Christmas Miracles

I believe that miracels still happen everyday. They might not be the "water to wine" type; BUT if you look, TRULY look then you can find God's hand at work in your life in a miraculous way DAILY. I just wanted to take a moment and share how God has been working in my life in the past few days.

I had misplaced a necklace given to me by Nathan's grandmother Kitty. Kitty passed away in 1996 so this necklace was very special to me as I really only knew her for two years. I had worn it to a ladies event at our church in November and hadn't realized that it had fallen off sometime after I had returned home. I found the chain by stepping on it, and then the search began to find the pendant. I did pray about it and actually had the children pray with me. However, days passed by and to no avail. Then on Wednesday night November 28th I stayed home from choir practice (not feeling well, had a panic attack that day). The children and I put up the tree. I had rearranged the living room and had even vacuumed but still did not find the pendant. We put up the tree, COMPLETELY decorated it and on the LAST ornament something special happened. JoyAnn was placing this heart upon the tree ( a heart with a scripture from I Cor. 13 on it) and it fell off the tree. I went to pick it up and there upon the floor was my pendant shining up at me. Now I tell you. This place on the floor had been searched SEVERAL times. Yet, there it was. The first of many gifts from God I would receive over the next few days.

Then on December 1st Nathan and I had a conversation about trusting God. I mean the all out, sacrificing our own agenda, completely surrending our hearts, lifes AND finances to God talk. It was a blessing to hear that God is working in both of our lives and we desire to teach our children COMPLETE and utter dependance upon God, and so we must model that. So, as a direct result of this talk we decided to tithe again. On the gross amount. We paid our tithe THAT DAY.

*insert flashback* On Tuesday night the 27th of November I had written a prayer request that God would provide some money for a trip that we are taking later this month AND to get the kids some Christmas presents...Joseph wants the Polar Express toy that costs $130-150 depending on where you buy it. Who has that kind of cash for one present for ONE kid? NOT US!!! Nathan and I did commit it to prayer though.

On Thursday November29th we received a call about singing at a funeral on Sunday. We agreed to do it. On Sunday December 2nd we had a wonderful service which included Nathan sharing a testimony of God's faithfulness in our lives and the story of our most recent surrender. After church our financial administrator Tonya approached Nathan with a check for $100.00 given anonymously to use for Christmas. Then we sang at a funeral that afternoon and received a gift of $50. How cool is that???? Now we have enough to pay for Joseph's train. We promptly ordered it from the internet and it should be here ANYTIME!!

The hotel for our trip was taken care of (as a gift). Gas money has been given to us. Childcare fell into place. Nathan ended up receiving a Christmas bonus for the first time since he started at the Cove almost 6 years ago. God is gracious and loving. He is faithful and He delights in taking care of his children.

Philippians 4:6 says "Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God." The moral here is twofold. God chooses to bless and provide miracles. It is up to us to view them as such and to commit our lives and our will to him in prayer.

I am excited to see how many more miracles God is going to shower down upon the Flints in the next few days. Yet, I don't want to stop expecting them, looking for them, praying for them after Christmas. Maybe that's a miracle in itself, that God could take a hurting heart, an anxious heart, a negative heart and soften it and help me look for the positive again. Praise be to HIM!!!

MERRY CHIRSTMAS!!!

In Emmanuel's Love,

Janelle LeAnne Morgan Flint

Thanksgiving

So Thanksgiving is upon us!!! YEAH!! I love this holiday. However, it makes me sad that we seem to really hype up gratitude for one day and then we go back to our grumbling and complaining. Maybe I'm just being transparent, I certainly can't assume that anyone reading this has that problem (hahahaha!)

Inevitably later today I will sit at the table of my mother-in-law. I will eat wonderful food, too much of it, and then it will be MY turn to answer THE question..."what are you thankful for this year?". Well, I have been meditating abou what my answer will be and I feel overwhelmed with the list of things that have come to my heart and mind. There is one thought that rises to the top. I want to share it with you.

I have tried typing this paragraph over and over and so I'm just going to say it. I am thankful for suffering. It has brought me to the place I am today. I am thankful for my life, ALL of it. Just as Job said "blessed be the name of the Lord". He truly is the the God who gives and takes away.

Happy Thanksgiving...

God's Provision

So I wanted to share with you a blessing that our family received today. This isn't done in a bragging manner towards us OR the people who shared the blessing. The only thing I have to boast in is GOD and His love for me and my family. Thank you for allowing me to indulge in this moment.

Today our family was the recipient of a tremendous blessing. An envelope full of cash, gift cards and money orders. It seems that our need was made known to a local church and we were the anonymous recipient of God's blessing and provision through these people. The neatest part of all of this is that this church has been praying for us, not even knowing who we were, for the last month. All they knew were the details...father works, mom stays at home with three kids, financial strain, special need child, battling depression. To be frank I'm not exactly what all was shared and it doesn't matter because obviously it was EXACTLY what God wanted to be shared. I was blown AWAY!!! One of the pastors and his wife of this church came by today to present us with the gift and to pray for and encourage our family.

God is an amazing God. He is faithful and loving and His hand of provision is always timely. Thank you Lord for you love!!!

Keep praying, keep believing, keep sharing. People can't help you if you don't express your needs. I made a need known. I didn't know who was listening, but God did!!!

Have a blessed weekend!!!

The Long Awaited Day

Pics to follow...

