Light, Love, Hope

Light in the Darkness Surrounded by Love with Hope for those in need.

Maria

by | Jul 28, 2021

I wrote this Monday and thought I’d share here as well.  It is heartfelt and full of emotion.
Dear Maria Miller:
Meeting each other online all those years ago ended up being one of the absolute best things to happen to us both. We have helped each other through some trying times in our lives, and we have also been each other’s biggest fans and cheerleaders along the way. We have watched our children grow up over all of these years. Who would have ever thought that a lonely single mother venturing into the online world 23 and 1/2 years ago seeking friendship would have resulted in friendships that have and will last a lifetime?! Sure, we’ve all had our ups and downs through these years – that is a part of life – but the important thing is that we always find our way back to each other. Our friendship is THAT important and a huge part of our lives. How did we ever live without each other? From silly times playing on words in the “lounge” to serious subjects and matters of the heart, we have shared just about everything with each other.
I’m so grateful for your caring, forgiving, and loving heart. You have such compassion for others and have not been afraid to lend a helping hand, no matter how it stretches you. You have given freely of yourself and the resources that you have, and now we all, in turn, give to you from the bottom of our hearts. We wish there was more we could do at this time, but we know the most important thing we can do is remain by your side and pray to our Heavenly Father for your healing. And we do! We are flooding Heaven with our prayers for you, calling you by name before Him, and we KNOW He hears us all. MATTHEW 18:20 KJV “For where two or three are gathered together in my name, there am I in the midst of them.”
No matter what your team of physicians have said, He has the final word! He is the author of your life. He knows every thing about you, even that your favorite word is the “F bomb,” and He loves you … oh how He loves you!! I will not get “preachy” on you, but I will tell you with complete confidence that God knows the plans for your life, every single one of them, and He provides Hope for you and your future. Jeremiah 29:11 provides such comfort for me, and I hope it will for you as well: For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.”
You have struggled, and you have smiled. You have continued with a brave face at times, and other times you show your most vulnerable side to us. We love each and every part of you and encourage you to continue to be as transparent as you feel necessary as we walk alongside you. You are NEVER alone … EVER! Please know that.
You might be one candle, but that is all it has taken to pierce the darkness and shine so brightly for the world to see. That’s you. That’s OUR Maria.
When I first learned of your diagnosis, I cried for days … big old ugly face crying. There is no graceful way to cry when you learn that kind of news. I cried for you, for Mike, for your children and grandchildren, and for your extended family and friends like me. Our hearts were broken right alongside your very own. There is no other way to say it. Words fail at a time like that, and all I could do was reach out to you and to God. And I’ll continue to reach out to you and to God. Neither of you will be able to get rid of me. Ha! You’re both stuck with me. But I want you to know that even in this, God is close to the brokenhearted, and I KNOW he has been close to you and even carried you through the months when you were so close to death and did not even realize it. I’m thankful for how God carried you through this. Psalm 34:18, “The Lord is near to the brokenhearted and saves the crushed in spirit.” This is who we are: the brokenhearted! We are brokenhearted for you and your family, but we are comforted knowing that the Lord is near us and is helping you — and all of us that know and love you –through this. Just like the little sign I sent you says, “We may not know what tomorrow holds, but we know who holds tomorrow!”
In four days, we will meet each other for the very first time. I have a lot of emotions going at this time. I’m so incredibly happy to FINALLY meet you! We tried a few years ago, but it wasn’t meant to be. Now, it is going to happen!! I will promise not to be a babbling mess all weekend, for there is FUN to be had and lots of laughter to be shared. I am looking forward to it all with you, Mike, and Dusty!!
We have several things planned for the weekend. I am absolutely **thrilled** to be able to share some of the very “first” adventures you’ve taken … knowing I’ll be right there with you as you experience them all!! We will be gentle, and please know that if, at any time, you need a breather from us, you are free to take all the breaks you need. We do not want you to feel self conscious at all about anything! We are understanding and know that chemotherapy has left you unable to cope with the heat of the summer. We are bringing a mini portable personal misting fan/air conditioner for you that some of the fellows use on construction jobs sites. We hope this will help you on the trail, although we aren’t going to push you even though we know you are wanting to push yourself! The hotel, horseback riding adventure, and cave kayaking adventure have all been booked and paid for, now let the fun begin! Don’t forget to wear light, comfortable clothing for the waterfalls and horseback riding, but be sure to bring a jacket, as the cave is supposed to be 55 degrees inside for the kayak adventure!
I have written a mini novel with this post, but remember I AM a member of the long post club from the “lounge” days.
I’ll end this post with much excitement and anticipation. Four days stand between us meeting each other for the first time in real life, and I seriously did start packing a few things last night so I didn’t forget them!! I hope you like me in real life!! LOL
I love you, woman!!! Always and forever!
~Shirley
(I am sharing a picture of Maria and her husband Mike.  Maria LOVES snow, and here you can see how happy she is with the love of her life beside her and what looks like a light dusting of snow in the background.)

When Your Friend Has Cancer

by | Jun 24, 2021

What do you do when your friend has cancer?  When there is no way you can “make it better” for them or “fix” it.  When all of your well wishes and positive thoughts won’t “heal” her.

You pray.

You support.

You encourage.

You listen.

You cry.

All of these and more, actually.

I have had the pleasure of knowing Maria for over 20 years.  My Maria, like the Brooks and Dunn song that was popular in the 90s … my Maria … o/~ o/~o/~o/~ … (that’s my weak attempt at musical notes).

We met way back when a broken woman wandered into an online forum called the Lifetime Lounge (that’s me, I was the broken one back then).  There, this woman found great comfort among strangers, and a kinship developed causing once mere strangers to form a bond stronger than some families ever dream of having.

