The following thoughts are from a neighbor to whom I had given a copy of the book by Dr. Mark Sheehan (See the On Holy Ground presentation by Dr Sheehan on the first page of this web site).Her husband was dying from liver cancer and it is so difficult for her to know how to pray.  This message and others from her have been full of trust in God, full of hope, full of anger, full of frustration.  She had been reading the book out loud to her husband and as you can see she reads it alone and receives strength from its message.

May 15, 2014 Good morning,

Oh my, how can I put in words how timely this email was! I wish I could share with you all The Lord has done in our lives these past four years.

The writing I shared four years ago came back to our memories like a flood as this morning I re-read to McKenna what I had written. At the time we all were in a “fog” but I remember the day clearly now. I hope to be able to meet Dr. Sheehan some day and thank him personally for ministering to me during the difficult time of watching a loved one slowly dying. 

Caleb’s death in April 2007 was sudden and the shock, even though excruciating and painful, was different in the sense that I was Loel’s helpmate, his other “half” and I felt literally torn in two. But God, my loving Heavenly Father and faithful companion has held me and kept me putting one foot in front of the other and has sent soooo many people, believers and non to help in my time of need!

I don’t mind our names being shared as my desire is to minister to and comfort others with the comfort He’s given to us.

Thank you again for sharing this, it is part of our healing process as those “fractured” places in our hearts are being restored. Also, being able to share our stories and speak of our loved ones and knowing that others haven’t forgotten them warms our hearts.

Rhonda 

Romans 8:28

Original posting of  April 2010: 

“I enjoyed seeing the skies clear after several days of weird weather here in Colorado! I love storms but the one a few days ago was rather ominous! We had a funnel cloud sighting just a few miles from us and we decided to gather all the critters and help Loel downstairs to wait out the storm. Wind, rain, hail came with a vengeance and made me think of how powerful our God is and thought if it is our “time” then at least we were all together:)
It made it hard for Loel to have the breath to climb the stairs after the storm had passed and he has been experiencing that “shortness of breath” since. The morphine is supposed to help with that but then makes him “wacky” and sleepy which about five other meds do! After having a great conversation with Mckenna last night about him seeking the Lord first rather than the meds, we both decided that he take the minimum and only as needed. She has such strong convictions for such a young lady!
He has been having trouble settling his mind so again I am realizing how much we need to lean in to the Lord and not withdraw! I did not “lean in” but chose instead to withdraw. Loel was honest with me that he does not desire to be healed on this earth and that is hard to hear so I have to listen more closely and lean more heavily on the Lord. I found myself not only angry with Loel but angry at God and after shedding tears and sharing an emotional evening together we had some time of gut level honesty with one another. Sharing of our fears of what’s to come, our concerns for Mckenna, my thoughts of him depending more on the Lord and not me, and ending the evening with my reading a book by a Denver cardiologist who shares stories of his patients who have encounters with God; some in near death experiences and some stories of those in “the dying room” where he speaks of it being a “holy” place. I hope this doesn’t sound like a “downer” or morbid to those who are reading this but why do we fear death so much? Especially when we know that as believers, this world is not our home! What is so hard now is the whole process of dying. What will it look like? Will we be able to handle the symptoms as they progress to a more difficult level? It says in the Bible that “I can do all things through Christ who gives me strength” so I will try continue to call on Him for strength and choose not to withdraw. Jesus himself withdrew to solitary places to get away from the crowds at times but He always sought the Father when He did get away. I feel His arms around me tonight even as I write this and His grace is sufficient. He promises to give strength to the weary and rest for our souls when we cry out to Him. He is a gentleman and will not force Himself upon us but will always answer when we are desperate and call upon Him.
May you encounter Him as you go through your own trials and times of questioning your purpose here on this planet.
Good night and I am sorry that I have not been able to return calls or emails as often but I know you all understand! 😉 “

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