I am so grateful today. Although I had a rough time as a kid/teen and went through a lot, God still saw my heart and still loved me and carried me through it all. Trusting in Jesus is the best choice I have ever made, and I am so thankful that God didn't give up on me. I am glad he still blessed me with an amazing husband, and two amazing boys, Brad & Jake. There really is no reason I am writing this, just reflecting on what I have come through and where I have come from. God is so good, and I know that I certainly don't deserve his blessings. I was not perfect then, I am not perfect now, and I will never be perfect. But His strength is made perfect in weakness (2 Cor 12:9). I may have prenty of days that I am weak. I will have many trials. When I overcome one, I will give Him the victory, because it is nothing I could have done on my own. I also know that with that victory, soon after will come the next trial. With God, however, all things are possible (Phil 4:13). Not some, ALL. With his power, his strength, his help, I can accomplish what he sets before me. I know that I have many friends on here who are not Christians, and I am not trying to offend anyone by any means, but this is my personal feelings and how my Lord has brought me through. Thanks for reading.

Things I Am Thankful For (in no particular order...)

1. My family. Each and every one of them!
2. My children. Brad is my little scholar and Jake is my little tornado of toddler energy! :)
3. My Lord & Savior Jesus Christ. Without HIM, I would be lost in more ways than one.
4. My husband. He loves me even with all my flaws.
5. My house. We are blessed to have a beautiful home. It's not perfect, but we love it just the same.
6. My Pastor & his wife. What a blessing!!!
7. The Bible. "Basic Instructions Before Leaving Earth". God's Word to Man.
8. Coffee (yes, I said "in no particular order"!).
9. The goats that ate the coffee "beans" that made them stay up that caused their owner to discover the coffee. Yes, I am thankful for goats. I love coffee that much. http://www.ncausa.org/i4a/pages/index.cfm?pageid=68
10. Southern food. Being Southern. Deep fried yummy goodness. Especially tomorrow, deep fried turkey. http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/paula-deen/deep-fried-turkey-recipe/index.html
11. The mall
12. Bare Escentuals. It makes me look human! Although I have not worn a single iota of make-up in 24 days, because I am taking part in "Natural Beauty November" with good friend Ida Mundell & about 50 other ladies on Facebook.
13. My car. I have a Suzuki XL7 & I really like it! Fits family of 4 plus luggage and two Golden Retrievers! :)
14. Speaking of Golden Retrievers... how could I forget?! My pets Max & Cody! (and newly acquired kitty Static).
15. Cookies. I love cookies... and with that...
16. ...milk
17. My cell phone. Or should I say the new cell phone I am getting on "Black Friday". LoL
18. My friends. I have the best friends in the whole wide world. You know who you are!
19. My church family. They are truly like FAMILY. They are absolutely there 110% when you need them, and even before you realize that you need them.
20. Digital cameras. I don't know how I survived with rolls of film before, and I love being able to capture all the great moments that are my life.
21. Bacon. That stuff is awesome!
22. My DVR. What did I do before it existed?
23. Bradley's piano talent that God blessed him with. He is magnificent!
24. Jacob's silliness. Boy keeps me on my toes!
25. Hans' kindness. My husband has such a heart for others.
26. MOPS. I love my Tuesday meetings with some of the most amazing ladies I have ever met. Each mother is different but we do share that common bond all the same - we are MOTHERS.
27. Florida "winters". No snow, but it gets cold enough to frost my windshield! :)
28. Wal-Mart. It's a love/hate relationship really.
29. Baby kisses.
30. The tears that come when you laugh for too long.
31. Children laughing.
32. Health.
33. Happiness.
34. Love.
35. Chocolate.
36. Calendars. Without one I would not know what to do from day-to-day!
37. Cruise ships. Ain't no other way to travel in my opinion. (If you don't like my grammar, see #10)
38. Down comforters
39. Coca Cola in a glass bottle
40. Christmas lights
41. My job. I work for the Gecko. :)
42. Iced tea.
43. God's grace.
44. Hair dye.
45. Tylenol. On days that are a little too much to handle!
46. Prayer. Also for days that are a little too much to handle.
47. Flowers.
48. Music.
49. Google.
50. Sleep.

