Be careful as you travel today. David went to work in the steady rain and snow this morning. The weather map shows lots of rain and snow mix headed our way from the west.

“But you are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, His own special people, that you may proclaim the praises of Him who called you out of darkness into His marvelous light.” (1 Peter 2:9)

Prayer List for today:
Mrs. Faye Price
Pascal Dean
Mrs. Tullie Dean
Aubrey Perry
Robbie Lynn Callihan Kirby
Mrs. Parmys Stegall
Mr. Charley Kuss
Mrs. Blanch Wheat
Mrs. Margaret Callihan
Caregivers
Don Denton
Emily Panter

Wednesday, December 10, 2008
I talked to EMILY!!!
Forgive me…I’m going to be emotional. I just talked to Emily for the first time over the phone. Tears are streaming down my face and all I can keep saying over and over is, “God, You’re so good! You’re so good!!”
The doctors are all in agreement that Emily can go home this weekend!!!!! Well, actually, she’s still waiting to hear from one doctor—but he’s already been leaning that way, so we’re hoping it’s a go! They did a cat scan on her liver yesterday and there is definitely a hematoma or it could be a walled-off infection. So they’re waiting on Dr. Spock, the infectious disease dr., to look at it and see whether he wants to prescribe an antibiotic for it. It will be totally up to him. Emily said they also told her they may just want her to come back for check-ups on it. The blood count from the liver is fine and there have been no cultures growing. So the liver doctor is on board for her going home. AWESOME!!
She thinks there’s been a mix-up or a lack of communication because there was an order written questioning where she’ll go for therapy when she leaves. But all of the doctors have been o.k. with her going home and having physical therapy at home. So we’ll just pray it’s a misunderstanding somewhere!
Emily still has a headache, but she said her glasses are not working now. The prescription is way off after having Sarah. She said she was also messed up for 9 hours yesterday from taking the iodine for the cat scan.
Emily said she only has a little bandaid on her neck from her trach and only has one I.V. left. So everything is healing. She still only has a little appetite, but this afternoon her stomach actually grumbled, so she felt like that was a good sign!
Thank you, God! We have so much to be thankful for. So much. But Emily & I had a good cry together over our first phone call to one another. She was grateful for me blogging and putting the prayer requests out there so people would know how to pray. And I’m grateful she’s alive.

Colossians 4:2
” Devote yourselves to prayer, being watchful and thankful.”

What a Monday….One doctor appointment, one blood work and physical therapy….five hours.

Good news, Don continues to improve. And we love, love, love being home!

And I am so exhausted I can’t see straight. Thank you for the offers for the chair for the shower, we have one.

Joshua told me tonight when lying in bed….”mom, I have sugar plums dancing in my head”, then he said… “mom, what are sugar plums”?

Joshua cleared out space in his bedroom for his daddy to get his wheelchair in there so they could play. He is a much happier little boy these days.

We had a really good physical therapy session by a physical therapist whom we believe is going to be so good for Don. We really are impressed with her.

I have more prayer requests and these are big ones again:

* The insurance company is denying coverage for simple supplies that we need that really add up in cost. They also are saying they won’t pay for a very expensive seat cushion for Don’s wheel Chair which he really needs.
* This means more time, allot more time on the phone with the insurance company.
* Insurance company is also making it challenging with PT.
* Pray that we will be able to overcome these obstacles with the insurance company.
* I have so much more to do here at the house and I am trying to coordinate appointments and physical therapy and work part time. Pray that I can balance all of this too.

We continue to give thanks to God for all of you. We continue to be blessed in so many, many ways by our church, our Sunday school class, our neighbors, friends and family. We continue to feel so cared for and God continues to provide and show us that He is with us, even when I feel like I can’t do one more thing.

I need to give thanks to some very, very special people in our lives and that is Don’s mom and dad. I have said numerous times that I could not do this without you all, but you need to know that they have been with me day in and day out. They have been away from their home since this all started and they will begin to head back to their home this Friday.

It will be a happy/sad departure. Happy that they will finally get to go home and sleep in their own beds and reconnect with family and friends. Sad, that we will not have them close by.

They live in Louisiana. None of our family is in Missouri. We will miss them terribly. Joshua adores his granny and paw paw. He thinks they are pretty special.

