Nancy's Ramblings

"The Cove…" By Nancy Alexander

Writers Advance Boot Camp…

Steve and I just returned from an inspiring, jam-packed weekend at The Cove.  We walked halls covered with pictures of Billy Graham, his family, and many important figures who know, love and respect him.  We attended classes taught by many well known authors and teachers, as we got to talk to famous authors who give God all the credit for their work and their inspiration.  Steve and I were inspired as we knew that we were exactly where we were meant to be — as we felt we were walking on Holy Ground.  .

If you have never heard of The Cove, it is the Billy Graham Training Center in Asheville, NC.  This truly is an amazing place – a place of peace, safety, and retreat from the outside world.  We attended a Christian Writers Retreat with my unfinished book in hand.  If you haven't heard me mention the book of my life, the name is:  FIBROMYALGIA: RUMORS, RAVAGES, AND THE RESCUE.

We were there to "pitch" my book to an editor.  This particular editor, Eddie Jones, is the owner, and Acquisitions Editor of Lighthouse Publishing.  The time we spent with Eddie was enlightening, exciting, and inspiring.  He basically said: "your book is the type we are looking for, because it can help many women suffering from chronic illnesses similar to the ones I have — or had."  Yes, I did know this, because this was my main reason for hiring a published writer to help me in this, often painful, writing process.  He also said:  "Go home and write quickly!  We need to get this story out as soon as possible.  Even after you're finished writing, it could take a year for them to do what they need to do."

We learned that Lighthouse was a great publisher to go with — they care — they are concerned about their writers, which is SO important.   We took a class from him later, comparing the smaller publishing houses to the larger publishers.  As a matter of fact, we also met with Diana Flegal who is an agent specializing in getting manuscripts in front of some of the larger publishers.  She basically said the same thing.  I have a VERY STRONG platform, meaning that I already have a following of, mostly ladies, who are waiting for my book — for my help.  They need and want this help and encouragement. 

These ladies are suffering just as I did.  I can help them by telling the story of the path I walked for over 30 years which included self-doubt, pain, and suffering.  I can also tell them how I now experience the freedom of knowing I can and do now live strongly!  I am finally able to reach my dreams for the first time in my life.  I am finally able to feel self-confidence which is sorely lacking when you have chronic illnesses.  And I am finally able to dream my dreams with a sense that they can and will come true.  And last, but certainly not least, I can attest to the fact that God IS with them always — as He was with me always – even when I didn't see or feel His presence. 

He IS always there.  He IS always looking after each of us as we travel the journey He has for us which molds and shapes us into His children — the ones He put on this earth to become.

We really enjoyed this experience with my co-author, Laura Poole, as well as friends from Anderson.

We will continue working on "my story".  There is a lot yet to be done, but to know that it could make a difference in one life, two lives, three lives, or hundreds (it's worth it, no matter how many lives God wants it to reach).

"My Story…" By Nancy Alexander

I Filmed a Video of Me Talking About My Story…

I just filmed a short video about "my story" that went out in my newsletter on Tuesday.  You have probably heard me talk on this blog about my story of fighting Celiac and Fibromyalgia before.  Some days I am speechless when I look at how many emails I still get from women who are suffering and going undiagnosed every single day.  I got sick when I was twenty-nine years old.  That was thirty years ago!  Wouldn't you think by now, that a diagnosis and the correct medical care would be easier to get?

My partner, Linda Joseph, and I have a new website, www.PassionIntoProfits.com.  This site is set up to be more intense workshops in my home studio than we could offer in www.BestOfNancy.com, as well as more intense group coaching.  So, in announcing this new website, Linda and our personal coach wanted me to film this video.  We want to let women, who are just like I was thirty years ago, know that they CAN dream, and they CAN learn wreath-making as well as any other craft, and they CAN learn to sell online to bring in extra income.  In other words, there is help out there to makes their lives fuller, and more joy-filled!

If you watched my video, I must tell you that was very hard for me to film.  I have felt led by God for such a long time to get my story out there in hopes that I can help those of you who have chronic illnesses, or other issues you are having to deal with.  I am sixty-two years old!!  And, I am now able to do more than I have done in the last thirty years.

