Service from the Heart

I just came across this link http://www.stservicemovie.com/ and I could not help to be torn between our two sons. Anthony who just graduated from High School and is working as a bagger and our Baby Emmanuel who died of complications from Down Syndrome. Take time to see this slide - it's a true story and it will warm your heart.

Hope you enjoy it as much as I did.
Blessings.

You can Love the Unlovely

Today's Scripture

“Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.” (Romans 12:21)

Today's Word

God says you need to love even those people who are difficult or seemingly impossible to love. The mark of true believers is the love they have for each other and for those who are not part of God’s family. Did you know there usually is a reason that some people are very difficult to love? More than likely, part of the problem is that they don’t have enough love, which means they need your love the most of all! You have your own personality, and it probably meshes better with certain other personalities. But even with the differences between people, you can still love others with the love God has shown to you. You will be amazed how much things will change if you just take that first step of faith and love the unlovely people around you. They are desperate for love and friendship, and you might make all the difference.

A Prayer for Today

God, give me Your unconditional love for the hard-to-love people in my life. I want to show others what Your love is all about so they will be drawn to Christ. In Jesus’ Name. Amen.

Speaking of Love

wo xiwang ni you hao zhoumo : I hope you had a nice weekend !!!
(woah she-wang knee yo how joe-muo)

Yes !!! I have found someone who is teaching me how to say certain phrases in Mandarin. Since Isabella is going to be speaking by the time her Mama & Baba get to her, I figured I better start learning. he, he, he !!!

Anyways, moving right along - Hope everyone's weekend was nice. Our weekend was fun but also alittle sad. Although, we celebrated Kai and Scott's birthday this weekend and I also got to have alot of fun out in the boat with some some of my nieces and nephews, we also had to share in the sorrow of losing our uncle. So with that - I wanted to take this time to blog about my uncle who passed away this past weekend. My childhood memories of my uncle are pretty special. I always remembered him to be a very humble and gentle man. I don't remember him as a person that ever had any altercations with anyone or any bitterness. One of the last times that I saw my uncle was for Herb's birthday party back in Sept. Our family was very blessed to have his presence there at that time. Speaking with my mom, she advised that she knew him for 45yrs. He was married to my mom's sister. He always would call me "Rubia" (which means blonde) in spanish. He left behind his two kids (grown adults already) which are my two cousins and his wife.

My Uncle will truly be missed but I know that someday, our family will all be reunited and the trumpets will sound upon his arrival in God's heavenly kingdom. I know that my uncle was a good man and his soul and spirit will resurrect as our Lord has promised. Our Lord always promised that he would have a place waiting for us in his kingdom and I know that my uncle is on his way there.

May his soul and spirit rest in peace and may the angels and saint sing songs of praise upon his arrival. Blessed be God now and forever.

Love is a Life style

Today's Scripture

"Be full of love for others, following the example of Christ who loved you and gave himself to God as a sacrifice to take away your sins." (Ephesians 5:2)

Today's Word

God has a commandment for His people, and it's found in John 15:12. There Jesus said, "Love each other as I have loved you." Now, that's a tough assignment considering the fact that He loves all of His children unconditionally and completely. But Jesus would not have said this if you didn't have the power to put His love into practice. God is telling you to love others constantly, the way He does, without giving up on them. Love does not disappoint or take hope away, but is devoted to the other person's well-being and happiness. Americans likes to celebrate love on special occasions, which is fine. But showing true love and appreciation is a decision to show love and devotion every day without wavering. That's what God wants you to do with others around you, because that will make a difference.

A Prayer for Today

God, give me strength to follow Your command to love. May I truly live a lifestyle of love today and every day. In Jesus' Name. Amen.

Expect the Best from God

Today's Scripture

“Because of your faith it will happen.” (Matthew 9:29)

Today's Word:

Most believers just don’t expect enough from God. God can do all things at any time, but many of His own followers put Him in a box and try to close Him in. Don’t do that to God, because He is too big and too great to fit in your box or anyplace else. Stay away from phrases like, “I wish I was as happy as I was before,” or “If I could just get a job like the one I used to have.” God doesn’t want to bring you out just like you were before. He wants to bring you out better than you were before! He wants to move you forward and grow you in His blessings. God’s desire is to increase you and make you stronger, happier and healthier. God loves you with an unconditional, unending love. You have all that you need to live the abundant life that Jesus promised!

A Prayer for Today

God, I know that I can expect the best from You. Thank You for being willing to give me even greater things than I can ask or imagine. In Jesus’ Name. Amen.

Always There !!!!

