Truly Amazing Grace

Have you noticed how easy it can be to appear to ‘have it all together’ on Facebook? 🙂 I know my family can attest to the fact that I surely do not walk through life with smiles, scriptures & inspirational quotes and affirmations rolling off my tongue! That’s one reason I appreciate the Apostle Paul so much, especially in The Message translation! Second Corinthians 12:9-11 puts it all into perspective for me and confirms that it’s God’s Grace, undeserved favor given freely due to Christ’s Redemption, that deserves all the Attention & Glory not me for even 1 second!

Paul writes,”Because of the extravagance of those revelations, and so I wouldn’t get a big head, I was given the gift of a handicap to keep me in constant touch with my limitations. Satan’s angel did his best to get me down; what he in fact did was push me to my knees. No danger then of walking around high and mighty! At first I didn’t think of it as a gift, and begged God to remove it. Three times I did that, and then he told me,

“My grace is enough; it’s all you need.
My strength comes into its own in your weakness.
Once I heard that, I was glad to let it happen. I quit focusing on the handicap and began appreciating the gift. It was a case of Christ’s strength moving in on my weakness. Now I take limitations in stride, and with good cheer, these limitations that cut me down to size—abuse, accidents, opposition, bad breaks. I just let Christ take over! And so the weaker I get, the stronger I become.”

Sometimes I feel helpless, embarrassed and depressed. But then I read God’s Living Word and I realize I really can ‘count it all joy’ because God the Father, Jesus Christ and Holy Spirit have this! When Jesus walked on the earth, wholly man and wholly God, He said, ” Here on earth you will have many trials and sorrows. But take heart, because I have overcome the world.” John 11:33 Then I read in Revelations, also written by the Apostle John, about the new heaven, the new earth and the new Jerusalem where I read “Look, God’s home is now among his people! He will live with them, and they will be his people. God himself will be with them.[p] 4 He will wipe every tear from their eyes, and there will be no more death or sorrow or crying or pain. All these things are gone forever.” Revelations 21:3-4. Over and over in Revelations Jesus said, “Look! I am coming soon!” Revelation 22:7,12 so my hope and expectations are renewed! This fallen world is difficult, but it isn’t over yet because we are promised an amazing future! But you should never lose sight of this fact, dear friends, that time is not the same with the Lord as it is with us—to him a day may be a thousand years, and a thousand years only a day. It is not that he is dilatory about keeping his own promise as some men seem to think; the fact is that he is very patient towards you. He has no wish that any man should be destroyed. He wishes that all men should come to repent. 2 Peter 3:9 (J.B.Phillips) We trust You with the timing, Lord, but, Maranatha, Come Lord, Jesus!

Thirty Years of Technology in Retrospect

December 12, 2016 was my son, Chris’s, 30th birthday. As I looked at this picture of him as a newborn, I realized some parallels about what has happened in his life over the years and especially how much technology has changed in 30 years.

Chris, you were a special blessing when you arrived in our family 30 years ago, only 13 months after we lost Momaw and baby Catherine. I took this picture of you when you were only a few weeks old to include in your birth announcements and I realized something! The outfit you are wearing is the first thing I ever ordered from home! I had seen it on an ad from Dillard’s we had received in the mail. I found the phone number on the ad,   ordered it over the phone and received it in the mail. In 1986 that was the quickest way to get it as I recovered from a c-section and couldn’t yet drive and had no guarantee I could find the right size in the store! At that time the main way to order things was to obtain the Sears/JC Penney’s Catalog look through it, choose your items, fill out the order form with the exact item # and mail in your order or go to the store and turn it in. Then you would get it in the mail or arrange to pick it up at the store when it was available, which was the fastest way to get it!

Now when you were born, we were on the cutting edge of technology because since we actually had 2 personal computers at home! We even made your birth announcement on the computer, bought blue paper and printed it on our dot matrix printer! As you know your dad had a degree in Math, Computer Science & Systems Design and his job, using a personal computer, was such a new concept one of his projects was introducing personal computers to the Executives at Fox Photo to use in their own offices and develop a network to expand their use throughout the National Headquarters! Not only that, he had to find appropriate software for the various functions and considerations as to what adaptations needed to be made for the various business functions. It also had to be determined which information from existing mainframes needed to be transferred to the personal computer network being developed.   After lots of analysis, meetings, necessary requisitions, software & licenses had to be purchased and necessary installations had been done, lots of data entry had to be done. After all that, in order to share information at the beginning, reports had to be printed out and hard copy had to be carried to other offices. In order to develop a network and streamline communication,  your dad had to run cables in the walls and ceilings to the offices all over the building and between other floors so they would be connected. But to share information with other offices all over the country, he had to fly there and do the same kind of process at each site as was necessary for other functions in the company. Talk about a slow tedious process and I’m sure I over simplified it substantially due to my own limited knowledge of the technology!