I have been so fortunate and blessed to have developed such friendships with a handful of people, and we remain friends to this very day.  Life has caused some disruptions (that’s an understatement, especially with the Covid pandemic that has been ongoing).  Time has passed, and although some have grown apart as tends to happen through the years, I still feel that bonds are ever present.  It’s there, just as the love that remains no matter the length of time that goes between a phone call, text, or Facebook message.

Little things have cropped up through the years that caused misunderstandings and people to fall out with each other.  Oh, how I wish I could turn back the hands of time and fix the bad things that happened and get back the time that has been lost.  Not just with my relationships but with others all over the land so that no one has to endure such a loss as this ever again.  Alas, I don’t possess that power.   Even in my own situations, it has happened.  I was shocked at my own pettiness when I was reminded of the reasons behind the lack of communication.  For us to have allowed something so small (which must have felt huge at the time) to place wedges between us … it all seems so ridiculous now.  It’s in the past, and all we can do is go forward with the lessons we have learned along the way.

I know I’m rambling, by the way.  I have some unprocessed feelings, and what better place to work through them than right here, as writing has always been a form of therapy for me.  That is yet another thing my Maria and I have in common.  She is a beautiful writer, among other things.  The way she tells a story puts you right there in the midst of it, and you feel the feelings and go through the emotions right alongside her.  I could not bring myself to read her posts initially without tears streaming down my face.  Now, tears still sting my eyes as I face the reality that my friend has staring her in the face daily.

One of the other beautiful souls I met over 20 years ago, Greg, has helped so many times through the years.  Naturally, he is the first person I thought of when Maria reached out with an idea she had.  He helped orchestrate it.  You see, once upon a time, Maria designed a website called Heartistic Wishes.  It was an online e-card site with beautiful images, and we used that site a lot back in those days sending words of love to our friends, family, and each other.  Fast forward over all of these years, and now Greg has resurrected the site so that we can all send e-cards to Maria now, the original Heartistic.   All of the cards go directly to Maria’s email now.  What a brilliant idea …  after all, it is the fastest way to get your message to her in an online message!

Maria loves hearts, and she was concerned about others spending money buying cards to send her in the mail.  She came up with a clever idea of people making their own hearts, instead.  Colored construction paper doesn’t cost much at all, and it’s fun cutting out different designs.  Some use templates to cut the hearts, others just freehand it.   But the point is to cut out those paper hearts and write your messages of love, support, and encouragement to Maria.  Whether you know her and love her, like we do, or you’re just coming to know her via this post … Maria would love to surround herself with colorful hearts of all shapes and sizes.  She would take the cards with her to the hospital when she had to stay for an extended period of time, and they provided a bright spot in her day when she would see the visual display of love in her room.

If you would be so kind as to send your paper hearts to her at the below address, it would add a little sunshine into her days and warm her heart:

Maria Miller

100 W. 100 S.

Lagrange, IN 46761

 

We have a Facebook page we created also to follow along on her journey.  Would you please visit:

Maria’s Journey – Living With, Defeating, and Conquering Leukemia 

I have a small Instagram page for her as well.

Last, but not least … and honestly the most important thing you CAN do for her … please add Maria to your prayer chains at your church, with your friends and family, and if your office has prayer time also (I am lucky and blessed to work in an office environment with believers that pray daily for others).  Pray over Maria, her husband, her children and stepchildren, her grandchildren, her friends … speak her name …

God hears us all …

 

 

 

One On One

by | May 20, 2021

From the moment I first heard his voice, I was struck by the talent Gary LeVox possesses.  If the name doesn’t sound familiar yet, it soon will.  You may remember him as the lead singer and co-founder of Rascal Flatts!  I can almost see your eyes widen and face light up once you put two and two together now!

Yes, THAT Gary LeVox!

He combined music with his faith, and One On One was born.

I sat at work streaming his latest songs on repeat, they are THAT good!  MercyMe, BRELAND, and more join Gary on this adventure, including his own daughter, Brittany.  That truly touches my heart that they have joined together praising God with their talent.  There’s nothing quite like a bond shared between a father and a daughter, so this really spoke to me on a different level as I have always been Daddy’s Girl!

Gary believes it goes beyond just the stage presence, lights, and stardom but is an opportunity to show his fans that he is a man of God.  He has had the opportunity to meet fans, and he has used this time to pray with those struggling with big things such as a cancer diagnosis.  There is such power in prayer, and joining together lifting their hearts before our Heavenly Father, there just is no greater honor!   Gary is able to show both on and off stage his love for Christ and his passion as he reaches more souls through his music on a much deeper level now.

One dollar of every purchase goes to fight human trafficking through the Tim Tebow Foundation.  Would you please consider giving his latest EP a listen, as it debuts tomorrow, May 21, 2021:

https://garylevox.lnk.to/OneOnOneMI

Music, faith, and a whole lot of Jesus!

You will be blessed as you listen to One on One.  We encourage you to share with others as well so that they may be blessed in the process.

 

 

Disclosure: Many thanks to Capitol Christian Music Group for providing this product/product information for review.  Opinions are 100% my own and NOT influenced by monetary compensation.  I did receive a sample of the product in exchange for this review and post.

 

 

#GaryLeVoxMIN #MomentumInfluencerNetwork

shirley

Light, Love, Hope

Shirley is the proud mother of two beautiful young ladies. She enjoys spending time with them on their ranch in the deep South with their three paint horses. Always looking for an adventure, she looks forward to hikes in the mountains chasing waterfalls, or scouring the coast for beautiful lighthouses! Shirley writes to encourage others and often times shares things that motivate and inspire her. She believes in living life to the fullest because no one is promised the gift of another day. Join her as we honor our bodies, minds, hearts, souls, and our Almighty Creator, God above!