Joy in the Journey

  ...for the Lord your God goes with you; he will never leave you or forsake you. Deuteronomy 31:6b I am the Vine and you are the branches, if a man remain in me and I in him he will bear much fruit. Apart from me you can do nothing. John 15:5 How great is the love the Father has lavished on us that we should be called the children of God. 1 John 3:1 My life has been an interesting set of ups and downs. I intend to share a bit here, not for sympathy or accolades but to demonstrate the amazing, powerful all-consuming love of God. I am the fifth child of a woman who was not shy or reluctant to say that she only ever wanted two children. I've lost relationships with parents, siblings and some extended family. I've been the mother of four only to be told by more than one child that he would prefer I not call myself his mother. I've had friends walk away and I've done more walking away than I should. On the opposite side of that coin, I have an amaz...

  I don't need my name in lights I'm famous in my Father's eyes Make no mistake He knows my name Francesca Battistelli Can a mother forget the baby at her breast and have no compassion on the child she has borne? Though she may forget, I will not forget you! See, I have engraved you on the palms of my hands Isaiah 49:15-16a Courage is an odd thing. I live in a Navy town, so we often think of courage in military terms. Over the last couple of years I've come to see it more and more often in children, precious, tiny children fighting huge, disgusting demons, otherwise known as various forms of cancer. Because we see these awful, debilitating, life altering circumstances as an horrific affront most of feel pulled to do whatever we can to ease the suffering or make the good days brighter. There are many organizations that reach out to children with life threatening conditions and God bless every one of them! One such organi...