"Where's My Paci!?" (2 blogs in 1)

     The last blog that was written about our Grand Daughters, was actually written by my Daughter-in-Law, Jenny Register in Aug. 2014.  She did give me permission to copy her story-"A Young Mom's Walk of Shame", which is so identifiable & too funny for words.  At that time Audrey was just about 4 months old, Haven-2 yrs old (in the middle of potty training), & Lauren-4 yrs old.  If you want a good laugh, I would encourage you to go back and read it, especially if you are a young Mom.  Well, now the girls have grown-up a bit: Lauren is in first grade, 6 1/2 yr old, ears pierced & just recently lost her first tooth.  Haven, 4 1/2 yrs old, is still talking & singing from the time she wakes up until she collapses at night time & definitely potty trained :)  Now, we are going through the potty training phase with Audrey who is 2 1/2 yr old.

     When I think about how quickly the children are growing up, it really makes me sad.  I tell them all the time that "I'm going to just have to put a book on their heads so they will quick growing-up."  I have enjoyed each one of them, & most of their growing-up phases :)  Knowing Audrey is our last grandchild on this side of the family, I have made a conscious effort since day one of her life to just enjoy-it will be over too quickly!

     Most of the time when I'm around, Audrey is glued to my hip.  I just melt when she reaches those little arms up to me.  I reach down & swing her high in the air, then I give her a big hug, grab some kisses, & then with big grins on both of our faces we go our merry way.

     Audrey has many loves!  One of those loves are blankets.  I have never seen a child so in love with blankets like this child.  Her second love is being rocked.  The third love was her Paci.  No matter if I'm rocking Audrey at bedtime, or on the front porch swing in 95 degree weather, Audrey has to be covered from head to toe with her blanket, Paci in her mouth & holding her fourth love-her animal head blanket.  I must say, I will miss the day when the rocking will be over.  So until then, I will claim every opportunity that arises.  Already, these rocking days for Lauren & Haven are few & far between :(

     In writing about the Paci, I don't know if you caught the past-tense of that love.  She has just recently had to give up her Paci, & this was not by choice.  This child was not just in love with her Paci, but saying she was OCD concerning it was an understatement.  In fact, you could even go to the point that her Paci was her addiction, BIG TIME!!!!!

     We had the privilege this past June for our entire family to go to Big Cedar Lodge in Missouri.  If you have never been, go!  It is beautiful place, near Branson & Silver Dollar City, & very family friendly!   

     Anyway!  During this time in little Audrey's life, her parents were trying to break her of the Paci.  Naturally, when Audrey was just with me, if she wanted it, she got it.  What are grandparents for!  So, every time she saw me, she was asking for that thing.  I would tell her to go ask Mama & Daddy concerning the Paci, making them to be the bad guy & not me.  I must admit, I hated to see it go, because it was just another toddler stage to disappear.  That growing-up thing again!

Well, during that week I must say it did get a little too funny observing Audrey's reactions with her Paci.  Here is what I observed:

     First of all, Audrey & everyone else knew, including me, Audrey's boundaries concerning her Paci.  They were quite clear.  The Paci was to stay in her pack-in-play.  She could then have it when she was sleeping.  Sometimes, Audrey would get this incredible urge to suck on that thing in between times.  She was allowed to have it, only if she would enjoy it in her bed.  This happened quite often.  Now, her bedroom was upstairs in the farthest location of the house.  It was a great deal of trouble for a two yr old to get to.  In fact, it was a great deal of trouble for me to climb those winding, steep stairs, crawl over the bed that was in her room, then, lift her into her bed.  Pretty soon during the week Audrey began making her way up to her bed by herself-sneaking the Paci out.  
     When she got caught & was confronted she would respond in several ways:
1) head down, slumped over, and began walking in her own special pouting way-not wanting to give it up. 
OR  2) she would cover the Paci with both hands while it was in her mouth, trying to hide it like we couldn’t see it.  I must admit this was too cute :) 
OR  3) Onetime she some how talked her Mama into allowing her to keep it in her pocket-keeping the temptation too close at hand.  You can just imagine how that turned out:) 
OR 4) when she wasn't having it, she constantly was OCD over it.  She kept asking me if she could have it, or asking where is was, or crying because she just wanted it.

Well, by now, you are probably knowing where I am going with all of this. If you are anything like me, we all have our "Paci"s that we just can't give up-or we think we do.  
Some of these "Paci"s maybe shopping, chocolate, alcohol, Starbucks!!! I love a Starbucks Ice Coffee with cream, but no syrup. I must get credit for no syrup, don't you think!? :) What about the heart "Paci"s?: anger, jealousy, comparing, & worry to name a few.