How amazing that 30 years later both you and John are working in the Computer Science field too and you are adding to your Associates degree to earn your own B.S. in Math & Computer Science! New technologies and the internet have completely opened up communication literally via the World Wide Web! Even not all that long ago we had cables run all over the house between our personal computers and our router and needed to be connected to our internet provider. Wireless routers and wi-fi have completely changed that and cellular phones have even replaced the need for a landline

So when I ordered you that blue velour outfit for your birth announcements, landline telephone was the fastest form of communication, but now although most homes have computers connected to the World Wide Web, cellular telephones are wireless and have become tiny computers connected to the internet, most forms of communication and with us wherever we go!

Chris, it’s been special watching you grow and change these last 30 years! It’s even more special to anticipate what’s to come! I love you with all my heart, Mom

What is Repentance?

As a brand new Christian in the mid-70s, I couldn’t get enough of the Bible, Church sermons, Fellowship gatherings & Christian books. There was so much to learn and understand! When I first learned about the meaning of repentance I loved James Taylor’s music. “Fire & Rain” was a favorite song and to this day when I hear that song I’m reminded of repentance. This one line says “…When the cold wind blows it’ll turn your head around”. That’s what I believe God does when we are resisting the changes we need to make. He allows “the cold wind” to blow until we accept that we need to repent and change direction… Also Known As “it’ll turn your head around! “.

Rainbow Promise

When I was in 1st grade I was enrolled in St. Paul’s Lutheran school. I don’t remember a lot but I remember I loved the daily Bible stories. I remember the Noah’s Ark story and how God placed the rainbow in the sky after the flood as a sign. After school that day I remember riding in our car and seeing a rainbow in the sky. I told my mother that God gave us rainbows after the rain as a sign that He would never cause another flood on the earth again. I can still remember the look on my mother’s face and after a few seconds she told me that wasn’t true. Even at age 6, I was so sure of what I believed. Recently I was thinking back on that wondering why she said that. Now I realize I misspoke. The rainbow wasn’t a sign there would never be another flood. It was a sign of God’s promise to never cover the earth with a flood again. I think I understood the difference back then, I just didn’t communicate it correctly.

Amazing how, ‘as a child’, faith in God and His unfailing love was born in a classroom during a teacher’s Bible lesson. It was during a moment at that same school that I distinctly sensed God calling me to be a teacher. I remember, clearly, sitting in the multi-purpose room, where we had lunch and also watched movies. We had just finished watching a movie and I had a strong desire to become a teacher fill my heart. I never said anything about it to anyone but there was a strong, burning desire in my heart when I thought about being in the classroom. I didn’t realize what it was until many years later in my 30’s in a Bible study. We were discussing the ‘calling’ of Paul after he encountered Jesus on the road to Damascus and others shared their calling. It was then I sensed God’s spirit speaking to my heart and realized the significance of that moment.

In high school I was focused on preparing me for the future. I got involved in U.I.L. contests in Ready Writing, Persuasive Speaking and News Writing. In my senior year I began focusing on my love of English. Thinking about scholarships to college, I discovered if a student qualified to compete in the U.I.L. state competition you automatically qualified to apply for a Ewing Halsell Endowment. I began preparing for Poetry Interpretation working with Ms. Kathy McHenry. I chose a poem in each of the 3 categories. Ms. McHenry worked with me to prepare and arranged for me to practice in front of different classes. I loved 2 of the poems and finally settled on a poem in category 3. I enjoyed poetry and was excited to compete. I won first place in both the District and Regional contests with my two favorite poems. With my least favorite poem I placed 3rd out of 4 but I had met the requirement to apply for the scholarship and was awarded it toward tuition at The University of Texas at Austin.

