Author: Anna Lee

Saturday Afternoon



Luther Ricks

I have started RADATION for my Prostate cancer this past week. Four treatments down and 34 to go. I would like my name added to the Prqyer Link. I am like so many others, i need all the help i can get. Thanks for being there for us all. Have a Happy Mothers Day. Luther


Dentons

Just a quick update Don is doing better. He is on a high level of steroids. He is able to eat now. He is having some heart palpatations and they may move him to cardiovascular floor.

The doctors want to get him to a place where he can function. They are trying different meds to help with his dizziness.

Josh and I came home just for the day to take care of business.

Bolivar had a pretty bad storm with high winds. Some say a tornado touched down here in Bolivar. Our privacy fence came completely down on the back side of our yard.

Our air conditioner unit is not working either. We have allot of debris down in our backyard.

It looks like they will release Don from the hospital this next week. We are most thankful for this. Joshua’s birtday is Friday. I am hoping to keep things normal for the wonderful celebration of Joshua.

We are sooooooooooo……grateful to those who have just come to our rescue. There are so many who have just taken us in and helped us again.

I am humbled and touched so deeply by you all. Thank you for taking care of us in such a tangible, beautiful way.

For those women out there. Hold your children, love your husbands. We have so much to be thankful for this special Mother’s Day. I count today as a day that I have to be present with my family, be present with my friends and I am so thankful to God for his precious people.


Jakub (Prague, CR)

Dear Family and Friends,

Thank you so much for joining us in praying for our dear Czech friends (and national church planter), Martin and Olga and their 4 year old son, Jakub. We wanted to pass along this update to you. After more extensive examinations, the doctors are now saying that Jakub has sustained 3rd degree burns over 25% of his body. The burns are mainly on his head, neck, arms, hands and half of his face. They have him sedated and he has been calm so far. Praise the Lord that he is breathing on his own. Martin and Olga were able to see him today for the first time since the accident. Please continue lifting up this family to the Lord. We’ll try to send out another update on Monday after they meet with the doctors again.

Praising Him for the journey,

Steve & Cathy

Saturday

“As holy people…

be sympathetic, kind, humble,

gentle, and patient.”

~Colossians 3:12 GWT~

Mrs. Pat Gill is doing well following her surgery. Pray for her as she has a follow-up appointment Monday.

Pray for all those involved with schools as the current year begins to come to a close. Pray for the seniors in high school and college as they plan for the next step of their lives. Thank God for teachers and staff who work with students all year.

Pray for Sunday School teachers as they finalize preparations for Bible study tomorrow, musicians as they prepare for worshil, and for pastors as they prepare the messages for tomorrow.

Pray for mothers. Thank God for them and all they do. May they be ladies like the one described in Proverbs 31. Pray children will love, honor, and value their mothers, grandmothers, and grandmothers on Mother’s Day and all year long.

Legacy

HER WRITING CAREER spanned three decades, from the mid-1960’s through the mid-1990’s…

She wrote 12 books and received 16 honorary doctorate degrees. But 3 years before she died of cancer in 1996, popular humorist Erma Bombeck told an ABC TV interviewer that no matter how many columns she had written, her legacy would be her three children. “If I did a bad job with them,” she said, “then everything else [I] do isn’t very important.”

Bombeck had riches and fame and the goodwill of millions of readers, but she realized that her top priority was taking care of her children.

Although no parent can be guaranteed that his or her child will turn out to be a godly model citizen, those of us who are parents must start with Erma’s attitude. Our motivation is to provide spiritually, physically, and emotionally for our children. They will be our legacy. This means introducing them to the Savior, providing spiritual guidance, praying for them, and encouraging them to find mentors who can guide them in godly living. Sometimes it’s a battle. Often it’s expensive in time and toil. But the value of a child overshadows it all (Dave Branon).

“Train up a child in the way he should go,

and when he is old he will not depart from it.”

~Prov. 22:6; cf. Psm. 34:11-22; 3 John 1:4~

Keep loving, praying, and ministering.

Anna Lee

Friday Afternoon

Dear Prayer Partners,

Please be in prayer for Jakub. We just received this note from friends in Czech Republic.

Thank you for praying!

Melinda



Subject: Urgent prayer request for Jakub
Importance: High

Dear Family and Friends,

We just received a call from Martin and he shared with us that their younger son, Jakub, was burned over 40% of his body earlier today in an accident. He was flown to a hospital in Prague and they are awaiting news from the doctors. We know that you all will join us in praying for this family and appreciate you passing along this request to others as you feel led. We’ll keep you posted as we receive updates from Martin and Olga. Thank you for partnering with us in prayer. We appreciate you all.