     In my life I am grateful that God cares about my "Paci"s.  I guess it is time to start being really honest and call a "Spade a Spade".  "Paci"s are the IDOLS in our lives that sometimes we/I just don't want to give up.  What is an IDOL you might ask?  It is anything we put in place of where God should be in our lives-actions or heart.

     Like Audrey, God makes my boundaries really clear concerning my IDOL.  Like Audrey, I want to sneak that IDOL, or I think I just need some extra playtime with that thing.  When I get caught, I pout, not wanting to give it up, or cover it up with both hands-hoping God wouldn't really notice or care; or (one of my big ones) I love to keep that IDOL in my pocket close at hand just in case I need it; or just keep crying/complaining over that thing.

     Just like Audrey who has good parents that love her deeply, & wants what is best for her-to grow, & mature, especially in the Lord.  I too have a good, good Father who loves me deeply.  My Father not only loves me deeply, He loves me with an everlasting, perfect love.  He knows me inside and out.  He created me.  He is sanctifying me to be more like His Son, Jesus-wanting me to grow up, to be mature in Him.  He cares about my heart; cleaning out those IDOLS, so I can walk in freedom through the Holy Spirit.  

     Now, what about your "Paci"s?  Are you sneaking around with them?  Are you hiding them in your mouth, covering them up?  Are they in your pocket close by?  Or, have you given them to God, Who is a good, good Father.  Who wants you to walk in freedom! 

 I think I will keep striving for freedom!

ann:)

Side Note From Nanna:
     [This is just a little added story for me to remember, & for me to tell Audrey one day.]

     I think most young Moms use this method in breaking their toddlers of these Paci's-they clip the end of the Paci a little at a time, until the child doesn't have anything to hold onto.  Well, with Audrey this was working.  Until one day Audrey told her Mama that it won't stay in her mouth.  Jenny responded by, "It has just gone bye, bye."  Audrey promptly responded, "No, you keep cutting it off."  Oh, well!  She is no dummy!

     Soon after this, I found out that Audrey had given up her Paci for three days at home.  Now, it was time to break her of it at my (Nanna's) house-like I wrote earlier, break Nanna also of this Paci!  
     On the way to drop off the younger two children at my house for me to baby sit, Jenny called me to give me the heads up to GET RID OFF ALL THE PACIS IN THIS HOUSE before Audrey gets here.  So, I cooperated reluctantly!
     While Jenny was leaving, Audrey made a "bee-line" to the master bedroom where her bed is, & yes, where her blankets & paci are.  She immediately came to me & asked me where her Paci was.  I told her that she was doing so great, that she didn't need it anymore, & they were gone.  All of that was true, but I was ready to pull it out of the trash can in a split second if  need be.
     When nap time came a long, Audrey starting asking for the Paci again.  I told her she could pick out a stuff animal to sleep with instead.  She seemed to be ok with that answer.  I dodged that bullet.
     After nap time we began doing our different activities.  One of these activities my Grandchildren love to do is look at the picture Snapfish books I have created with our photos.  Audrey picked out the ones she wanted to look at.  I could not believe the change in Audrey in one year.  She had grown up so much!  In fact she didn't even reconize herself.  She kept calling herself Haven, when she was the baby in the picture.
     In looking through the pictures, all of a sudden, Audrey called out, "THERE'S MY PACI."  I started cracking-up.  Every page had Audrey with that Paci.  She would then say, "Wait a minute Nanna, go back," so she could just lust after her Paci one more time.  I guess if you can't hold it, or suck on it, you can at least gaze at it for a while. :)  
     This kind of reminds me of the "Winnie-the-Pooh & the Honey Tree" story.  Pooh ate so much honey that he got stuck in Rabbit's house door.  Pooh had many visitors to check on him while he was waiting to get thin again.  One of those visitors was Mr. Gopher.  He had brought his dinner, & you can probably guess what was part of his menu-honey!  As soon as Rabbit heard the word honey, he ran out of his back door to confiscate the honey.  Promply Pooh responded, "I wasn't going to eat any of it, I just wanted to smell it."
     NOTHING NEW UNDER THE SUN IS IT!

     

"All We Like Sheep"

“All We Like Sheep”                         

{Community Bible Study Devotion given 10.11.2016} 

     Don’t you love a good story.  Well, I’m going to tell you a special story God orchestrated for me & my family last Christmas (2015).  I have always enjoyed the Christmas Season, but the entire month of Dec was unusually special for me. 

