Fresh Off the Beach

Some beach combing walks are more relaxing than others; today's was amazing.  From the top of the bluff I could see that if I were to head south, I would be all alone.  There were two people north of me, far enough away for the shoreline treasures to be replenished no matter where the hunters began.  I know I shouldn't run down stairs in flip-flops, but the thought of all that sea glass for myself was just too much!  Excitement (and maybe a little greed) took over, and I was on the wet sand in record time. Ahhhhh.....

Today's photo is the result of 90 minutes of "Pure Michigan" pleasure, fresh off the beach.  I hope you'll enjoy looking through today's collection of crinoids, horn coral and honeycomb coral fossils, petoskey stones, and beach glass.

Today's Inspirational Verse  from Philippians 3:9

I no longer count on my own goodness or my ability to obey God's law, but I trust Christ to save me. 

Pure Michigan Sunset

This week's sea glass didn't work out too well, so I went with a sea gull instead.  Minutes away from sunset, these typically pesky birds began swarming around me.  My camera was already in my hands, so I began to shoot what I thought would turn out to look rather Hitchcock-like, but I was pleasantly surprised. I was able to crop out the haphazard direction of the flight of the flock and just zoom in on the one peaceful-looking sea gull silhouette.  What a difference! To top it off, the sun's reflection streaming toward me is evident in this photo, and I just love it!  

I'll get back to the glass and rocks next time, but for now, I hope you'll enjoy this sight that we are so often blessed with on the shores of Lake Michigan.  If you're in love with the ocean, why not give the unsalted Great Lakes a try sometime?

This Week's Scriptural Encouragement from Deuteronomy 28:2 (NIV)

All these blessings will come on you and accompany you if you obey the Lord your God.
  

Beach History

With the fan twirling above me, my shoes kicked off my feet, and my hair pulled back from my face, I think I am finally ready to type a new post.  Yes, it's been a while since my last entry, and the extreme summer heat is just one of the reasons.  I won't go into the others; each of them would only editorialize everything that most people are tired of hearing about.  These posts would have nothing to do with blessings from the beach, and they'd be far too lengthy, so let's take a look at today's photo instead.  I call it, "Beach History".  It's amazing what you can find on the beaches of South Haven!  True, most of it came from regions north of us, but isn't it incredible how fossils, millions of years old, ended their journey here at my feet?  Huh!

In today's shot, I've scattered the glass and fossilized crinoids throughout, but the rest of the fossils are pretty much around the edges, starting with the Petoskey stones in the upper right corner.  Going clockwise, you'll see two honeycomb corals, then a horn coral peeking out of the corner.  The longer piece in the lower left corner appears to be one single strand of pipe organ coral (I should have gotten the whole thing in the picture, sorry!). On top is a fossil containing several crinoids, and next to that is the first piece of blue chert that I have ever found!  It is microcrystalline quartz, and its blue color tells us it is from the area of Leland, Michigan, over 200 miles away!

Inspiration for Today's World   from Proverbs 16:7  (NLT)

When the ways of people please the Lord, he makes even their enemies live at peace with them.

Glass in Glass

As I headed outside to my usual spot for displaying my weekly collection, I realized how uninspired I had become with the routine.  With extra time today, I wanted to do something different, so here it is: glass in glass.  My original thought was to fill the container with water and shoot from the outside like I had done in one of my favorite photos called, "Crinoid Under Water", but the sunlight streaming through the window and into the vase caught my eye.  It caused this interesting mirror effect, as well as a sense of depth.  I hope you enjoy this composition as much as I do.  In the left center, there's a wonderful horn coral fossil.  Do you see it?

This Week's Inspirational Verse   from Philippians 4:19

God will meet all your needs according to the riches of his glory in Christ Jesus.

 

Big Collection of Beach Blessings

Where to begin, hmmm.  As you can see the beach was a lot of fun this week!  Let's start with the fossil on the far left; I think it's a cladopora.  There are three nice pieces of horn coral above that with a small honeycomb coral to their right.  The next three fossils are Petoskey stones followed by a cute little rock with some crinoids in it.  Continuing clockwise, are the single crinoids that I've been including in my bracelets lately.  

