Urgent Prayer Request

(I couldn't find a pic of Chaz, but this is from his racing circuit.)

**UPDATE** 8/31/08 11:05 PM: My daughter and I went to the hospital. Chaz has been awake on and off throughout the day. He started out calling his mother "Henry" and saying things like his last name was "Diez" and his father's last name was "Dirtwiggler."
However, this afternoon there was much improvement. He began to recognize and identify his family members and the doctor says that his CT Scans do not look much improved but Chaz physically and cognitively appears to be much improved.

This is a day to day situation still. He could relapse or suffer significant cognitive losses as a result of his injury. He is not in a drug-induced coma, but on heavy medication. He will be in teh hospital at least a week - but to God's glory he was taken to the #1 trauma center in North Texas.

His mom said he is definitely a miracle child. Prayers are working. The next three months are critical - he can do no physical activity AT ALL. Then they will retest and do a cognitive assessment at 6 months and that will be the long term prognosis. So - again, just as oft as you think of it please pray! It is all good news so far. He is on the road to recovery which is a great improvement from Last Night. Mom is concerned about breaking the news to him that they are selling his dirt bike and his motorcross career is officially over. She knows he will not be happy about that - especially with no memory of what has happened to him. His injury is called "Brain Sheering." Parts of his brain has stopped working - apparently.

I am supposed to take my other daughter and her friend back tomorrow. I will keep you all posted.

THANKS AGAIN - SO MUCH. LOVE YA'LL!
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Hey Blog Friends... I'm sending this out on the wire and asking you to pray for the Sims family.



The eldest child, Chaz, who is around 16 years old races motorcross and was involved in a serious accident. He has been hospitalized and is in a drug-induced coma. His injuries are apparently serious and numerous. His parents are Jim and Tami and his brother is Tanner. Please pray for complete healing, restoration and victory for this young man and his family.



After Justin died, Chaz would walk up to me at church and not say one word he would just give me the biggest hug. He and his family were very affected by my son's situation and Chaz has been a good friend to my youngest daughter.



I appreciate all your prayers. I will post an update as soon as I have more information.



Thanks again.

Family Facing Tragedy

Please pray for the Drew Family. Their little boy, Christian, is three and went home to be with the Lord on Tuesday.

You can read more about it here: "Dozer's" Story

Although I did not know the Drew family personally, my heart is grieved for their loss and my prayers go out to them.



Blessings all.

"His Strength is Perfect" by Steven Curtis Chapman from Greatest Hits CD

Inappropriately Funny Stuff!

Yesterday was not only the Fourth of July, but it is also a big family reunion day for my mother's side of the family. She has five living siblings and ten total. Plus add in all the children and grandchildren and great grandchildren and glory be... It is a festival ripe for some good story telling, good food and great fun... Not to mention an annual poker game that baits the young 'uns right in.

Okay... Poker aside. I had the best time playing with BEN... my one and a half year old nephew. Sweetie Pie. Watching the baby bop, Wyatt, my youngest nephew weighing in at 17 lbs and nearing 5 months and just laughing with my cousins.

Have you seen "The Bucket List"? Okay, if not - this shouldn't be too much of a spoiler, but one item of the Bucket List was "Laugh until I Cry..."

And yesterday, we did! Let me set the scene for you:

All the kiddoes (and the younger sets parents) were all awash after lunch in the chlorine goodness of the local swimming hole while the rest of us middle-aged folk were sittin' around the dinner table(s) yes... there was more than one. Most of us, who were not gambling, were steadily fighting sleep, when Cousin-Uncle Kevin, as he is lovingly called by my offspring, sits down amid a group of women discussing various aspects of life.

The cast includes: Aunt Jewel, Cousin-Aunt Sherry, Cousin Bev and her daughter Kimberly (AKA: K. K.) who is expecting first grandchild/child respectively and the soon-to-be notorious Cousin-Uncle Kevin, and later... Cousin Mark - Cousin Bev's dear husband.

Well the conversation goes something like this:

Cousin-Uncle Kevin: I often find myself drowning in estrogen. (Meaning he is often in the company of a lot of women being the only male.) As a matter of fact right now I'm swimming in a sea of estrogen. [He motions to the women sitting around him.] And, I need some floaties.

ME: [Thinks to myself, "I've already got some." In other words, most of the women at the table are genetically predisposed to be "top heavy."]

Cousin Bev: I already got mine.

LAUGHTER ERUPTS AROUND THE TABLE, Aunt Jewel blushes and pleads the fifth. Kevin sputters and hangs his head.

ME: I was thinking the same thing. [Hi Five's Cousin Bev.]

Cousin-Aunt Sherrry: My brain edits my thoughts before I speak them.

ME: Mine, too. But Bev said it for me.

Cousin Mark: [walks up and sits down] What's so funny?

Cousin-Uncle Kevin: Here's Mark, he understands what I'm talking about. You need some floaties, Mark?

ME: He already has some...

[More rolling on the floor laughter....]

ME: I can check off the "laughs until I cry" on my bucket list...

Inappropriately family funny... Shamelessly true.

More Grieving Families...

I learned over at the Siesta Fiesta blog that yet another prominent Christian music family is suffering the loss of a child. The loss is actually two - The band is Selah, and Nicol Sponberg's son died in his sleep this week and his visitation and memorial service will be tomorrow. Please be in prayer for them. The story deepens the grief. Apparently within recent weeks this family sufferred yet another loss. Todd Smith, Nicol's brother, and his wife's baby Audrey Caroline died as well.