Praising Him for the journey,

Steve & Cathy

PS – We’ve attached a picture of Jakub that we took last Sunday after our worship and Bible study.

103_3044.jpg


Don Denton


We don’t have a diagnosis as of yet. This morning the doctors will be back in to discuss Don’s condition. He has had fluctuating blood pressure and fluctuating sugar levels.

He is back on steroids. His headache pain is somewhat lower, which we are thankful for. He is able to keep down liquids more yesterday and he actually ate applesauce yesterday too.

I may just have to drive home to get animals out of boarding , pick up mail and drive right back to St. Louis. I don’t feel good about leaving Don at this point.

I will make that decision after we meet with doctors this morning.

Please pray that his vital signs will remain stable. Please continue to pray for a diagnosis.

Something pretty amazing happened last night. Don’s neurosurgeon came in last night to his room. He said something happened to Don upon waking him up from the surgery. Don was paralyzed momentarily. They are not sure why this happened. As the surgeon was talking he said that God uses some things to confound the wise. He said we need to keep asking God for direction with Don. This event that happened right after surgery may be a clue as to what is going on with him.

Our neurosurgeon we have felt for sometime now is a kind and gentle soul. He last night opened our eyes to his own love for God.

I will update you as soon as we hear.

Jimmy and Retia Dukes


Yep. That’s Dad’s left leg. I believe the medical term, the technical term, is “jacked up.” The thought right now is that Dad’s left leg took the first impact in the accident. It sure seems like it, considering what his XRay and left foot looks like.

You can see the rod they drove down through his Tibia to attempt to reconnect like 10 or 15 broken pieces. You can also see that his fibula is broken. There are screws at the top below the knee which you can’t see, and there are screws above the ankle which you can see. They hold the rod in place. This XRay was taken yesterday. Imagine what his leg looked like the night of the accident. Shattered.

His right leg was jacked up too, but not as bad. No break in the fubula, and only two major break areas of the right tibia.

You should see his left arm around his elbow. Remember, he is left-handed. We are hoping everything on the left hand returns to normal. Well, as normal as it can become again. Here’s a quote from the doctor yesterday about his left arm around the elbow – “It was shattered into about 50 pieces.”

I’m not kidding, and he wasn’t either. It has enough hardware in it now to overwhelm the guy who stocks screws and nuts and bolts at Lowe’s. Airport metal detector watch out! Good thing Dad has the “clear” pass. He’s gonna make that little metal detecting wand happy, though.

Sorry I didn’t post yesterday. It was a full day.

I got to Dad’s a little before 7:00 in the morning. Because of his appointment with the Ortho doctor, therapy was supposed to come around 7:30. So, Dad wanted breakfast early. He got it – Tall Decaf, Starbucks “Perfect Oatmeal” (which hasn’t been perfect – too thick), and some of his peach yogurt we had in the fridge at the Skilled Nursing Facility. Good stuff, and he was good and ready to work out by 7:30. They got there at 8:10 to roll him down.

While he was in therapy, I folded clothes and straightened his room. I had washed all his conversation-starting pajamas and shirts the night before. When he returned, the wheelchair-van driver followed shortly, and we headed downstairs to load up.

Dad’s appointment was at 10. We got done about 1:30. Because he had been transferred from University Hospital to Ochsner, the new doctors had to talk with us a while to get a full picture of Dad’s medical history since the accident. You should have seen the chart they read through. Longer than those posts that I write on Caring Bridge.

When they got a good picture of what was going on, lots of XRays were ordered. I mean a lot. I sat in the waiting room outside of the XRay room for almost an hour. Good conversation, though, with a couple who had been married for 53 years. They were saddened to hear about the accident. I was overjoyed to witness their love and friendship with one another. 53 years! Jen – I hope all the New Orleans food I ate growing up allows me to live long enough to see 53 years with you.

They called me in when Dad was done. They needed me to help them get him back off the XRay table. I lifted his upper body, while they lifted his legs, and we sat him back in his wheelchair.

He was shivering by the time we got him back to the room to wait for the doctor. He was cold. And worried, too. He had told me earlier in the morning that he was concerned about what they were going to say about his legs. He was concerned about long-term effects. The doctor walked in to give us the news.

It was encouraging. We looked at the break in his neck first. The doctor said it looked like it was healing to him, but he wanted to refer him to a spine doctor. He still has to wear the neck-collar until then, at least. Bummer.