The only survivor of a ship wreck was washed up on a small, uninhabited island. He prayed feverishly for God to rescue him.Every day he scanned the horizon for help, but none seemed forthcoming. Exhausted, he eventually managed to build a little hut out of driftwood to protect him from the elements, and to store his few possessions.One day, after scavenging for food, he arrived home to find his little hut in flames, with smoke rolling up to the sky. He felt the worst had happened, and everything was lost. He was stunned with disbelief, grief, and anger. He cried out, God! How could you do this to me?

Early the next day, he was awakened by the sound of a ship approaching the island! It had come to rescue him! How did you know I was here?" asked the weary man of his rescuers. We saw your smoke signal," theyreplied.

The Moral of This Story: It's easy to get discouraged when things are going bad, but we shouldn't lose heart, because God is at work in our lives, even in the midst of our pain and suffering. Remember that the next time your little hut seems to be burning to the ground. It just maybe a smoke signal that summons the Grace of God.

Update on Isabella's quilt

Just wanted to mention that for awhile I stopped working on Isabella's quilt. With all the running around during graduation and proms, I just had no time to work on the quilt. But today I added (13) more wishes that I received from a whole gang of people from South Australia. It was a very large swap that I did with someone and she helped me out tremendously with getting me more fabrics. Go take a peek.

I am down to the last (14) fabrics and wishes to complete Isabella's quilt. PLEASE, PLEASE, PLEASE if you have not sent me anything yet, I sure would appreciate if you can send me some fabric along with wishes.

Thanks again and blessings to all.

Above are the awards that Anthony was given at the Baccalaureate Mass. The (2) certificates, the Medal of Honor and the Trophy.

Signed be a proud Mama !!!!

Baccalaureate Day

What is Baccalaureate ? Simply, a religious farewell address to the graduating class.
So today our family attended the Baccalaureate celebration. So I have to brag, just alittle about (Yeh - you got it !!! Anthony). Our church honored all the seniors at the baccalaureate with the distributions of certificates and trophies that were given to all the seniors. Part of the program that our church does for the seniors is to give (1) boy senior the St. Francis De Sales award, (you can click on the link to read more about who St. Francis De Sales was and also about St. Jane De Chantal) http://www.catholic.org/saints/saint.php?saint_id=51 and (1) girl senior the St. Jane de Chantal award. These awards are composed of a certificate, a metal of honor and also a cash award. The awards are given to these seniors who best represent these two saints.
This is were the bragging part comes in, Anthony received the St. Francis De Sales award and his girlfriend Jennifer received the St. Jane De Chantal award. I could hardly believe it. After it all sunk in, I told them both that I could not think of two teens that deserved it the most.

I am such a proud Mama right now, but I will say again and again - Anthony is who he is today because of our awesome GOD that we serve. All the Glory goes to HIM.

Here are some pictures from last night's graduation ceremony. Wow !!! The past 24hrs have been very exhausting but yet, it's been an exilirating time in our lives. I am so proud of our son. He has really come along way. He's is so funny though, I have to blog about this. As a gift to him from us, we gave him a 2002 Ford Mustang Convertible. It's absolutely beautiful, last night we got home from graduation pretty late, everyone was hungry and tired. Him and I were laying talking on my bed and I hugged him and said, thanks for being such an obedient son and he smiled and said "I knew that someday it would have paid off" (he was referring to his new car that he got). And this morning, he woke up and put on his pants and ran outside to check on his car, he said he wanted to make sure he wasen't dreaming. LOL !!!

Anyways, I'm sure I will post more pictures in a few day. But hats off to the 2007 class. Blessings to everyone.

Graduation Day

Well, here we are, tonight is Anthony's official graduation night. Tonight ends those roads that lead Anthony to adulthood, but yet tonight is also the beginning of the many journey's of life that he will undertake. The song that is playing in the background is played by Mark Harris and he wrote it for his children. I could not find a better song to express my feelings toward Anthony and what lies ahead for him in this life. What I do hope and pray is that as he drives down the many roads of life, that he carry one thing with him and that's the Truth and Light of Jesus Christ.

Anthony, you will always be my little baby boy. The memories you have given me have been tremendous. You are the light of my life, thanks for being such a great son. May this day bring you all the happiness in the world that you deserve. Despite all the difficulties that you have endured in your life, YOU DID IT SON !!!!! Congratulations.

Here is a writing that Anthony wrote for his English class, just before graduation. I thought is was great and I would like to share it with all of you, Enjoy !!!!

