Saying Goodbye to A Very Special Woman

Every day I am reminded more and more how precious life is and how important family should be in our lives. God says in His word to focus on tomorrow and not to worry about tomorrow because He knew that "today" would be a gift. So far this year, we've lost two very special and important people in our family. It hasn't been easy at all. A trying year for us, many tears have been shed. First my grandfather whom I miss everyday and now my beloved aunt Roxana. She passed yesterday, she was only 51. She's always been a warrior, a hero in my eyes. She persevered a the loss of her unborn baby, who would have been her eldest. She was 9 mos. pregnant and while trying to help someone on the street she slipped. She lost him right away. She also endured through a trying marriage where she dealt with the after math of alchoholism, drugs and aggression ending in an ugly divorce. She worked long hours and fought hard to raised her kids on her own while my uncle was lost with addictions. Last year, she was diagnosed with breat cancer on both breats. They immediately removed them and she underwent chemotherapy. She was able to recover, her hair grew back and she went right back to work. Last month, she went in to reconstruct her breats and what seemed like a normal procesure left her in a coma. She would open her eyes from time to time but she was unresponsively for the most part. They told her children that she had very little white blood cells and what looked like cancer in her bone marrow. She despirately fight fo rher life for almost a month until yesterday. I got the call from my uncle telling me she passed away:( Even though she had been hospitalized you are just never prepared to recieve that phone call.




I took this picture of her this past January. She seemed so healthy. She was like a mother to me growing up. She was so soft spoken and loving. I know she loved me like a mother still because she held my hand the entire service at my grandfather's funeral. I felt so save! I had my mom on one side and her on the other. There is a picture of me when I was 1 with her bathing me. She watched me, she nurtured me and protected me. Interesting thing is....we are not blood related. She was married to my mom's brother. You don't have to be related to be a "mother" to someone. Her love for me was genuine and strong. She always walked around with this beautiful smile:D One that is recorded in my mind and in my heart. God really loves His children and surrounds them with so much love, all of shapes, sizes and forms. I am so grateful with my Lord for lovign me so much through the wonderful women in my life.




Here I am with my cousin, her son. We grew up like brother and sister. They lived two houses down so we were always together. He was like a big brother to me and protected me.




This is me with her daughter Marcela who's a year younger than me and our kindergarten teacher. We were also very close...like sisters. We walked to school together, played house, climbed trees and even slept at each other's houses..in the same bed lol. She kicked lots though but I sitll loved her. They were like my big brother and little sister. My mom and her were very close, they sewed together, painted together, and were there for each other. I think that their bond was an example for us to follow. All we knew was that we were to love each other.




This is her with her son this past January. His mom meant the world to him!



This is her with her beautiful grandson Gael. It brings me to tears to see this picture because she loved her grandson in such a beautiful way! She longed to pick him up and teach him. She was teaching him songs and words. It was so touching to see her with Gael because it was obvious that they had a very special bond. The kind of bond that I had and still have my with grandma.

I know that it has been a trying year so far BUT God is walking by our side holding our hand. We are not alone. God promises to give us the strength we will need to move forward. There is still work to do..... I thank God for blessing me with the opportinity to have met such a beautiful person. God gave me my Tia Roxana because He knew that I would need to be surrounded by love in this could and lonely world. My heart rejoices as I see God's hand at work in my life way before I was even born. My Tia Roxana will always be remembered as a blessing in my life! When we are loved by others....that is God's way of whispering into hearts "I LOVE YOU MY CHILD"

"Thank You my God for ALL you've done in my life. The good times and the trials...especially the trials because they humble me, they bring me to my knees and remind me of who I am in YOU...that I serve a very powerful and loving God. You are my hope and my comfort. I would be completely lost without You. I wouldn't have made it" May You get all the glory and honor as You bring me through the rain!

In Jesus name, AMEN!

P.S. I will never ever forget your warm smile Tia Roxana!!!

To All the Strong Mommies...

