Happy Monday! I have been so busy today. I accompanied Bruce on a work trip to Wichita Falls today. We haven’t been away together in forever. It was just a day trip, but it gave us a chance to talk and laugh and remember and sort of relax.

I want to share about a dear friend of ours whom we have known for 20 years. Her name is Deb Koplen. She is a charter member of St. John Lutheran in Grand Prairie. She served communion at the Celebration of Life Service for Casey. She is single, never been married and never had children of her own. So she sort of adopted Casey, Geni and Travis and spent a lot of time with them when they were younger. She has been found to have cancer in her lungs and in most of her bones. She has no blood relatives. So we have told her that she is not alone, but has a family of choice. We are honored to be a part of her family of choice. She will be receiving treatment at AMH so we will be back up on the 3rd floor frequently. We ask your prayers for our dear friend. She has always been totally busy and very active and this has knocked her off of her feet and placed her in bed. She has a lot of adjustments to make both mental and physical. She is in Rm. 3214 at AMH. And, Dr. John Adams, Casey’s oncologist, is her doctor. We were so glad for her. This is such a God thing!!!

James 5:16 says, “When a believing person prays, great things happen.” Can you imagine what a life without prayer would be like? A life without prayer would be like walking in the darkness, lost , alone and without… well…a prayer. Prayer is the way God engages and merges His life with us. It is through prayer that we find our way through the darkness of despair. It is through prayer that we come to know God in an intimately personal way because prayer is a two way conversation. God, through His mercy, lifts us up out of the darkness and into the light. When the world seems to crash in around us and there seems no way through; just a simple word, calling on the name of Jesus and believing He is there will cause great things to happen. I think the greatest thing that happens when we call on the Lord is peace. Knowing that the storm does not necessarily go away, but that the God of wonders, the Lord of heaven and earth, the creator of all and the Father of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ will be with us during the storm and bring us peace and guide us through the storm is what happens when a believing person prays.

Tonight, go over your prayer list. Pray in the name of Jesus believing in His name, in His power and in His ability to raise us up above the storms of life and into the light of His ever present and perfect grace.

Take joy in the journey. Love you all, Bruce, Gaylene, Geni and Travis.

Gcapplenotes@aol.com

I am not moved by what I see. I am not moved by what I feel. I am moved only by what I believe and I believe God.