Then, he showed us the pictures of his arm. That’s when he commented on Dad’s elbow area. He warned Dad to be focused on working his range of motion and strength in that joint as tolerated. He didn’t want all of those bone chips and pieces to calcify together and limit his joint motion. They would heal and allow him pretty normal motion if he kept the joint moving.

Then he gave us the news on his left wrist – the one they have been saying he would need surgery on. NO SURGERY!!! The doctor said that he thought it would heal fine without surgery. It still had a lot of healing to do, but if Dad was careful and kept the splint on it, it should be good. Dad was pleased. Erik is hopeful that he will be able to be as left-handed as he was before the accident, and Dad’s doctor assured us that he thought Dad would be.

The legs came next. Left leg first. You see the picture. The doctor told him it was not well enough yet to hold weight. He wanted it to be supported and stabilized even more, so he gave him a big boot to wear on the left leg. It’s real heavy and cumbersome, but Dad is up to anything if it will help him walk again. He is a very determined guy if you didn’t know. Stubborn, too. That works in his favor. The therapists confirm it.

The right leg, though, the doctor said was healing well. He told Dad he could bear weight on it as tolerated. That’s HUGE, because it meant that Dad could start working at rebuilding his leg strength so he could move toward beginning full rehab. He was pleased and anxious all at the same time. He knows it will be real hard work. He is in his first session as I am writing this to you. Erik will let you know how it goes over the weekend.

Overall it was a great appointment. Erik arrived in town around 1:00 and picked up lunch for us. He was going to meet us back in Dad’s room with po-boys from Crabby Jacks, a sister restaurant of Jacques-Imos. It is on Jefferson Hwy. It is a little hole-in-the-wall extraordinaire. I am giving you all this detail, so that when you are in town and in the mood for some fried green tomatoes and an oyster po-boy and a roast beef po-boy and a Barq’s Root Beer, you can stop there. Unreal.

Dad was pleased.

We ate with Dad, showed Erik the XRays, got Dad settled for a nap, and Erik and I headed across the Huey P to see Mom.

Her nurse had called right before we left. She wanted to let us know that Mom’s therapy session had gone really well, and, that they had tried the Passy Muir Valve to begin weaning her off the tracheotomy. It had gone well!!! Her SATS didn’t drop, and she breathed well. She even made actual noises through her vocal cords when she coughed. No talking yet, but that will come.

We arrived, and the Respiratory Therapist put the valve back on so we could try to get Mom to talk. She made coughing noises again. She did slip out a “mmm-uhhh” sound, but no talking. And we tried everything.

We asked her to tell us our names. We asked her to count to ten. We asked her to say her ABC’s. I asked her to belch them, in case that would be enticing. It wasn’t. Probably would have been gross, even. We asked her to say her grandkids’ names. We asked her to recite the Gettysburg address. Nothing worked!!! She didn’t talk. Just doesn’t feel comfortable yet with it, I guess. It will come, the therapist assured us.

She did do something that meant a lot to Erik. I had gotten her to wink at Dad the day before. I asked her to wink at Erik. SHE DID!!! And he tried to trick her asking her if Abby was his child. She shook her head. “Is she Jay’s kid, Mom?” She nodded. She’s so smart.

Every little victory matters, as we take this month-by-month for the long haul.

After an amazing dinner with Don and Trisha Richard at Bistro Daisy on Magazine, and after Dad ate his crawfish ravioli take-out from there, Erik and Dad and I sat in his room and watched a movie. I set up his laptop where we all could see it, and we watched “The Bucket List” with Jack Nicholson and Morgan Freeman. Great movie. We highly recommend it, especially the scene about Kopi Luwak coffee. You might even laugh until you cry.

After the movie, I told Erik and Dad something I am sharing with you, not because I want you to think we are circumstantially sentimental, but only because I hope you will do it, too. I asked them, “Will yall commit to something? As we move forward, let’s keep doing it together. Let’s do it with no regrets.”

They agreed. Doing life together with family and friends is what matters. Experiencing the fullness of life matters, and it is only truly full when we experience it together. I love my wife and kids and brother and sister-in-law and nephews and Mom and Dad and friends. I am thankful for how we all have walked together so closely in life, and I am grateful for how all of you have walked with us through this. And there will be more life yet to live abundantly together. So, let’s do it. And let’s not require random accidents to be necessary as reminders of how precious life is.