We are praying for the Lord to bless us with our treasures. Even though we haven't had the opportunity to be parents..yet.. we both come from big families and I've been around children my whole life since my mom went to college to work with kids, worked in day cares, ran a day care from her house for a while, I also have many cousins, we have 5 nephews and 1 niece with a second beautiful niece on the way! I am also the oldest of 5 so I pretty much helped raised my 2 youngest siblings. I have a pretty good idea of what it takes to care for a little one even though there's nothing like actually being in those shoes. This video made me laugh my heart out because it's so true! I decicate this video to all the wonderful mommies the Lord has put in my path! You've been a huge blessing and a joy to know wether I've known you or just met. I have alot of respect for all of you because I know it's not easy BUT God makes it all possible. Yes...there's hope in the Lord! One day, I hope to be godfearing strong and dedicated mommy raising godfearing warriors for the Lord! I hope it makes you laugh your heart out too! ENJOY!!!!

We Heard God's Voice!

I remember it as if it was yesterday....I was sitting in the living room of a good friend/Bible study leader conversating about life when I suddenly told her, "we (our couples' class) should do a missions trip. She loved the idea right away and started to wonder what it'd be like. The following sunday happened to be "Missions Week" at our church. As My husband and I made our way around the tent full of amazing displays of missions/missionary we sunddenly stumbled upon Joe and Rosie Nix who greeted us with a warm smile and a firm hand shake. They opened their hearts and shared with us what it's like to be in their shoes as the directors of a Mexican Orphanage called Ninos de Bajas in El Porvenir, Mexico. I was thrilled to see how much God had used them to bless so many children. I suddenly felt a tug in my heart and became extremely excited with the thought of going! I couldn't believe that just a week before we had been saying, "we should" and thinking "where to" and now God had answered both questions! Amazing! We knew we had alot of work ahead of us to raise the funds to go so I immediately took action. We had 3 very successful yardsales, sold candy bars, coffee and cinammon rolls, recycled cans, and kept an eye out for donated items that we could take down. Now while God was providing, satan was also at work. He was not happy at all with this trip. People were fearful, concerned, doubtful due to all the violence/crime that was going on accross the border. We kept having people insist that we watch the news, endless phone calls that we should cancel, a myriad of comments that we should postpone BUT the more we heard the more excited we became and the more we knew we had to go. There was so much peace in our hearts. We immediately thought of Paul in the Bible. How many times did God kept him save in adversity? He had joy in trials and that's the attitude, the spirit we wanted and felt that we needed to have before the LORD! We knew that this was our calling and that we would be protected. My husband told me a week before we left on our trip, "If God isn't moving, why should we?" WOW, my heart rejoiced to see how God was shaping/molding/strengthening my husband to be a man of God he was intended to be. This has been by far the biggest step of faith, other than our salvation, in our spiritual walk! On April 3, we packed the truck and off we went. On our way down we noticed the sky,God was lighting the way! (You can see the picture up top) He was going before us removing every form of evil. We smiled from ear to ear as we knew we were being led:D

Our time at the orphage was humbling, amazing, a true blessing! We thought we were going to love on the kids...were we in for a surprise...they hugged us, kissed us, fought for our lap, sang songs to us, did tricks for us and even gave us colored pages, a bracelet things that had alot of meaning to them! They told us they wanted to come home with us. It was so touching! We were able to hear some of their stories and til this day I still can't believe what these kids have had to endure in sucha short life: neglect, drugs, verbal, sexual, physical abuse, abandonement. And these kids had some of the most beautiful and biggest smiles ever...so much joy! It really makes you think twice before you have the nerve to complain. One little girl had a third degree burn on her little leg from her dad constantly burining her with a candle yet ironically every time I took a picture of her she would sing, "Hi, hi how are you, I am good, I am GOOD" Another little girl told me she loved mevery much because I looked like her mom. I later came to find that she hadn't seen her mom in years. Another lil girl told me she wanted to be my daughter...talking about wanting to cry. It's just amazing how God used us to love on these kids and show them that there is hope. We were quiet honored and so humbled. If you ever have the chance to go to an orphanage go..you won't regret it. The children are healed through every hug, every kind word, every smile. I did Easter themed crafts with the children and my husband fixed things around the orphanage such as hooking up a dryer. But I have to tell you the time that we spent loving on these kids was the best! We even went to church with them! Three of them had given their lives to Christ the week before and we had the privaledge of seeing them worship our Lord and Savior with so much joy! Ninos de Baja will always have a special place in our hearts..we will never be the same again! It was hard too hard to break their lil hearts and say goodbye so the night before I simply hugged and kissed all 14 children. It was so hard to hold back the tears and now we pray for the beautiful children we met! God protected us like HE promised and blessed us beyond measure! Below are all the pics we took. Enjoy!