In the meantime let me tell you about my day yesterday. My family had a glorious day celebrating life and simply just enjoying each other. ALL the Morgan children, grandchildren AND great grandchildren were together at the same time UNDER ONE ROOF!!!

Mom and Dad hosted at their house in Swannanoa. It was a beautiful time. Nannie and Papa were able to come over and Grandma Morgan and Frances came over too for a brief time!! It was simply amazing to watch everyone playing, laughing and talking. Leah (the newest family member)was the highlight of the day. Philip and Tammy's daughter is 5 1/2 weeks old. She is AMAZING!!! We have been waiting for this day for many years. Philip and Tammy have lost two children in their journey to parenthood and so yesterday watching my family hold this PERFECT child was an answer to prayer. God is so gracious!!!!

There were so many wonderful moments. Watching my children feed their baby cousin. Then Uncle Philip taught JoyAnn and Jesse the "touchdown" dance. Joseph watched trains with Tante Nathalie and Aunt Tammy. Seeing my mother's face as she held Leah. Watching my grandparents hold Leah knowing it might be the last time we are all together. I was blessed! I just wanted to share with you my incredible weekend!!!

More Band Memories

So today was the 33rd annual "Land of the Sky Marching Band Festival" at Enka High School. It was a blast to take the kids and watch some of the area bands. It was however very HOT, very CROWDED and very well...disappointing. It just seems that band isn't what it used to be when I was in high school. Granted we didn't get to see that many bands, but the ones we saw lacked a little in depth and musical talent. Isn't that critical of me?

We did have a good time. We got to meet our new baby cousin Leah. Philip was judging music effect and so we saw him, Tammy and Leah. I did get to see Dana and it was an ok day for OHS. The highlight of the day for me though was watching WCU. I was SOOOO proud to be an alumni. The Pride of the Mountains ROCKED!!! I would love to go to WCU just to watch them march again.

I bet the evening would have been good if we had stuck around but after seeing part of AA and all of AAA competition we were ready to leave. However, in the midst of the heat I was a little nostalgic (maybe it was just dehydration..haha). I was glad to have experienced high school marching band. It also made me wonder what kind of band director Nathan or I could have been.

So here's to memories of high school and college marching band.

The Miracle of the Moment

I am so tired of being afraid. I am so tired of living in the past or fearing the future. I want to experience the "nowness" of my life. I want to truly be in the gift of the present. Evidently I'm not the only one feeling this. God brings songs to me to speak of His never ending love. Miracle of the Moment by Steven Curtis Chapman is one of those that is speaking VOLUMES to me right now. Here it is. I will try and figure out how to link to it soon. But for now you can go to his website or to Rhapsody and listen.

Miracle of the Moment

It's time for letting go
All of our "if only's"
Cause we don't have a time machine
And even if we did
Would we really want to use it?
Would we really want to go change everything?

Cause we are who and where and what we are for now
And this is the only moment we can do anything about

So breathe it in and breathe it out
And listen to your heartbeat
There's a wonder in the here and now
It's right there in front of you
And I don't want you to miss the miracle of the moment

There's only One who knows
What's really out there waiting
And all the moments yet to be
And all we need to know
Is He's out there waiting
To Him the future's history

And He has given us a treasure called right now
And this is the only moment we can do anything about

So breathe it in and breathe it out
And listen to your heartbeat
There's a wonder in the here and now
It's right there in front of you
And I don't want you to miss the miracle of the moment

And if it brings you tears
Then taste them as they fall
Let them soften your heart

And if it brings you laughter
Then throw your head back
And let it go
Let it go, yeah
You gotta let it go

And listen to your heartbeat

And breathe it in and breathe it out
And listen to your heartbeat
There's a wonder in the here and now
It's right there in front of you
And I don't want you to miss the miracle of the moment

And breathe it in and breathe it out
And listen to your heartbeat
There's a wonder in the here and now (here and now)
It's right there in front of you
And I don't want you to miss the miracle
Of the moment

~Lord,
Here's to living in the moment. Grant me your grace to experience your majesty, love, glory, peace and forgiveness THIS moment. Let me allow you to lavish your love upon me, just as I am. Thank you for grace. Bathe me in your presence right now God. I love you and praise you. In Jesus name....AMEN!

The Desert of Depression

So, I usually write about "happy" things. I write about life and my ups and downs but I try not to get too bogged down in the "downs". However, today I must write about what I am going through. More accurately, what our FAMILY is going through.

Nathan has been suffering from severe, debilitating depression since late February/ early March of 2006. I won't go into the cause of the depression. That isn't necessarily for public eyes. However, I can tell you that it wasn't just one episode that spurred it on for him. It was a lifetime of hurts, disappointments that happened to be drawn to the surface by a particular hurt from a particular individual.

Needless to say, Nathan has not recovered. This tailspin, this downward spiral has been dramatic, traumatic, and completely devestating. Our entire family is affected. The children know that daddy doesn't feel well. He usually is in bed. He can't come places with us. He seems sad. I know that my husband is emotionally unavailable, and probably going to go yet another day without engaging in life, much less engaging me in conversation.

It's awful, it's sad, it's horrible....for NATHAN, for us, for all who love us. I am angry. I am sad. I am hurt. I am lost, and so is NATHAN, our kids and our friends. I am resentful. I want my husband back. I want my best friend back. I want my lover back. I want him to be whole, healed and at peace with God, others and most importanly HIMSELF.

If you are reading this and you believe in God and prayer. Pray for Nathan. Pray for me. Pray for our family and for anyone struggling with depression.

Overwhelmed,

Janelle