Next, there are two tiny lightning stones, and to the right of them is one of the best chain coral fossils I've ever found!  

The white one that's full of crystals looks like a geode.  The next four are pudding stones, and I found them all in the same small area of just a few feet.

I'll probably make some necklaces with the next two rocks that have a hole in them already, and the heart-shaped rocks will go in my collection of over a hundred other hearts.

With the center so full of sea glass, it's hard to see all of the beautiful colors, but there is quite a variety, and I'm excited to see what I can do with them!

Today's Inspirational Verse   (for restful sleep)  
found in Psalm 4:8

I will lie down and sleep, for you alone, Lord, make me dwell in safety.

     

Mystery Stones

After much time spent looking for pictures of some of the rocks in this week's collection, I've still ended up with some mystery pieces.  They are the four in the lower left corner (although, I'm sure that because of the stripes and hardness, that two of them are some kind of metamorphic rocks, I just don't know the minerals in them).  The top one in that group could be some melted glass over stone, and the other?  I don't know.  

Then, there are the greenish and blue ones on top.  I'd appreciate help with those, as well.  The pink one next to them looks like it contains feldspar, but I wouldn't stake my life on it. The rest of the pieces going clockwise from there are: Petoskey stones, lightning stones, a chain coral fossil, two honeycomb coral fossils, a small pipe organ coral fossil, and two heart-shaped rocks of some kind.  Above the mystery pieces you'll see a good collection of crinoids, a decorated ceramic shard, and a nicely shaped chunk of pure quartz (I didn't see any other minerals in it).

Concerning the sea glass, my husband found the unusually dark aqua piece that I really like, and there is an old brown bottle shard that has some interesting lettering on it.  Also, many of the pieces are quite large, so it was a good week for beach blessings!

P.S.  Yesterday, I noticed that an ad to the right of my post was not something I would ever recommend.  That doesn't happen very often, but when it does, please know that it is out of my control.  Thank you for your understanding.

Today's Inspiration for Healing   from Psalm 103:1-5  (NLT)

Praise the Lord, I tell myself;
with my whole heart, I will praise his holy name.
Praise the Lord, I tell myself,
and never forget the good things he does for me.
He forgives all my sins
and heals all my diseases.
He ransoms me from death
and surrounds me with love and tender mercies.
He fills my life with good things.  
My youth is renewed like the eagle's!
  

In Spite of the Waves

Here is another week's worth of South Haven beach blessings, minus three days for high waves.  Nevertheless, I did find a fair amount of beautifully smoothed sea glass!  As usual, you'll see other treasures along the perimeter of the glass beginning with a pure white quartz in the nine o'clock position.  Going clockwise, there are three Petoskey stones, crinoids and rocks containing them, three great samples of unakite, a mystery piece that may be dried foam from cement, two pipe organ corals, a ceramic shard, and a small honeycomb coral piece.  If you tilt your head to the right, the big brown fossil on top looks like the crinoids are spelling, "Jo".  Fun stuff!

This Week's Hope    found in Psalm 118:13  (NRSV)

I was pushed hard, so that I was falling, but the Lord helped me.
  

Priceless Beach Time

There's something special about beach combing with a child, especially a grandchild.  My little guy loves sports, so he likes to be on the run.  Walking the shoreline, though, with our heads down looking for treasures, everything slows down, and we can truly enjoy each others' company.  To make it even more fun, we assigned point values to different fossils.  The lightning stones were five points each, along with the pipe organ coral, but we decided that crinoids and anything containing them would be ten points.  The horn coral and Petoskey eye were also ten, but the glass, quartz, basalt, and anything that we couldn't identify were all worth one point.  After about an hour, our combined total with this collection ended up at 174, but the time spent together was priceless!

