I Admit It, I am Crazy!

I have it figured out, I am nuts. I am crazy! I must be. Why else do I put myself thru all this insanity?

One of the boys I have taken in is driving me up the wall. He wants to leave one day, wants to stay the next. I am serious, every other day he is down on himself, every other day he wants to go home. He can't go home, his parole ofc told him no way, well I say, LET HIM, Puhleaseee!!!

I know God loves him and I do too, but I can't help him if he doesn't get committed. I have been on my knees every morning beside my bed, asking God to intervene, to show me how to help him, to let him feel loved, to give him the desire to do what he has to do. God answers and the kid is so happy, then tomorrow he will be so down. I think I need to find him a counselor or me one, I am not sure which at this moment. Perhaps both of us need one.

My Son - Eddie

http://www.lulu.com/eddo

My son, Eddie just published his first book entitled, 101 Reasons to Marry Me! I am awed at the things he has accomplished in life, but this book is really something.

I can't help but laugh when I read it, because of the illustrations he has put in it, but truly the book reflects who he is and his personality comes across incredibly.

He is always laughing and makes everyone else laugh around him, so check out his book. I am proud of him.

When I Am Weak, He is Strong

I have been so incredibly busy lately. I will be so glad when the boys get their Driver's License and they get vehicles so they can drive.

My week consists of getting them to work six days a week, Mon - Sat, from 7 am to 3:30, sometimes they work until 5pm and sometimes until 7pm. They never know when they will have to stay over, it depends on what projects have to go out. So lately my quiet times have been at various times and my prayers are without ceasing.

Then I have to get them to AA meetings three times a week, we meet their Parole Officer once a week and they do Community Service hours each week. After we complete this, we make sure they get to go to church at the Youth Group on Sunday Mornings while we are at the Juvenile Correctional Facility and then to Bible Study Huddle Ups on Wednesday nights and College Life Services on Tuesday nights. Tonight they informed me they signed up for Flag Football and they hoped it was okay. I told them sure, but Community service would be on Friday night then.

On the side I am trying to get their Birth Certificates and Social Security Cards so we can get their licenses after their warrants are taken care of thru time served, plus teach them both how to drive and let them practice parallel parking. And the washer broke down, so I have been taking the laundry to the laundromat.

One of the boys is doing extremely well, he is even becoming a youth leader at church, holding the other boy accountable to do the right thing, the other one, is struggling. One day he is up and the next he is down, there is no consistency. I pray and God answers, then another incident, I pray, God answers. We are taking baby steps right now in his life and the other one is taking giant steps. So we are all growing and learning. It isn't easy, but God probably thought that about me too. Today when we got to College Life he was upset with me, because I had corrected him about not being ready and standing around talking when he gets off work. So when we get to College Life he doesn't want to go, I made him go and when I picked him up, he was so excited, said he met alot of kids who were doing something with their life and he felt so good about himself. Thank you Jesus.

Still I am learning more and more how to lean on Him, trust Him and let Him work. I am powerless. I try to stay out of the way, because He is capable of working the whole thing out, no matter the situation. Thanks for prayers for these two young men that God created and loves with all of His heart. Both are very sweet and lovable, one just gets so down on himself and the only life he has ever known was not a good life, and their are lots of old habits and thinking errors to get out in the open and overcome.

I KNOW HOW HE FEELS

My Husband Chuck

I am writing this post because my friend Ordinary Christian mentioned she didn't know I was married. I used to write alot about my husband, his name is Chuck. So since I haven't mentioned him in awhile, so let me tell you how amazing he is.

I would post his picture if I had one right now, but I don't. So let me describe him to you....he is about 6 ft. 4 in. tall, around 205 lbs, blue eyes, white hair and a white beard. He never met a stranger, he puts you at ease and you feel as if you have known him for years when you meet him. We have a marriage made in heaven, he is my best friend. He has this ability to make each and every person he talks to feel like they are the only person that matters. He loves the Lord Jesus with all of his heart and we often accuse him of working the crowd if we go to a wedding or anywhere where people gather.

If we go to a restaurant to eat, and we are about to pray he will ask the waitress if she would like to pray with us. Almost always they do and he prays for them too. Then later he will open the door to share the Gospel by asking them if they are students or where they go to church. He proceeds later to find out if we could talk with them at a later time, telling them he would like to share more with them about our faith and how Christ has changed our lives. You would be amazed at the ones who have made appointments with us and have accepted Christ. We have even given them bibles and been invited to share Christ with a boyfriend or girlfriend of theirs. I never cease to be amazed at the gift God has given him.