Let's Get Purse-onal!

"I will praise You for I am fearfully and wonderfully made. Marvelous are Your works and that my soul knows very well. Psalm 139:14

At our Women's Retreat of which I will post about later on this week, our awesome speaker Chery Gregory shared something really neat with us that I thought would be a blessing to know while we try to have healthy relationships with family and friends. God created us all different so we can all bring something different to the table. Some time though, we fail to embraces those differences and seek to get our way. When Chery shared this with us, it answered alot of my "why's" and put things under perspective. She wanted to bring hope for our broken relationships so they woudl heal and be what God meant for them to be..empowering, uplifting, a blessing, a safe haven of love. I hope you enjoy this it's pretty neat and insightful..maybe just maybe, you'll know why your boss or neightbor does what she does! She also told us that God created us in a very unique way that we shouldn't have to be "somebody" to please someone in our life, we should be content and love the way God created us! What purse are you?





SANGUINE (POPULAR) - big pink tote bag

* Visible clues - Bright, stands out, colorful, doesn't like critism, not too practical, loves to talk, hugger, open book, loud, their mouth could get them in trouble, fear of blending in, cluttered live.
* Goal - Party, have fun, if they're not having fun they will creat it
* Needs - attention all the time, approval
* Bumper stickers - "are we having fun yet?" "how can I make this all about me?" "what will it take for you to like me?"

MELANCHOLY (PERFECT) - green small purse

* Visible clues - Organized, functional, practical, classic, colors are subdued, closed book, don't like to interrupt, body language is closed, quiet, don't want attention, neat and tidy
* Goal - achieve perfection
* Needs - Order, sensitibvity (remember everyone's birthday and expect everyone else to as well), wants a perfect world, breaks without order
* Bumper stickers - "if it's worth doinf, it's worth doing right" "love means never having to say I'm sorry"

CHOLERIC (POWERFUL) small black and pink purses
* Visible clues - to the point, bottomline, efficient, lots of energy, presence in body language, likes ot have control, function over fashion, doesn't wear flip flops, likes to look good, seldom get mistaken for conceited
* Goal - being in control
* Needs - achievement, appreciation
* Bumper stickers - "It's my way or the high way" "If I can't win I won't play" "a little gratitude goes a long way"

PHLEMATIC (PEACEFUL) blue and black purse
* Visible clues - simple, easy going, won't mind using paper plates, peaceful, well balanced, symmetrical, nothing sticks out, can addapt easily, like comfort, normally get citizenship awards at school
* Goal - peace, calm
* Needs - respect for who they are not for who you think they should be, self-worth, bepend on others to get feedback on what they're good at
* Bumper stickers - "Don't worry be happy" "R`E`S`P`E`C`T"

I was able to see which one best describes me even though I could fit two. Chery says that this is normal to fit more than one but that one will be more prominant. Are you able to pick out which one describes you??? I thought it was pretty neat and helpful. She even told us which ones her kids were and gave us pretty neat examples!

Happy Birthday to two very special people!!!

This weekend is a time of celebration for me. Two very dear people to me are celebrating the blessing of one more year. Even though these two people are very far from me physically since they both live in San Jose, Costa Rica (my country) they are in my heart and in my thoughts. Every time I think of them...I smile!!! I thank God for them because they are a very special part of me and they have taught me valuable things in life!

