A Beautiful Husband

Doug, Andrea, and Savannah Faith, Our First Grandbaby!













"....each man must love his wife as he loves himself, and the wife must respect her husband." Ephesians 5:31


God is definitely a God of second chances. I suffered through a 17 year marriage of pain and heartache at every turn. With divorce came tremendous baggage. It has taken years to overcome the damage to my heart.

Soon after my divorce, GOD gave me a wonderful man, who loves and cherishes me. Most importantly, Doug loves the Lord with all his heart and soul. Ideally, I should have received counseling after my divorce and before entering into another relationship. However, God's plan was different for me. He chose to show me through the gentle hands of the person he placed in my life.

Doug and I support each other in "all" things. He loves to fish and I love to sit on the bank or in the boat with him with my Bible, journal, and pen. We do "everything" together. Early in our relationship, I realized meeting his needs was not difficult. He made it easy for me, because he lovingly supported my dreams and desires.

God always blesses our time together, our journey, and our ministry. We love people and we love our animals. GOD quickly gave us a ministry using our dogs. We are the proud doggie parents to three Therapy Dog's, Sitka, Nanuq, and Trouble. We use them to encourage patients, to perform needed physical therapy, participate in group meetings (psychiatric), and much, much more. For more information on our Therapy Dogs go to: All GOD's Creatures.

My husband awakes happy every morning. I am privileges to live with someone who dances on rainbows with his Heavenly Father. He sees the good in me when I can not see it myself. He encourages me to write and pursue my dreams. Today, I confess if he were not in my life I would not be blogging or publishing other works. I would likely have remained curled in the corner somewhere. GOD knows just what we need and when we need it. Thank you, GOD for giving me a beautiful husband with a heart full of love.

Blessed to be loved,

Andrea

God's Beautiful Creation

"In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth." Genesis 1:1

As I gaze upon one form of GOD's creation I am amazed and overwhelmed. The vast ocean lay before me, waves pounding upon the dark Virginia sand. Time and time again I visit, yet my view is always uniquely beautiful. Only a divine creator could provide this unbelievable gift.

Today, the heavens open spilling tear shaped raindrops upon us, a reminder of GOD's cleansing and renewal. A day of rest, "says my Lord," a gentle reminder of His perfect plan for each of our lives.

Often we hurry, run, and aggressively push our way through each day. Not today; I am listening, Dearest Heavenly Father. I rest in your arms enjoying the beauty, cleansing, and renewal.....the perfect gift you have given me for this day.

Resting in the arms of my Heavenly Father,

Andrea

Octo-Mom

"Children are a gift from the Lord." Psalm 127:3

It seems everywhere we go people have an opinion about the situation with "Octo-Mom." If they don't have an opinion they likely have many questions: Why? How? and so on.

Yes, even in my home questions and opinions have be raised. After a morning of prayers and heartfelt tears for these "fourteen" gifts from the Lord, He spoke to my heart. I am a Mother and a Grandmother. Some days I believe I am a good Mom and make wise, godly decisions. On other days I feel defeated and unsure.

Today I pondered all the selfish mistakes I have made through the years. God graciously allowed me to find my way through a long and painful season of life ending in healing and restoration. My children have survived without visible scars or trauma only to find their mother questioning and debating someone Else's seemingly bad choice(s).

I am not defending Octo-Mom, I simply express my heartfelt desire to remember, these are GOD's children and He has a perfect plan for each of their lives. At the very least it is our responsibility to pray and love these children.

Please join me as I pray daily for Octo-Mom and each of her children. Only GOD can heal, restore, and redeem!

By HIS mercy and in the grip of HIS grace,

Andrea