Michael our talented boy.

                     Michael is our future upcoming artist.

He seems to have quite a knack for drawing.He's been show casing his talents in a few places. He is currently doing drawing for some cards for The Chelsea Hutchison Foundation. They are similar to this.He drew this picture for Ariel.

http://www.chelseahutchisonfoundation.org/
 They are selling cards for their foundation to provide seizure alert dogs and EMFIT monitors for people suffering with seizures.They are also trying to get out SUDEP(Sudden,UnexplainedDeath, in Epilepsy Patients) awareness.Here is the link for the cards he has on there.All proceeds go to the foundation.

http://www.orderkidscards.com/kasorderpageCHF.htm

He's now working on some cards to hopefully be on there for Thanksgiving and Christmas.

Satan's second greatest tool,division in the church.

This post may step on a few toes,but sometimes things just have to be said.

A while back I did a post about Satans greatest tool being the destruction of the family.You can read it here http://marrerofamilymakingthemostoflife.blogspot.com/2011/10/satans-greatest-tool-destruction-of.html I believe the second greatest tool of Satan is division in the church.

Satan is very crafty and if he cannot steal your soul the next best thing is to make you an ineffective Christian.What works more effectively to make you ineffective,then to have believers  fighting and bickering among themselves.

Having trouble and condescention among God's people serves two purposes,#1 you're too busy fighting amongst yourselves to be an effective witness and #2 It's a very poor testimony to those around you.

Matthew 5:14

¹⁴Ye are the light of the world. A city that is set on an hill cannot be hid.
¹⁵Neither do men light a candle, and put it under a bushel, but on a candlestick; and it giveth light unto all that are in the house.
¹⁶Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven.

One major issue that I have unfortunately seen time and time again is Christians seeming to forget what The Great Comission is.
Mark 16:9, After Jesus was raised from the dead this is what he said.
⁹Now when Jesus was risen early the first day of the week, he appeared first to Mary Magdalene, out of whom he had cast seven devils.
¹⁰And she went and told them that had been with him, as they mourned and wept.
¹¹And they, when they had heard that he was alive, and had been seen of her, believed not.
¹²After that he appeared in another form unto two of them, as they walked, and went into the country.
¹³And they went and told it unto the residue: neither believed they them.
¹⁴Afterward he appeared unto the eleven as they sat at meat, and upbraided them with their unbelief and hardness of heart, because they believed not them which had seen him after he was risen.
¹⁵And he said unto them, Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature.

Our great comission as Christians is to preach the Gospel to the unsaved world,but yet there is so much strife and dissention in the church amongst God's people that we have truly lost our first love,which is loving and serving Jesus.

Jesus himself told The Church at Ephesus

Revelation 2:3-5

King James Version (KJV)

³And hast borne, and hast patience, and for my name's sake hast laboured, and hast not fainted.

⁴Nevertheless I have somewhat against thee, because thou hast left thy first love.

⁵Remember therefore from whence thou art fallen, and repent, and do the first works; or else I will come unto thee quickly, and will remove thy candlestick out of his place, except thou repent.

Sometimes people can get so caught up in the minor things,like who's listening to this, and who's wearing that, and what programs are you involved in, and how do you teach your children? Those things themselves become more gospel to them than the actual Gospel is.

                                             

 I'm not talking about having standards that The Bible clearly points out. God calls us to have standards.We are to be salt and light. 

Matthew 5:13

King James Version (KJV)

¹³Ye are the salt of the earth: but if the salt have lost his savour, wherewith shall it be salted? it is thenceforth good for nothing, but to be cast out, and to be trodden under foot of men.              

1 John 2:15-16

King James Version (KJV)

¹⁵Love not the world, neither the things that are in the world. If any man love the world, the love of the Father is not in him.

¹⁶For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, is not of the Father, but is of the world.                          

1 Peter 2:9
But ye are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, an holy nation, a peculiar people; that ye should shew forth the praises of him who hath called you out of darkness into his marvellous light;

Somewhere between having Biblical standards that The Bible clearly defines and maybe a preaching or teaching on other ways to live, there has become great division amongst the brethren.

What we need to remember is that Jesus didn't come to heal the well he came to heal the sick.

Luke 19:10

King James Version (KJV)

¹⁰For the Son of man is come to seek and to save that which was lost.

We need to remember that babes in Christ are just taking in the milk of The Word and haven't gotten to the meat yet.Jesus is the one that needs to change them it is not our job to.