I decided to major in English and minor in Speech and Poetry Interpretation to become certified to teach in high school. However, the Lord had a better plan. I kept taking classes even during the summer at S.A.C. when I was home and kept having contacts with Elementary age students and realized I had better rapport with that age group. In the last semester of my sophomore year in Austin, I heard that the, under construction, U.T.S.A. (The University of Texas at San Antonio) was opening to juniors in January. I applied to U.T.S.A. to transfer in January and got ready to move home to San Antonio. The biggest change was I was changing my major to Elementary Education and because U.T.S.A. didn’t have a Speech department yet, I examined my transcript to determine which subject for a second teaching field would allow me to graduate soonest. Although I had been an English major, all my coursework so far had fulfilled basic requirements and none of my 12 hours of upper division Speech would even transfer. The subject that plugged in best was History so it became my minor. The burning in my heart was stronger. I wanted to teach more than ever. So, motivated by my strong desire, even with the extra credits, I finished my degree in three years and began teaching at age 21.

Angels Watching Over You

I know dressing up in costumes and getting candy is fun for kids (and grown-ups!). I used to let my kids dress up and go trick or treating when they were growing up. My favorites were church-sponsored with a Noah’s Ark theme and when the kids were older the church had food and games and a video with Carman’s ‘The Champion’ focusing on the final spiritual battle between Jesus and satan. I have read so much and heard so many speakers in the Christian community about child sacrifices on Halloween etc which makes it very difficult to appreciate Halloween. One of the most eye-opening messages I heard on K-Love was an interview with a self-described former ‘priestess’ in the church of satan. She described how she was searching for a child to sacrifice at the Halloween ceremony. She told of a little girl she had focused on, but, every time she got near her she felt a force shoving her away! After, she became a Christian she learned that the little girl was part of a Christian family and they prayed for her protection daily. She believes it was angels who protected that child!

After my divorce I had to go back to work as a teacher and for the first 4 years I was blessed to teach at the same school my children attended so we came and went to school together each day. However, when our situation changed the hardest part was when I couldn’t pick them up and they were in 3 different schools. The boys took the bus to and fro and my daughter walked home alone. During Halloween week after hearing that interview it was even more painful and I prayed constantly for her safety and got home as soon as I could! God was faithful though, as neighbors picking up their own children gave her rides and welcomed her into their homes until her brothers and I could get home!

When Frank Peretti’s novel, “This Present Darkness”, came out, I rarely read fiction so I wasn’t interested in reading it. However, on one of my many visits to the ‘The Shepherd’s Shoppe’, I overheard someone commenting on the display for the book and the lady behind the cash register said, “It makes you think about what happens when you pray and what happens when you don’t!” That touched my heart and I bought it and read it. My experience about that day already made me wary of going beyond walking distance on that day, but, reading this book gave me a new perspective. She was absolutely right! My prayer today is that the Father will Cover all those out and about, with protection and Ministering Angels! To God Be the Glory!

Praise to the Nurses!

My Mom ~ Mary Ann Hamilton

Did you hear about what Joy Behar said about Nurses on the View? I heard about this several times, but I heard about it backwards first, when Joy made some clearly half-hearted, flimsy, facsimile of an apology on the air. Then I heard more about it when Dr. Oz interviewed Miss Colorado, Kelley Johnson, on his show. He even highlighted the value of nurses with an audience of nurses, including the nurses he works along side of in and out of cardiac surgery. Then he made it a point to announce he was adding a nurse to his show! However, today when I read this letter in response, I learned the full story. Kateri Allard articulates her response in such a gracious, intelligent manner she deserves a standing ovation.

An Open Letter to Joy Behar – According to Katari

Why did I have such an emotional response to the letter about nurses? My Mother, Mary Ann Hamilton was a nurse. She wanted to go to college after high school. However, her father refused to let her even talk about it. That same father, she told me, only told her he loved her once, on her wedding day when at age 19 she married my Daddy, Damon Hamilton. I was born 11 1/2 months later. By the time she was 22 she had 2 kids and spent the next 16 years being a devoted, full time wife and mother.

However, she never lost the dream of college. When I turned 16 she started college. By the time I started college she was in Nursing school at the U.T. Health Science center. I was in college at U.T. Austin. When she couldn’t find a book in San Antonio, I would find it in Austin and check it out and bring it home for her. By the time she was a junior, I had transferred to U.T.S.A. On weekends I would use the ‘fancy’ electric typewriter I got for high school graduation and put my 2 years of high school typing class to good use, typing her 90 page research papers as she wrote them long hand. She graduated at age 40 with her B.S. in Nursing with honors and we all watched her get her diploma as the first person in the family to go to college.