First...I want to introduce you to my younger brother Dani. Many new people in my life don't know of him or about him since he left back to Costa Rica 8 yrs ago and hasn't been back. This was my partner in crime growing up. His birthday is this saturday April 18 and he will be 28 yrs old. We are about a year apart. Him and I had a very adventurous and fun childhood and we protected each other like a momma lion protects her cubs! Honestly, we never fought. We always shared our friends. Some of my vivid and special memories of us were being in preschool and him liking my teacher better, playing our Nintendo (we would do this for hrs...Mario Brothers), swimming in our pool, playing the games Pay Day, Operation and Mouse Trap, going to the daycare's summer activities such as roller skating or to the park, walking along with our friends to the seven eleven with the two dollars my grandma had given us ready to buy the entire candy isle...and we would lol, riding our scooters to school, walking in the rain or should I say jumping in the puddles on our way home from school, being in the same sunday school class, staying up all night to see how long we coould last..we made it til 7am, climbing trees, putting together a band along with our cousins out of paint cans and sticks, playing with marbles, cutting a candy bar in half so we could share it, riding our bikes around the neighborhood, riding together to school (when I got my license), dancing the waltz together at my sweet 15th, meeting his fiance in person this past January. YES! My brother Dani is getting married Lord-willing in Feb, 14, 2009. They started dating on that date 2 1/2 yrs ago! We all plan on helping and going to the wedding! I can't believe how fast time flies...yesterday my brother was learning how to ride his tiny bike and here he is about to become a wonderful husband! Now things haven't been easy for him or for us in that matter. He did get caught up with the wrong crowd, made bad decisions, picked up bad habits, and still is engaging in things he shouldn't do BUT God has BIG plans for him...I know it in my heart. While alot of the family has given up hopes that he will be set free from the stuff he does...I refuse to give up on my brother. He is an amazing person, he has a huge heart and he will make an amazing uncle one day..he told us he can't wait for us to have kids that he'll be thhe best uncle ever!!!
His name means: Jose = God shall add, increase... Daniel = The Lord is my Judge
God will lift him up and transform him in a way that everyone will be amazed. My brother will be used for God's glory...he will have a very powerful, lifr-changing testimony and he will be tremendously blessed. God will give him a third chance since at birth he was born dead/blue but God brought him back!!!! God has taught me so much through my brother about life, miracles and God's timing!

I LOVE YOU brother.....You are a blessing in my life!!!!

Happy 28th Birthday!!!


(me, my brother and our mom taken this past Jan.)

Second......I want to wish a very special lady in my life a very Happy Birthday who's special day is this sunday April 19. My abuelita "grandma" has always been like a mother to me. She is my second mom! She watched my brother, sister and I when we were little, we even lived with her along with my grandpap and my parents for a while. She is one of the kindest and most caring people I've ever met in my life! This lady has really taught me about life! She's always told me to respect my parents, to love my brothers and sisters, to give, give, give, to never neglect a plate of food to those around me, she's fed the entire town where we're from, to persevere when hard times come your way, to hold your head up high, to truly enjoy every minute the Lord blesses you with, to laugh, to be easy going, to never give up on yourself, to strive to finish school, to never judge those around you..this is huge for her. Her name means....Cecilia = blind. Now those of us who know her know that she's not physically blind but her heart is...she is not judgemental..she has loved everyone who's come into her life. I believe in not judging a book by it's cover and that you will amazed with what you find if you really take the time to get to know a person, I also believe that a bad habit isn't the problem it's the result of the root of the problem and I got this from my grandma! Let me tell you.....she makes the best homemade bread/rolls (sweet or salty) and the best tamales!!!! YUMMMM! Her platano maduro al horno (a costa rican dish that I love) it's phenomanal!!!! She loves cooking and serving others. She has the heart of a servant!!! You see her cooking for others with a huge smile on her face and so much joy. It's unbelievable! She is also an amazingly strong woman. She has always loved the Lord and prays for her kids and grandkids all the time..I know that God hears every single prayer! She's always told me to have FAITH!!! She lights up an entire room when she walks in, has an amazing sense of humor and loves everybody! Sounds to me like a Proverbs 31 woman!!!!





She's endured so much in life...a miscarriage, infidelity/ raising my grandfather's daughter, hatred from some of her own children, hostility, deception, humiliation, lack of respect..I mean the list can go on and on but she has always persevered!!! It's simply amazing how strong this little lady is. She's dealt with so much yet that smile never seems to go away!!! She is more of a blessing in my life than she'll ever know. When I feel weak, discouraged I seldom think of her and hear her tell me, "You have to have faith, you can do it"



Here she is the day my grandfather was burried. Even though I know she was dying of anguish inside, she remained intact on the outside and managed to smile and even laugh. I can't imagine loosing my husband/best friend and having that type of strength...but she reminds me that I can do anything through the Lord!



Here she sis pcitured with the love of her life...my grandfather Antonio who just passed. One of the cutest couples ever!!! They were married for 65 years!!!! She was 13 and he was 19 when they met. He was her first and only boyfriend. Together they had 10 kids but the very first baby died right before she was going to give birth to him because they gave her too much medication for pain. They raised 9 children and my grandfather's daughter, 24 grandchildren and 14 great-grandchildren. She will never be the same without her sweeatheart whom she misses so much but God will get her through the sorrow and continue to give her that beautiful smile!!!

