Daughter of Troops

This has been the longest week. It seems like a whole month. I am drained! This week my emotions have been all over the radar, but I feel like today I have finally harnessed them to a controllable place. I'm still not sleeping well, but today I bought some Tylenol P.M. to help that little thing out. On a positive note, today I paid off a debt. ya- hoo . that's one closer to being debt free. Then, at the risk of coming off like a complete pysco , I'll be more transparent in an effort to be more relational. Today I'm strong and so over Kevin.. I'm done ! He showed up at the job a couple of days ago and said he wanted me to go out with him as friends but I had placed conditions on it and messed everything up as usual. He said why do you want to make things so hard? What? Excuse me? I only ask him to surrender his life to Jesus. Anyhow, today I just have this "knowing" that he has a girlfriend. Usually when things start to go awry in his relationshi

Please pray for workers in the children's ministry. I'm not looking for a "break" from teaching. I'm looking for a team. I love being back there with the kids, but there are some things that do work better if there is one or two more people. I have a hard time leading worship, putting on the over head transparency and playing the CD. It can be done, but it takes up more of the precious little time I have to minister. I can't operate the puppets and interact with them. I want people hungry for God not just looking for a way to "get out of" the morning service. I want people that come to church on a regular basis and are in proper authority in the church and in their personal lives ; people that love kids and love Jesus. Today I was asking, "did I miss hearing from God ?" I know what He has placed in my heart for the children. I do know that the devil would love to stop that seed from going forth, but he can't in the Name of Jesus!

Well, it happened. Today my ex-husband called me at work. He wanted to take me out to dinner and just be friends. Sounds innocent enough right? Wrong! Two weeks ago he stopped me in a parking lot of a business I was going into. He begged, he cried, he apologized and as always he promised. He had learned and now after twenty years of knowing me he realizes the err of his ways and can't live without me. Before you judge me and think I'm heartless, there is a history that I'll tell you in person if your interested. You see the problem is, I still love him. He is not a follower and tries to control my participation in church as well as everything else in my life. When he called today my emotions went crazy. My flesh wanted to say yes. Yes, I'll go to dinner with you and then after that let's go get remarried and then we can live in my new house that God gave me and be happy for the rest of our lives. That is my fairy tale. I told him finally I would have to think a

I know usually most people try to stay out of hot water. But I'm pround to say that I now have hot water and was so happy to be in it this morning! Tomorrow is the doctor visit, hopefully the last one! I don't feel any panic or fear though. The Lord has been faithful time and again concerning any pain and I know He will not fail this time. This morning my co-worker said," you just like the sound of that bell don't you? He was referring to the necklace that Markie, Roy & Tiffany got me. It is hand crafted and called an Overcomer's Bell. I do like the sound of it. It reminds me that I am an overcomer! I wasn't aware that I ring it a lot, but I do. It's like the Lord whispering to me. When the wind blows, the chimes on my deck make a beautiful noise. The wind is like the Holy Spirit stirring something and causing it to sing out. That's what it was created to do. So the bell stirs me and makes me sing out " I am an overcomer!

Last night came and went and turned into morning. I know because I couldn't sleep and I watched the departure of yesterday and the entry of today. I hope I will be alert today. Tonight is church and in the wee hours of the morning I thought , "oh well, you can come home and just go to bed." The thought was so inviting. Then I remembered the leadership meeting Sunday night. Kim made a statement about Wednesday nights and how people just treat it like a day off or like church doesn't matter. Ouch, I've been found out. I have been guilty of that here lately, so I will go to church tonight. Thanks Kim (no, I mean it) Another thing I thought of was my last blog. To my horror I realized I went from talking about sodas to milk shakes. As I replayed it in my mind I thought, "what was I thinking?" So, I just wanted you all to know that I know. (hee-hee) Oh ya, one more thing, the most important thing! My son texted me yesterday and said we should all refer to hi

Today I was saddened and shocked. I found out that a can of soda has 5 teaspoons of sugar in it. Then the whammy ; that is the equivalent of four doughnuts. Yes ladies, I said four. It was bad enough to know about the teaspoons of sugar, but then they had to go and give me a visual so I thought I would share my grief with those I love. When I was in the hospital Kim and Barry brought me a chocolate shake at my request. Now I'll have to remember how good it was. Had I known,I would have traded for the Krispy Kremes . Such sorrow.... On another note, today my hot water heater died and went to that big boiler room in the sky. My mom and my sister were at my house while I was at work because my sister very graciously mowed my lawn for me. (It looks so pretty!) Here's my list of thankful's: * I'm thankful they were there, otherwise my floors would have been ruined by water damage. * I'm also thankful because Aaron said he could put a new one in for me. A savin