"Life is a Gift"

Only in those last moments of life does a person begin to realize how precious life truly is. The mind begins to show flashbacks of one's past experiences. Is the mind trying to show us that life is something to charish by showing us the flashbacks, or is the mind just playing tricks on us because of the lack of oxygen to the brain.

You should live your life to the fullest as I do because no one knows when it's going to be their time to go, so don't go with the flow, live it up and you will be happy. Every time you wake up, you should be joyful about life, for God has given you another day to live, so that you can be with the ones you love most.

In this final month of High School, the days will go by so fast. Good times will come and good times will be forgotten, and as always life goes on just like everything else does. But the times that will never be forgotten are those times, when you had the best times of your life, like at Grad Bash '07, when my friends and I were at Mel's dinner eating after partying at the clubs for about four hrs straight. I started to ponder that this was probably going to be the last time that all of us will be together like this. But as the days go on and graduation draws near, I begin to see how close I've grown to all of my friends. I have noticed that my friends are just as close to my heart as my family is. It will hurt me to say goodbye to everyone. I know that I might never see them again. They say friends come and go, like the wind, but I don't want that to happen to me for you are all part of my family, and I never forget about family.

I will go on to college to pursue my dream and become an Engineer. As I'm there, I will meet many people and I will make many friends. But as I meet these people, I will try and treat them more than just a friend, because like in high school, everything comes to an end, even friendships. I will hold onto my friends for as long as I can, for they are the ones who will help me pull through life's many obstacles. My life will go on just like everyone else's life will.
And just like everyone else, I too will make many decisions, some will be good and some will be bad, but the difference between me and everyone else, is that with every decisions I make, I will seize the moment and make it last as long as I can.

I stand here today looking into the eyes of people that were once my friends for years and are now much more than that. You are all my second family. The day school started, I couldn't wait until it was over and now that graduation is here, I wish I could take it all back.

As we get closer to graduation, don't rush it. It only comes once in a life time. Just like that, in a blink of an eye, you'll be sitting on a couch wondering, when did your life pass you by. Don't be one of those couch potatoes (I love this part), live your life as if it were your last, because you never know it just might be.

So there you have it, written by a senior in high school. Seize every moment of your life, don't just think it, live it. Have a blessed and wonderful day. I will post pictures of our pre-graduation dinner and also graduation ceremony tonight.

Peace.

4yr old drummer

Check this little guy out !!!! That is what I'm talking about. http://vids.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=vids.individual&videoid=1225012132

Beating the Blues

Raising her clenched fist skyward, she shouted, "Where are you God, when I need you the most ? Does this sound familiar to you? Well it does to me. Then, sobbing she slumped in her chair, a portrait of lonliness.

How often do we feel this alone? We yearn for someone to listen, to hear our anguish, but no one seems to care. Abandoned by friends, by loved ones, even by God, we understand Mother Teresa of Calcutta's words when she called these achingly lonely moments "the great hunger of the western world." St. Francis De Sales offers surprising words of comfort for these sad moments. For it is when our "great hunger" for compassion and conpanionships is at its lowest that God is the closest. De Sales suggests that we "shake off our blues" with the awareness of God's vital presence.

He urges this prayer: "Even though I have no feeling of confidence in you, I know that you are my God, that I am totally yours and have no hope except in your goodness; therfore I abandon myself entirely into your hands". It is a prayer of pleading, but it also expresses our faithfulness. We hurt, but we still believe that the Lord can help. It points to a glimmer, a light, despite the mounting darkness.

Right now, we are in God's presence, and more importantly God is in ours. De Sales spiritually insist that God wants to be here because he delights in our company. He literally enjoys us. Realizing that the afflicted may find this hard to believe, Francis writes of our created world. "There is no place in this world where God is not truly present."

In this post 9/11 world, it is easy to lose sight of God in the details of everyday living. We can easily sink under the many distractions that plague our daily routine. Are we safe? Can we survive these turbulent times? Will we be delivered from our distressing despair? Just because we don't imeediately see God, doesn't mean God is not present. God is neither out of sight, nor out of mind. He has not abandoned us for some distant galaxy. God is here, whether we are at the bedside of a loved one gasping for her last breath, or in the delivery room smiling at the cries of a new baby being born. In fact, there is no place God cannot be. God is at home in the oval office and the recreation room of your mother's nursing home. De Sales is constantly reminding us that there is no place outside of God's reach or interest.

To help us grasp this wonderful concept, Francis De Sales urges us to practice greeting God in all we do. "Bring God near and welcome Him", he encourages. Learning this may present the same thrill of recognition that Jacob experienced, when he exclaimed, "Truly the Lord is in this place and I didn't know it" !

