This Book...

This book made me cry...Laugh...smile...thank God for the many blessings in my life...and Cry some more! I encourage you to read this wonderful book by Karen Kingsbury if you get the chance! But be warned...this is not an easy read...there are parts that will tear at you...(hence me crying...ALOT)...but it is SOOOOO worth it! What an Awesome woman Karen Kingsbury is to write such great Christian literature! God Bless, Morgan Beaty

The Rest of the Story...

I wanted to wrap up Friday's posts even further with the last bit of MY story about my Meme.

When Meme was taking Chemotherapy, She spent many days in the waiting room. One day she decided to talk to the people around her. She asked one man if he knew Jesus. The man replied, "no, I am not really the Religious type." My grandmother asked the man, "if I bring you a Bible with highlighted verses and notes, will you promise me you will read it?" The man reluctantly agreed.

The next time she entered the waiting room, Meme passed out highlighted Bibles to a number of patients who said they either did not own a Bible or didnt know Jesus. As she gave a Bible to the man she talked to earlier she said, "I better see you in Heaven." he smiled back, "I'm not too sure yet about me...but I know you will be there," he replied.

Meme continued to give out Bibles to patients, neighbors, and friends throughout her sickness. Her dear friend and uncle, Arnold, was a pastor, so she sought help, advice, and donated bibles from Him.

We will never know for sure if her whitnessing during those last 5 months of her life lead anybody to Christ or not. But what I do know is that if just ONE of those people she whitnessed to acepted Jesus as thier Savior before they died...there was a party in Heaven...and my Meme was thier hero...getting them to open thier eyes to thier Savior's love for them! :)

My Meme...my hero...and my Role Model! How I miss her so much! but I know...that God had a wonderful plan...and how AMAZING it was to see somebody I LOVE with every piece of my heart be a part of HIS plan!

I will leave you with this, another verse from John 11 to contemplate and to consider after reading everything I have posted.

"When Jesus heard that he said, 'This Sickness is not unto death, but for the glory of God, that the Son of God may be glorified through it." John 1: 4

God Bless, Morgan Beaty

Dealing With Loss

My Story in the Last post is a true story. It is my story of how I lost my dear sweet Grandmother. In this post I just wanted to share some things about dealing with loss from a Christian Perspective.

• We were never meant to have to mourn alone. I think our generation has tried to teach us to act or pretend that everything is ok when we are secretly trying to deal with our feelings after losing somebody. We shouldn't have to hide our feelings. The pain we feel is real and there is nothing wrong with crying. This is why families come together for funerals and services in the first place. We need to be able to mourn together and lean on each other as we learn to deal with pain.


• Pray for peace during your time of pain. God is not mean...he will help you through it.


• The hardest thing for us to understand as humans is God's plan for life. unfortunately for us sometimes, God's plan requires us to suffer, die, hurt, lose loved ones, and so on. This is not because he is mean...but rather because he is Just and Holy. (remember...we are the ones that have fallen away and technically deserve Hell...but have been redeemed.) God is not always trying to punish you (punishment is trying to pursue life without Him guiding you...which in all cases is a HUGE punishment), but rather gain your attention and trust. Most people call upon the name of the Lord in time of trouble...therefore we suffer because God wants us to realize the HE is our ONLY way out...that there is nobody else to turn to.


• Sometimes...God uses OUR suffering for HIS glory. This also is a hard message to receive...but it is true. Do not get me wrong...Jesus cares about us and our comfort. But more than our comfort...Jesus cares about others believing in Him.


• Think about the Lazurus story in the Bible. Jesus let Lazrus (a very close friend of His) die, knowing he was sick. His disciples were dumbfounded. Mary and Martha were also dumbfounded when Jesus arrived at the scene outside of Lazurus' tomb. "Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died (John 11:21)," Martha says to Jesus. Mary later says the same thing. But Jesus had a plan. Through Lazurus' death, Many would be changed. If you keep reading, you see that Jesus miraculously brings Lazurus back to life and because of this "many of the Jews who had come to Mary, and had seen the things Jesus did, believed in Him (John 11:45). You see what happened there? Jesus let Lazurus die...and waited till the perfect time to bring him back to life...so that certain people involved in His plan...who were there at that particular time would believe in Him. What a victory the angels must have celebrate that day! What a love and genuine care Jesus has for those people...to know their heart...and what it would take to get them to believe!