I can imagine what they are going through within a month of us burying Justin, my cousin's newborn baby was delivered premature and died within hours of her birth. It is hard enough to bury one child in a family, but to feel the onslaught of death leveled against your children in so short a time... It is overwhelming. Please be in prayer for this family as well as the SCC family and their loss of Maria. I know God has a plan and He is working in all of these situations to bring glory to Himself and good to these families and His children as a whole.

Please specifically pray for the breaking of any assignment the enemy has leveled against the children of God's beloved Church. That death is not God's will for these children, He has a plan for them with a future and a hope. I pray that each child who is born to a family of the body of Christ would be protected and delivered to a long, prosperous and glorious generation of Spirit-Filled, united believers in Jesus Christ. In His glorious Name, I pray!

You can read more about Audrey and Luke HERE.

A Young Life... A Huge Testimony

To God Be The Glory! And in the words of Caleb Chapman, "Jesus is real." He shared how he prayed for God to heal little Maria after the accident at her memorial service, and though he doesn't like the way God did it, she is healed. But, even more than that - Jesus is real. Read on... the memorial service is shared with us through Jim House, the manager for SCC.

Read about it here: Maria's Memorial Service

Blessings.

Please Pray for Steven Curtis and Mary Beth Chapman and their family.

Please lift up this family who has so ministered to us as their lives and his music have witnessed Christ in so many ways. You may got to Steven Curtis Chapman's website to leave condolensces. I am praying 1 Thessalonians 4 for the Chapmans tonight:

"13 But I do not want you to be ignorant, brethren, concerning those who have fallen asleep, lest you sorrow as others who have no hope. 14 For if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so God will bring with Him those who sleep in Jesus. 15 For this we say to you by the word of the Lord, that we who are alive and remain until the coming of the Lord will by no means precede those who are asleep. 16 For the Lord Himself will descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of an archangel, and with the trumpet of God. And the dead in Christ will rise first. 17 Then we who are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And thus we shall always be with the Lord. 18 Therefore comfort one another with these words." - 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18 (NKJV)

Update: The Celebration for Baby Dylan

To read more about what happened to this little girl go here:

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The funeral was not a funeral. This family asked God to move heaven and earth to celebrate their baby's birthday with her there. A man at a local funeral home cut through all the red tape, got the child's body late Friday afternoon and had her looking like a precious baby doll in that small pink lined casket.

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Her hair was in dog ears and she looked as if she were sleeping. Beside her her favorite baby doll lay with a bottle in it's mouth and a small book, because she loved to be read to. "Read it again!" was the common request. One pastor shared that his picture of Dylan in heaven is her sitting on Jesus' lap and he's just read a book to her and she just keeps repeating, "Read it again." He said if you pan out, there are books scattered all about our Savior's feet. The parents led the atmosphere by praising and worshipping God in both Word and through physical praise. It was so precious to see them bowing at the casket as they sang worship to the Lord. Love and joy were expressed over and over again, we sang "Happy Birthday" and then a pastor from our church who has surrendered two children to the Lord gave a heart felt message about what we could learn from Dylan's life: 1. He said we could learn Joy because that is what her life was marked with, 2. He said we could learn that life is precious because we are not guaranteed time, 3. He said we could learn to view life from God's perspective - asking's what is a long and full life from His position?

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They opened the floor for a time of prayer and encouragement from the crowd - and many spoke. Then the parents rose a spoke. The expression of the mother was that the Lord should be glorified and though she is hurting through her own personal tragedy - He is always worthy to be praised and that is what she would do. The father admitted he didn't feel strong, that at times his wife had to help him pull himself together - but, they each reflected on what this baby brought to their lives and how they would remember her, that they were having a celebration of her life rather than a funeral for her death. It was beautiful. The father concluded with a list of things he is experiencing - especially after losing himself emotionally yesterday morning. He said he taught Dylan her ABCs by saying demonstratively that "A is for..." So he shared what he is experiencing through the alphabet, "A is for anger. The anger I feel, I am angry with God. But, I praise and worship Him anyway. A is for the affection He gives me instead." He went through the entire alphabet that way. It was so precious and raw. They prayed over the group present and then we met. It was again, a precious celebration of a dearly loved little girl.

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The newspaper ran an opinion poll on the trouble "lurking in backyards" and opened the floor up for discussion - there were those who made the accusation that this mother neglected her duty by allowing an older sibling to supervise her child while playing outside. It is bound to happen, but one precious pastor said the Lord gave him a word for them, "You are good parents."

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Anyway, that is all I have - I was so blessed by the experience. I pray you all are be the recounting.

Blessings and thank you for praying. Please continue even if you do not post it hear.

Update on Family

Hey all, the funeral was not a funeral. It was indeed a Celebration of the life of this precious child. I will post more when I am not so tired. But, do continue to pray. The family is grieving, but there is strength there - strength they have foun in the Lord.

Blessings,
Michelle

Tragedy Strikes - Please Pray...

Dear Friends,

My heart is so grieved as a young family is grieving the death of their 23 month old daughter tonight. She fell into the family pool around four o'clock yesterday afternoon. Her mother found her and pulled her out, but she was unresponsive when the paramedics arrived. She died around 9:20 last night. The family is a member of my church and the funeral is going to be tomorrow evening. Will you please remember this young family in your prayers? It is so devestating. Pray for those who will come. They are expecting 600-1200 people to attend.

Anyway, that is all I have tonight. I as the Psalmist said, am sure I will once again see the goodness of the Lord in the land of the living.

Blesssings dear one.