Merry Christmas Eve!
I don't typically talk about my religion--or any religion--on here since it's not usually relevant, but seeing as how this is Christmas Eve and I'm particularly grateful this year, I'm going to. If you're not comfortable with religious talk or Christianity, feel free to skip this entry. :)
When I was younger--teen through early 20s--I considered myself pagan. I was raised in Christianity but turned from it as I got older and had problems resolving my personal beliefs with my religious beliefs. Paganism seemed more natural. Then something happened that turned me back to Christianity (which I'll post about tomorrow...maybe).
It transformed my life. I went from having problems with anxiety, panic attacks and major depression to having joy in my heart. Don't roll your eyes. ;) It's true. I stopped taking my meds and never looked back. Disclaimer: I'm not advocating that anyone stop taking prescription medications without talking it over with a doctor first.
Yesterday, for the first time in a long while, I felt on the edge. I was having a panic attack. My cat, who as some of you know has been struggling with her health, was vomiting, foaming at the mouth, and on the verge of prolapsing again. I don't drive and couldn't find a ride to the clinic. I called my mom, my aunt, my other aunt, my cousin, everyone I could think of. I even got on Facebook and messaged someone I thought might be able to help me.
No one could. I was alone with a cat who needed emergency care, and I couldn't get it for her. No one was answering my calls, and the clinic is too far to walk. There was nothing more for me to do, so I said a simple prayer.
Christ said, "Whatever you ask in My name, that I will do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son. If you ask anything in My name, I will do it." And, "Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives, and he who seeks finds, and to him who knocks it will be opened...how much more will your Father who is in heaven give good things to those who ask Him!"
Well, Sera wasn't miraculously healed on the spot. But one of my uncles called out of the blue to see if we needed anything. One relative returned my call and said that she was getting out of work early and could drive me. Another aunt and uncle stopped by the house unexpectedly with groceries and offered to drive us.
By the time we got to the clinic, Sera had stopped vomiting. She wasn't foaming at the mouth anymore. She wasn't shaking or making high-pitched keening noises. She'd passed some stool and wasn't straining anymore. In fact, the doctor who examined her didn't charge me for the visit since she said that I'd brought Sera in for nothing.
Maybe some of you might chalk these things up to coincidence or luck. I don't. I truly believe that God watches over His children, that He answers us when we just stop to ask for help. Maybe he doesn't resolve things the way we think they should be resolved; maybe it takes longer for our prayers to be answered. But "all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose."
That's what I'm celebrating tonight and tomorrow: the fact that I have a Father in heaven who has promised to always be there for me, to never forsake me, and to provide for all my needs as long as I just believe.
Merry Christmas.
When I was younger--teen through early 20s--I considered myself pagan. I was raised in Christianity but turned from it as I got older and had problems resolving my personal beliefs with my religious beliefs. Paganism seemed more natural. Then something happened that turned me back to Christianity (which I'll post about tomorrow...maybe).
It transformed my life. I went from having problems with anxiety, panic attacks and major depression to having joy in my heart. Don't roll your eyes. ;) It's true. I stopped taking my meds and never looked back. Disclaimer: I'm not advocating that anyone stop taking prescription medications without talking it over with a doctor first.
Yesterday, for the first time in a long while, I felt on the edge. I was having a panic attack. My cat, who as some of you know has been struggling with her health, was vomiting, foaming at the mouth, and on the verge of prolapsing again. I don't drive and couldn't find a ride to the clinic. I called my mom, my aunt, my other aunt, my cousin, everyone I could think of. I even got on Facebook and messaged someone I thought might be able to help me.
No one could. I was alone with a cat who needed emergency care, and I couldn't get it for her. No one was answering my calls, and the clinic is too far to walk. There was nothing more for me to do, so I said a simple prayer.
Christ said, "Whatever you ask in My name, that I will do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son. If you ask anything in My name, I will do it." And, "Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives, and he who seeks finds, and to him who knocks it will be opened...how much more will your Father who is in heaven give good things to those who ask Him!"
Well, Sera wasn't miraculously healed on the spot. But one of my uncles called out of the blue to see if we needed anything. One relative returned my call and said that she was getting out of work early and could drive me. Another aunt and uncle stopped by the house unexpectedly with groceries and offered to drive us.
By the time we got to the clinic, Sera had stopped vomiting. She wasn't foaming at the mouth anymore. She wasn't shaking or making high-pitched keening noises. She'd passed some stool and wasn't straining anymore. In fact, the doctor who examined her didn't charge me for the visit since she said that I'd brought Sera in for nothing.
Maybe some of you might chalk these things up to coincidence or luck. I don't. I truly believe that God watches over His children, that He answers us when we just stop to ask for help. Maybe he doesn't resolve things the way we think they should be resolved; maybe it takes longer for our prayers to be answered. But "all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose."
That's what I'm celebrating tonight and tomorrow: the fact that I have a Father in heaven who has promised to always be there for me, to never forsake me, and to provide for all my needs as long as I just believe.
Merry Christmas.