For the last couple of days I've talked with several friends that are experiencing new things with their children. It made me go back and reflect on my own experiences. I remember how rejected I felt when Chris didn't want to sit with me, he wanted to sit with his friends and he quit sharing things with me and then I found out he was sharing them with a girlfriend. I remember thinking, how dare she take my place like that! Then I remember the Lord showing me the other side of it. If we have been successful as parents our children are supposed to grow up and leave home. When Chris wanted to hang out with his friends and I wasn't "cool" anymore, the Lord said, good job Rhonda, you've taught him how to be a friend. When he shared his secrets with Kendra, the Lord said, you taught him to trust and to love. When he spent money taking a friend to the movie rather than me, you've taught him to be generous and to be a giver. Every single thing the enemy tried

I love this song, as I was singing it to the Lord this morning, I just wanted to share the words of it. It is by New Life Worship and is the title to this blog. One thing I know that I have found through all the troubles that surround You are the Rock that never fails, You never fail. One thing I know that I believe, through every blessing I receive You are the only One that stays, You always stay. You never change, You're still the same, You are the everlasting God You will remain after the day is gone and things of the earth have past Everlasting God, everlasting, everlasting, everlasting God. Be blessed today my friends. the Lord is with you. Love Rhonda

After work today I was doing some things around the house and decided to frame and hang a new Army picture of my son. He is so handsome and so grown up. I smiled as I looked at the photo and cried as I looked into the eyes of my little boy. Those are the same eyes that danced when he saw me come into the room, the same eyes that cried and I wiped the tears away; the eyes that with arms stretched up said Momma, hold me. Yesterday I was telling Diann that I would love to go back and get to do it all again. The time goes so quickly. I'm very proud of the man he has become. Friday he is off to Jackson, South Carolina for seven weeks and then he will relocate to a destination that is unknown right now. He is such an overcomer and a great achiever and if you haven't guessed yet, I love him very much.

I made it to morning church service and it was awesome. Praise and worship just gets better and better. Our church family was moving into the presence of the Lord with no apologies! Allison spoke out and I could tell it was something that was burning inside of her. Thanks Allison for being obedient. There's a scripture that came to mind when she spoke in Matthew 7:29 "for He (Jesus) taught them as one having authority, and not as the scribes." She spoke with a knowing, an authority. Rock on Allison! I had to sneak out early due to the pain level. I miss the kids so much, they ran to me eager to hug me and tell me something. I'm so blessed and I love each of them! I've been seeking the Lord for the name of our next phase. Yes, for those who know me well, I love a great theme. Of course it is underwater as I've said before and here is where the Lord led me. The Gulf of Ravah . Ravah (raw- vaw ) Hebrew. It means to refresh and satisfy the thirst

Well, first of all, a great big thank you to all who prayed and/or called. When I went to the Dr. Friday , there was a tangible presence there. When the nurse took me to the room she smiled and said okay how are your nerves and I opened my mouth and heard this woman say, "I'm great." When I was sitting in the room waiting for the Dr. I remember looking down and my feet and thinking, "Why aren't you running?" I laughed out loud at this thought. He did a different procedure and told me it would burn; It did not. Praise the Lord! I go back on the 21st to have stitches removed. Today I conquered some of the "man chores" I have around the house. I went to Lowe's and purchased a new door bell button, mine was broken. I thought." I wonder how hard that will be to replace?" The Holy Spirit corrected me and instructed me to say instead, "I wonder how easy that will be to replace?" I know this may sound dumb to some of you,

Well tomorrow is the day I've dreaded for over a week. As I write this out though I have a quite calm about my spirit. I think really it is a confidence because I know that the Lord will not fail me. Whatever the pain or lack of, it will not last forever. I am so over being in this season! I am healed and I am whole in the name of Jesus. Thanks for all the prayers and phone calls and e-mails. I love you guys.

Last week I sleepily reached over to hit the snooze button on my alarm clock as it rang out the annoying beep, beep, beep that could cause even the sleepiest person to arise and shut it off. I remember thinking "well, there is the end of a great nights sleep", but even as I drifted back into my slumber that phrase kept resonating in my spirit. Alarms...they signify the end of one thing, but the beginning of another. They ring a bell to signify class has started and the end of one class room session to begin another. One rings out to end school for the day. Alarms are sounded when there is danger, firetrucks, police and EMS use sirens to ring out "Move out of the way, I'm coming!" Smoke alarms cry out to notify us of danger. We honk our car horns to say watch out, I'm here. Our Lord will sound a trumpet to say , "Ready or not here I come!" Zephaniah 1:14-16 "The great day of the Lord is near; It is near and hastens quickly. The noise

Yesterday my son, his wife and his best friend Jason came for a visit. The boys all pitched in and moved some junk off my parents property for them. It was neat to see them all grown up and doing something so nice for someone else, just because. Today we spent the day eating out and going to a movie and just being together. Chris was sick with sinus drainage, they left around 7 p.m. My house is so loudly quite. I'm feeling lonely. I went on line and read some blogs of other people at another church. They are so much like family, they love one another and hang out together and actually know what's going on in each others lives. They blog and they comment on others blogs. It made me cry because I long for what they have. They are Kingdom living. I have a few freinds who call to see how I'm feeling since the surgery, but somehow there is something missing. I read prayer requests from a list made at church and many times there are people on it who I have no idea who they a