Celebrate the Feast!

"The feasts of the Lord, which you shall proclaim to be holy convocations,

these are My feasts.” Leviticus 23:2

This past week has been quiet.  Well, let's rephrase that...This past week has been fairly uneventful.  Gramma is remaining positive through her aches and pains.  She appears to forget that her pain is there and it seems to be new to her each day.  Yesterday, Gramma was coming out of the bathroom and told me about her pain.  I told her we needed to speak to God.  She said, "You know, He'll heal me if he wants to.  He may not want to yet.  But He'll do what He wants."  She tells me that she is just glad to know He loves her! 

Tomorrow at sundown begins Chanukah.  We have recognized the first day of Chanukah as a family in the past but never to the degree of recognizing the importance of the celebration.  Realizing that Jesus celebrated the feasts gives the entire idea a deeper meaning.  I've come to realize that many Christians believe the New Testament has REPLACED the Old Testament.  This is not true.  Jesus said "Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them. I tell you the truth, until heaven and earth disappear, not the smallest letter, not the least stroke of a pen, will by any means disappear from the Law until everything is accomplished." Matthew 5:17-18  That would be like saying the Ten Commandments were obsolete!  

Gramma is very excited about Chanukah.  She is wanting to buy gifts for the kids to celebrate, but we've already used her "spending money" on Christmas presents she wanted for the kids.  I did buy chocolate candy coins, which are traditional in our family at Chanukah.  The idea of having the traditional food and lighting the Menorah makes Gramma feel connected to God.  There's nothing like a "Completed Jew", as Merna would say!!! 

For those of you that are unaware of what Chanukah is all about, this is an overview:

Hanukkah commemorates the victory of a band of Jewish warriors, the Maccabees, over the Syrian king Antiochus almost 2,500 years ago. After driving out the Syrians, the Maccabees reoccupied the Temple of Jerusalem, where they found enough oil to keep the all-important "Eternal Light" shining for only one day. Miraculously, the oil lasted for eight days, hence the eight days of Hanukkah (which is derived from the Hebrew word for "rededication.")  ehow.com

Chanukah is called "The Festival of Lights" in the modern world.  Like Christmas, it has been reduced to a commercial fantasy with the main marketing goal being money.  Dradels, games, presents and food!  While I don't think our Almighty Father has a problem with fun and food, it is the fact that He is not typically the focus of the celebration.  Be sure to celebrate the power, mercy, grace and favor of your Creator this Holy Day season!

Through the fog

Yesterday was Thanksgiving and we had my sister and my friend with her seven children over!  It was quite pleasant considering there were 14 kids in the house.  Gramma handled it very well and spent most of her time out and about with the rest of us.  She was impressed by the amount and quality of the food and ate every bite of her meal.  She was still experiencing a lot of pain in her legs but continued to be positive about it. 

My sister thought Gramma was confused all day because she acted as though she didn't know who she was.  She kept asking my sister if some of these kids were hers, which is strange because my sister is 23, never married and no kids.  She has dismissed Gramma's salvation as "crazy dementia", but she says she is glad she's happy.  I couldn't figure out why Gramma would be confused about my sister because she had been asking about her all week in anticipation of her coming to dinner.  She wanted to share God's love with her and pray that she come to accept Him back into her life.  After my sister left, Gramma asked me why she hadn't come to dinner.  She mentioned that she never wants to come and see her.  It turns out that she hadn't recognized my sister (sad considering she just lives in Cartersville) and thought she hadn't come.  It spoke to me spiritually.  Timing is everything when it comes to the things of God!

Last night, when I got her comfortably in bed, she grabbed my hand and stroked it while telling me how wonderful I am to her.  She said she never knew how much she needed to be here and she said God did this for her.  She looked at me and said "You know I'll die here?"  I told her I knew and it was ok because that is why I brought her here.  I explained that I had just wanted her to know the love of Christ, one way or another, before the end of her days.

Today was special in its own way.  Gramma was aggravated with the noise level in the house and stayed in her room until our friends Dossie and Melissa left with their two children.  During that time, a neighbor came to introduce herself so that our children might play together.  While keeping confidence, I can say that it was obvious she had some substance issues in her life.  She "accidentally walked into Gramma's room and started to walk out while apologizing.  Then, for no reason, out of curiosity, she went back in and introduced herself.  Gramma smiled and grabbed her hand and spoke so sweetly to her.  The girl sat on her bed and listened as Gramma blessed her and told her about God's love.  She told her that good things would come to her.  The girl was crying and asked if she could come back and sit with her.  She said she wants to listen to her.  Then, she encouraged us to write down what she says!! She said there was no reason for her to have walked into that room, but she had been drawn in by her.  Melissa told her that she was meant to have been there! It was sweet.

