Sunday

NEW REQUESTS:

Please pray for the Ray family. Their beautiful 10 year old daughter, Olivia, was hit by a car yesterday and went to be with Jesus. The Ray family are a huge part of the YWAM ministries. Please remember them.

This is Baby Olivia; she was diagnosed with Trisomy 18, and is now 9 days old. Please pray for her and her family!

This is Audra; she had a tumor in her brain, Medulloblastoma, that has been removed but she is still struggling with a lot of health issues. Let's add her to our prayers.

This is Layla; she has Neuroblastoma and is currently undergoing chemo and radiation. Let's pray for her!


This is Dylan; he was diagnosed at 8 weeks old with infant leukemia. Pray for Dylan!


New button for Jess's page! (The Macs)

Please pray for Eden who is still having some breathing and reflux issues.

Gavin was admitted to the hospital over the weekend, and is not doing well. Please pray for him!

Isaiah needs prayers, he has a possible abscess of fluid in his abdominal area. Tomorrow they will do an x-ray to see what is going on. Pray for quick healing and for his pain.

Kate is having a lot of pain and nausea during this chemo treatment. Please be in prayer for her.

Waverly and Oliver are off to DisneyWorld this week for a Mak-A-Wish vacation! Pray for safety, and HEALTH!

Please pray for Reagan, that this new medication she is on will continue to help her seizures.


I changed the button for Philip; his Caring Bridge site is not updated very often, so I added his family blog instead. Please continue praying for Philip, he is having a very hard time.

This is Franchesca Cox, and her blog, Handprints From Heaven. She lost her little girl, Jenna Belle, 4 months ago. She has a ministry, called Abiding Hope Collages.



Here is what her ministry is all about:

"In honor of my firstborn Jenna Belle, who we were so blessed to have for 13 days, I would like to help bereaved parents by creating a Hope Collage of their child's name. This cause is dedicated to those parents around the world who have had to say goodbye to their babies too soon."

Thank you, Franchesca, for your precious ministry!

National Infertility Week

Infertility is hard.
Miscarrying is hard.
Having a sick baby is hard.
Losing a baby is hard.

Wanting something with all of your heart and not having it is devestating. Loss of any kind is painful to endure. While every circumstance is different, every loss is the same in that it is a loss of dreams. Dreams of health, wholeness, life... Some of us experience multiple losses. Others seem to have everything physically present and wonderful, yet many of those have still suffered major loss in their hearts. Loss is hard, but there is hope. Hope!

My favorite passage: Psalm 37: 3-5

"3 Trust in the LORD, and do good; dwell in the land, and feed on His faithfulness.
4 Delight yourself also in the LORD, and He shall give you the desires of your heart.
5 Commit your way to the LORD, trust also in Him, and He shall bring it to pass."

This is so beautiful, and speaks to all of us:

Wherever you are in the great line-up of life, be there. Remember God's goodness. Call to mind and dwell on the things He has been faithful in. Your breath this morning, green grass outside, food, whatever MAJOR things He has done for you in the past... Purpose in your heart to delight in the Lord. Enjoy Him. He will put desires in your heart. Commit your days to Him. Trust Him, and He WILL bring those desires to pass. God never backs down on a promise. In our finite minds, we struggle to understand His infinite ways, but He is good and His mercies are new every morning.

Two great articles on infertility:

One at Kelly's Korner - and one at - Home: Hands Full, Hearts Full, Quiver Full



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Hannah's Prayer Retreat

This is to notify you of the Hannah's Prayer Retreat, May 1-3, 2009 in Cincinnati, Ohio!

This retreat is for married women who have experienced infertility, pregnancy loss, or infant loss. Join other sisters in Christ who know the pain these experiences bring, and be encouraged together to look to Christ for hope and healing.

Location: Sheraton Cincinnati Airport Hotel, 2826 Terminal Drive, Hebron, KY 41048

Cost: $200 per person for event, hotel, and all meals. $65 per person local option for event and Friday dinner only.

Speaker: Ginger Garrett, author of several books, including Moments for Couples Who Long for Children and Beauty Secrets of the Bible.


The theme is "Beautiful in His Sight." Through worship, prayer, encouraging messages, various workshops, and fun & fellowship, we hope to strengthen our relationship with Christ and one another and be reminded that even though our bodies don't work the way they're "supposed to" and our lives are not turning out as we'd planned, we are precious and beautiful and loved by the Lord, and He has a great plan for our lives, whether He sends us children or not.

God brings beauty from the ashes in our journey!

Click here for more information, and a link to a registration form. Registration deadline is April 10, 2009!

The Story of Faith, Grace, and Thomas.

For an amazing story and testimony, please visit this link. What an wonderful ministry to come out of such pain and grief! God is good!

Here is a link to her main blog: The Beauty of Sufficient Grace

The Death of a Baby: How Couples Cope

Nancy S. Kingma, BSN, RN,
Bereavement Coordinator, Spectrum Health,
Grand Rapids, MI

With the death of a baby, a couple shares the loss of their dreams and a precious part of themselves and their future.

Although the couple may feel very connected to each other in the first days and weeks after their baby's death, it is important for them to realize that grief is very personal and individual.

Even when a couple has been together for many years, they most likely will not grieve in the same way. Both partners are hurting, but because of different influences and expectations in their lives, they may be experiencing and showing grief in different ways.
Read more.