Another incident that happened was when we bought some land last year for an investment and as Chuck was making the deal, he began to share with this man how Christ had changed his life. He then asked him if he knew where he would spend eternity should Christ decide to come back today. The man told him, no and so he asked if he would like to know. He said, yes. So they prayed and then the guy, his name is Joe started coming to our house to Bible studies with five other young men he had led to the Lord from his job.

To sum up this post about my husband, I will say, I don't know of a more Godly man, or of a man who shares his faith wherever he is and whatever he is doing, no matter what. If you were to meet him, he will tell you about Jesus before you leave his prescence. It is just who he is, Christ changed our lives and we are humbled that He can use us to tell the good news that if He did it for us, He surely can do it for anyone we come into contact with. The Word says, He who has been forgiven much, loves much and in our case, that is the Truth! Luke 7:42,43

My Brother's Keeper

1 John 3:16 , "This is how we know what love is: Jesus Christ laid down his life for us. And we ought to lay down our lives for our brothers. If anyone has material possessions and sees his brother in need but has no pity on him, how can the love of God be in him? Dear children, let us not love with words or tongue, but with actions and in truth."

This week I approached a couple of organizations who have resources to see if they would be interested in helping me set up this network for "at risk youth" in our community. Mainly the boys who are leaving TYC to try to start a new life away from their homes, family and everything they have ever known.

In some ways I was shocked to hear..."well, they are eighteen, they have committed offenses, so we really don't want to work with them." Am I surprised? Not really. We have a difficult time getting anyone to volunteer even an hour a week to set down with these boys and spend a moment with them.

I had a co worker who is a Christian. I asked him, "where's the church?" What are they doing? Aren't we the church? Didn't He say, the Kingdom of God is now in the hearts of men? This person, my coworker said, "people are too busy with their own lives to do anything for these kids." Wow! I said, 'well, aren't we supposed to be our brother's keeper?"

Aren't we to love God with all our heart and love our neighbor as ourself? God forgive us for not being willing to go out of our way to help these boys who belong to you.

I know and understand why some people don't want to get involved, but I also realize we can't ignore the problem, we have to reach out and touch these lives with the love of Christ. His love is life changing. He didn't come for those who are well, He came for those who need a physician, for those who are sick.

The church is a spiritual hospital, treating patients with the Gospel to make them well. That's what it's for. Jesus said that He didn't come for those who were well, but those who were sick. He said, "Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick. I did not come to call the righteous, but sinners, to repentance" (Mark 2:17). A church may have many patients, all in different stages of recovery. Some are in terminal or critical condition, others are nearly well, and there are those who have recovered enough to join with the hospital staff in helping to care for the other patients.

Will you join me in caring for the sick? You can pray, maybe you can help financially or maybe you can write a letter or give an hour of your time. Who is sick in your community? Not just physically sick, but spiritually sick?

Suprise Mom!

Hi Mom, I redid your template again. The pink was nice for a while, but it was time for an update and so I made you one.

I am going to add a flickr image bar somewhere on here too. Did you see this picture that Precious sent to us of Aiden?

It's a great pic.

Well, I hope you like the new site design. I love you.

-eddo

We Can All Make A Difference

We must not, in trying to think about how we can make a big difference, ignore the small daily differences we can make which, over time, add up to big differences that we often cannot foresee.

I don't often think about what I am doing to make a difference. Sometimes I focus on how I get weary in well doing. Right now I have been trying to come up with a network to help the boys in our community who are being released from Correctional Facilities. We have ten young men who will be released into an apartment, they will have a job, $35 a week for food and a set of Parole Guidelines. We can't keep up with them all, so we have to do something now. So I am scrambling to set up something soon. I have a meeting at the PD this week to see how we can get some of the community's neighborhood groups involved, as well as I have contacted a group of me in Dallas to come to our area once a week to meet with them to just talk, take them to eat once a week and be a support group.

The boys I have taken into my home are doing great, they know they are loved, they have guidance and support and they are flourishing. One came from a home where his parents never had a job, they sold drugs and were in and out of jails his whole life. He also lived without electricity or running water at various times.