It amazes me how Gramma can go from confusion to hearing a clear message from the Spirit and relay that message just the way the Lord would have it said!  I am blessed to be a vessel for Gramma's ministry!

Peace

And the peace of God, which passeth all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus. Philippians 4:7

Gramma was still in a lot of pain today and, for a moment, it seemed she may have forgotten how to walk.  She has vascular dementia which is similar to having Alzheimer's disease so this is not unlikely.  I never know which will be her last day because she has many blood clots in her brain and will either wither away from the dementia, which we have seen happening, she could have many small strokes or she could have one massive stroke.  My prayer is that she will be called home peacefully in her sleep and not suffer.  I suppose this is all of our prayer for the end of life. 

She is well aware that her time is soon and has expressed her peace with this since receiving Christ as her Messiah.  She says He told her it would be soon, but not yet, not today!  She says He has shown her heaven and He said she will be with Him there.  She says she has spoken to my mother that passed in 2004.  She was a believer, the only one of her siblings, so far!  She told me my mom was beautiful and tall and blond and she doesn't cry.  During the time she claims to have gone to Heaven, she was in the car and seemed to be babbling.  Then she said, "Who are all these people?  Who are they?  No one is crying here.  You told me you would take me to Heaven if I needed it and you knew I needed to see it!"  She seemed as if she didn't even realize we were there with her.  After this encounter, she had peace about death.  Now death to her means new life!

In her pain today, I asked her if she had spoken to God about it (this is what she asked a man at Bethel with shingles) and she stopped and prayed.  Immediately, she was happy and began to go on and on about the things of God.  She was not complaining of her pain, although it was obvious she still had it.  She said "He told me it will be ok with me!"  This statement seemed enough for her and she was satisfied.

I am no longer worried about her death.  She is so confident of heaven and everlasting life that I know death will be a joyous homecoming and reunion for her.  When she heard the news about North Korea and South Korea and all of the other problems in the World, she said she believed it may be the end of the World.  We discussed this for a moment and I explained that it didn't bother me because I have the hope of salvation and the rapture of the church.  She said, as if I hadn't known, "Not everyone is going to get to go!" She was shaking her head and pointing.  This just reassures me that she gets it!  I pray that those I love, that you love, will come to know the hope of salvation, amazing grace and the peace that passes all understanding.  The day of the Lord is at hand and He is coming for His bride!

Gloria, our friend, Gramma's new friend, from Crossroads came to see her today.  She was overjoyed when Gloria walked in the room and gave her a big hug and kiss.  She lit up and was stroking Gloria's arm.  She was laying in bed due to the pain in her legs but went on visiting without complaining and filled with delight that Gloria had come to spend time with her.  I pray I have this same appreciation for the people in my life.  It is special to be thought of!  I encourage you all to spend time with an elderly person.  Many of them sit in nursing homes with no visitors, not even family.  No one wants to feel they are not worth visiting.  Go regularly and remember their names.  Bring them the hope and the peace that you have through Christ. 

Sarah's Gramma

Jesus said, "Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of heaven belongs to such as these." Matthew 19:14 

I don't know what it is about Sarah, our two year old, but once you are in her house, you are HERS!  When we brought our dog Holly home, she was instantly Sarah's.  When Sarah would be disciplined, she'd run to Holly and throw herself around her neck to sob and get comfort! 

Sarah has not had any reservations about Gramma since we brought her home either.  When she was in the hospital, Sarah climbed up in the bed with her, kicked up her feet and put her arm behind Gramma's head and twirled her hair.  I often catch her brushing Gramma's hair and putting lotion on her.  One day when one of the home health specialists came, Sarah sat in the bed petting her like a puppy.  Petting often turns to pinching.  She finds it fascinating how her skin feels and it sticks together once pinched (sign of dehydration, and old age) and she plays with it!!!

