Caring Bridge Website for Ryleigh

We've decided to use Ryleigh's Caring Bridge Website for future updates:


http://www.caringbridge.org/visit/ryleighking


Thank you for all of your prayers...please continue to lift Ryleigh up to the Lord.

My Sweet Niece Ryleigh

My four year old niece, Ryleigh, has been at Texas Children's Hospital since last Thursday night. She's been having multiple seizures and wasn't able to come out of them on her own. Her pediatric neurologist is here in Houston and everyone decided this was the best place for her. 

She's been having seizures for quite a while now, but just over a week ago, they increased in number significantly and again wasn't able to come out of them on her own.  

I wanted to send out a prayer request...although there seem to be fewer seizures the past few days, please pray that the doctors are able to figure out which medicines will help Ryleigh to be completely seizure free. Please pray for Ryleigh during this time...she is having to stay in the hospital bed most of the time and isn't able to get out much...please pray that her sweet spirit shines through and she is able to be as comfortable as possible.

Please also pray for my sister Janet and her husband Bernie.  They are very tired right now, and doing such an amazing job with Ryleigh. They are such wonderful parents and of course, excellent advocates for Ryleigh. Please pray that they are able to feel peace at this time...knowing that God has everything under control during such a scary time. Please pray that they are able to get some rest. They are taking turns spending the night at the hospital...the other person stays at our house the nights they aren't at the hospital. 

Ryleigh has a spinal tap scheduled for Monday and an EEG this weekend. Please pray for answers to so many questions.

Morgan was here the first few days and now she's back in Shreveport with my mom so she can attend school....she is such a strong seven year old. Please pray for her to have peace while her parents are in Houston with Ryleigh...and to try not to worry about her sister...

Thank you so much to for lifting The King Family in prayer...

"For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the LORD, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future."

Jeremiah 29:11

Scripture Memory

One of my goals that I've had for a long time is to memorize scripture from the bible. I'm always in situations where I wish I could quote a verse word for word, but can only repeat the basic idea of it. I follow the Living Proof Ministries Blog occasionally and they are having a scripture memory challenge for 2011:


http://blog.lproof.org/


My first memory verse for the year is:


"Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you." Ephesians 4:32


Every two weeks we are supposed to pick a new verse to memorize...for a total of 24 this year. We are supposed to choose one that pertains to our current life experiences.  I have this one memorized now and am so glad that I do. I need to focus on this daily. I can be so unforgiving sometimes...of others and myself. I need to forgive daily just as Christ forgives me daily. I need to forgive others...daily. 


I'm excited about the challenge to memorize 24 scriptures this year. And I pray that God will reveal verses to me that hit close to home. I pray that I will be still and quiet long enough and immerse my self in his Word long enough to hear his voice. 

An Audience of ONE

Each day I receive a daily devotional email from the Purpose Driven Connection by Rick Warren: 


http://profile.purposedriven.com/managesubscriptionssimple.aspx


On Christmas day the devotional included a prayer of thanksgiving to God...here is part of that prayer:

**I feel like celebrating right now, knowing that I am now on your side, instead of being at war with you. I know that with you I will never again be lost and alone. I am a new person today, and I recognize what I have just been given. I pray that, as I continue to grow spiritually every day, I will come to understand everything you have just accomplished in my life. By faith, I know I can trust you to be in my life today - and every day. I know I can count on you when things get tough, and knowing I will spend eternity in your presence gives me such hope!

Thank you, Jesus, for the peace you have given me. I pray you will use me as an instrument of that peace so I can help my family, friends, and the world in which I live. I feel so different right now, knowing that you and I are now OK, knowing I am on the road to a deeper understanding of what it means to live for an audience of one. I ask you to help me pray when I become upset so that I will have your peace in any situation I face - good or bad. Help me to get ready to help other people as others have already helped me. I want to make a difference in this world, and I want to help everyone I meet have the same hope I now have. I can't do this alone, so I ask you to make me a peacemaker.**

This prayer really spoke to my heart, especially the part about living for an audience of ONE. Wow. I've never heard it put quite that way before. But, we really are living for only Jesus and what HE thinks. This is a difficult concept in our world today when so many of us are trying to impress one another...friends and strangers alike. Jesus and his opinion of me if the only thing that matters. 

I want to ask God to help me with this daily...I am definitely "of this world" in this area...I care so much about what people think even though I say that I don't and sometimes I truly think that I don't, if I'm really honest with myself and God, I do. Please Lord, help me with this and help me to live for an audience of ONE.

Prayer Warriors

    I need prayers from any and all prayer warriors. Today a 20 year old boy named Brandon died on Hwy 290 near my house. I'm not exactly sure what happened, but I know he crashed his motorcycle in some way while exiting the freeway. I can't begin to explain in words, how I felt when I saw his family hugging and crying on the side of the road. I felt like I couldn't get to them fast enough. I have never done anything like this before, but I asked them if I could pray for them. I think most people might not have wanted a stranger around at a time like this, but this sweet family seemed to want the prayers. We hugged, cried and talked about Brandon. I told this family that I would continue to pray for them and that I would ask others to do the same...


   PLEASE lift this family up...I can NOT imagine what they are going through. Like this sweet mother said, "you are supposed to go before your children." Dear Lord, Please hold Brandon's family tightly tonight and help them to breathe. We are all children of God and we need to lift each other up in these times of need.

A long time coming...

I've been thinking about starting a blog for a long time...years actually. I'm just now getting around to it.  I am a Christian...have been since I was 10 years old. But, the past few years have been powerful and different for me in my walk with Christ. I am no where close to where I want to be, but everyday I'm learning new and exciting things about Christ that I want to really start to live and share with others. Maybe this will be a place for me to keep track of all the things i'm learning! :) Or maybe to interact with others who can teach me more...Or maybe just a place to share a little about my sweet family that God has blessed me with. My husband, Mark, and our two little boys, Jacob and Isaac, really are gifts from God. And to think that I used to truly believe that I didn't want to ever get married or have children. Thank you God for changing my heart on this one!


Well, it's late, (2:17am!actually! what?!) time for bed...I'll play around a little more on the blog another time and try and figure out how to post pictures...many blessings.