After working so hard to get her degree, she was eager to work. She worked swing shifts for 2 years at the V.A. Hospital. She worked 1 year at St. Benedict’s Hospice and 1 year with the Metropolitan Health District with prenatal and well baby clinics. Then she went to work for the Visiting Nurse’s Association with United Way. She had so many amazing experiences in those 7 years and touched so many lives.. It seemed that she knew her time was limited, as in October, 1983, she was diagnosed with breast cancer and in November, 1985 she went to heaven. Never-the-Less, I will always have the highest regard for Nurses. Nurses are often portrayed as ministering angels and I agree they are definitely very special ministers.

Memories on 9/11 ~ Where Was God?

Learning to Live by His Design

I had just dropped off my daughter, Ann Marie, age 12, at Tejeda Middle School. I came home and sat down to watch the Today show. Matt Lauer & Katie Couric were reporting that a plane had hit the North tower and were pondering ‘live’ as so many did that it was probably a small plane and an accident. I, like so many, was riveted to the screen. As we watched the smoke and flames in horror and shock we saw the 2nd plane fly into the South tower! I couldn’t believe what I was seeing as the events unfolded and became more and more horrifying. The only time I left the living room watching all that was happening was to attend my water aerobics class at Healthlink. Usually we had music on as the physical therapist guided us through the class but that day she had the television on…

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God Works All Things Together For Our Good!

August 1st is a very special day for our family! Last year on August 1st my cherished, first born son, John, overcame a life-threatening event! He had made a strong character decision to quit drinking a week earlier. Since then he had been very sick and thinking it was withdrawal, he was determined to fight his way through it at home, although, when he shared about it on Facebook, he was encouraged to go to the hospital. I didn’t realize what he was going through until a family friend called about helping us get a backyard project done and asked if John could help him. When John had told me he was going to rehab at home, I thought he meant he was going to work on projects around the house! When he explained he was in bed with fever & chills and was delirious I was alarmed! When I asked him if he should go to the ER, he told me he was trying to wait until Friday when a paycheck would be deposited into his account!  However, he was getting worse, as he was unable to keep anything down and was constantly thirsty. Moms can’t stand to see their children sick so I kept searching the web and told him ginger would help settle his stomach. So he got some gingerale and kept drinking that, which seemed to make him worse!  After his sister lost her temper at him for drinking some of her bottled water, he finally felt so much worse that he had a friend take him to the ER at 10:30 pm on the 31st. They began running tests. Immediately they said he was dehydrated and hooked him up to IV fluids while they were waiting for more test results. We thought he must have been throwing up what he drank. The shocking thing was when at 1:00 AM we were told that his bloodwork showed that he had Diabetes and was suffering from the life-threatening complication of Diabetic ketoacidosis (DKA) and if he had waited another hour he would not have survived! Knowing what we now know about Diabetes and DKA, we know it was a miracle that he didn’t die during the 10 days before he went to the ER! Not only that, but, he was diagnosed with insulin dependent Type 1 Diabetes, not the more common Type 2. Most people with Type 1 are diagnosed as a child or teenager. John was diagnosed at age 32 which makes us wonder how long he was diabetic. Clearly God protected him for years.

In Romans 8:28 when the Bible says “….ALL things work together for GOOD to those who love God, to those who are the called according to His purpose.”, God really means it!  John went to the ER earlier because of the angry exchange with his sister, but, God used that to save John’s life! Also, the gingerale I suggested to ‘settle’ his upset stomach was the worst possible thing for him! But, God even used that to make him go to the ER sooner than he was planning. After 2 days in ICU & 1 in a private room he was given an orientation as to how to administer insulin.  Before he left the hospital the Diabetes Educator gave him the contact information for a Type 1 drug trial that was starting soon. I shared what was happening with my close friend, Carol, who is a nurse. In another amazing fact, I learned that her father was diabetic, so she knew exactly what we needed to know before we even realized it! She took me to the hospital to visit John and when he was released the next day, knowing I can’t drive and he was still recovering, took him shopping and bought the tester and supplies we didn’t even understand he needed. Also, Carol teaches at The University of Texas Health Science Center, School of Nursing, so if she hadn’t been on her summer break, her usual schedule is so intense she wouldn’t have had the time to help us! Once again God had the right person at the right place & time! But God knew all this 7 years before, when through the Community Bible Church website, Carol came to my house for a Beth Moore Bible Study. Even then God was working things together for our good!