The other boy doesn't know his father, has never had a chance and when he speaks he has a hard time getting the words out at times. He is very intelligent and loving. His mother is alcoholic and very controlling, wants him to care and provide for her and he is telling her he has to help himself before he can help her or anyone else.

This week we were helping another boy and the boys in my home asked if they could help to. They were telling us the only way they could learn is to do for others too. I was amazed, because I have had many young men our home and this is the first time we have had some who really wanted to help others.

In saying all this, I am humbled as I think of how sometimes I forget where these boys really came from. I remember the drugs, the gangs, the jails, but I forget they didn't have alot of their basic needs. Both of them asked me if they could have a cross necklace and one wanted a ring, so I got it for them. When we got to the car, they were thanking me and said they had never had anything like that before. Wow, I take alot for granted.

So now I am still seeking God as to which direction to take and what I need to do, to help the boys who aren't coming to our home, because they don't have the love, guidance and support. We are there and working toward getting it together, but so far we haven't gotten it up and running. So anyone have any ideas out there and a suggestion on what we could name this network? I am all ears!!

Sinking Ship

I thought this was a cute story and I figured I'd be the last one. lol!

Left on a sinking ship were the captain and three sailors. The captain spoke first.

“Men, this business about a captain going down with his ship is nonsense. There’s a three-man life raft on board and I’m going to be on it. To see who will come with me, I will ask you each one question. The one who can’t answer will stay behind. Here’s the first question: ‘What unsinkable ship went down when it hit an iceberg?’

The first sailor answered, “The Titanic, sir.”

“On to the next question: How many people perished?”

The second sailor said, “One thousand five hundred and seventeen, sir.”

“Now for the third question,” and the captain turned to sailor number three. “What were their names?”

Jeremy & Junior

Junior

This is Felipe, Spanish for Phillip, but we call him Junior. He will be moving in with us on the 11th of September.

He has memorized over a hundred scriptures and knows them well. He is wanting to start a network in the area where we live to reach out to the boys who are being released in the area. Sort of a support group.

I will post a picture of Jeremy later.

Oh NO you Didn't!!!!!

Very seldom do I exceed my limit, but this week I have exceeded it. It takes a tremendous amount of stress to get me to have a bad day, I rarely get upset about anything, but this week, I am ready to shout, to let it all out, to say what I think.

If one more dysfunctional person comes into my presence I may have to count to ten and then do it again. What in the world is going on?

This week I had to assist a guy who was suicidal and thought he was Bruce Lee, then when I called for assistance myself, he started making these loud screaming noises that sounded like he was fighting with someone, so by this time I had to stand firm, unmoved, unnerved and steady as a rock until help finally arrived which seemed like an eternity. I am telling you this guy was demon possessed, not only did he look like a demon, he acted as if he were tormented by demons.

Earlier this week, a young man call me crying and wanting me to help him because he had gotten himself into a situation with a prison gang who was threatening to kill him if he didn't do what they wanted him to do. No thank you! Stay four hundred miles away and we will get you help there, but I care too much about my family and my life. He made the choice to leave and go back to his family who are out of control and my heart goes out to him. I will and have been praying, but I am not stupid.

Then these females who I think the only word they knew was the F word. I had to interrupt and tell them enough with the foul language, then I proceeded to ask if their mothers knew where they were and what they were doing. They couldn't have been much older than eighteen and were working at a club as strippers. They said their families were proud of them and the money they were making. One of them said their father told her he wished he'd been a woman so he could make that kind of money. Later I was thinking about the scripture that says God will turn the Father's back to their children.

Then the drug problem. Oh my, I don't even know where to begin. It's an epidemic, it is catastrophic! Drugs Hurt Kids! Drugs destroy families!!! There is no way to describe it, I am shocked and amazed at the people for one that you wouldn't think would do drugs and are, then for the ones who are totally open about it. Their lives are a living hell and they think they are having this great life.

I could go on and on, but I won't, because it would be never ending. We need God to intervene, our world needs God, not just here in America but around the world.

Aiden Skylar Thompson

Here is a picture of my eight month old grandson, isn't he adorable? He can't walk yet, but he can go ninety to nothing in his walker.

I remember when my kids were born, I never knew I could love like that. Now here is Aiden and it is like this overwhelming feeling of love has overtaken me again.

I pray and thank the Lord for him daily.