December 12, 2017

Greetings My Friend,

For most of my life I have been involved with church and its activities. As a child I was in the choir and went to Sunday school. When my children came along I volunteered for various programs took them to choir and eventually was an Elder in the church. My prayer after my divorce was to be in a good marriage and for my husband to take his faith seriously. God answered my prayer, Junior and I go to adult Sunday school, then to church and Sunday nights we go to Bible study. In our church in Michigan we also volunteered, was on the board of remarried ministries for several years in addition to going on a few short term mission trips. My life has always centered around church. Once I had cancer I was never able to fully recover so my participation with church declined to the point of going to Sunday school and church services only. This was the state I was in when we moved to Virginia, I had absolutely no energy. We tried to go to Wednesday night prayer meetings, that did not last long. Sunday's for the most part I was able to do Sunday school and services, Bible study was on and off. For the first 5 or 6 years we lived in Virginia my energy was still bad, after my fall my gait got bad, I was tripping over nothing and falling. No one was able to determine why I was doing that until last year when I was told I have Parkinson's. Once I started taking the medication, I was able to mange my chronic fatigue, exercise without exhausting myself, I learned to rest for my needs instead of working harder I am learning to work smarter. Along the way my doctor discovered I have sleep apnea, allergy induced bronchitis, GERDS - acid reflux that is rather bad, my esophagus is a corkscrew, I have a hiatal hernia and I was a mess. Slowly between God and my doctor each problem has been addressed and dealt with so that I am now able to function rather well. A year ago Junior and I started going back to Wednesday night prayer meetings and I am doing rather well. We rarely miss Sunday night Bible study these days and many nights hangout at McDonald's or the front of the church with some of the group from the Bible study. There is a part of me that wants to do a bit more. I long to be involved but I also know that my energy level is not there to add much more to my week. At home I have been able to work my way back into a housework routine along with making our meals and washing the dishes. This process was very slow and renovating has given me the chance to rethink how to do what I used to do in a few minutes a day with heavier cleaning once or twice a year. I have believed for years that I am able to cook meals that are not processed and I am doing so again. I am even baking cakes and cookies like I used to from scratch. With the help of a George Foreman grill, and a microwave I am able to make meals in an hour or less other than soup which I throw in a crock pot. I am grateful that I am able to keep our home clean, make our meals and go to church to be with other believers. God has shown me that He can use me on the internet in the quiet of our home at my own pace. He has shown me that in my older years a few of us older workers need to step down to make room for the next generation to help run the church. A few older workers are needed to help train the younger workers so He is not calling for all older people to walk away from serving the church. God has also taught me that the way I respect my husband, give a sales clerk a cheerful response or even greeting someone at the grocery store are also ways I can serve Him. My life's journey opens up opportunities for me to reach out for Jesus like ministering to a woman who is coming out of an abusive relationship. All of these ways to serve God are as important as I am discovering as when I was a youth leader, sang in the choir or went on mission trips. They are ways of bringing the Gospel to my own little corner of the world. I am finally fully grasping my love for the Lord and working for His kingdom at home, in the community where He has called me to live. God gives me opportunities to serve with what I am capable of handling. May God bless you and keep you make His face shine on you. Love Janet