Another favorite dwelling place for the Lord is in our hearts . In Salesian Sprituality the heart is the hearth, which keeps our desires for God aflame. St. Francis De Sales writes: "May God live in my heart for that is what it's made for". For Francis the heart is the "seat of love" where the divine image of God is most clearly reflected.

I once heard someone say, "Your hearts a holy place, because it is there God knows you best." There is no doubt that from the heart we lift up the holiness of our humanity to God, and God in turn touches us with the sacrament of his holiness. Jesus will indeed live in us in the good times and in the bad. He will always be near us.

Realizing this, isin't it evident that Jesus understands the pangs of our human heart? Didn't we hear our humanity? didn't He bear the stinging pain of suffering and the delight of a joyous moment? Indeed He did, for Jesus was born a man. In life, he laughed. He wept. He endured great lonliness, and He died an agonizing death. Jesus certaintly knew humanity, and because he did, we can depend on Him to be our closest friend. In fact who can know us better than a God who is like us in all things but sin.

Therefore, De Sales invites us to avoid filling our hearts with the frills that distract us from God's presence, and instead find ways to acknowledge Him and the love He wants to share.

If we spent time knowing Him in life and making Him welcome, won't He do the same when we visit Him on the last day? Thus, we have no need to raise our fist an lament our lonliness. For with our hand grasping the Lord's we can surely beat our blues away!

Have a blessed Day !!!!

Do you See this ??

Do you see this building? Well take a good look at it because, I won't be talking about it or seeing it again for a long, long time. Do you know why ????

BECAUSE TODAY IS THE LAST DAY OUR ANTHONY WILL BE ATTENDING HIGH SCHOOL. HE IS GRADUATING !!! Whohooooo... This has got to be one of the happiest days of my life. Life as we know it changes quite a bit for us now. No more waking up at 6:00am (at least for awhile) No more driving kids to school, No more conferences, No more volunteering.

I'd like to first thank our precious and awesome GOD for this day and everyday as without him, we could have not raised Anthony they way we did. Secondly, my wonderful hubbie, who sacrificied 13yrs of his life, to raise someone else's child and then for one day to make him his.

Anthony's life has made us stronger individuals and has made us the people that we are today.

Again, thank you LORD because without you, we are nothing. Thank you for all of the trials and tribulations that you placed before us and then equipping us with your strength, courage, and wisdom to become parents overnight. We love you LORD !!!

Making Time or Making Excuses ???

"There is a time for every matter under Heaven" - Eccl. 3:1

Stuck in a rut in your faith life or your everyday routine? Feel like there's too much to do and not enough time in which to do it? Does something in your schedule need to change?

Why are believers so shocked that our lives can get so filled with stress? Why are so many who are involved in ministries often without joy? Why is anxiety and worry more prevalent than peace in many modern Christians? I'll throw out one possible answer. We don't pray - not enough. Prayer is the hinge-pin that holds everything else together and keeps us moving forward. Without prayer everything falls apart. Without prayer we're not living, we're breathing. Prayer is the most primal, most basic and most important thing we can do as Christians and, yet, it's often the very first thing to go when we "get busy". We don't take time to pray. Which is another way of saying it's not as much a priority as other things in our life that we to take time to do. What we need to admit is that we don't make time to pray. Some weeks I don't make time, I make excuses. I justify it to myself. How so many other things are pulling on me. I justify how my prayer is interrupted, cut short or unfocused because of the reality of the world around me. The reality is - that's life. Jesus had people pulling on Him. Jesus had people wanting things from Him 24/7. Jesus had plenty to do, didn't He? And He made the time. Throughout the Scriptures we are given scenes and examples in which Jesus removed Himself from the busy-ness and made some time to pray. Put very simply, we need to be more like Jesus. If you drew a pie chart of your week, breaking down where all of your time goes, what would it look like? There's probably a lot of time in there for work or school. There's definitely time in there for travel, meals and sleep (probably not as much as you'd like). I'll even bet that there's time included for exercise or hanging out, reading or spending time with friends (again, probably not as much as you'd like). None of those things are bad they're good. We need relationships, activities and rest, absolutely.