This Week's Inspiration for Protection
found in Romans 8:31

For I know the plans I have for you, plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you a hope and a future. 

Four Days of Beach Blessings

Between today and my last post, I was able to go hunting for beach blessings four times.  This is the combined collection.  Would you believe there are 262 pieces of sea glass?  And just look at that magnificent chunk of dark green near the middle!  Whew!  I'll be making something out of that one!

From the bottom of the pile and heading clockwise along the perimeter you'll see: five ceramic shards, a heart-shaped rock with favosite fossil "wings", a crinoid-filled heart-shaped rock, an unidentified fossil that I initially thought was Cladopora, four really pretty granite rocks, a perfectly pendant-ready clay rock, two small pipe organ coral fossils, a honeycomb coral, a piece of horn coral, and above the corals are 16 crinoids with one tiny piece of horn coral.  Continuing around, there are three petoskey stones, a Fern Creek tillite, and a beautiful amber-colored quartz.

Today's Inspiration  (a promise from God to help you live a long life)

Children, obey your parents in the Lord,  for this is right.  "Honor your father and mother"---which is the first commandment with a promise---"so that it may go well with you and that you may enjoy long life on the earth."
 Ephesians 6:1-3  (NIV)

Coming off of Mother's Day and heading into Father's Day, I felt this was the perfect reading, especially for anyone who is estranged from their parents and would like to have peace regarding them.

South Haven's Treasures in 2009

After not finding much on the beach today, I'm using a beach picture from 2009.  The tiny pieces that I found this morning were not even close to the size you see here.  Plus, I have another reason for showing where the treasures come from, rather than just the treasures by themselves.  These past weeks of blogging about my findings have felt more like a job than something I should look forward to doing.  I've felt pressure to come home with a full bag of rocks and glass and even more pressure to be able to identify the contents.  I think it's a good idea to hunt and collect whenever I can, and then write about it, as a whole, about once a week.  That way, if the weather is bad, or if appointments or visitors need my time, I won't have to come up with something for the daily post.  If you've been following, I apologize and hope that you will continue to check in now and then.  I'm sure I'll find some good stuff, and there is always, no matter what, plenty of encouragement and inspiration in God's Word.

Have a great week-end and a wonderful summer!

Today's Inspiration   from 1 Corinthians 2:9  

No eye has seen, no ear has heard, and no mind has imagined what God has prepared for those who love Him.
 

Beach Rocks and Eyeballs

I admit that this picture is a little odd.  It almost appears to have a couple of eyeballs in it!  The one on top is a small Petoskey resting on a wet piece of white sea glass, and the other is a dime-sized quartz rock with a cloudy "pupil" of basalt (I think). 

While the four rocks on the left may not show it as well as I'd like, I picked them up for the green stripes of Unakite going through them.

Back on top, there are two more Petoskeys and a really nice clump of horn coral.  The glass pieces in the middle were exciting to find, as well.

Today's Inspirational Verses   from Isaiah 40:30-31 

Even youths grow tired and weary, and young men stumble and fall; but those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength.  They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not grow faint.
(This is one of my favorites!) 

Great Rock Day

As you can tell, the beach was covered in rocks today!  That would account for the over 40 pieces of sea glass that got stuck as the waves pushed them inland.  I'm used to finding lightning stones, Petoskey stones, and crinoids, but I've never found an almost egg-shaped rock with such perfect rings as the one in this picture.  The two rocks above it are unusual, also.  The two-toned black basalt looks as though it had been dipped into a darker black.  (That's not a shadow!)  I don't know what the other rock is, but I'm hoping to break it to see if it's an agate.

Oh, I almost forgot!  There is a small piece of white quartz in with the glass.  Can you find it?

Today's Inspirational Verses   from Isaiah 40:28-29 (NLT)

Do you not know?  Have you not heard?  The Lord is the everlasting God, the Creator of the ends of the earth.  He will not grow tired or weary, and His understanding no one can fathom.  He gives strength to the weary and increases the power of the weak.
 