Check out this video and website our friend, Tom, shared with Dad and me the other day. It was recorded in multiple places across the planet over several years and then edited together. A beautiful picture of the beauty of togetherness as we blend together in deep relationship and “stand by” one another through this life.

Following Jesus makes life together the ultimate and makes it everlasting. May you follow Him if you don’t already. It’s more than a religious choice. In fact, it’s no religious choice at all. It’s a choice for life. Abundant life. Life in the now and forever. In relationship with the God who loved us first, and whose love transforms our relationships into the love and togetherness that we can only know in Him.

Love yall. Thankful to be doing life with you in this way. I’ll post at you Monday.
-jason


Friday

“When people sin,

you should forgive and comfort them,

so they won’t give up in despair.”

~2 Corinthians 2:7 CEV~


Dakota Brook got to go home from the hospital at day 16. He will have to be kept close to home for a few weeks because he was borm prematurely. Continue to pray for the family as they care for and protect Dakota.


KOMpray

Kids on Mission Pray

Prayer requests

“Let the little children come to Me, and don’t stop them, because the kingdom of God belongs to such as these,” Luke 18:16b

THE BEATING OF THE DRUMS
In Zambia and Namibia, they say, “Ni utwile milupa.” Well, I don’t

have ANY idea how to pronounce that one! But it means “I hear

the drums.” Sky Scott and her family moved to their new home

on the Zambezi River. She tells us that she “enjoyed the frequent

music of African drums.” She would listen to the deep, hollow

bumping of the drums and find it very romantic. Her family loved

living in the African bush, surrounded by Lozi (LOH-zee)villages!

They still love living there, but they don’t enjoy the drums as much.

Here’s why. Sky and her family walked through the drying sand

one hot day. They got to a friend’s village and found only the

grandmother and children. The others had gone to dance. The

friend’s family and some others from neighboring villages had gone

to dance to help a man who was at the witchdoctor.

What do the drums echoing along the river mean? The Lozi people

are drinking and dancing, fully believing that this is the only way to

‘help’ someone or to control their fears. The repetitive, quickening

rhythm of the drums is like the fear that still beats in the hearts of

Sky’s friends. Please ask Jesus to help the Lozi people understand

how much He loves them then they won’t have to live in fear. First

John 4:18a (HCSB) says, “There is no fear in love; instead, perfect

love drives out fear.”

MORE PRAYER REQUESTS FROM MISSIONARY KIDS

Eight +/- million reside in Johannesburg. They live in big modern

homes, block homes or squatter areas. People from many parts of

South Africa live here as do many from other countries. They

speak more than a dozen languages. Pray for safety as there is

lots of crime. Pray for leaders to be developed in our small church.

BENJAMIN, age 11 (Central, Eastern and Southern Africa)

Pray that the people will have enough money and jobs. KARIS,

age 6 (Central, Eastern and Southern Africa)

Please pray for my friends, Jeano and Daniel. They are my friends

from preschool but they don’t know Jesus. Daniel goes to church

sometimes but they don’t teach about Jesus and Jeano never goes

to church. Soon, I have to go back to America and I will miss

them. I hope that they can hear about Jesus before I leave next

summer. Jesse, age 3 (Western Europe)

Our goal is to have a church in every apartment building. Pray

that it will happen. MG, age 11 (East Asia)

The people are very hospitable and the language is easy enough

for some people. I can’t even take up a general conversation in

Arabic. I really want to be friends and help the people around

me, but I can’t. I need help, so please pray. WILLIAM, age 12

(Northern Africa and the Middle East)

If I was sick, pray to God and my mom and dad will help me.

AVERY, age 7

Please pray for my youth group. MICAH, age 12, (Western Europe)


Baptist Press

May 7, 2009

WASHINGTON–Obama issues prayer proclamation, eschews event.

ttp://www.bpnews.net/BPnews.asp?ID=30436

WASHINGTON–D.C. council votes for ‘same-sex marriages.’

http://www.bpnews.net/BPnews.asp?ID=30437

MARYLAND–FIRST-PERSON (Eric C. Redmond): We’re not the

bigoted ones. http://www.bpnews.net/BPnews.asp?ID=30438

MAINE–Mainers will have last word on ‘gay marriage.’

http://www.bpnews.net/BPnews.asp?ID=30439

MISSOURI–Mo. Supreme Court refuses MBC appeal on Windermere.

http://www.bpnews.net/BPnews.asp?ID=30440

ARKANSAS–53 new indecency charges filed against ex-music

minister. http://www.bpnews.net/BPnews.asp?ID=30441

SOUTH CAROLINA–Motorcycle rally helps men ‘get real’ with Jesus.

http://www.bpnews.net/BPnews.asp?ID=30442

TENNESSEE–SBC’s Land: ‘Waterboarding’ never ethical.

http://www.bpnews.net/BPnews.asp?ID=30443

TEXAS–FIRST-PERSON (Malcolm Yarnell): The unchanging

relevance of biblical revival.

http://www.bpnews.net/BPnews.asp?ID=30444

The following devotion was written by Scott Belgard, the son of

friends. He gave me permission to share this. Scott is in his 20’s, but had lots of Christian maturity.