I LOVE YOU Abuelita...Have a wonderful Birthday!!!! You are also a huge blessing in my life!

A Bunch of Gratitude for YOU!!!

I just want to take some time to thank all of you who stop by to read my blog and shower it with sweet comments. I started doing this not know many people who blogged but deep down I knew that God would bring people into my blog, into my life! Some of your posts have blessed me (as well as my hubby) in a way that my life will never be the same again! God works in AMAZING ways!!! I pray that my blog continues to be a blessing to you but most important that it continues to honor God! I simply want to show people that God is in every aspect of my life. He truly cares about everything that goes on in His children's lives. There is not one second of my life that God isn't aware of...He is ALWAYS there:D I can see that He inspires so many of you to write beautiful blogs too! Believe me....I've read some of your posts over and over again only to feel inspired, refreshed, encouraged, and loved by my Creator! THANK YOU!!! I hope we continue to uplift each other and encourage each other to be not only a better person each day but more like Christ! God bless you and your beautiful families<3




Love,
Susan@-}------

A Double Dose of Prayer!

While we were away on our missions trip to Mexico, we got a call from my husband's uncle. Lupita, my husband's cousin and now mine too was admitted to the hospital due to an emergency. You see, she is 6 months pregnant with twins..baby Daniel Jr. and Emily...precious huh? The babies, at 6 months, are more then ready to be born. Yes..Lupita was having major contractions and even some bleeding. She was immediately admitted to the hospital and will be now staying there until she is at least 30 weeks (a lil over 7 months) to make sure the babies, if born then, are stronger and healthier. We visited her this past friday and treated her to Chinese foos which she was really craving, got her beautiful bring flowers to cheer her up and even took her and her hubby their wedding presents since they just got married. Lupita and her hubby Daniel were thrilled to have us over. Please pray for her because she is really home sick, she wanted to go home the third day she was there because her daughter who's 9 wouldn't stop crying since she missed her mommy so much. Lupita pleaded the nurse to let her go home but the nurse told her that if she comes off that IV she will have the baby twins by the time she gets home. God is really teaching her about His patience and trust. She shared with us that the nurse told her that one day in the resting int he hospital meant three days less that her babies would have to be in the NICU. This really seemed to encourage her to sacrifice her time, not being able to run around like she always has and being away from home in order to help her babies come out of the womb healthy. Honestly...God is really speaking to her and teaching her wonderful things! We shared with them about our missions trip and without hesitation she began to ask about our church and our couples' class. She told us that her and her hubby know in their hearts that they need more of God in their lives and in their marriage! They want to visit our church and hopefully stay! Daniel has never been to a Christian church..only to catholic church growing up so PLEASE pray that not only God surrounds these beautiful babies with health but that God uses this opportunity to bring them closer to the CROSS!!!! Lupita told us that they have a good marriage/rela. but she knows satan's always out there and they really want God to be the center of their home!!! PREAISE GOD!!!! We gathered around her, held hands and prayed for her and for the family. We will continue to visit them, it's a blessing to have them in a hospital right here in Fresno! I will visit her as much as I can to spend time with her watching chickflicks, doing crossword puzzles, taking her lil treats, spending time talking about life, making laugh and hopefully talking more about the Lord! God has great things in store for them!!!

***UPDATE: Just talked to Lupita on the phone and she had great news! The doc told her that when she reaches 28 weeks which will be in one week and three days...they will take her off the IV which is magnesium and put her in pills. They will do a test and if they have good results she will get to go home!!! She is so excited and very hopeful! God is so good! Please continue to pray!

Good Friday....Thank You JESUS!!!!

Today is a very special day for all Christians...we remember the day our Savior gave His life on that cruel, cold cross for me, for you, for all of God's children. It's a day that brings tears to my eyes as I am reminded of the pain my Savior endured as He was thinking of me. Let's remember our Heavenly Father, Lord and Savior today who is sitting on God's right side awaiting our arrival in Heaven with open arms!!! I am looking forward to seeing Him face to face one day, sit on His lap, look into His eyes and fall asleep in His arms! May the Lord bless you on this glorious day! Happy Good Friday!