Outside of going to Mass, however, how much time each week is spent with God? Why don't married couples spend more time praying together than doing tasks around the house? Why don't priests spend more time praying and less time in meetings? Why don't we make more time in the day to just hang out with God and less time on mySpace or Facebook or sitting in front of the television? Don't worry, I'm asking myself the difficult questions, too. So, here's a few questions to ponder: When was the last time you got up thirty minutes early to have a cup of coffee with God in the morning? When was the last time you got ready for bed early, fell on your knees beside it and really prayed before falling asleep? When was the last time you prayed a rosary where you were really, totally focused? When was the last time you fasted outside of the season of Lent? When was the last time you read the upcoming Sunday readings a few days in advance? When was the last time you turned off the radio, shut off your cell phone and invited Jesus to ride shotgun with you in your car? When was the last time you invited your significant other to pray with you? When was the last time grace before your meal took more than 15 seconds? When was the last time you just opened up the Catechism and read? When was the last time you went to Reconciliation (If your Catholic)? What's keeping you? When was the last time you did an act of service for another, not because you signed up to do it. But the last time you randomly went out of your way?

These are the questions I have begun to ask myself each week; some weeks I'm doing great and other weeks I'm not doing so hot at all, but that effort is, in and of itself, a form of prayer.

The reality is that I can always improve and maybe, just maybe you can, too. Have you been making time or making excuses? If you don't think you have the time, give your schedule to God (the timeless one). I'll bet He can move some things around for you, if you'll let Him.

"There is a time for every matter under Heaven" - Eccl. 3:1

Prayer isn't about words, it's about time.

Trust God's Goodness

Today's Scripture

“For the LORD God is a sun and shield; the LORD bestows favor and honor; no good thing does he withhold from those whose walk is blameless.” (Psalm 84:11)

Today's Word

Believing in God and trusting Him is easy when everything is going well, and there doesn’t seem to be anything bothering you. But to truly declare God’s goodness even when trials and confusion surround you is really trusting God. God is so good to you, He wants you to grow, mature, and learn from so many different situations. So even when things don’t make sense, keep a positive attitude knowing that God has your best interests at heart. You don’t always have to figure it out on your own, or go around living with a chip on your shoulder toward life. You can choose to trust God in everything, and live freely experiencing His blessing in your life!

A Prayer for Today

God, thank You for Your goodness and faithfulness. My prayer today is that I might learn to truly trust You and Your goodness in all circumstances. In Jesus’ Name.

Anthony's Prom

Well another Prom attended, another prom is over. Saturday night was Anthony's prom. They had it at Three Oaks Banquet Hall and the theme was "A night in Paris". The kids seemed to have had alot of fun. Attached are some pictures of them prior to heading out to the big dance.

Enjoy !!!! And thank you God for bringing them home all safely.

Happy Mother's Day

My Baby Boy and his Mama !!!

This poem is dedicated to all the mothers of the world !!! Especially the birth mothers of all the orphans in the world. Happy Mothers Day.

God's Masterpiece is a Mother

God took the fragrance of a flower ....

The majesty of a tree...

The gentleness of morning dew...

The calm of a quiet sea...

The beauty of the twilight hour...

The soul of a starry night...

The laughter of a rippling brook...

The grace of a bird in flight...

Then God fashioned from these things

A creation like no other,

And when his masterpiece was through

He simply called it - Mother

Conversion of my heart once again

I know this is so random but I found the Lyrics to the song that I was hearing at the Third Day concert on the cruise and it was during this song that the Lord spoke to my heart, through these same lyrics .... I love HIM, I love HIM, I love HIM .....

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dgeMHHbFslk

I hope the words and video to this song touch your heart the same way it touched mine. May the peace and happiness of the Lord always be with you and may you carry it into the lives of every person that you meet.

Blessings.

My Mother's Day and Anniversary present

That's right, you are not imagining what you are seeing, it is a DRUM SET !!!!! One of the many things that occured to me on the infamous cruise that I was on, was the desire to want to play the drums. I mentioned to Herb that for my birthday (which is in Sept) I wanted to learn how to play the drums. I wanted to take private lessons. Well - here it is, a brand new (8) piece set, TAMA brand.

I am so excited, needless to say we got home pretty late last night and all I wanted to do was stay up, and bang on the drums all day.

I will blog once I begin my new classes. I promise you this, I will be the best drum player, you know !!!!! Peace.

Something more to think about

A penny for your thoughts !!!! A wise word from an ederly individual. Bless his heart.

Happiness is something you decide on ahead of time. It's how I arrange my mind. I already decided to love. "It's a decision I make every morning when I wake up. I have a choice; I can spend the day in bed recounting the difficulty I have with the parts of my body that no longer work, or get out of bed and be thankful for the ones that do. Each day is a gift, and as long as my eyes open I'll focus on the new day and all the happy memories I've stored away. Just for this time in my life."