“As is, Where is”

There is a term often used in the real estate industry: As is Where is. This term is used when someone agrees to take possession of a house in its current condition with all flaws both known and unknown. I want to apply this term in regards to our relationship with God.

When we are called by God to enter into His family we are accepted in an “as is, where is” condition.

“While Jesus was having dinner at Matthew’s house, many tax collectors and “sinners” came and ate with him and his disciples. When the Pharisees saw this, they asked his disciples, “Why does your teacher eat with tax collectors and sinners? On hearing this Jesus said, “It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick. But go and learn what this means: I desire mercy, not sacrifice. For I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners.” Matthew 9:10-13

God takes possession of our “house” just as we are with every flaw and blemish both known and unknown. The good news is God doesn’t want to keep us in that condition. By His power he prunes our life so that we may be a tree that bears good fruit (John 15:1). One thing to keep in mind is that God is the gardener. He is the one that prunes us. Often times we try to take the role of God as the gardener. We see things growing on our tree that does not bring Glory to God and we start cutting by our own power and authority. After numerous attempts we find ourselves to be beaten down with failure then we have the audacity to ask God, “Why can’t I overcome this?” It’s at that point that God gently reminds you that YOU can’t but he can.

Paul, in Galatians, explains this idea very simply. “For I (Paul) have been crucified (died) in Christ that I no longer live but Christ lives in me and the life that I live in the body I live by faith in the Son of God who loved me and gave himself up for me.” Galatians 2:20

We no longer live. When God took possession of our lives we died and now Christ lives in and through us. It is God’s power that overcomes the flaws of our worldly condition so that we may live a life on this earth that brings Glory to God.

Jesus told his disciples in John 16:33, “I have told you these things, so that in ME (Jesus) you may have peace. In this world you WILL have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.” How comforting is it to know that the God who knows every star by name lives through you so that you don’t have to stay in the same condition you were in when God called you? Stop trying by your own efforts to prune your life. You will be left without limbs. Let God do the pruning.

When Jesus called His disciples he said, “Come, follow me and I (Jesus) will make you fishers of men.” So I am asking you, will you come just as you are? Your house doesn’t have to be in perfect condition when God takes possession. Will YOU die so that Christ may live in, through and for you? Will you let God mold, prune and make you into His fisherman? You can’t follow and not be pruned. You can’t come and not become a fisherman. They go hand in hand.

Scott’s thoughts remind me of the hymn “Just As I Am”. It also means “Just As You Are”. Think about it.
Anna Lee

Thursday

Today is the 58th annual National Day of Prayer. You can go the the official website at http://www.ndptf.org/home/home.html to get more information. Let’s celebrate a country that has honored prayer for many years and practice our wonderful freedom to pray.

“I mean that I want us to help each other

with the faith we have.

Your faith will help me,

and my faith will help you.”

~Romans 1:12 NCV~



Continue to pray for Wanzie Williams as arrangements are being worked out for physical therapy.


Continue to pray for the Melder/Pezant family. Little four year old Haley continues to have kidney issues because of the e-coli.

Tracy Williams is doing well following his surgery. Continue to pray for him.

From Melissa Simpson:

I know this couple in McComb who really needs our prayers. Talmadge is 81 years young and had surgery about 4 weeks ago. He is doing good but the healing of his body is really going a little slow for him. Marvis is really taking good care of him. I spoke to her this morning on the phone to check on them as they only live about 3 minutes from where I work and ask her if she needed anything and she told me to keep on praying for the healing of Talmadge. I told her I would put them on the prayer link. This is a really wonderful couple and they have a church that is there for them. But hey! one more prayer group would be wonderful.

Thanks
Melissa

Don, Diane, and Josh Denton

I got sleep! Today was a day that I was able to rest. I spent the evening with Don this evening. Just a few updates.