Beach Brick

The beach had plenty of glass today, but the star of this picture is the brick.  All smooth and shaped, isn't it beautiful?  I was also excited to find two petoskey stones and a nice piece of granite.  Not sure of what that smooth, bubbly-looking one is, but I am sure of how pleased I was to find such a fine blue piece of sea glass.  (I know, I keep calling glass from Lake Michigan sea glass, but that's okay. It's like calling a tissue a Kleenex.)

Today's Verses for Protection   from Isaiah 8:11-14a

Do not think like everyone else does.  Do not be afraid that some plan conceived behind closed doors will be the end of you.  Do not fear anything except the Lord Almighty.  He alone is the Holy One.  If you fear him, you need fear nothing else.  He will keep you safe.

Just Glass

I zoomed in a little more today because all I have is glass, and I wanted to showcase the smooth, round edges of most of the pieces.  Looking more closely, I'm noticing a broken edge on a brown piece in the middle, but it's not sharp, so I'll probably keep it.  Still, it amazes me how the surf, sand, and high water pH levels turn brokenness into such beauty (even if it does take at least 30 years to happen).

Today's Inspirational Verse   from Isaiah 61:3b  (This really goes well with the story of sea glass.)

...He will give beauty for ashes, joy instead of mourning, praise instead of despair.  
 

 

 

Maple Seeds and Beach Blessings

Yesterday's picture was done indoors, after dark.  I apologize for the starkness of it all.  This collection for today includes seeds not from the beach, but for the mere fact that they are all over my balcony where the sunlight is the best.  As a sign of spring in Michigan, the maple seeds also indicate the timing of this to be in May. 

To the left, there are some nice aqua pieces and other colors of glass.  To the right, you'll see one lonely crinoid, a black basalt with quartz waving through it, an interesting granite rock, and what I thought was a fulgurite.  Back at home with my Lake Michigan Rock Picker's Guide, I found that for this tunnel-shaped rock to have been shaped by lightning, its insides would be burnt black and shiny like glass, because lightning is estimated to be hotter than the sun's surface! 

Today's Inspirational Verses  (I chose this because in the original King James Version, the word, "children" is "seed".)

From Psalm 112:1-3  (NLT)
Happy are those who fear the Lord.
Yes, happy are those who delight in 
doing what He commands.
Their children will be successful everywhere. 

Big Day

Yesterday's picture was from Saturday evening's hunt.  This one is from Sunday.  Today is my last day of school, so I'm hoping to have the pictures more current with the actual dates from here on out.  As you can see, though, there was no way that I could let this collection of beach blessings go unnoticed!  It was a big day for sea glass! Around the perimeter of the pile, from the bottom left and clockwise, there is also a rock with a hole in it (I like those), a honeycomb coral, a pipe organ coral, a horn coral, eight crinoids, and a pottery shard.

Today's Inspirational Guidance   from Malachi 3:10

"Bring all the tithes into the storehouse so there will be enough food in my Temple.  If you do," says the Lord Almighty, "I will open the windows of Heaven for you.  I will pour out a blessing so great you won't have enough room to take it in!  Try it!  Let me prove it to you!"
  

Perfect Crinoid

Even though I found almost 40 pieces of glass, my favorite beach blessing was this absolutely perfect sample of a crinoid.  Look closely in the center, and you'll see why I am so excited!  Instead of a hole, you'll notice a star, and the round outer edge is wonderfully smooth.

Today's Inspirational Verse   found in 1 Timothy 6:17

Tell those who are rich in this world not to be proud and not to trust in their money, which will soon be gone.  But their trust should be in the living God, who richly gives us all we need for our enjoyment. 

Tuesday's Week-end Pile

My school year is almost done, just three more days of teaching Title One, and then I'll be free for the summer!  Knowing how busy I would be, I photographed my collections from the week-end.  This rather large pile is the result of my Saturday morning walk.  You can see almost 50 pieces of sea glass, four varying sizes of crinoids, and two rocks that are full of some smaller ones.  The fossils between them are a horn coral on the left and a chain coral on the right (Although, the chain is straighter than I usually see, so I could be wrong.).  There are two rocks in the pile just because they're pretty!