He told me upon waking this morning as his granny left his bedroom. He said…”mom, I need to send my granny a thank you card”, I said, when should you do this and he said, this morning I should.

So, you can see why this will be hard for us. They have walked this journey the closest with us. WE will miss them, we are so grateful to them for who they are, for all that they have done for us. Please pray for their trip home when they leave us on Friday. And pray for us as we transition even further without them.

God bless you our dear family and friends. Have a beautiful week filled with God’s amazing wonder. We have so much to be thankful for . When it all comes down to it in this life…..it is about relationships more than anything we could ever get as a gift or accumulate in this life. God calls us to relationship with him and with one another.

Thank you again for caring so much.

Blessings

Diane

LAST FRONTIER. Thank you for giving to the Lottie Moon Christmas Offering. We know that with the economic ups and downs, every gift is sacrificial. A worker writes: “We recently moved to a new place. We need to find an inexpensive and reasonable way to stay. Ask that we will be able to secure a visa quickly. We are looking for ‘people of peace’ who can help us to open the doors to a Last Frontier people group. Please pray for us to work according to the guidance and power of the Holy Spirit.”

Hollis C. Harrell
Hollis C. Harrell, 95, died Wednesday, Nov. 26, 2008, at his home in Hazlehurst, Miss. Visitation at Stringer Family Funeral Home in Hazlehurst was held Saturday, Nov. 29, from 5 p.m. to 8 p.m. The funeral service was conducted at First Baptist Church of Hazlehurst on Sunday, Nov. 30, at 2 p.m., with internment in Hazlehurst Cemetery. Hollis Benjamin Claiborne Harrell was born Jan. 4, 1913, in Bay St. Louis, Miss. He was a graduate of Kentwood High School in Kentwood and attended LSU in Baton Rouge as a pre-med student. He then attended LSU Medical School in New Orleans and became a casualty of Gov. Huey P. Long. On Dec. 29, 1934, he married Emily Viola Stringfield and they resided in Kentwood. While in Kentwood they had two sons, John Bruce Harrell, in February 1936, and William C. “Bill” Harrell, in November 1937. In 1938, Claiborne Harrell Sr. purchased timber and a mill to manufacture pine lumber. Hollis Harrell was sent to Hazlehurst to manage the new mill for his father. Shortly after the beginning of World War II, the mill began producing wood boxes for ammunition. He remained in business in Hazlehurst for 60 years, changing from manufacturing pine lumber and oak flooring to selling steel, wire and nails. The new business of steel, wire and nails began from his basement with deliveries made in a pickup and later to large transport trucks. It had always been a love of Mr. Harrell’s and a family tradition to eat in New Orleans at Galatoire’s. Starting back in 1932, when his father took him for his first business lunch at Galatoire’s with the heads of the lumber businesses in New Orleans. The heads were at odds with each other in business and the lunch meeting at Galatoire’s brought them together, resulting in an improved business relationship. Mr. Harrell continued the tradition by taking his children, grandchildren down to the great-grandchildren to Galatoire’s. Beignets at Café du Monde and sliding down raw oysters at Acme Oyster Bar were on the list of favorites following the meal at Galatoire’s. Mr. Harrell had several principles of life he stood by: his love for God, family, friends and his endless zest for life and practicality. He accomplished this zest and practicality by lifting 50-pound boxes of nails and riding his stationary bike five miles a day. We, the grandchildren, asked, “Pawpaw why don’t you buy 50-pound weights?” He answered, “Why buy weights when you can lift 50-pound boxes of nails in the comfort of your own home?” He was a longstanding member of the First Baptist Church of Hazlehurst, where he served as a deacon, Sunday school teacher and choir member. He was also a Mason and Shriner for many years. He was a loving husband and father and will be greatly missed, not only for his giving spirit and loving heart, but also for his colorful storytelling. He was preceded in death by his father and mother, Mr. and Mrs. Claiborne Harrell Sr.; brother, Claiborne Harrell Jr.; sisters, Lilly Mae McGlathery and Bonnie Jean Hove; wife, Emily Viola Stringfield Harrell; and son, John Bruce Harrell. He is survived by a son, William C. “Bill” Harrell and wife Dodie; granddaughters, Bonnie Jean Harrell, of Brandon, Miss., Emily Elizabeth “Beth,” Jordan and husband Ed, of Carter, Miss., and Jennifer Ann Cora and husband Chris, of Byram, Miss.; grandson, William Claiborne Harrell II and wife Wendy, of Hazlehurst; seven great-grandchildren, Georgia and Johnna Jordan, Anna Katherine and Emily Anne Harrell, and Morgan, Lexi and Paxton Cora; and a brother, James Edward Harrell, of Kentwood.