I feel as though I went through so much, so that I could feel your pain — and I CERTAINLY do! 

Please don't EVER give up.  Please don't EVER accept a doctor telling you it is all in your head, when "you" know that you're really sick.  Keep searching, keep looking, find a good nutritionist like I have who can help you with diet, allergies, which foods you can eat, as well as which foods you cannot eat — and so much more.

Do you know that just this week, I found out I had another problem?  Have you ever heard of high histamine?  Well, the normal number should be around 20.  I was just tested, and mine is 134!  This leads to another group of foods that I cannot and will not eat — but that is okay!  In some ways it is comforting to know that, yes… I HAVE really been sick all these years when no one believed me.  But, at the same time, it makes me very sad; sad to know that I spend those years searching and searching and never finding an answer.

I then remind myself that without having a chronic illness, I would NEVER have been right here, today.  I would not be talking to you right now.  I don't think I would have ever made it this far if it were not for the fact that God's reason was for me to be able to love and encourage each of you!

"God has a perfect plan for us.  He never does it all at once, just step by step because
He wants to teach us to walk by FAITH, not by sight."  ~Author Unknown~

Thank you for visiting today.  I continually pray for each of you!  Smiles… Nancy

"My Husband…" By Nancy Alexander

As He Drives off in the Dark…

It is 5:50 am, early on this Thursday morning, as I wave and blow kisses to my Steve as he drives out our driveway in the dark.  My heart is full knowing that this man who has to be at work at 7 am, after a 45 minute drive, gets up this early to attend a Bible study before the long drive ahead of him. 

I woke up with Steve this morning at 4:30 (which is sort of hard — as you might imagine).  Actually it takes 2 alarms on the clock, and my iPhone singing "It's a Beautiful Morning," to make us roll out each side of the bed after five quick kisses — yes, it has to be exactly five!

I know…you're saying 4:30 am??  Yes, that's right!  You got it!  Well, actually it isn't 4:30 every single morning of the week.  On Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday, it is 5:15 — we actually get to sleep in on those days.  And…I'm sure you're saying…you don't "really" have to get up that early with your husband, do you?  Well, no, I don't.  But I will, no matter what, for as long as I am able, or until God decides my time on this earth is over.  I know how blessed I am, and I will never take that for granted.

So, this morning, I got up with Steve, showered, dressed, fixed my hair, and put on my makeup.  A pot of coffee was already brewing in the kitchen with inviting smells seeping throughout the entire house.  His breakfast and lunch were stacked nicely in the fridge ready to be tucked into a well used lunch bag.  As I packed this bag and fixed coffee in a travel mug, Steve sat down a second to take his supplements with O.J.

Then we were off to our regular spot in our office.  As we're running just a little late this morning, Steve picks up "Jesus Calling", instead of our regular devotional book, "Quiet Times for Couples", which takes a little longer.  Each devotional, each and every morning seems as if it were ordered up by God just for us on that particular day, as it always seems to address something going on in our lives.  Some days, to our amazement, our morning devotional repeats or delves more deeply into the theme or subject of our night-time devotional.  This always amazes us, because they are from two separate books, by two separate authors, and we are not even on the exact day that each says that particular devotional should be read.  We then turn, facing each other and hold hands, as we both pray for family, each other, friends who are facing devastating illnesses, and the amazing business God has blessed us with.

You're probably thinking by now — either you're the perfect married couple, or a little crazy!  Well, no, it is neither!  You see, we haven't always done this.  Our life now is different than the life we lived for almost 40 years as a married couple.  There were MANY trials, and with my chronic illnesses of Celiac and Fibromyalgia going undiagnosed for almost 30 years, there was more stress, separation, and loneliness in our marriage than I will talk about here. 

I am writing this today, because as I watched my Steve drive off in the dark to a Bible Study which starts at 6 am, I was overcome with gratefulness for God's goodness — for His undying love for us — and the knowledge that He created us and He saved us!  He saved our marriage!  He is now and forever at the center of our lives!  My heart is overflowing today with these blessings from above and the thoughts that God never gave up on us as we broke under the pressure and strayed to places we wish we had never been.