I'm sure that Matthew the tax collector or Mary Magdalene the lady of the night were not the most desirable people to be around.

One of the biggest problems that The Pharisee had with Jesus was that he ate and associated with sinners.

Luke 15

King James Version (KJV)

¹Then drew near unto him all the publicans and sinners for to hear him.
²And the Pharisees and scribes murmured, saying, This man receiveth sinners, and eateth with them.
³And he spake this parable unto them, saying,
⁴What man of you, having an hundred sheep, if he lose one of them, doth not leave the ninety and nine in the wilderness, and go after that which is lost, until he find it?
⁵And when he hath found it, he layeth it on his shoulders, rejoicing.
⁶And when he cometh home, he calleth together his friends and neighbours, saying unto them, Rejoice with me; for I have found my sheep which was lost.
⁷I say unto you, that likewise joy shall be in heaven over one sinner that repenteth, more than over ninety and nine just persons, which need no repentance.
⁸Either what woman having ten pieces of silver, if she lose one piece, doth not light a candle, and sweep the house, and seek diligently till she find it?

Jesus used this parable and the parable of the Prodigals son to show the rejoicing of a lost person receiving Christ and being found (saved.)


But yet many not only don't want to associate with the lost,but don't want to associate with Christians that are not up to their standards as well.

It's such a sad thing.I'm sure it truly grieves God to see us have that kind of attitude.I pray that God convicts me anytime I try to take that speck out of someone elses eye,when I have a log in my own.

Matthew 7:2-4

King James Version (KJV)

²For with what judgment ye judge, ye shall be judged: and with what measure ye mete, it shall be measured to you again.
³And why beholdest thou the mote that is in thy brother's eye, but considerest not the beam that is in thine own eye?
⁴Or how wilt thou say to thy brother, Let me pull out the mote out of thine eye; and, behold, a beam is in thine own eye?

One of the ways that Jesus says we will be known is by our love for one another.

John 13:34-36

King James Version (KJV)

³⁴A new commandment I give unto you, That ye love one another; as I have loved you, that ye also love one another.
³⁵By this shall all men know that ye are my disciples, if ye have love one to another.

I have to ask you if Jesus were to come today would he see that genuine love that shows you are his disciple or would he see something more like this "Sister so and so doesn't wear this,brother so and so doesn't do this."



Finally let us remember,
¹²For as the body is one, and hath many members, and all the members of that one body, being many, are one body: so also is Christ.
¹³For by one Spirit are we all baptized into one body, whether we be Jews or Gentiles, whether we be bond or free; and have been all made to drink into one Spirit.
¹⁴For the body is not one member, but many.
¹⁵If the foot shall say, Because I am not the hand, I am not of the body; is it therefore not of the body?
¹⁶And if the ear shall say, Because I am not the eye, I am not of the body; is it therefore not of the body?
¹⁷If the whole body were an eye, where were the hearing? If the whole were hearing, where were the smelling?
¹⁸But now hath God set the members every one of them in the body, as it hath pleased him.
¹⁹And if they were all one member, where were the body?
²⁰But now are they many members, yet but one body.
²¹And the eye cannot say unto the hand, I have no need of thee: nor again the head to the feet, I have no need of you.
²²Nay, much more those members of the body, which seem to be more feeble, are necessary:
²³And those members of the body, which we think to be less honourable, upon these we bestow more abundant honour; and our uncomely parts have more abundant comeliness.
²⁴For our comely parts have no need: but God hath tempered the body together, having given more abundant honour to that part which lacked.
²⁵That there should be no schism in the body; but that the members should have the same care one for another.
²⁶And whether one member suffer, all the members suffer with it; or one member be honoured, all the members rejoice with it.
²⁷Now ye are the body of Christ, and members in particular.
²⁸And God hath set some in the church, first apostles, secondarily prophets, thirdly teachers, after that miracles, then gifts of healings, helps, governments, diversities of tongues.
²⁹Are all apostles? are all prophets? are all teachers? are all workers of miracles?
³⁰Have all the gifts of healing? do all speak with tongues? do all interpret?
³¹But covet earnestly the best gifts: and yet shew I unto you a more excellent way.

I think if we all remembered we are from the same body and on the same team we could light the World on fire for Christ!

Recovery bumps in the road.Part 3!