Old age is like a bank account. You withdraw from what you've put in. So, my advice to you would be to deposit a lot of happiness in the bank account of memories! Thank you for your part in filling my memory bank. I am still depositing. Remember the five simple rules to be happy:

1, Free your heart from hatred.
2. Free your mind from worries.
3. Live simply.
4. Give more.
5. Expect less.

What if you lived what you read here ?

"Commit your way to the LORD; trust in him, and he will act." - Ps. 37:5

What two words are the most dangerous for a Christian to speak, pray and live? Did you read the question above? Let me ask it again, in a different way: What two words are most dangerous to moving forward on the daily Christian walk? Now, you probably have a lot of different words and thoughts running through your mind right now. Two-word "phrases" that you think might jeopardize your salvation or somehow separate you from the love of God. Stop trying - no phrase can do that.

What about other word combinations? What about feelings or responses that you think or say that seem to doubt or question God's plan, phrases like: Why me? Why now? How come? I won't. You can't. All these are difficult phrases, yes. Each one is dangerous in its own way, to be sure. But the truth is that nothing you can do can make God love you anymore or any less. Sin is a rejection of God's love, it doesn't mean that He stops loving you. Still, none of these are quite as dangerous as the phrase that stifles my Christian walk on a daily basis. While any of the aforementioned phrases can make a faith walk more difficult and render prayer time more distracted, none of the phrases are as dangerous to your daily walk as the phrase, "what if". What if . is the phrase that has spiritually and emotionally paralyzed Christians through fear since the time of Jesus, Himself. You know how it goes. What if I lose my job? What if they get sick? What if I say no? What if she finds out? What if he leaves me? The result? You don't end a relationship that you need to end; you choose it over God. You don't say what needs to be said; you fear what they'll say about you. You don't change what needs to change; you choose life's "comfort" over improvement. You don't act; you fear of others' reaction. In short, you don't trust God. And, believe me, I am including myself in this truth. We don't trust God completely.

"What if" moments reveal more than the areas we struggle with, however, they reveal the situations in which we need to run to God in prayer. We need to more proactively ask for His grace, His mercy and His strength in our lives. Stop and pray, right now, and ask God to reveal to you any areas of your life that you struggle to let go of, all those situations in which you have a hard time surrendering control to Him. If there's something you haven't done because a "what if" scenario has trapped you in fear, ask yourself this question:"What if I let God actually be God in this situation?"Of course, you don't have to take my advice."What if" you don't? Nothing will change."What if" you do? Something will change. At the very least, your heart. What if God loved you more than you love yourself? Oh wait, He does. He gave us the cross to prove it.

Bottom Line: "Commit your way to the LORD; trust in him, and he will act." - Ps. 37:5

The question isn't "what if God loves me"; the question is "what if you trusted Him completely?" Oh how your life would change.

Remember these words "Lord, Come and Ruin my life and my plans"

Peace

May 8th, 2007 (Our 14th yr wedding anniversary)

" Our wedding Candle"


May 8th, 1993 - My hubbie and I tied the knot, yep !!! We have been married for 14 yrs. I must say that I really have been blessed. By no means, has our marriage been a piece of cake but it's been pretty close to a homemade pie. Like every marriage, we have endured lots of trials and difficult moments, but I made a vow not only to my husband 14 yrs ago, but I also made a vow to our awesome GOD of inviting him into our marriage. I will never forget, while we were both on our knees making this vow to the Lord to be married forever, I turned to my husband as we were about to commit our vows and I said to him, I don't want this to be the last time we are in church together, and it seems that from my lips to GOD's ears, he heard my prayer because, we both have been attending mass every sunday since we got married, 14 yrs ago. I believe, through our difficult trials, it was our mighty father in heaven that got us through it. I thank him every day for the faith that he has given me.

This picture that I have posted in the blog was a wedding candle that was given to us on our wedding day, the front of the candle is the actual wedding invitation and the back of the candle reads

"Being deeply loved by someone gives you strength, while loving someone deeply gives you courage".

Thank you Honey for the good and the bad that we endured together these past 14 years of our lives. You are GOD's masterpiece and my treasure, and if you live to be 100 yrs old, I pray to only live until I'm 99, so I never have to live a day without you.

Blowing kisses to you in the wind !!!!!! Your kuku !!!!!!

pictures of the music boat cruise 2007

The pool area (Carnival Cruise Lines) the name of the ship is "Fascination"





Anthony and Herb posing for a picture Here I am jamming at the Third Day Concert


Here I am again posing with two of the members of the Big Tree Band in Jamaica.

So what about the Cruise we took ???