Don is on again off again with a private room. His level of headache pain has not changed. The doctor decided to put Don back on steroids starting at a smaller dose to help with his symptoms. Hopefully within the next few days, Don will be able to see some relief from his symptoms.

Don’s veins are not working well. They collapsed today when the nurse tried putting another IV in. Don is having problems with swelling in his hands and arms too. So a “line” has been put in.

The nurosurgeon talked of us being able to go home by Friday. That is not going to happen. Don is not well enough to go home at this point. Hopefully next week.

I am praying that we will be able to be home for Joshua’s birthday. I have planned his little party for Saturday the 16th. And my hope is that we can keep this part of our life as “normal” as possible. So please pray that Don will be well enough to come home.

IF…all goes well and Don shows improvement by Friday, Josh and I will go home. I have to get our pets from the boarding facility. This is taking longer than I had thought that it would.

And I have to get my mail and I am hoping that Joshua will be able to play with some of his friends. We will then go back to St. Louis on Sunday, Mothers Day.

Having an illness like this changes everything. Last year I would have been upset if Don forgot Mother’s Day. This year, all that matters is that Don is with us. I am so grateful to God that we have each other.

So much in that way has changed for me. One learns what is important in life, when someone you love is so ill.

We continue to ask God for his mercy and grace upon us. We continue to hope and believe. Believe for answers and hope that whatever this disease is, it will be treatable and restore Don back to us.


As much as I don’t want to leave Don up here, his parents will be here for him. And I will only leave if I know for sure that it is OK. It is so hard to make decisions sometimes.

Thank you for your continued prayer for Don, Joshua and I. It means everything to us. Thank you for continuing to touch us in the way that you do. People we don’t know just reach out to us and love us in a way that only God could show them.

I believe God uses you all to show us that He has not left us and it encourages and touches me deeply. Bless you.

Diane

Richard Rowley Lipscomb
Richard died Tuesday, May 5, 2009, following a brief illness. He was born May 29, 1911, in Norwood, the son of William “Lynn” F. Lipscomb and Julia Pemble Lipscomb. Richard married Inez Hughes on June 7, 1941, in the home of the Rev. Dearman in Kentwood. Richard and Inez started their life together in Clinton. Richard retired in 1976 as secretary-treasurer of Community Coffee Inc., and he was the past president of the Baton Rouge Association of Accountants. Richard was also a member of the Stuart Cameron McLeod Society, an organization for past national officers and directors of the National Association of Accountants. Earlier in his career he had served in various positions with the Civilian Conservation Corps followed by an appointment by the LSU Extension Services as district secretary to the Bogue Chitto-Pearl River Soil Conservation District with headquarters in Kentwood. Prior to World War II, he was appointed as the project superintendent of the first project between the Soil Conservation Corps and the Works Progress Administration, overseeing projects in East and West Feliciana parishes. As war appeared eminent, the project closed and Richard joined the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers at their Shreveport office. From there. he went to Minden with the Ordinance Department. He was subsequently transferred to the Vicksburg branch of the General Accounting Office, then went to Little Rick, ending up in the Canadian Yukon, where he worked at the Whitehorse, Yukon, office of the Corps of Engineers. Another move led to Watson Lake, Yukon Territory, where he served as administrative assistant to the chief project engineer on the airport construction and a section of the Alaskan Highway. Richard loved classical music and gardening. He spent many enjoyable hours on his patio, which was covered with beautiful flowers and plants. Richard and Inez were members of Broadmoor Presbyterian Church. He, with the help of Inez, spent many years researching the Lipscomb Family history and in 1978 published The Lipscombs of East Feliciana, a Virginia Heritage. They continued their interest in genealogy and researched Inez’s family meeting many people along the journey. He was a great husband, father and provider for his family and a true friend to all who knew him. Richard will be greatly missed. He was preceded in death by his wonderful and loving wife of 66 years, Inez Hughes Lipscomb, who was a native of Kentwood; his father, William “Lynn” F. Lipscomb; mother, Julia Pemble Lipscomb; three brothers, Wilbur S., Elvis F. and Clarence E. Lipscomb; and two sisters, Mildred Lipscomb James and Ida Lipscomb Jones. Richard is survived by his sons, John Pemble Lipscomb and fiancée Karen M. Holloway, of Brandon, Miss., and Rodney Kent Lipscomb and daughter-in-law, Elizabeth Titterington Lipscomb, of Hammond; a brother and sister-in-law, Jack and Dorothy Hughes, of Kentwood; and sister-in-law, Beatrice Crawford of Vidor, Texas. Surviving nephews and their spouses are Larry W. Jones, of Baton Rouge, David E. and Barbara Lipscomb, of Houston, Kenneth and Diane Lipscomb, of Denham Springs, Jack D. and Mary Hughes, Paul M. and Mary Hughes, and Mark and Dera Hughes, all of Kentwood, and Wayne and Pat Crawford, of Vidor. Visitation at Rabenhorst Funeral Home East, 11000 Florida Blvd., on Friday, May 8, from 2 p.m. to 5 p.m., followed by a brief prayer service conducted by the Rev. Hawley Wolfe. Graveside service at Woodland Cemetery, Kentwood, on Saturday, May 9, at 11 a.m. Pallbearers will be Jack D. Hughes, Rodney Lipscomb, John Lipscomb, Mark C. Hughes, Mike Larsen and Danny Lamier. Honorary pallbearers are Norman Saurage III, Paul White, Clarence Bourg, Huey Coltharp, R.H. “Jack” Hughes, Luke Elliott Sr., Carlton Varnado, Robert Lewis, Roland Gary and Dr. Tom Graves. In lieu of flowers, please make memorial donations to Hospice of Baton Rouge, 9063 Siegen Lane, Suite A, Baton Rouge, LA 70810, Broadmoor Presbyterian Church, 9340 Florida Blvd., Baton Rouge, LA 70815 or a charity of your choice.