Here is a prayer that I wrote about my husband I found it this morning dated 3/25/08.

"Lord, I have learned today that to become the wife of my husband's dreams begins with prayer.  I want to be his prayer warrior lifting him up in prayer on a daily basis bringing his work, his life, and any problems he may have to You on a consistent basis.  Help me to be persistent in my prayers for Steve by lovingly and willingly taking the time throughout my day to bring him to You.

By your Grace, I pray that you will fill me with your Holy Spirit by giving me strength in trials and to love Steve as you would have me love him — till death do us part.  I need to be loved and cherished by him and to give him the honor and respect he needs as the spiritual leader of our home.  I want to honor him, to love him, and to be aware of each and every one of his needs.

Lord, I pray that you will be with me as I make sure to pay close attention to his needs, desires, dreams, joys, and sorrows.  I want to look closely into his heart because I absolutely adore him.

I thank you so much Lord, that we can both feel your strong hands shaping and molding each of us into the partner that we each need and want.  I can feel your miracles as you are softening our hearts.

Help me, Lord to keep a record of NO WRONGS, either written or in my heart.  Be my guide in erasing these images and records from my heart and my soul.  I thank you that you have honored me with the gift of forgiveness.  I ask your blessings on Steve each and every day of his life.

I truly want to protect our marriage, Lord and grow our love to heights that neither of us can possible imagine."

Romans 8:28 
"And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love Him,
who have been called according to His purpose."

Have a wonderful day my love!  I'll see you tonight, as you drive back home to me…to us! 
~Your Laney~

"Merry Christmas…" By Nancy Alexander

From The Alexanders…

Hoping Your Christmas is Blessed and Your Holidays are Happy, and the New Year Brings Brighter Days for Everyone…  Merry Christmas From all! The Alexanders!  PS: Whew… is Christmas over yet? Naw, I got our card out before midnight on Christmas day… teeheehee…

"Weakness…" By Nancy Alexander

A Very Important Lesson I Learned This Morning…

You may be wondering why I am calling this post "weakness".  I learned a very important lesson in church this morning.  It was one that I needed to hear, and it was one that was very enlightening.

You see, I spent over 35 years of my life fighting "weakness".  For me, this consisted of several different physical conditions such as Celiac disease, fibromyalgia, and fatigue.  There were also mental conditions such as depression, anxiety, and panic attacks.  Low self image played a big part in all that I attempted to accomplish for most of my life. 

Doctors, professionals, and even my husband could not understand that I was really sick (and I mean REALLY sick!).  And, yes, of course this caused marital problems we both had to face along with the illnesses which plagued my body every single day.  My prayer became "Lord, PLEASE heal me!  If you want me to learn something, I will certainly learn it.  Just PLEASE let me know what it is."  I prayed this prayer over and over so many times as I searched for verses in my Bible which held an answer.  I found comforting verses.  I found verses of God's love for me and of His promises.  Although these verses are still ones I cling to, they didn't make a difference in my life.  They didn't help, although I would cling to them with every ounce of strength I had left within my body.

I have fought my way out of that pit through my faith and dependence on God — finally being diagnosed by the right doctors.  Many of you know that because of Celiac, it was only around 6 years ago that I was found to be allergic to most of the foods I was eating.  So, now I happily leave off ALL gluten (wheat), milk, soy, most spices, preservatives, canned foods, and processed foods just to name a few.

I can do things now that I have not been able to do in well over 35 years.  My husband and I now share a closeness filled with love and joy that only dreams are made of, but I am not completely well.  I don't say those words often, because I have come such a long way.  I could live the rest of my life basically hiding my insecurities as well as the health issues which still cling to my body, from each of you. 

Unless you lived with me day in and day out, you wouldn't notice the weaknesses I still fight.  I have felt that until I conquered ALL of these issues, I would not have succeeded.  I would not have made it.  I would not have run the race successfully that God put me on this earth to run… that is… until this morning.