"The Jesus Touch"

Yesterday was the last MOPS meeting of the semester until we start back again in the fall. This meeting is also known as our "Tea & Testimony" meeting, and it was incredible. They had a special lunch for all of us with Asian Salad & Croissant, and of course "tea" and lemonade. There was laughter and there were tears.

One of the highlights for me was when the Pastor's wife of First Baptist Church at the Mall, Angie Dennis, came up to speak to us. She taught us on Mark 5:21-34, which I had heard before but when I was much younger. Here is the passage:

Mark 5:21-34 (King James Version)

 ²¹And when Jesus was passed over again by ship unto the other side, much people gathered unto him: and he was nigh unto the sea.
 ²²And, behold, there cometh one of the rulers of the synagogue, Jairus by name; and when he saw him, he fell at his feet,
 ²³And besought him greatly, saying, My little daughter lieth at the point of death: I pray thee, come and lay thy hands on her, that she may be healed; and she shall live.
 ²⁴And Jesus went with him; and much people followed him, and thronged him.
 ²⁵And a certain woman, which had an issue of blood twelve years,
 ²⁶And had suffered many things of many physicians, and had spent all that she had, and was nothing bettered, but rather grew worse,
 ²⁷When she had heard of Jesus, came in the press behind, and touched his garment.
 ²⁸For she said, If I may touch but his clothes, I shall be whole.
 ²⁹And straightway the fountain of her blood was dried up; and she felt in her body that she was healed of that plague.
 ³⁰And Jesus, immediately knowing in himself that virtue had gone out of him, turned him about in the press, and said, Who touched my clothes?
 ³¹And his disciples said unto him, Thou seest the multitude thronging thee, and sayest thou, Who touched me?
 ³²And he looked round about to see her that had done this thing.
 ³³But the woman fearing and trembling, knowing what was done in her, came and fell down before him, and told him all the truth.
 ³⁴And he said unto her, Daughter, thy faith hath made thee whole; go in peace, and be whole of thy plague.

She then explained to us many things about the passage, and it was such an encouragement on how she applied it to our lives - how Jesus healed the woman because she had faith in Him, and how he took notice. She explained her own testimony, of how she had an emotionally absent mother and a difficult upbringing both parentally and with people in school. She explained her heartache and fear when she found out a few years ago that she had breast cancer that she is still fighting. She then let us know the joy she felt when Jesus saved her and she met & married her husband, Pastor Jay Dennis. 


Later when she was going over the passage more thoroughly, she made sure each of us had a piece of tassel in front of us. You see, in the Bible in Mark 5:27, the garment that Jesus wore more than likely had a trim of tassels to it, and was what the woman mentioned would have touched. When she touched it, even though there was a tremendous crowd of people all around Jesus Christ, he noticed. He noticed HER, and her faith, and her pain. Mrs. Dennis let us know that when we pray, Jesus takes notice. She shared some quotes that I really loved:

• Faith is praying with our eyes on God, not on our difficulties.
• Faith is not about running in the dark, but walking in the light.
• Faith is not believing what people say about God, it's simply believing what God says!

It was also interesting to know that this is the only time in Jesus's ministry that he ever refers to someone as "daughter". What an encouragement to us - to know that in our times of pain and suffering, our Heavenly Father is there, and will hear our plea when we need him. The tassel she gave to us was to put in our Bible to remind us of this story, and gave us five things to remember when we are facing our own trials to remind outselves:

1. I know that God loves me
2. I know that God is good
3. I know that God is a God of miracles
4. I know that God speaks through the Bible
5. I know that heaven is real!

I am sure I didn't explain the passage quite as eloquently as Mrs. Dennis, but it touched me, and I just felt compelled to pass it along. 


Have a wonderful day,
Kim Reller