IT’S NOT EASY BEING A MOM

Judith Viorst once wrote an essay based on interviews she had with children. The subject was “What’s a good mother like?”

Viorst reports that the children expected their mother to get angry from time to time. “She has to,” said Ted, “or she’ll faint from holding it in.”

“But it’s best to remember,” said Randy, “that when your mother starts to act real weird, you have to look scared and serious. Don’t giggle. When mommies are mad, they get madder if you giggle.”

“My mommy got so mad,” said Megan, “that she yanked the plate off the table and all the mashed potatoes flew into the air.”

“And why,” Viorst asked, pretending she’d never heard of such shocking behavior, “why would a mother do a thing like that?”

“Well,” said Megan, “she told my older brother, Mike, he’s 11 years old, to eat the potatoes on his plate and he said ‘Later.’ And then she told him again to eat the potatoes and Mike said ‘Soon.’ And then she told him he had better eat those potatoes right now and he said, ‘In a minute.’ And then she stood up and Mike finally took a bite and told her, ‘How can I eat them? They’re cold!'”

It truly is not easy being a Mom! But how blessed we were to have our mothers. In this country, we will honor our mothers on Sunday, and I think it’s certainly appropriate. Paul said we as Christians are to “give honor to whom honor is due” (Romans 13:7), and I can’t think of anyone any more deserving of honor than our mothers. I hope that you will honor in a special way those mothers who are like Hannah.

In I Samuel 1, we have recorded the birth of Samuel. Before he was born, Hannah prayed a vow to God. She said, “O LORD of hosts, if You will indeed look on the affliction of Your maidservant and remember me, and not forget Your maidservant, but will give Your maidservant a male child, then I will give him to the LORD all the days of his life, and no razor shall come upon his head.” (I Samuel 1:11)

The Lord heard her petition and she was blessed with the birth of Samuel. Hannah didn’t forget her vow to the Lord. She took her son Samuel to be trained at the feet of Eli, the priest of God. From a very young age, Hannah made sure that her son was preparing to serve the Lord.

I heard about a preacher a number of years ago who came home after preaching a gospel meeting, and he was asked how it went. Rather discouraged, he said that he had only baptized one young girl who was about 12 or 13 years old — all in all, comparatively speaking, not a very successful meeting. But, after that girl grew up, she married and became the mother of five sons who became gospel preachers. What a great impact that young lady ended up having in the world!

I know that mothers — especially mothers of young children — sometimes get discouraged because they wonder if they’re really accomplishing anything. Let me assure you that if you are instilling within your children a love for God and His Word, you’re accomplishing something. It may be years down the road before you see the results, but you’re having an impact. You’re making a difference.

Give honor this weekend to your own mother — and to those mothers around you — who, like Hannah, have vowed to give their children over to God.

Have a great day!

Alan Smith
Helen Street Church of Christ
Fayetteville, North Carolina

Have a fantastic day!

Anna Lee

Wednesday Afternoon

Watching Dad and Mom see each other again today was unforgettable. It was the first time since they had been transferred to their respective facilities. Aunt Kete (Mom’s sister), Yolanda (Mom’s neice), Uncle Danny (Dad’s brother), and I were there to witness it. Mom seemed very thankful that we all came.