So this morning Sarah asked Gramma to put her old baby bib with the pocket on her.  Gramma's motor skills are almost 87 years old so she was unable to get it snapped.  She gave it the OLD college try for about three minutes and during this time, Sarah was playing with Gramma's face.  She was squeezing her cheeks together and stretching her mouth out, pulling her eyes up!  Gramma was laughing and said, "Would you look at this girl?  I love her!"  It was hysterical!

In the past, Gramma could never have endured this kind of "abuse"!  She would have been annoyed and horrified at the children's hands all over her.  Now she craves it!  It is life to her.  She longs for Jacob's kisses and Maddie learning to walk with her, holding on the walker.  She says "God kisses me through Jake." (whom she calls Jackie)   The joy she gets from the kids is straight from Heaven.  I walked in the living room one day and Emily was practicing the keyboard, playing "Old Suzanna" while Gramma hummed the tune, Sarah danced and Jacob used Gramma's fingers as a keyboard and played them!  She smiled from ear to ear.  I am convinced that the love of Christ that led her to the cross was initiated through them. 

When Gramma had her last TIA, it was pretty serious and lasted about 30 min.  I had to call the doctor during this time and get instructions.  Sarah came to me with a roll of duct tape and said "Stickers, I want stickers!"  I was deep in conversation with the doctor and chose to tear pieces of tape for her so she'd be quiet while I talked.  The dog sensed something was wrong and jumped up on her lap.  When I got off the phone, Gramma was covered in duct tape.  I imagined that if the state had walked in at that moment and found a naked two year old putting duct tape all over an elderly woman having a mini stroke with a dog in her lap licking all over her face, they were likely to take my kids and my grandmother from me!!  After the feeling of chaos subsided, I was able to see it as God sending these sweet creatures to fix her up.  Even if it was with duct tape!

 I will cherish these moments forever, as will my children, and Gramma for eternity!  When she went to bed last night I said "I love you Gramma, you're my favorite!"  She looked at me and said "Look, this is you to me!" and she had plastered a  HUGE smile on her face, teeth and everything!

Overcome by the Spirit

And His name shall be called Wonderful,Counsellor, Mighty God, everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. Isaiah 9:6

 Today Gramma woke up in a lot of pain. In fact, she went to bed that way but told me the Lord told her she'd make it!  I could tell she was really hurting and I asked her if she was willing to take some pain medication.  She agreed that she was in a lot of pain and needed to take it, knowing it would likely increase confusion. 

Gramma was most certainly confused within an hour of taking the medication.  We figured she would spend the day sleeping.  Instead, she chose to hang with Ayana in the living room.  She looked Ayana in the eye and told her there was a "man" interested in her but was bad for her.  She told her many things about this boy and described his personal and physical characteristics.  It was a confirmation to something my husband had been telling us for months.  When she was through telling Ayana all she had to say, she went back to bed and has been "loopy" since then. 

Our days have been filled with experiencing Gramma's revelation that He has always known her and He loved her right away.  She says she has been to the cross where he was crucified and she saw Him cry.  The cross means more to her than I've ever realized through my own salvation.  She told me that the people there were His people, HER people, but they didn't know.  He told her that they WILL know, and she says "Now I know!" with a smile! 

I cry every time she steps outside and looks to the heavens and says "Do you see Him? He's all over!" as she waves her hand across the sky, supporting herself by her walker with the other.  She smiles and says "Thank you!"

The tears in her eyes are real, her salvation is real and her testimony is humbling.  I thank God that He chose ME to be here with her now.  I feel so humbled that a woman that openly rejected God, rejected Christ and was angry at the mention of His name, has an appreciation for the Awesomeness of Almighty God that I have not expressed in my own 14 years of salvation.  He truly is a mighty God!

First Church Service

"I was glad when they said unto me, Let us go into the house of the LORD!"  Psalm 122:1


Today was Grandma's very first church service.  We attended our new church home, Crossroads Baptist Church.  Gramma had the privilege of ministering to friends at Bethel Worship Center yesterday, and is blessed to have an opportunity to share her faith with other believers.

We pulled up to the church and the first thing she noticed was the steeple.  She commented on how beautiful it was and then she noticed the cross in the window that sits behind the baptismal pool.  She smiled and said "Oh, there it is...He gave that for me!"  We pulled up to the door and she looked out at the greeters and the people standing in the doorway.  She very seriously said "Do they know Him like I know Him?"  I laughed and assured her that we would not have taken her to a church where they did not know Him!