Today's Inspirational Message   (From 2 Peter 3:8-9)

But you must not forget, dear friends, that a day is like a thousand years to the Lord, and a thousand years is like a day.  The Lord isn't really being slow about His promise to return, as some people think.  No, He is being patient for your sake.  He doesn't want anyone to perish, so He is giving more time for everyone to repent. 

Crocodile Driftwood

It's always fun to find sea glass, heart-shaped rocks, lightning rocks, crinoids and ceramic shards, but every now and then, I'll come across an interesting piece of driftwood.  This picture shows two pieces, and the large one has a very definite resemblance to a crocodile's head.  With its eyes closed, and its snout facing the left, I'm surprised that I didn't notice it until after I took this picture!  Do you see it?

Today's Inspirational Verses have nothing to do with crocodiles, but they make a powerful prayer to pray over your family:
If you make the Lord your refuge, 
if you make the Most High your shelter,
no evil will conquer you;
no plague will come near your dwelling.
For He orders His angels
to protect you wherever you go.
Psalm 91:9-11  (NLT)  
 

The Red One

 

Friday's line dancing started at 11:00 at the senior center.  To get to the beach before that, I had to hurry.  What could I possibly find in such a rush?  

Once there, and seeing the sparce amount of rocks on the beach, I almost turned around, but wait a minute!  Can it be true?  Gasping in anticipation, I bent down to grab the tiny red treasure before it could be swept back out by the waves.  I've been fooled many times by chips of worthless plastic, so I was more than surprised by the texture of truly worn glass that one can only find from bodies of water, and it was red!  It's been six or seven years since I last found a red piece of sea glass!  What a gift!

Looking at the picture of the other nice pieces I found, you'll understand that I really felt kind of special, like God knew I could use some gifts today.  So when I found this verse, I was reminded of how precious we are to our Creator.  Enjoy.
Today's Inspiration   from Isaiah 49:15-16
(God says) Can a mother forget her nursing child?  Can she feel no love for a child she has borne?  But even if that were possible, I would not forget you!  See, I have written your name on my hand.

Monday's Psalm

It's been almost a week since my last post, and I apologize.  The skies have been grey, the waves rough, and the temperature too low to look forward to treasure hunting on the beach.  So, yes, I've shared this picture before; it's not one of fresh findings. Thank you for dropping by, though, because I did find a wonderful verse, and I'm pretty sure someone out there needs it today.
Inspirational Reading    from Psalm 16:8 (NLT)
I know the Lord is always with me.  I will not be shaken, for He is right beside me.
 

Tuesday is Too Cold for Me

With the wind chill, our South Haven temperature of 50 degrees feels like the mid 40's, so I was lucky to find this geode up in dry sand.  Good!  I didn't feel like walking in this dreary weather!  I'm beginning to think I should take a week off; give Michigan some time to heat up.  Beachcombing is usually such a blessing but not with the combination of sparse pickin's and teeth-chatterin' cold.  So if I do skip a day, please don't think I've quit.  I'll be back!

Today's Inspiration  from Romans 8:28  (NLT)
And we know that God causes everything to work together for the good of those who love God and are called according to his purpose for them.
 

Monday's Skippers

Mondays can be hard, especially if you have a church rummage sale to help set up.  The fellowship part of it is fun, but whew!  Sorting through bags and bags of used stuff can sometimes seem overwhelming.  You think you're making headway with only a few bags left to go, and then someone will come to the door with a  carload full of more.  That's why I had to go hunting over the weekend for my Monday collection.  Unfortunately, the moon was still quite full, so the tide was high over the rocks.  With the rocks not showing, there is nothing to catch the beach glass, but you can always count on the flat "skippers" to make their way out of the water. 

Today's Inspiring Verse  from Philippians 4:13 (NKJV)
I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me. 

