has ASV and will have to get either a new, special procedure or open heart surgery to correct the problem. i won’t go into a lot of detail for lack of knowledge and time, but suffice to say, this will put them further under. last i heard, they where running tests to see what the best possible solution for her would be. she and matt were supposed to be heading to costa rica for a mission trip this summer, and this may not happen.
i wish this were the last of it, but there are other issues in my family. these are especially private matters, and do not stop at one. i can tell you, and i am not being overly dramatic, they are very heartbreaking.
SO, i am requesting prayers, prayers, prayers. God knows i should be on my knees more than i have managed. but throughout the day, it’s as if he puts me there in spirit. i truly believe there is a spiritual
& physical attack of the devil over my family. one could chalk it up to mere coincidence and just the depravity of life. but i don’t. i believe everything happens for a reason. sometimes God allows the
bad things, and the only way this makes sense to me is that he does this to make people stronger and draw them unto himself. and i BELIEVE he is allowing these situations to see that he is the one we have to run to and depend on. he is preparing something good through all of the negativity.
i know it’s been rough for a lot of people. and it is my prayer that during this time, we stand strong in our faith and our hope that Jesus is our savior…. to trust we will be led through the storms of life coming out better than we were before and closer to who he wants us to be. ultimately, HE has all the glory.