The service began with awesome worship from Edward and Christa.  Gramma raised her hands and worshipped, even commenting out loud in response to some of the words to the songs.  Pastor Brandon preached a wonderful, Spirit filled sermon and, for the most part, Gramma enjoyed it.  She does not see well and struggled visually with chasing him around the stage as he is a very passionate, enthusiastic teacher!  She thought he may have been angry when he began raising his voice during very intense parts of the service but I explained that he was just feeling passionate about the word. 

We sat behind a very charismatic woman that expresses her agreement with the pastor out loud during the sermon.  Gramma was distracted and suddenly says "Something is WRONG with her!"  John and I hung our heads and poorly stiffled our laughter! She later apologized and said, "I don't know what it is with her, but I shouldn't say that about people!"

Overall, Gramma was blessed to be in the House of the Lord!

Amazing Grace...

How sweet the sound, that saved a wretch like me! 

My mom died in 2004, the born again Christian daughter of a very Jewish family.  Years before, the Lord had promised her that her family would be saved.  No one realized what this actually meant!  What I DID know was that I was determined to have an opportunity to witness to grandma before she died.  I spent a lot of time wondering how in the world I would go about witnessing to a very "anti-Jesus" Jew.

Grandma Cohn had been a harsh woman driven by fear her entire life and there was enough water under the bridge to drown in.  I had made up my  mind that I would petition her over the years to let me take care of her when the time came.  She said she would never live in Georgia and her people were not here.  She did not want to hear about Jesus, nor was she big on a lot of children!  Hmmm...

Sure enough, grandma had a significant stroke at the age of 86 and I was able to convince my Uncle to let me care for her, against her will.  She came in September and, although slightly ornery, came to trust us and love our home as her own.  She has continued to have mini-strokes since she got here and has slowly lost memory and some cognition.  After her second of two mini- strokes in less than a week, I prayed with my husband and made the decision that I would witness to her about the promised Messiah once and for all.  I was concerned about her ability to comprehend, but I still had a job to do.  I needed to fulfill my purpose for bringing her here, to show her the LOVE of Christ, and now to tell her.  It seemed a shot in the dark, given her memory, cognition and the fact that she had thrown our Bibles across the table because she said she was tired of seeing all of our Bibles laying around everywhere she looked.

She repeated a prayer after me, babbled some, and stopped me a couple of times to say things like "He did that?  They hurt him."  to which I responded "Yes, they did, but He did that so you wouldn't have to!"  She continued to repeat the prayer and I left her to rest.  I called Pastor Scott to intercede because I don't put much stock in a woman with severe vascular dementia reciting a prayer after me.  Pr. Scott put out a request for intercession and confirmation. 

About an hour, or less, later, Gramma came out of her room and told us "HE" was speaking to her "right here" as she pointed to her heart.  She said He came to her bed and spoke to her.  She looked to see where "HE" was but she couldn't find Him.  Then she said, "He was a man, but not like you would say...There's a man!"  He told her to get up and tell us what He wanted us to hear through her.  She began to quote new testament scripture and she ministered to us until night time. 

As she came in and out of the Spirit, she stopped and said "Why did He pick ME?"  She said she knows it is because He loves her.  Then she spent 20 minutes witnessing to my uncle.  She said "Ricky, He will come to you the way He came to me and you will know Him because He loves you."  John and I were on our knees, humbled before God!  Then she said "It will be in HIS timing, not ours and it will be His way, not ours."

Since then, she has ministered to many people and given specific prophecy to some of them.  She has wisdom as though she has been a Christian for 40 years.  Today she sat in the sanctuary at Bethel and worshipped with us and prayed and ministered.  She shared a conversation she had with Jesus at the cross at his crucifixion.  She said " They (the Jews) didn't know what they were doing.  They didn't know, but I know because He told me, they now they WILL know.  She said "Did you know He cried because they didn't know?"  There is so much to tell!  I am humbled.

Everyday, there is a new message coming through her.  Day one was that we need to learn to laugh because He LOVES to laugh!   Day two was that we must LISTEN to what He is telling us and speak the things He tells us.  Today was "Never forget the things He has told you."

I plan to continue to update here as Grammas walk unfolds and she moves toward heaven!

This is a picture of Gramma's first encounter with a physical cross since her salvation.  The diologue is visible in her face..."Thank you for doing this for me!"