• Think about it this way...God sent his son into the world...to DIE. This was not a pleasant death...my pastor told us this past Sunday that your "old man" meaning your old sinful self before you became a christian was crucified with Christ. Man...can you imagine the pain and heaviness He must have suffered to carry that with Him on the Cross? Scientist believe the actual cause of death while he was on the cross may have been due to his heart exploding from the pressure. (do not take that as a biblical or scientific statement...that is just something I heard on the History channel once.) how fitting is that? Remember the garden scene in the Bible? Jesus calls to God and says, "father if it is your will, take this cup away from me; nevertheless not my will, but yours be done (Luke 22: 42). This was no cake walk, Jesus was not really looking forward to his death...But yet...He endured this...because he knew that God had a perfect plan...and without His suffering, none of us would ever be able to have a relationship with God.


• In summary...God knows your pain...he lost his son (remember?) But sometimes our pain is necesary for God to continue to accomplish wonderful things for His Glory. There is a victory in Heaven every time just ONE person accepts Christ...whatever he has to do for that one person...for all of us...(this is a life and death matter) he deems as absolutely necessary. Think about this...how Great is a God...that will go to such extremem measure to grab YOUR attention because he loves YOU so much that he wants YOU to live with Him forever and ever in eternity? Man...now that is powerful!

God Bless

Morgan beaty

My Story of Loss

I have always been very close to my grandparents, all of them. Growing up, my family spent a lot of time with them...more than just Holidays and birthdays. We actually spent time with them. There was nothing I loved more as a child (and still love as a 20 year old!) than spending the night (or weekend) at my grandparents house. The grandma I was always the closest to when young was my dad's mother, whom I call Meme.

Of course, I am close to all of my grandparents. Each one of them have a very special place in my heart for various reasons. But My Meme, was more than a grandmother...she was My barrow, sprayed us with the water hose, danced in the living room, went with us to every UT Football game, and made us crazy snacks. I loved spending time with Meme. Our whole family did. Meme...was the center and rock of our family. Meme, my Best friend. The grandmother who took my sister and I for rides in the wheel

in 2003 Meme was diagnosed with Cancer. The doctor told her she had months to live. The news hit us like a freight train! How can this be happening? Why now? Why her? The next five months of my life were unbearable. The pain of watching somebody you love so much slowly fade away is just terrible, especially for a 12 year old little girl.

One night, December 5th 2003 to be exact, my father got an urgent call from his dad. He stayed at his parents house all night long. My sister, mom, and I stayed behind. Every couple of hours, Dad would call the land line (this was before the popularity of cell phones...They both had one...but they were big) and give updates on her. Not really realizing this was the end...I would pick up the phone in the other room and listen in on the conversations. The last one I listened to...My dad said the words, "she'll be gone by morning Angie." I hung up the phone and cried so hard i couldn't breathe. My Meme, my best friend...i would never see her alive again.

I cried myself to sleep that night. But before I feel asleep I breathed a silent prayer that everything would be ok...and asked God to help me through this. That night I had a dream...the most amazing dream I have ever had. In my dream Meme was healthy and happy and full of life. And best of all...she was standing there with US...my entire family. We were all happy and united.

I am not angry with God for taking away Meme, even though 7 years later it still hurts. I know without a doubt in my heart that the dream I had the night she went Home was God's way of telling me two things. 1.) He wanted me to know that Meme was Home...with Him. Which meant that 5 months of suffering were no more. She had no more pain, no more sorrow, and all tears were wiped from her eyes. Which is a complete and total blessing after her Cancer battle. 2.) God wanted me to know that because I have accepted Him and my who family has accepted Him...we will all be reunited one day. One day in the future, when all of us have gone Home...my family will be together and we will all be happy. Wow...what a blessing!

I know one day in the future I will have to once again suffer the pain of losing somebody that I love. But I know that I will be ok because God is always with me. And in the end...my family will all be reunited when we are with Him...at Home...where we truly belong.

God Bless
Morgan

The Story BEHIND the Tires

In My last Post I listed New Tires as one of my favorite "smells" and mentioned that there was a story behind it! So here is the story behind the Tires...simple but heartfelt story. ;)

I grew up spending LOTS of time with my grandparents (BOTH sets of them!)...and with every grandparent comes a list of very vivid memories. Sometimes just a particular scent sends me down memory lane!