Within a couple of weeks, John found out he qualified for the drug trial starting immediately! He had been looking for another job & working in a part-time job with no health insurance since being laid off 8 months earlier. However, while he was recovering, he was contacted by a former associate about a much better job even than the one from which he had been laid off. He was hired with full benefits! Jehovah Jireh continued to provide for his vital medical needs. In the interim, between his hospitalization and when the benefits for his new job took effect, the drug trial provided for all his insulin, supplies, treatment & and even money for transportation!  It’s a good time to Thank God for John’s life! ALL things may not be the way we want, but, our amazing Father in Heaven sees more than we can and He can even use our mistakes. El Shaddai, the All Sufficient One, can & will bring a better outcome than we can even imagine. It’s been a hard fight for John adjusting and dealing with this, but I’m so grateful he is still here! I Love You, John!

When You Look Back

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That is so true! I have noticed that most of the events I write about on my blog happened years ago! The beautiful part of the story wasn’t clear for decades! On this date in 1985 I was reeling from the loss of my Mother 10 days earlier, when my daughter Catherine was born only to die two hours later. I’m gaining more insight about how “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.” Romans 8:28 I can’t believe 29 years have passed since then. Only today I realized if we had stuck to our original plan of 2 children and if I had died and/or Catherine had lived, I never would have given birth to Chris and Ann Marie. That would have been an immeasurable loss to countless people, including big brother, John! God had blessings after the tragedy of losing my Mother and Baby Catherine that were filled with love and promise and I will always be the mother of 4. The whole story can be read here:

Lifechanging Fall 1985 ~ Broken, Restored, Loved ~

Victory in the Darkness

Facelifted from Isenia Juarez on Facebook because this is something that is VERY REAL!!! PRAY if you are experiencing a spiritual attack, but, remember that satan & the demons know they have to flee in the power and authority of the name of Jesus Christ! Say the name of Jesus, Jesus, Jesus and they must flee!


SPIRITUAL WARFARE ISN’T SCARY! DON’T BE AFRAID! JESUS ALREADY DEFEATED DEATH & THE ENEMIES OF OUR SOULS THROUGH HIS DEATH ON THE CROSS & RESURRECTION TO ETERNAL LIFE!!!

I believe God prepared me for just such spiritual warfare. It almost seemed silly, but, one night I dreamed I was on a bus with a group of friends traveling to a Christian Women’s Club Conference (Stonecroft Ministries). However, we found out there was also a group of satan worshipers on the bus with us! When we arrived we learned that the 2 groups were meeting in rooms that backed up to each other. In my dream, I was one of the speakers, but, before we began the program, I felt compelled to go across to the stage for the other group. I went straight to the microphone and said, “There is Power in the Name of Jesus!” I told my Bible study group about the dream the next day and for Christmas that year, one of my friends gave me a hoop with those words embroidered on it.  I believe God was preparing me for spiritual warfare that I would need.

About a year later, at the end of my marriage, when my husband was working as a consultant out of state for 8 months, I had 2 experiences for which I believe God had prepared me. The first time, late at night, I awoke and sensed an evil presence at the foot of my bed. I called out to Jesus and it was gone. The 2nd time, in the middle of the night, I awoke feeling like I was in a dark box and could not see, move or even speak. All I did was ‘think’ JESUS’ name and immediately I was free!

Not long after that, my husband told me he had been having an affair and eventually left. As the man of the house, he was the ‘covering’ over our household. so, I believe, his disobedience opened a spiritual gate into our home. I believe that because after we divorced I never had anything like that again. I do not mean to imply I did not commit sins that placed me and my children vulnerable to oppression or attack. Regrettably, far from it. I just think the enemy used different avenues to create fear or disobedience or anger or unforgiveness or whatever weakness caused interference with my/my children’s relationship with God or others who are witnessing how we are living as a Christian. The enemy’s especially pleased when we feel guilty or have broken relationships. The enemy isn’t original…”…there is nothing new under the sun.” Ecclesiastes 1:9

Christians have been given authority to resist and cast out demons in Jesus’ name which basically means to Command any evil spirit to leave you alone and go into the abyss, never to return! IN JESUS’ NAME! However, it’s important to remember that all forms of disobedience and unforgiveness open the door to demonic oppression. NOT demonic possession because if you have accepted Jesus as Lord & Savior you Belong to Christ! However, the enemy of your soul can oppress you with lies to torment you and cause fear because of your sin (For all people have sinned and fall short of the Glory of God. Romans 8:23) UN-CONFESSED SIN causes ‘holes’ in your armor by opening a spiritual gate and giving permission to evil spirits to harass you. But Be Assured, NevertheLESS, you can cancel that permission by confessing to God! “If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.”.I John 1:9