So, back to our sermon in church this morning about 'weakness'.  Today I learned that it takes a very strong person to expose their weaknesses… not to hide them.  We grow up wanting to show off our successes.  Our culture avoids weakness.  But, and this is the exciting thing!  In God's kingdom, our weaknesses are a magnet.  If we show our weaknesses to others — not trying to hide them, then God's work in our lives is glorified and magnified by God's glory.  In 2 Corinthians 12:9, God said to Paul: "My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness."

Do you see?  I finally do — finally!!  When I am weak, I am strong.  My weakness has really been used by God to reach others who are suffering from the exact same problems as me.  It is not a sin to be weak; it is nothing to be ashamed of; it is nothing to hide from others; it is an honor to be able to use this weakness I have experienced for so long to help any of you that I can by living my life as an example, the very best I know how.

All those days, for all those years when I prayed over and over that God would heal me…that He would remove this illness from me, it was not His will.  When we know that we're weak, we're strong!  God used my illness — my weakness — to shape me into a person He could use.  He has been shaping me into the person He wanted so many years so that I can reach the thousands of women that I come into contact with over the Internet every day.  I really care, I sympathize, and I understand what you are going through.  If I can encourage or inspire you in any way at all, it is worth it. 

I am happy!  I have a husband that I adore and who adores me.  We enjoy the most wonderful family that anyone could ever desire!   The few problems which I do still face are just hindrances, which I can live with for the rest of my life if necessary.  I no longer feel like I am running a race trying to make up for 35 years which I felt were lost.  THEY WEREN'T!  There were important years which led me to an important purpose.

God was not punishing me as I sometimes thought.  He was pruning me so that I could bear fruit (John 15: 1-2) "I am the true vine, and my Father is the gardener.  He cuts off every branch in me that bears no fruit, while every branch that does bear fruit he prunes so that it will be even more fruitful."

C.S. Lewis:  "Pain is God's megaphone to a wounded world".

Rick Warren:  "The secret to success is failing fast, over and over again…"

Thank you, Pastor Clayton King for a message this morning that opened my mind and my heart to God's dreams and goals for me and my life.  These dreams are being fulfilled right now, maybe not as I had always thought — only after I was totally and completely well.  Those days may not ever come, and that is okay, as long as I know I am where God wants me to be.

In Heaven there will be NO weakness, NO pain, and NO suffering.  While I am on this earth, I will praise God for each and every weakness as well as each and every strength for I now know that is my 'reason for being'.

"Linda and me…" By Nancy Alexander

Two Souls Drawn Together Across The Miles…

Linda Joseph is her name.  She is my business partner, my confidant, my best friend, and the technical, organized side of my business.  We are complete opposites that God brought together many years ago for His purpose in our lives!

Linda lives in Hartford, Connecticut, and I live in Anderson, South Carolina.  We live close to 1,000 miles apart, which would be approximately 15 + hours if you were driving.  We have never met.  We have never laid eyes on each other except through Skype or photos, but yet we work together, email, Skype, laugh, and talk together and pray for each other almost daily.

Linda and I laugh and joke at each other all the time about the fact that she is the "left brain", as I am the "right brain" in our partnership!  You can see from the picture Linda found below exactly what I am talking about… and the picture definitely depicts us, and our working arrangements! 

Several weeks ago, Linda finally got to meet.  We had been talking, planning, and hoping for quite some time that we would be able to get together this summer to do some planning, and necessary paperwork to get our newest venture "Passion Into Profits" launched.

Around this time, I was asked to speak before the "Chamber of Commerce — Women in Business".  I am pretty good in front of a video camera… ), but when there are actual people in front of me, I am not a fan of public speaking.  So, after being asked several time to speak, and turning them down several times, I finally said:  "Well, if my partner, Linda is going to be here…then of course I'll speak…we both will."  (You have to understand that I KNEW she would not be able to because she had been out of the country for 2 weeks, and was just coming back home.)

This is where I got into trouble!  I mentioned this to Linda, and she answered:  "Of course, I'll be happy to come.  When do I need to be there?"  Well, I was stuck!  I was caught, and "we" were going to speak before these amazing business women.  Honestly, I still have a hard time believing that I have something to offer these women.  I don't see my accomplishments (which are many), as others see them.  I feel like I am still "just beginning", and have such a long way to go!

