Posted on 08/14/2014 5:55:53 AM PDT by PigRigger
My heart breaks as I write this....as I have posted before....my daughter has been fighting Heroin addiction.
Yesterday....after entering sober living....she relapsed and OD'd. The medics brought her back....but we have no idea as to what to expect when we get to her....we are flying to her side as we speak...
Please pray for our daughter...pray for us...to allow for God's will and grace to find and cover her in His healing.
Thanks....your prayers and those from all the FRiends...are supporting us beyond measure...
Please keep praying....
There is a chance through all of this...another lost soul may find their way to our Lord and separate themelf from the death that drugs lead...
More to come over the next few days...I hope.
Big Day today....taking Amanda’s boyfriend up to Albany.....praise & thank God...
Please pray for both Amanda and Pat.... May God fill there hearts & souls with His love and mercy.... and let them experience a life beyond all expectations....!
Prayin’.
praying for all of you!
PR, you came to mind just now, and I was prompted to pray for you and Amanda.
I have been catching up on your posts and hope good news is coming.
Your note to Amanda was tremendous, and totally proper and right.
I’ll pray for Pat as well, and for your family.
I said before that the Lord saved Amanda from certain death for a purpose.
Keep up the great job, don’t get tired of doing good, and let the Lord direct your ways. You are a great father.
Humbly thank the good Lord this morning.... His will is certainly evident in our lives...
The court’s ruling (after telling us only two days ago that she would get probation and a permanant drug charge on her record)....after understanding Amanda is in Long Term Rehab:
- One charge dismissed
- One charge to be dismissed in one year (conditionally)
- One charge reduced to a fineable violation (conditionally)
The condition being she finish her year long Christian treatment program....
God has Amanda just where he wants her..... In His Grip for sure...! God is at work… I will not stand in His way. I only pray for him to use me as His will dictates.
The following evening my family and I spend an incredible evening with Amanda at Freedom Chapel. The walls surrounding my daughter’s heart look to be crumbling. The Lord looks to be bringing a sledge hammer to this battle... I am overwhelmed....
There are so many things going on outside of the things I write... I am awed and a bit freaked by God’s presence in our lives right now. I believe am actually living something supernatural. Sounds crazy I know…but until one lives it… one may never truly understand.
Praise God…I truly delight in His will.
Like a Rushing Wind
Jesus Breathe Within
Lord Have Your Way
Lord Have Your Way in Me
Like a Mighty Storm
Stir Within My Soul
Lord Have Your Way
Lord Have Your Way in Me
I Surrender
I Surrender
To everyone... Kathy, please let the Prayer Warriors hear the good news...
>>>>
As we near Christmas... I thought I would give you all an update on Amanda....
Well, today Amanda finished her physical rehabilitation.... she is scoring normally in all physical tests administered.
In addition, Amanda was given a Psych Eval a week and a half ago.... this includes measuring her mental capabilities in addition to her emotional state. She scored in the normal range on all tests given.
The doctor delivering the results would not call it a miracle (but I know better).... but it was obvious she was having a hard time correlating the EEG results with the test results being communicated.
She communicated that she never spent so much time with a patient when delivering such good news (results).... but she felt compelled with Amanda... because there was something in her that showed such great potential (thank you Holy Spirit).... She wanted to make it clear that she was blessed to have this second chance...
So thank you all.... your prayers and support will never be forgotten... From the pit of despair and agony.... to endless hope....
Our God is great....
May you find peace and joy this Holiday Season.... Merry Christmas & Happy New Year...
Fantastic update. Thanks.
PigRigger, thanks for sharing the wonderful news.
Amanda has been blessed, and you have been rewarded for your faithfulness.
Lest we be remiss, let us praise the Lord for His unspeakable gift to you and your family this Christmas—your daughter has been made well.
Please let Amanda know we are still pulling for her and hope to hear great things about her in 2015.
Merry, merry Christmas!
Merry Christmas, PR....to you and your family. Your family is very blessed and I am very happy to hear such a positive update. I said another prayer for Amanda to have a long and healthy life. God bless!
Thanks for the wonderful update, PigRigger. I’ve been thinking about Amanda and hoping and praying for the best.
Long one... so please bear with me... and I hope you find encouragement in it....
Thank You Lord for this day.... for the blessings and mercies of yesterday, today and tomorrow.... blessed be Your Holy Name.... For you are the sovereign power over all time and space... You are the one that delivers us.
Today is the day, a year ago, that the world appeared to come crashing down upon my wife and I, but if not for prayer... it would have been the end rather than the begining.
What I have learned during this last year, above many things, is the power of prayer. It is our life line, our connection, to God.... it invokes His mercy, His grace and moves Him to act....
Hundreds, if not thousands, prayed for us, never stopped raising requests for healing to our Lord.... It gave us comfort and peace.... it encouraged us to continue on in hope when we heard one devastating report after another from the physicians.
Never discount its’ power.... never hold back... when you have no idea what to say to someone going through a crisis... tell them you are praying for them... that you love them... that they are not far from your thoughts.... it means so much... even if they cannot express it at the time.... one of the most comforting thoughts expressed to me during that time was at the end of a long day.... where someone understood our exhaustion.... and told us...”rest, we will carry her in prayer tonight”.
There are so many I wish I could thank personally... from the prayer warriors to strangers sitting with us, feeding us.... listening to us... and in silence letting us know that we were not alone nor forsaken...Thank you from the bottom of hearts... your names will forever be etched in our hearts....