One of my grandpas used to be the manager of the local Goodyear in Livingston when I was growing up! Whenever I spent the night or weekend with him and my grandma (for clarification this is Meme and Poohdad I am talking about :D), my Meme would take my sister and I by the Goodyear to see Poohdad at work! We would climb over the endless rows of tires, pretend to drive the lawn mowers, and play hide and go seek around the washing machines! For some random reason...these days of my childhood have left me with a love of the smell of brand new tires. :)

I guess that's how memories work! Tires are not the ONLY item on my list below that were inspired by my past! My grandpa (same one...) used to shine his shoes before work. I believe that is when i began to like the smell of shoes. (please note* I do NOT like the smell of old shoes or shoes you are currently wearing...just NEW shoes and shoe shine polish!)

Peppermints were also inspired by my grandparents. For some reason...my entire family has an obsession with peppermints! Even now, we take them with us to football games! Tradition in our family is...we all get a peppermint for each touchdown, kick, or safety! For every score, my family will jump up...high five...then pass around a bag of peppermints! We have even introduced this tradition to all the folks who sit around us!

Oh the little things in life that make you smile!

God Bless
Morgan

Smell...something I take for Granted!

This morning, while using my favorite body wash in the shower, I realized that I usually take for granted the fact that I can smell. Sounds silly, I know, but there are so many wonderful "smells" out there! Here are the things I love in life that smell great!

1. Flowers :)
2. Sweets...including fresh baked Cookies and brownies! YUM
3. Candles
4. New Shoes HA!
5. New Tires...there IS a story behind this...
6. Clean Laundry
7. Coffee :)
8. Pepermints!
9. Hot Breakfast!
10. Bath and Body Works

And Just because I mentioned Bath and Body Works....Here are my FAVORITE scents...There are more I have never even tried though! Oh my!

• P.S. I Love You
• Secret Wonderland
• Japaneese Cherry Blossom
• Moonlight Path
• Twilight Woods
• Carried Away
• Warm Vanilla Sugar
• Lavander Vanilla (its one of the Aromatherapy Brands)
• Midnight Pomegranate

God Bless,

Morgan

There Ain't No Doubt I Love This Land...God Bless The USA

The other Night at the Walk, we talked about Religion And Politics. And I actually learned something I had never thought of before.

Christians tend to tag themselves into the "Republican" group. Especially Christians in the Bible belt. I will be honest, I do this too. I mean...If Jesus was walking the Earth right now...He would be a Republican...Right?....

The point is Jesus didn't come to make a Christian Nation on Earth, He came so that people would believe in Him and be a part of HIS Godly Kingdom in Heaven. As Christians, we need to be more concerned about Christ than all the pettiness of Elections.

This being said, this does not mean we should not ever participate in elections and all American and Patriotic things. We should be proud to be a part of a Nation that was founded for religious freedom. We should be honored to be a part of a Nation with a diverse people group from all across the world. We should never forget that men (and now a days Women) die every day (and have been doing so since the beginning of America) so that WE can live a peaceful life and worship freely. People who call themselves "Christians" who protest at funerals and cause all kinds of disturbances across the nation need to be ashamed of themselves. They are not doing all that nonsense for the love of Christ (whether they think they are or not), they are doing it for attention. So please do not get caught up in nonsense. Jesus's ministry is about Love...not Hate and Ignorance. And besides....They should know better than to protest at a funeral of a Man or Woman who DIED so that THEY as a church even have the right to worship and protest. It is kinda contradicting...if you ask me.

On a further note, How often do we pray for our Government? We NEED to be praying...and praying hard for our President and our Government. If we think for a moment that God didn't know before hand who was going to win a presidential election...we are fooling ourselves. We need to realize that maybe...just maybe God has a plan for THEIR lives just as much as he has a plan for ours. And we need to pray everyday that whoever is in office, God will use them for HIS glory and for his purposes. We need to pray that our Government will make wise Decisions and keep us moving forward. God IS here...in everything we do...he KNOWS what is going down in America. Don't think for a moment that he doesn't!

So If you still have that somewhat Gaudy bumper sticker on the back of your car...peel it off. And if you remember posting some inappropriate things towards our president...delete it...or mark it out! Replace these type of feelings and energy toward praying that God will lead our country and everything will be OK.

God Bless
Morgan