Lottie Moon Christmas Offering
What is the Lottie Moon Christmas Offering®?

Southern Baptist churches collect the Lottie Moon Christmas Offering for the sole purpose of supporting international missions. Every penny of the offering goes to the International Mission Board’s overseas budget, thus supporting our missionaries and their work.
What is the goal for this year’s offering?

The goal for the 2008 offering is $170 million.
What is the 2008 theme?

The 2008 theme, “GO TELL the story of Jesus,” recalls for us the most powerful story ever told: the story of Jesus. Yet thousands of people groups remain in spiritual darkness, and no one is planting churches among them. How will they hear the story of Jesus? Closing this gap will require an unprecedented missionary force partnering with churches like yours. Their going means our giving as never before. God has provided the resources. Will we be found faithful?
What part of the world is being spotlighted this year?

During 2008 the International Mission Board is focusing on the South America region. Many think South America has been reached with the Gospel. Yet there is a prevailing lostness that will surprise most of us. This continent holds some of the remotest, darkest places on the face of the earth. In fact, nearly 94 percent of the total population remains locked in a spiritual prison! Missionaries are hindered by physical barriers, government restrictions and dangerous warring groups. But there is hope, as missionaries partner with national believers to reach the unreached.

CHOOSING A NAME

Someone has come up with the following “Rules For Choosing a Superhero Name”:

1. Don’t call yourself by your real name. (e.g., Ms. Jenny Pinchuck, The Amazing Stevie Foster).

2. Don’t call yourself by someone else’s real name. (e.g., Mr. Teddy Kennedy, Captain Tom Cruise).

3. Choose a name that suggests power, heroism and prowess. (e.g., Captain Power, Thunderman, Mr. Invincible, Justiceman).

4. Don’t be too modest. (e.g., Mr. Pretty Good, Captain So-So, Fairly Incredibleman).

5. But don’t labor the point. (e.g., Mr. So-Powerful-Don’t-Even-Think-About-It-Buddy).

6. Don’t choose a name detrimental to your crime fighting image. (e.g., Captain Spongecake, Mr. Silly, Yellow Streak, Captain Evil).

7. Don’t choose the name of an existing Superhero unless you have lots of money and enjoy fighting litigation instead of supervillains.

8. It’s no use calling yourself Captain Invincible if your only power is control over Hostess Twinkies and you suffer from a congenital hole-in-the-heart condition. It’s just asking for trouble.

9. Don’t call yourself the Invisible Boy if you’re not.

10. Don’t give away important information in your name. (e.g. The Glass Jaw, Captain Vulnerable To Strontium 90).

11. Don’t call yourself The Green Avenger if you wear an orange costume. You’ll confuse people.

Choosing a name is an important responsibility. Those of us who are parents can remember spending hours and hours reading books filled with baby names, discussing this name and that before deciding on just the right name. Even after much forethought, one of my children was named at birth and re-named a couple of hours later because the first name just didn’t seem to fit her.

Not surprisingly, names in the Bible are regarded as important. Names that were chosen may tell us something about the child or his birth (Isaac — “laughter”, Benjamin — “son of the right hand”, Esau — “hairy”). Some names were changed to signal a drastic change in one’s life (Abram to Abraham, Jacob to Israel, Saul to Paul).

A name is important because it’s not just a word — it’s who you are. Your name is your character, the essence of who you are and what you stand for.

You may not be able to change your given name (at least, not without a lot of expense and trouble), but you can change what people think about when they hear that name. That’s why Solomon wrote:

“A good name is to be chosen rather than great riches.” (Prov. 22:1a)

You are choosing your name by how you live. Choose wisely!

Have a great day!

Alan Smith (a.k.a. Captain Mediocre)
Helen Street Church of Christ
Fayetteville, North Carolina