I will post pictures probably tonight about our cruise but for now, read on:

Alright let me start by saying that GOD is amazingly wonderful. I spoke to some of you and shared my thoughts about this already but I will post this in my blog for those of you that actually follow my life. (yeh right) !!!! I like to humor myself at times. Our cruise was incredible, I must say it's been one of the best vacations, I have taken in my entire life. I will get alittle personal about my walk. For the past month in a half - I must say that I've been sitting in a dry well when it comes to my walk, but still trying to remain as faithful as I could. I continued to attend our faithful Jacob's Well prayer meeting on Thursday nights, I continued to read God's word (even when I felt like I would not get anything out of it). I continued to attend mass and I even went to the Life in the Spirit Seminar last weekend. For those of you that have experienced dry times in your walk, you know how hard it is to do these faithful things when you feel like your just not intune with the spirit. Well, low and behold, I kept at it. I even went to reconcilation and shared with our priest of where I was in my walk. I honestly felt like I was suffocating spiritually. Argh !!!!! I hate that !

Anyways, back to the cruise. I went very hyped up about all the Christian bands that were going to be there, let me just mention a few. Third Day, Building 429, Big Tree, Nicole Mullen, Mark Harris, Salvador, Jackie Velazquez, (who I found out is married to Salvador) that blew me away. what a surprise. Barlow Girl, Sonic Flood, Aaron Shust !!!! And many more. Well during the Third Day concert, they began to praise and worship and the lead singer was talking about a song he wrote called the Mountain of God. And what he said, really sunk in my heart. He was talking about how so many times in our lives we need to walk through the valley to stand on the mountain of God. And the Lord showed me at that very moment, that even though I had not been experiencing any hard trials, I did not feel his presence with me for almost two months because I was in the midst of the valley. But that moment, God stretched his arms and pulled me from the valley and I found myself with my arms up in the air (PRAISING & WORSHIPPING) on the mountain of GOD. I had finally reached the mountain top. I balled my eyes out and just soaked in his presence and he spoke to me through that song. That was one of the biggest highlights of the cruise for me. Another one was when I attended the morning devotion on Thursday. We began with praise and worship with Barlow Girl and Third Day and then David Nasser, came out to lead us in prayer. And one of the things that touched my heart and totally convicted me was 6 words, YEP, just 6 words. LORD, COME AND RUIN MY LIFE.

What does that mean? I thought WOW !!! That is deep stuff. When in simple words, it just means take away all the things in my life that distract me from following you. It's complete surrender and trust. And I just want to say something about this. As human beings we often think that are life is just fine. Financially were ok, health is good, there's peace and happiness. What else could we ask for? Well, even though, we as humans think are life is just fine, God's ways are not are ways. God's plan for us is so much better than we can possible want for ourselves. His ways are always the perfect plan. So in that, when we say Lord, come and ruin my life and ruin my plan. Don't fear and know that anything that he adds or takes away from your life is all part of his plan and it will turn out to be perfect and whole. So when you hear me say Lord come and ruin my life and my plan - you know they background of what this all means.

Pray it, say it, and live it !!!!! I have the most amazing inner joy right now as I am blogging. I just wish you all can share the hope that JESUS brings into the lives of other people. His grace is enough and I hope and pray to see you, hear you and worship with you on the Mountain of God.

Peace.

What are you Sowing?

Today's Scripture

"Other seed fell on good soil, where it produced a crop—a hundred, sixty or thirty times what was sown." (Matthew 13:8)

Today's Word

You should be living with expectancy because God is using what you're sowing for His good and perfect will. There are many kinds of seeds, but only one kind of seed is a good seed that produces a crop according to Matthew 13. This is the seed of God's Word, and as you sow good seeds for Jesus Christ into a field of hurting and desperate people, people who have no other hope for life, they will find something firm to believe in. Jesus Himself promises that if you sow good seed, you will reap a harvest that is beyond your expectations. Plant good seeds in the lives of other people. There is plenty of soil to sow in, and a lot of it is right where you live and work!

A Prayer for Today

God, thank You for Your promise to bless my efforts for the Kingdom. Help me see where the soil is, so that I can sow a good seed! In Jesus' Name. Amen.

My First Dream with Isabella

Well I may not be as gifted as my sister when it comes to her dreams (for those of you that don't know my sister is Ohilda) the mommy of Kai, Aj, Amanda, Adam, and Tito. Last night or maybe even this morning, I had my first dream of our baby "Isabella".

The dream was so vivid and clear and I shared the dream with my sister and she said that I should blog about it because these dates can be very meaningful in the future.