Two prayer moments stand out that I remember as if they occurred yesterday... may you find comfort in them as I did when they occurred...From my personal journal during that time:
August 14th:
When landing I called a friend, Chris…. I spoke and prayed with him outside of Fort Lauderdale airport… he encouraged me not to give up hope….. that our God is a God of love, mercy and grace….. I communicated that some of the Pastors he led us to had already visited the hospital and prayed over Amanda… it was incredibly comforting….I was trembling and needed to hear it….
In the Hospital that first day....
More visits and prayers followed…. people showed such kindness. One person in particular came to visit, a mountain of a man, his name is Bill. He prayed over her…. put his hands on her head and body and asked Father God to heal her…. stating that it was not the doctors or the nurses that would heal her… but HIM… that He had promised that if we ask in Jesus’s name for the will of God to be such, and with unquestioning faith, …it would be given…
I was told later that his son communicated…. that on the way to the hospital…. it was of one of the few times he had ever seen tears in his father’s eyes.
That moment and time will be forever with me… the strength of that prayer was felt… I knew God was in the room with us…. and was carrying our weight and cries on his shoulders. Nothing can adequately describe the agony….. and the feeling of grace... I felt at that moment.
Just checking in, PigRigger.
Hope all is well with Amanda, Pat and you.
The posts from the last few months are very encouraging.
God bless.
TY for asking.... and yes.... all is well
Amanda refers to where she is as home, she is incrementally showing signs of a maturity she has never displayed before. She has begun to express a degree of fright about the future and what she will do with her life.... she did this through some tears.... while I smiled..
She did not understand why I was smiling, but when I told her that it was the first time she expressed such ever to me and that all young people to some degree have that thought.... she seemed to understand.... it really is the first time she has ever faced reality with a sober mind....
She also is having trouble trying to come to grips with her boyfriend.... it is likely he is using after leaving rehab early... she told me that it is likely she will never be able to see him again.... it breaks her heart... and scares me.... because if she does not discern properly and stay away... it could lead to her relapsing.... and worse.
She still has 3-6 months to go.... i don’t know what tomorrow holds.... but I pray unceasingly to God that He leads.... my daughter asks me what she needs to do to understand her future... i tell her to open her heart and pray with faith and thanksgiving...
She has come so far, the Lord has not forsaken us.... He has delivered on His promise.... she has grown closer to Him.... I can see it when we worship, her heart embraces Him through song and prayer.... He truly is a life changer...
Please continue to pray for her and us... God has heard our prayers and has walked with us every step.... pray He gives her strength and courage to stay obedient to His calling....
I face the dilemma of being laid off by years end... just another trial we will need to endure... please pray the Lord opens another door for us on that front as well..
God has blessed us on so many fronts... I am awed by what I have seen over this last year or so.... He is real.... all praise, honor and glory be His...
Hi FRiends -
Been two months since my last update.... so here goes...
We spent a wonderful weekend with my daughter these past three days. I am awed at what God has seen fit to do in our family.
Amanda has about two months to go before she graduates from teen challenge... She has expressed interest in going back to school and working again. Her accelerator is 100mph... she wants to move forward in the worst way... sometimes I have to help her take the foot off the gas and take it one day at a time.... it is blessing.
Over the past weekend she told a neighbor that they are more than welcome to come to her graduation... but their daughter, someone who likely abuses, is not welcome... because ehs needs to move forward in a life that does not include such... my wife said she did it in a very beautiful and touching manner... I know that does not mean she will not stuggle with such for the rest of her life.... but I see she has a desire not to go back to who she was.
She also met with some people who were there when she first left our house to continue her usage. These two persons tried desperately to convince her to go... but the evil of drugs has a different message and pull... and she ignored them.
Bill and Christy are people of strong faith who never stoppped praying for her... Bill in particular has become a dear friend.
When they had to leave Amanda led a prayer with them... she brought Bill to tears... His quote... “I just heard one of the most powerful heartfelt bone marrow penetrating prayers”. Bill is a mountain of a man in stature and faith... it blessed my heart to hear those words.
Through this weekend I just tried to step back and let God take me where He wished.... it gave me a glimpse into what could be.... God willing..... what will be.... a family restored and reconcilled through God’s grace.
On the other front... my job.... my career.... with my company still looks like it may be coming to end... They are in full swing in outsourcing 1000’s of jobs to India. I will know my fate in January.
It is like a death by a thousand cuts.... each day you see people being let go (you pray for strength and for them).... each day you get a bit more bad news.... each day the reality becomes more clear.
Here too.... I hold to my faith. I KNOW God will provide.... even if the plan He has is not my plan. It is jusat a very difficult struggle....
I will continue to pray and ask God to renew, transform and bring us closer to Him each day.... To give us strength and courage.... to go with and before us.... opening doors that I could never otherwise move....
I kept a journal up until my daughter entered Teen Challenge.... I think I will start it up again. This next part of the journey God has us on may also give others hope.... a hope based on God’s mercy and grace.... not on our own doings...
Please continue to keep our family in your prayers.... pray for our health, strength and God’s blessings. I will continue to pray for all of you as well.... for you were there in spirit when we walked the darkest road of our lives.
BTW, Amanda’s grauation will be live streamed.... I will post the link as the time nears.
God Bleass... Tom & Alyssa
May Amanda continue to choose life the rest of her days; may her sins be forgiven and forgotten. May God grant her all the grace she needs to persevere and may it be well with you and those you love.
Prayers Warriors....Amanda update.
http://freerepublic.com/focus/religion/3192727/posts?page=336#336
Prayers continuing for Amanda, and you, and the whole family.
Prayers.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.