Friday's Lightning Stone on Top

Can you tell that I like lightning stones?  On days when there are no pebbles on the water's edge, the shoreline is usually void of beach glass and interesting fossils, but lightning stones and these flat red "skimmers" (That's what I call them) can be found in large numbers.  It's cold at the beach, so these weren't collected today---sorry!  I hope to get back to my "catch of the day" next week.

Today's Inspiration   from Isaiah 54:17a (NKJV)
No weapon formed against you shall prosper.   
(This is a wonderful prayer for protection for yourself and your loved ones, in Jesus' name.)

Thursday's Message

There's just no time for the beach today, so I had to go into my files for a picture.  This one has no glass.  It has no fossils.  It does have some beautiful South Haven sunshine over innumerable grains of sand, a heart-shaped rock, and a sentence that sums up how God feels about you.  Have a wonderful day!

Today's Inspirational Reading  from Psalm 139:16-18a (NLT)

You saw me before I was born.  Every day of my life was recorded in your book.  Every moment was laid out before a single day had passed.
How precious are your thoughts about me, Oh God!  They are innumerable!  I can't even count them; they outnumber the grains of sand!
  

Wednesday's Melted Beach Glass

While there is not much glass in this collection, I was quite excited about the one on the bottom of the picture.  I've been told that when glass has a melted appearance, that it must have been in a fire, so that gets my curiosity going.  Was there a fire on board a ship?  Did that ship go down?  Or did someone on the beach have an extremely hot bonfire?  Who knows?

Aside from three other pieces of glass, you'll notice a perfect pudding stone, a chain coral, pipe organ coral, lightning stone, and I'm pretty sure the black one is basalt with quartz veins.

Today's Inspirational Reading  
   But Jesus remains a priest forever; His priesthood will never end.  Therefore He is able, once and forever, to save everyone who comes to God through Him.  He lives for ever to plead with God on their behalf.     Hebrews 7:24,25 (NLT) 

Tuesday's Mistaken Ones

My Lake Michigan Rock Picker's Guide was a big help today.  It showed me that a couple of my treasures were mistakes.  I thought the quirky-looking rock that was covered in holes was a stink stone.  To test this, all I needed to do was put it in a bag and whack it with a hammer.  If it smelled like rotten eggs, then it contained hydrogen sulfide and would, indeed, be a stink stone.  Needless to say, once broken, there was no odor of any kind.  So much for that!

Next, I had thought the tiny orange stone might be jasper, but it ended up not matching the example photo.  Oh, well.  I like it anyway.  Same goes for the not-so-stinky one.  I like them every bit as much as the Petoskey stone, pipe organ coral, lightning stone, crinoids, and beach glass.

Today's Inspirational Verses  from Psalm 25:8 and Ephesians 2:10a
The Lord is good and does what is right; He shows the proper path to those who go astray.
For we are God's masterpiece.

Monday's Shards

With fewer treasures today, I wasn't sure what to say, so I decided to ask God to find the scripture that will fit.  As I opened my Bible, I felt as though I should go to Isaiah, and there it was!  The verse doesn't have anything to do with the honeycomb coral, pottery shards, or crinoids.  It's not about the heart-shaped rock or beach glass, but I'm pretty sure someone out their needs it.

Today's Inspirational Reading
Don't be afraid, for I am with you.  Do not be dismayed, for I am your God.  I will strengthen you.  I will help you.  I will uphold you with my victorious right hand.  
Isaiah 41:10 (NLT)

2016 Today's Catch, April 15

It was my first time to the beach since my spine surgery.  Hoping that my tailbone would be able to handle the repetitious bending and standing pattern, I was both excited and a little leary.  Thankfully, all was well.  No pain, and I found more treasures than I had anticipated.  I was especially excited about the seven crinoids! (The oldest record of crinoid fossils stands at 350 million years, but there are some types of crinoids still living, so I have no idea how old these are!)

