Since my last post, I have REALLY noticed God present in my everyday life. Let me tell you a few intimate details about Charlie and me. When we were engaged, I felt in my heart that my faith was stronger than Charlie's. Now, I didn't just say I thought I was better or I acted better, but I had this deep feeling that I knew I was "saved" and for some reason Charlie was not quite there. You know how us Baptist's work...we are all about being saved....LOL. I knew that Charlie knew who the Lord was and that Charlie was baptized as an infant, but I longed for Charlie to tell me he was "saved." I COMPLETELY REALIZE that I have not been an example and have not always lived my life as I should, sometimes more than others, but I knew that if I died, I knew that I was going to HEAVEN. Last night Charlie and I were watching Season 2 of 24, rented from Netflix bc we are so loving the current season that we needed the background, so we are starting from scratch on 24. I was in this black/white striped sweater I wore to work and my oversized burgundy jogging pants, hair everywhere, rocking the same sinus headache I have had all week, Charlie cooked three meals for us last night bc he burnt the first (and stunk our house UP), the second was a frozen skillet meal (that in Charlie's words tasted like a customer he had worked for the previous week), and the third (also frozen skillet meal) was ok. About 7:30 pm our doorbell rings. Ummmm, we weren't expecting anyone and definitely did not look like it either. We opened the door and it was Pastor Jerry coming to visit. Our neurotic Morkie, Tonka, snapped at the Pastor when he tried to pet him (embaressing), so we had to put both Tonka and Stella up while he visited. We chit chatted about life and the church, etc., but then he shifted gears to Charlie and asked him "Charlie, do you know without a doubt if you died today that you are going to Heaven?" (WOW, talk about blunt...another reason I am drawn to this man.) Charlie hesitantly said "I think so, maybe...." Right then and there Pastor Jerry started witnessing to Charlie and Charlie WAS SAVED LAST NIGHT!!!! It was incredible. After we prayed, I opened up to Pastor Jerry that our conversations about faith were always at a surface level and how I longed for more than that with Charlie, and I married him hoping that if I became an example, Charlie would want what I had. I haven't done a fantastic job at being that example, but I am a work-in-progress. I have such joy knowing that I will see Charlie in Heaven with me one day, and now we can have these conversations that I have longed for. Pastor Jerry said he came by bc he knew he needed to talk to Charlie. WOW MOMENT!!! Pastor Jerry then asked Charlie if we had a good marriage, Charlie told him that we have a great marriage. Pastor Jerry said, do you want to make it even better? Pastor Jerry said, I am going to act like Charlie for a second. He came and knelt down in front of me, took my hands and said:
Pastor Jerry: "Hey Mary"
Mary: "Hey baby"
Pastor: "I love you"
Mary: "I love you more"
Pastor Jerry: "Mary, what can I pray for you today?"
We then prayed (again) and then Pastor Jerry said and then Charlie you need to read the Bible to her. Do this for 45 days and I promise your marriage will be off the charts. After Pastor Jerry left, we did just as he instructed, and I can't tell you today how happy, joyous, blessed, excited, etc. that I feel about not only Charlie, but my marriage to Charlie. Charlie gets baptized on 4/18/2010. I have no other words except the story to try to explain to you how this makes me feel. GOD HEARS US, not only through prayer, but through our thoughts. I am amazed.
In other news, God spoke to me again the other night when I met Lori at the Aquatic Center to watch my nephew Gavin at his swimming lesson. Back track about 14 months for a second, January 2009, my niece Reagan went through reconstructive heart surgery for her numerous heart defects. When Lori was pregnant with her, and over the course of the pregnancy finding out about the heart defects and her form of 8p deletion, it got to where I couldn't completely relax and I could never completely exhale. This went on from Lori's pregnancy in 2006/2007 until Reagan's heart surgery last year. After Reagan's surgery at Levine's, and driving home I could breathe and fully exhale. I wanted to do something in my life where I made a difference, I wanted to be a nurse. AppState didn't have a nursing program at that time, so who knows if I would've majored in it if they had it. I talked to my nursing friends and got their prospective, these thoughts never fully went away and I even looked into community college to start taking prereq's. Charlie sat me down and said with the economy and his job in limbo (at the time) it just couldn't happen. I have still had the desire to be a nurse, but I also have to do what is best for my family. Fast forward to the other night at swimming lessons, Lori said, you know I don't think you could be a nurse. I said why not. She said bc you have to take booster shots and stay up-to-date on your flu shots, and you can't even get flu shots, let alone you may not be able to take the booster shots bc of your Guillain-Barre. She was right and that was the closure I needed to know that nursing is not the career choice I should go with. But my point is that God used her to show me it wasn't the right choice for me, and I had just stopped long enough to FINALLY HEAR HIM!!!!
Speaking of Reagan, here is an old picture of her from last summer.
For now, Bye Bye, Peace Out, Holla, Magic!!
No comments:
Post a Comment