I got to Dad’s room early this morning with his Tall Decaf and some oatmeal and yogurt. He was up and at ’em earlier than normal, because therapy was earlier than normal, so that he could go see Mom. After therapy, I helped Dad with a bath. He wanted to freshen up for Mom. His attire for the special occasion – Superman T and Mickey Mouse pants and hospital-grey socks. And underwear. Very important. A slide into his wheelchair, phone and sliding board sitting in his lap, and we were heading toward the elevator.

I pulled the car under the drop-off canopy and helped Dad slide into the car. Chair stored in the trunk, we took off across the river in my blue Honda Civic. I mention it only to give you a mental image of Dad sliding from a wheelchair, ducking his neck-collared head, and buckling up for the ride. Pretty amazing.

We stopped briefly to grab Mom some lip balm. Dad waited in the car. Once we arrived to the West Jeff campus, we found a parking place and headed in.

Mom had a busy morning. Kete and Yolanda were in town down from Houston, MS and arrived early. Mom’s doctors and nurses came by. Several therapists came by – both for breathing treatment and physical therapy. A friend from Orlando had suggested we ask them about giving Mom a “Passy Muir Valve” to help Mom wean off of her tracheotomy. We asked. They acted like that was a good idea and ordered it. Thanks, Stephanie (and Monica, Jen’s cousin’s wife, too – she affirmed the suggestion).

You are not going to believe what the physical therapists did! They moved all of Mom’s limbs for her, just to loosen them up. Mom moved her feet on command. Then, they SAT HER UP!!! Seriously! With a lot of help, of course. They supported her body and head. Amazing!

Needless to say, once we arrived, Mom was tuckered out.

I could tell Dad was a bit disappointed that Mom was asleep when we arrived. The wound care folks came in at that same time, too. So, we all stepped out into the hall to let them do their thing. While we did, Mom’s doctor came by to talk with us. We got to talk about her care plan and the eventual plans to move her back to Orlando.

When the wound care folks were done, we rolled back in, and Mom was awake! Dad smiled big. Mom did, too, once we lowered the bed enough to let her look over and see Dad at her bedside.

We visited for about an hour and a half. I could tell Dad was tired. So we told Mom bye and that we love her so much, and we headed back downstairs to slide into the Civic. We crossed the river and stopped to grab a burger. We ate it in the parking lot of Dad’s facility before sliding out and heading up.

I asked Dad, “What were your takeaways from seeing Mom?”

He affirmed that he was disappointed at first when we saw her asleep. He so wanted to interact with her. He was so thankful she was awake and alert after the wound care folks left. He was excited about how Mom recognized him and smiled at him. I asked her to wink at me just to see if she could. She did, and then winked at Dad, too!!! He smiled then, of course. He was afraid a bit of whether Mom would be alert and be remembering him. He hoped she would have clarity.

I asked Dad if, even though I had prepared him with a picture for how Mom looked, he was surprised by how sunken in the right side of her head was where that piece of her skull is missing. He said that he was taken back a bit. It is very pronounced now that Mom is missing that part of her head. The skin flap is healing back well. Hais is even beginning to grow back there. But it is tough to see at first if you haven’t seen it before.

He told Mom that he looked forward to the day when they could hang the art from the grandkids together in the same room. We look forward to that day, too.

I posted a few more pictures on my blog of Mom and Dad and the day. Click here to check them out.

Please keep praying. Great advancements this week for both Mom and Dad. This is going to be such a long haul, though, especially for Mom. Thanks for your continued support.

I will post at you tomorrow. Erik arrives tomorrow afternoon. It’s Jen’s birthday tomorrow, too. Remember her if you will. I look forward to taking her out Friday night when I fly back home for the weekend.

By the way – I mentioned Becky Mayberry’s Dad a few posts back. His cancer has returned. They were told yesterday it is Stage 4. Please pray for his healing and for his resolve and for the family to sense more fully than ever how near God is right now. Pray for Chris (Becky’s husband) to have wisdom as he comforts Bec and leads their beautiful family (3 kids) through this. Jen and I love them so much. Chris has meant a lot to Dad during all this time, too. He rode up with me all night to New Orleans the night of the accident, and he has been back one time already to be with me and help Dad. Thanks, bud. So thankful for yall. Hurt with you and am praying.

Thankful for all of you. More than we can say.
-jason