After Being Partners for Around Five Years,
Nancy and Linda Meet for the First Time!

Here we are at our Chamber of Commerce talk!
Yes… I actually did it, and it was so much fun…

Well, we had to have a little bit of fun, now didn't we…TeeHee

Linda and I NEVER stopped talking and laughing!  We spent FIVE days together…us two (older??) ladies who live over 1,000 miles apart.  It was like we had been best friends all our lives.  It is totally amazing to me that God could bring the two of us together to launch an business.

Linda and I get to share in the joy and excitement of starting our new business: "Passion Into Profits".  We will be coaching "artisans" from all walks of life, creating many types of products how to take these creations, market, and sell them online.

I feel so very blessed!  God has led me and my business in a new and exciting direction with a new partner who could only have been sent by Him!  We have had so many applications already for our coaching services, as we begin the process of narrowing down the list to pick the first group of ladies we will be privileged and honored to work with.

Below is the video of our speech at the "Chamber of Commerce – Women in Business"

"Finally…" By Nancy Alexander

A New Website for Ladybug Wreaths!

If any of you have been to my old website lately, you certainly know it had gotten very full, which is not always a bad thing.  The bad part is that it needed to be updated and it certainly was not easy to navigate any more.  It could no longer be updated because of how all of the information, as well as pictures had been added in through many years.

So, thanks SO MUCH to my (partner — in crime 'teeheehee'), Linda Joseph, I now have a brand spanking new website.  Linda started working with the "bones — the functionality — the back end, so to speak" and we added from there.  And we added, and added, and added.  Each and every page was re-typed, with new pictures added, so no "crazy" code would be copied over which might cause problems later!  (And, believe me — there was certainly a lot of weird code in my old site!)  And… why… no, I certainly do now know where it all came from!  (**!!??)

I AM THRILLED AND EXCITED, AND I JUST COULDN'T WAIT TO SHARE IT WITH YOU!

Linda researched and studied and purchased a professional theme which would hold all of my information, products and much more.  The great thing is that it holds all my information in such a way that it is SOOOO very easy to navigate and find anything you are looking for!

I was very blessed to have been led to a top-notch, excellent Graphic Designer, Dawn Rocco-Babon of /http://www.roccocreative.com/ as well as a professional and talented photographer, Angel Ruff of http://www.angelruffphotography.com/.  Thank you Dawn and Angel!  I Love my new logo and header as well as my new photos!  You both have made my site look so much more professional — and "me"!!!

Thank all of you so very much for supporting me and my many ventures through these last twelve years!  Each and every one of you means SO MUCH to me!  I want to train and support you as you succeed in meeting your dreams and goals.  Then I would have met my dreams and goals as well! 

God Bless Each and Every One of you!  Smiles.. Nancy

"Me…" By Nancy Alexander

God, Family, Life, Work…

My life's goal is to make a difference in the lives of others by sharing with them the gift that God has so richly blessed me with.  I can honestly finally say I am grateful for the path God has led me on which has brought me to this place where I can love, encourage, teach, and train customers and friends.  I have been blessed with the gift of "art", and I am using this gift to teach a hobby that gives so many of you a reason to get out of bed each morning with joy and anticipation of what you will accomplish this day.

Life – My Life…

God Created me, He Saved me, and He Redeemed me.  He watches over me always holding out His hand to lead me on His path, as He catches me when I fall.  God brought my husband, Steve and I together over 40 years ago.  Steve truly is "the love of my life", you know, the "Knight in Shining Armor" that we all hope to find one day.  Because of my illness, this road has not been smooth, it has been full of pot holes, and curves, and steep hills.  But now, God has led us on his smooth path and walks with us – together – hand in hand.  My husband cherishes me, he loves me more than I have ever felt loved before, and he supports me in whatever endeavor we feel God is leading us or me to do.  I am overwhelmed with this "unconditional" love, I had never known.