*** Watch this video ------> http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-v8HJC0Am84

5 THINGS

I found this fun questionare in my sister in law Veronica's blog and though it would be neat to share with you...ok..2004?

5 things I was doing 5 years ago?

1. In college focusing on my grades so I could get straight A's and I did!
2. Met my wonderful husband on a Christian singles' website. It was all God..I was doing a project for Nutrition class and there he was!!! We then spent 4 months as friends really getting to know each other before we finally met in person.
3. Got engaged to my soulmate Manuel that June!!! He proposed at the beach by a sunset...I'll have to share the beautiful/funny story in here some time..it's one of a kind!!! Had my car stolen and one of the robbers got killed since they crashed. Came to meet my beautiful new family in San Diego, CA.
4. Married my honey bunches of oats that Nov...had the wedding of my dreams. God was there right by our side, it was a family reunion just how I wanted it to be, beautiful red roses everywhere, my fav dishes, and to top it off...mariachi whom my grandfather with, with his beautiful voice which I'll always miss.
5. Went to Maui, Hawaii for our awesome honeymoon!!!! What a treat..my hubby surprised me with the news days before the wedding! Manuel then got orders to be a recruiters so we knew God was moving us somewhere else...adventurous:D


5 things on my to-do list today:

1. Finish my laundry
2. Make dinner
3. Email Alison from the orphanage in Mexico to get some information we want
4. Watch our shows tonight and then do our devotional/pray


5 things I would do with a million dollars:

1. Give God the first 10% and then a good love offering
2. Pay off our house and other debt
3. Open up an orphanage for street kids/orphans, support orphans in other countries
4. Buy my parents, grandma and family their dream home, send my parents on the honeymoon they never had and deserve after 22 years of marriage!!! Help my hubby open up his batting cage!


5 places I have lived:

1. San Jose, Costa Rica (born and raised until I was 9)
2. Orlando, Florida
3. Clarksville, Tennessee
4. Clovis and Fresno, California
5. ( ) God will fill in the blank.....we're open to do His will and go where He wants and needs us to go next


5 jobs I have held:

1. Worked at a Food Bank my summer when I was in 9th grade
2. Cashier and then photo tech at Walgreens mainly for tourists
3. Cashier in the gift shop at a Marriot hotel
4. Cashier Hostess at Aribbas Bros. in DISNEY WORLD!!! Now doing office work for my friend who sells insurance on an as needed


5 things I would like to be doing in 5 yrs:

1. I would like to be using my spiritual gifts to serve the Lord in the ministries He has for me
2. Doing my best to the a Proverbs 31 wife..the kind of wife God wants me to be! Making memories and enjoying a strong marriage in the Lord!
3. Lord-willing raising god-fearing children...we know that God has our beautiful children in His hands and they will come into our life on a glorious day! We are really looking forward to that day! Being role models to our nieces and nephews!
4. Playing the piano and violin for God's glory while writing songs that speak of His hope!


HOPE YOU ENJOYED! Now I would love to get to know you more...try it!!!

The Music of My Heart

Just wanted to share that the God is giving me the opportunity of finally accomplishing a passion, a dream I've always have to learn to play the piano with the ultimate goal to write music that glorifies my Lord! I've always loved music! My mom says I've always had a passion and and and ear for music.

My very first present at age 1 was a drum that my mom says I loved to play with more than my dolls, at age 5 I got my tamborine, at age 9 I got a brand new keyboard I really wanted, at age 14 I got an organ my parents got for my at a yard sale which is when I was taking piano lesssons..took them for 6 months and now thanx to my wonderful in-laws who have generously blessed me, I get to use their awesome keyboard in the comfort of my home! After piano I would like to learn the violin! I'm also encouraring my husband to fulfill his dreams of learning to play the guitar. He owns one and everything. I am really excited because God knows this has been on my "to do list" for a very long time. I started my class last week, I geto to go every wednesday along with 11 other students. The Lord used music in my life to minister to me in a very powerful way when I drifted from His ways...He used it to encourage me to recommitt my life to Him and now I want to encourage others to come to Christ too! Music has the power to conquer a lost soul...that is...God's music that is filled with the Holy Spirit!

I pray that the Lord guides me in this journey, helps me develope this beautiful gift and gives me the honor of writing for Him and about Him to reach out to so many lonely, hurting souls......there's hope in the Cross!!!!