This is the third part to this saga.You can read the other 2 parts below.We went back to the surgeon on the 1st of November.The night before I was very concerned.Ariel was up all night shaking and vomiting.She was running 102 temperature and I was so concerned about infection,because I was told if infection set in the device would be pulled out and we would have to start all over again.

One of her stitches popped again,but when we went to the surgeon he looked at it and said it looked good no infection,but they decided to give her 4 more stitches just to keep it closed.They keep telling me she heals like a Diabetic,so not sure why she's such a slow healer.

The nurse had come in with the ear thermometer,which I told her to give us an oral one,because those are so inaccurate.Sure enough in her ear it was 97.2 orally she was running 101 and that was after Tylenol.

We came home she slept and was like new the next day.She felt fine and even was well enough to go to church.She also had her VNS activated that day.

We figured it must have been a 24 hour bug,wrong! She started violently coughing the next day and just kept getting worse.I finally took her to Urgent care on Saturday and found out she has full blown Bronchitis and an Upper Respiritory infection.The doctor believes it's viral since she's been on Antibiotics.If she's not better in a few days we have to go back to the doctor.Please continue to pray for Ariel's full recovery.

Well friends,in typical Ariel fashion we are having some issues,or I should say she is having some issues.The wound on Ariel's chest split wide open.

 The night it happened I cleaned it and steri stripped it and put bandages over the top.The next morning I was on the phone calling all around.I talked with the surgeons office and they told me to come in.Well the surgeon is in Seattle over an hour away,but I figured better to have them look at it. 

 This building was across the street from the lobby where I was looking out the window.I thought it was pretty.

Anyway they tell me to rush over there,so I do and they leave us sitting in the room for like 45 minutes.The P.A. comes in gives me the impression she is going to do something,but gets the surgeon.This is not the guy that did the surgery.He looks at the wound and wanted her to do nothing! He didn't even want them to clean it,steri strip it gauze it or nothing.I'm thinking where did this guy get his degree,Cracker Jack Box U.S.A? 

 Yes lets just leave it gaping open so all kinds of germs and bacteria can get in there.

  I tried to explain that Ariel is not a good healer she is very prone to infection  and  that this was not acceptable.She atleast then ordered labs,put her on Antibiotics and had them clean,steri strip and dress the wound.        

 By evening Ariel was feeling pretty bad.In a lot of pain and was up last night shaking and throwing up.She doesn't have a fever as of yet,but that was the same way she was with the Cellulitus in her arm.

 So we will see.I am really concerned because of the implant and any prolonged healing will take that much longer to get it turned on.If she keeps getting worse I will bring her in somewhere else.I just don't understand how some doctors can be so ignorant on things?

  Well here is the 2nd part to the story.When I finished typing  this,which was pretty early this morning I heard Ariel up and about.She told me she had been throwing up and felt very shaky.When I looked at the dressing on her wound it was blood red.When I opened the gauze I was horrified to see this.                                 

After that I was mad! I went full into my mama bear mode.

I gathered my girl and ran off to The Emergency Room at Mary Bridge.    

Thankfully after leveled heads prevailed ,Ariel was able to get the proper treatment she should have gotten in the first place.
She had 4 shots and got several stitches.

She barely winced when they scrubbed it, gave her 4 shots with a very large needle and sewed it.My girl is one tough cookie!                    

I'm hoping this will be the end of her issues with her healing and she can finally be on the mend.

The Starlight Foundations kids party.

One thing that has been a huge blessing through all of our constant medical woes is The Starlight Foundation who
provide activities to kids with chronic and life threatening illnesses.                   

 We have had the opportunity to do some of the most amazing things through their organization.We've had lunch with Astronauts,got behind the scenes tours of the zoo,been to The Mariner's game (from the suite no less),been bowling,to the circus,boating trips,shopping trips and lots of dinners.It's just been an amazing experience.This weekend they had a costume party for the kids.

Ariel chose to go as a pirate princess.She modeled her costume from the Pirates of The Caribbean characters on the ride that we saw at Disneyland in May.

 She had such a good time.I wasn't sure she could handle it,since she just had surgery on Tuesday,but she did okay.Everyone thought her scars were part of her costume. 

  She had visits with Mario,Luigi & Princess Peach.                   

  She visited the animals of the jungle, a face painting clown and the folks having Mardi Gras.      

                 Then she finally caught up with her crew.         

            

By the end of the night she was pretty pooped out,but had a lot of fun.

                                                  

Poor ShiFu was forced to become a pirate whether he liked it or not.