God has given Steve and I a very special family, one that we both adore, made up of our two boys, their wives, and our four precious grandchildren.  Each one is so very special making each day giddy, lovely, joy-filled and happy.  We play together, laugh together, and we giggle together.  And, there are plenty of hugs, kisses, and Wuv You Mimi & Poppy! I thank God every day for the blessings of my life and the love that fills it.

My heart is full today. It is full of blue birds, daffodils, colors and smiles. It is overcome with praises to God for all of His blessings, and the family He has seen fit to entrust me with.  With a chronic illness, I have failed many, many times and have not been the wife and mother I wanted to be.  I am so thankful now, that God, in his infinite wisdom, has seen fit to give me another chance.  ~Nancy~

"Only FIVE Days Left…" By Nancy Alexander

To Help Meet Our Family Goal and Donate to the March of Dimes…

March of Dimes

Their Research SAVED Austin's Life!

There are only FIVE days left to help us meet
our family goal as we raise money for the…

The March of Dimes – March for Babies

For every $25.00 you donate, you have a chance to win a $200 custom wreath made by Nancy.  We will film the drawing which will be held on the day of the walk which is April 28th!

This is a cause that is VERY DEAR TO OUR HEARTS! You see, our little grandson, Austin Thomas Alexander, age 2, would not be with us today if it were not for the research and development of drugs used to save the lives of many preemies every single day! Not one little life should be lost because of lack of funds in developing these new "Life-Saving" Treatments!

Since time is running out, and you probably do not have time to mail a check, you can go to our family page on the March of Dimes website.  www.marchforbabies.org/MILESINTOMIRACLES   

Pictures From Austin's Second Birthday!

Here you can donate to our family team and have an option of several forms of payment.  If you do pay through our family page on the March of Dimes site, please email me:  nancy@ladybugwreaths.com, to let me know that you made a donation so I can make sure that your name is added into our drawing. 

THE DEADLINE FOR THE DONATIONS IS APRIL 21ST!

We are SO very grateful for those of you who have already made donations!  If it were not for the research and development of new drugs to save preemies such as Austin, he, and many other Sweet Little Ones would not be with us today!

Austin Thomas Alexander Just a few hours old:
Weighing 3 lbs., 5 oz.

Our sweet little baby on a C-Pap Machine

WE THANK YOU FROM THE BOTTOM OF OUR HEARTS FOR EVERY SINGLE TINY BABY!

"God is Alive in Our Home…" By Nancy Alexander

And at The Center of Our "Every Day"…

Yesterday was such a beautiful, warm and sunny Spring day.  As Steve and I sat in our office, the birds were flitting from limb to limb as if they were pleading for us to come outside.  They really wanted us to fill their empty feeders. I can always tell when our feeders are empty, because their songs change; they are much louder as if to be calling out to us:  "Feed me, feed me, please!"  It takes a lot to fill up our many bird feeders, and we had just purchased a 50 pound bag of their very favorite — sunflower seeds.

"You have made known to me the path of life;
you will fill me with joy in your presence…"
~Psalm 16:11~

I glanced over at my favorite little devotional book, "Jesus Calling".  Before I knew it, I was picking up my book and pen, and was on my way down the steps into my neglected "Secret Garden" walking along the winding, weed infested, stone path anxious to curl up in my favorite chair as I escaped into our Pergola. 

View of our house from inside our Pergola

My Pergola is now almost enclosed with the yellow Lady Banks Roses, and purple Wisteria.  These cover the top like a head full of hair in badly need of a trim.  But, oh, these climbing rose clusters are so beautiful in the spring as they open out so full and pretty in their splendor! 

This picture was taken last year when the Lady Banks roses were in full bloom!

I wanted to commune with God in all of His majesty as I renewed my mind and spirit in my secret hideaway.  All over, the flowers were popping their little heads up for Spring, and the birds were singing even more loudly as I walked outside.  Steve would be coming soon to help me fill the feeders, but for the moment, I was alone with God, enjoying the earth He created just for us.