Well the dream was that YES !!!!! WE FINALLY RECEIVED OUR REFERRAL !!!!!!! WHOHOOO - WERE GOING TO CHINA. Okay so it was only a dream, but man It felt good saying that. Let me tell you what happened.

In my dream, I received in the mail our referral package. I was desperate to open up the package and see her picture. I could hardly contain myself. Our Isabella had fair white skin and she was almost a baldy, she was wearing a white dress with purple flowers and she was sitting down, she looked like a chunky little baby. She looked like she may have been anywhere from 8-10mths old and she looked very Chinese. In my dream as I was holding her picture, I began to cry, I could not believe that I had a face to match our daughter. She was a complete doll. The dream was so vivid that I even read her Chinese name on our documents, the name read something like " Shx Shx Ling" I don't know what that name means but if any of you care to do research and send me a comment of what you find that would be really cool.

After speaking to my sister, I realized that my Grandmother and Grandpa's wedding anniversary was May 6th. Could this dream be also a blessing from my grandparent's. I don't know but the dates sure speak that. Could this be this day be the date that our Isabella was born. Don't know that either but it sure speaks that at the moment.

Anyways, thank you for hearing me ramble. I must get my day started. Have a blessed day and may the peace of the Lord be with you today and always,.

Honoring Fr. Hugh

Deb and Walt - My Best friends EVER !!!!!

Tonight a bunch of my church family and ourselves went out to dinner to honor Fr. Hugh in his 10 yrs of being an ordained priest. We had alot of fun celebrating with him and not to mention a delicious Italian dinner.

The most amazing thing happen though. We had carpooled to the restuarant and on our way back home, we stopped at the church to drop off Fr. Hugh along with a few other people. Close to the church there is this main street called Estero Parkway. Well apparently, last night Friday - a senior out of Estero Senior High School was killed in a motorcycle accident. Upon approaching the church at 11:30pm tonight, we saw there was about 5 high school kids at the sight were this other high school student was killed. Our friends that were in our car felt convicted to go and pray with them. We then dropped off Fr. Hugh at church, and as the spirit led us to go back to the sight were these high school students were at, mourning for their friend that was killed last night in a motorcycle accident. There we were 4 individuals praying over 5 high school kids (whom we did not know) at 11:30 at night and praying for a soul that was taken up to heaven 24 hrs prior. Man - I can't tell you enough how cool it is to be a Christian, to be a part of God's Army. To be called to do his work, here on earth. The Lord says he does not call the equip, he equips the called. It was a honor for me to be a part of a team, that was so willing to say YES, as we prayed for these strangers, that are in complete need of healing at this time. There we were, 4 strangers hugging and praying for 5 kids we did not know. It totally became holy ground for us, the kids began to cry and to talk out loud for their dear friend that was lost.,

Thank you Lord for using us once again as your prayer warriors. We could have been the only JESUS that they may have ever known.

Thank you again for continuing to ruin my life and ruin my plans.

I received an email from someone forwarding me this link of http://www.newsday.com/community/news/islip/ny-lidead295191639apr29,0,3408023.story a story of two more teenagers that were killed in a car accident in Long Island. People - LIFE is a fragile gift, please talk to your children and allow them to hear and read about these stories. Blessings to all of you. BE GOD's always.

Be Courageous

Today's Scripture

"Be strong and courageous! Do not tremble or be dismayed, for the LORD your God is with you wherever you go."(Joshua 1:9)

Today's Word

God says not to tremble or be dismayed by anything, because He is with you wherever you may go. That is such an encouragement, and it's absolutely true! You should be walking around in life without even the slightest amount of fear, because that is not the nature God gave you. You should refuse to be defeated by the things around you, even if they seem insurmountable. Perhaps one definition of courage might be staying strong and moving forward, even when most would give up and even surrender their ground to fear. Be strong and
and courageous today for God and do not allow yourself to be defeated by fear or the unknown!

A Prayer for Today

God, I want to live and serve You boldly without being crippled by fear. Make me strong and courageous in Your power to do what You want me to do. In Jesus' Name. Amen.


Lord come and Ruin my LIFE and my PLANS !!!! (I will emphasize more on what this means to me in my next upcoming blogs) Something the Lord spoke to my heart about during the cruise.

Hiding Out

Hi everyone,

I just wanted to let everyone know that I am back in town. We arrived back from our cruise on Friday May 4. I have alot to blog about, but I don't have time right now, so check in again in a couple of days. We had an amazing time and I will post pictures as well.

Have a great weekend. Peace