Scripture for the Day
For we know that when this earthly tent we live in is taken down---when we die and leave these bodies---we will have a home in heaven, an eternal body made for us by God himself and not by human hands.  We grow weary in our present bodies, and we long for the day when we will put on our heavenly bodies like new clothing.  For we will not be spirits without bodies, but we will put on new heavenly bodies.  Our dying bodies make us groan and sigh, but it's not that we want to die and have no bodies at all.  We want to slip into our new bodies so that these dying bodies will be swallowed up by everlasting life.  God himself has prepared us for this, and as a guarantee he has given us his Holy Spirit.
2 Corinthians 5:1-10 (NLT)

American Idol Tears

Saying that I cried during the "American Idol" finale is an understatement.  If I were to count how many times the tears flowed, there were at least half a dozen, but my emotional floodgates opened mostly at the end of the show after Trent Harmon finished singing, fell to his knees, and said, "Thank You, God!".  To see an outpouring of his soul like that, on live television, was incredible in so many ways. You could tell how exhausted Trent was.  He had mentioned several times how hard he had worked, but in the end, he gave God the glory.  It was evident that this gifted singer knew where his gifts had come from.  He knew who had given him the strength to use those gifts.  He knew that God has plans for him (Jeremiah 29:11).

Just before the winner had been announced, Carrie Underwood made me cry with her country/Christian hit, "Something in the Water".  Clearly, it was about how being babtized has changed her.  All I could think was, "Lord, she's singing about You in front of millions of people!".  This was a song that could only be sung by someone who literally meant every word of it, and she sang it with power, emotion, and gratitude.  She knows who her maker is, and she wasn't afraid to show it.  

Witnessing such courage by Trent and Carrie, the network, and producers of "American Idol", was so refreshing.  Their testimony may not be popular with everyone, but it felt good to shed tears of pride in a country where we are free to love our god without fear.

I chose to pair my "Stacked" beach glass photo today because of the teary look it gets from the wave filter.

Cards, Prayers, and Satellites

I made it.  For the first time since I came home from having surgery, I got through the night without a pain pill.  It's been 9 days of taking one Percocet around noon and another before bed, and I wasn't sure if I could do it, but something happened that made me want to try going without.  It was a card, and while I've treasured all of my cards and everything else sent to me for well wishes, this one truly spoke to me.  It came from someone who doesn't really know me, and I don't know much about her either, so I was surprised to see a whole page of hand-written cursive on what would normally be the blank side of the card.  The sender said she had heard that I was still in a lot of pain.  She mentioned how active I usually am with biking and walking to town, and how difficult this must be.  

As I read, my heart was filled with love for this person I hardly know.  It had been a particularly painful day, and I felt as though she was told by God to tell me that she's praying for the pain to go away.  You see, my surgery had involved the treatment of six Tarlov cysts on my spine.  As they were on the ends of nerves, and filled with nerve fibers, they could not be removed, but were emptied, patched with skin, and wrapped.  The holes made through my spine to get to the cysts were then patched with plastic.  So, yes, I hurt, and hearing that someone was praying for that to stop was better than a pain pill.  When I put the card down, tears of relief began to fall.  I closed my eyes and asked for the dear writer of this card to be blessed, and suddenly, in my mind I saw a very clear vision of a satellite in space!  Then I saw the tiny earth below it with a beam shooting up to the center of the satellite, bending, and dropping back down to Earth.  I felt as though God was showing me how the prayers come up to Him and the healing can then come down to me, but it's not automatic.  It's like He was saying, "Turn on your receiver, Lynda".  So I carefully got down on my knees, and with my hands in the air, told God that I was ready to receive my healing.  I then went to bed and slept through the night.  

It's been a long time since my last post, but if you're a follower of my blog, well.... then you know that I sometimes get personal.  So here it is, better late than never.  And would I appreciate your prayers?  You bet!  Let me know if you need prayers as well, and I'll send them right up.


The picture choice today is, "Beach Arrow", because I'm looking so forward to getting to the beach again!