"Somebody cares and always will,
The world forgets, but God loves you still,
Somebody cares and loves you still,
And God is the someone who always will."
~Helen Steiner Rice~

I have tended to avoid our garden and Pergola for a while now — it seemed to me like the weeds had grown taller than the flowers and shrubbery.  We have had many more important things to focus our attention on.    But, yesterday, the outdoors was calling to me as I walked outside into my own "Secret Garden" to talk to God as I enjoyed the fresh warm air of Spring.

Our garden always required a lot of time, attention, and money.  And, for a while now, many much more important things have taken the place of our "secret garden".  So, as I sat in the pergola reading yesterday, I was reminded of renewal and of beauty that is sometimes hidden — but is still there all the same.

"The Lord is my strength and my shield;
My heart trusts in him,
And He helps me.
My heart leaps for joy,
And with my song I praise Him."
~Psalm 28: 6-8~

As I was reading and praying to God, I noticed that my clay pots had lost pieces of their rims from the cold of winter.  Many of my flowers in pots that had come up year after year were not coming up.  Grass was growing taller than the flowers dispersed throughout the garden.  My rustic, shabby chic, painted furniture in the pergola was falling apart.  Loose pieces were either hanging on, or lying on the ground.  Neglected paint was noticeably peeling off.  Bushes in desperate need of a trim were much taller than they should be.  Grass and weeds which had been cut back by a weed eater last week (instead of being pulled up), were now filling in our stone pathway again.

I looked over into the corner, and was amazed at how
the small limbs of Wisteria that I had wound
throughout the lattice five years ago had now grown into
large, curling extensions of that beautiful, flowery vine.

"I am the vine; you are the branches. 
If you remain in me and I in you,
you will bear much fruit;
apart from me you can do nothing."
~John 15: 4-6~

  As I looked around more,
I could see God's hand all around me. 
Day lilies and lamb's ear were growing
right in the middle of the stone pathway.

Bumblebees were drilling their holes in the pergola
making a home for the season. 

I was amazed that our Japanese Holly ferns are fuller
and greener than I have ever seen them before.

My concrete angel, even though she was surrounded by tall grass,
was still looking very beautiful peeping through the
ground cover which had come up from three years ago.

Pretty flowers were showing off their colorful blooms as
if they were not conscious of the weeds that surrounded them.

The forsythia vine growing up my back porch was
shouting out in all of it's glory that God is alive —
He is always here — He is always in control —
He can bring back beauty out of anything.

    
"God always gives you all the grace you need.
So you will only have to suffer for a little while.
Then God himself will build you up again.
He will make you strong and steady.
And He has chosen you to share in His eternal glory
because you belong to Christ.""
~1 Peter 5:10~

As I stood looking up at the flowers opening their blooms
in a splendor that only God could have created,
I felt SO blessed — SO grateful that He had seen fit to bring
this neglected "Secret Garden" back to life for us to enjoy.

~~~~

"I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which
God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus."
~Philippians 3:14

But, even more so, I felt overwhelmingly grateful and SO blessed that He had seen fit to work in MIRACULOUS ways in our lives with miracles that brought His Grace, Joy and Forgiveness back into our marriage.  So, when I say we spent the last three years ignoring our "Secret Garden", we spent those years saving and renewing a marriage which could have been so easily destroyed by the insidious chronic diseases — Celiac, and Fibromyalgia.

God got our attention!  He broke us down, He pruned us, He carried us, He covered us with His love, He gave us encouragement, He gave us hope.  He redeemed us, and He forgave us.  He "looked through our faults and saw our needs".  And, He brought our "Secret Garden" (a marriage now definitely made in Heaven) back to life — just as He did our "Secret Garden Outside", when just a few short weeks ago, it was dead — full of weeds — needed pruning, and in need of renewal.

"As each has received a gift, use it to serve one another,
as good stewards of God's varied grace."
~1 Peter 4:10~

I talk all of the time about chronic diseases and how they can destroy all that is good and pure and loving in an entire family.  And, it can!  I feel as though God has given me a ministry to help all of you who email me almost daily, talking to me about the trials and the pain that you face.  There IS hope!  God is there — He is always with YOU!  And He DOES answer prayers.  I know — He answered mine.