It all began during the Fall months with me baby sitting my three grand daughters on Fridays.  Part of the schedule was picking up two of them from school.  Audrey was 1 1/2 yrs old at the time, Haven 3 1/2 & Lauren 5 1/2.  On the way to pick up Haven from school, all of a sudden I saw something I had never seen before.  It was a beautiful flock of cream colored sheep right on the corner of where I had to turn.  I went crazy!!!  Where was my phone camera when I needed it?!  I really knew I missed my awesome opportunity of taking a picture, because when I returned, they were gone:(  Oh well!!  I was still so excited, I told everyone.  We did keep seeing the sheep from time to time during the Fall months, & I did finally get my pictures:).

I’m very organized, & part of my planning two weeks before Christmas was shopping for the Christmas turkey meal which I had done for 41 yrs.  As I was in the grocery store all of a sudden I got in my head to buy a leg of lamb instead of the turkey.  I was actually excited about this, which was very unlike me.    What was I thinking!!!?  I had never cooked a lamb in my life!  I asked the butcher for help with my new endeavor, & we finally found the only leg of lamb in the store.  I was so excited!!

It was now Friday, 8 days before Christmas.  I was on my way to pick up Haven as usual, & I couldn’t stand it any more.  All of a sudden I found myself turning into the driveway of the beautiful home where these sheep live.  My heart was pounding & I felt like a giddy little girl.  Audrey was asleep in the back of the car.  I left her there & made my way up to the beautifully decorated door.  I knocked several times & finally a darling college age girl, who I woke up, came to the door.  After I gave a “sheepish” explanation of “You don’t know me but, does your family ever let strangers see your sheep?”  She sweetly explained that her family did all the time.  Well, I jumped on that with all fours!!!  I was so excited, I could hardly stand it.  I was planning to wait to surprise everyone at the end of the day to let them all know what we might be doing, but! as soon as Haven got in the car, I was babbling away.  When Jenny, my awesome daughter-in-law, came home from work, I told her the entire detailed story.  Jenny then told me that just recently Haven PRAYED that God would let her hold a lamb!!

Tuesday, 4 days before Christmas, finally arrived; and we were going to visit the sheep.  It was a beautiful day!!!  The weather was perfect, & everyone was well.  But, before I left my house, I had to check my Christmas-to-do list.  I couldn’t believe what I had written down 3 days earlier-thaw out the lamb :o!  I felt like I was killing the Passover Lamb.

 Anyway, the first thing the girls got to do on the sheep farm was hold Eugene the lamb, who was wearing his Christmas sweater, & feed him his bottle.  Noel, the pregnant sheep followed us everywhere.  We were there for a few hours & I took 100’s of pictures.  God gave us a day beyond our wildest imaginations, & most of all, answered YES to a 3 1/2 yr old child’s prayer.

 This year on (2016) March 27 was Easter.  Yes, as time got closer I began planning the big meal.  I wanted to talk to Lauren, who was turning 6, to see what she would like to add to the menu since we were celebrating her birthday at the same time.  So, I started rattling off the menu & said, “Lauren, Nanna is planning to have that special ham that you like, and lamb, and..”  Before I could say another word, without missing a beat—Lauren looked at me so intently with eyes as big as saucers and said, “Are we going to eat Noel!?”   ALL OF A SUDDEN IT BECAME PERSONAL!!!

It is the same way with God!  It was personal to Him when He sent Jesus to be our sacrificial Lamb.  From the beginning of Genesis to the end of Revelation, from the manger to the cross: God showed us His grace & redemption through Jesus our Great Shepherd.

God’s people were shepherds & understood the ways of sheep very clearly.  These people not only treated these animals as a business, but many times it was more than that.  Many of these sheep were personal to them.  They named their sheep, the sheep knew their master’s voice, gentle touch, were loved, & that their masters would take care of their needs.  No wonder God spoke to His people many times using this illustration.  God says we are like sheep.  In Is 53:6-All we like sheep have gone astray, each of us has turned to our own way, and the Lord has laid on Him the sin of us all.  Sheep love to do their own thing, and so do we.  We clearly see the beginning of this in the Garden of Eden with Adam & Eve.  Personally, I have not thought about this until writing this devotion.  I would not be surprised, if God killed a sheep to cover Adam & Eve’s sin which was a foretaste of Christ shedding His blood for us.  Don’t forget Adam’s first job was to name the animals/sheep which he knew them very well.

  God’s people learned how to worship God by sacrificing rams, sheep, lambs, & other animals on altars.  As they would bring their sacrificial offering for the forgiveness of their sins, or peace offering, or even thanksgiving & praise offering; their animals had to spotless, without blemish. 

I find it interesting that many times God had the person who was giving the sacrificial offering, had to put their hand on the head of the animal while the animal was being killed, & by this they would feel the life leaving the animal.  WHY???  BECAUSE  IT’S PERSONAL!!!  Jesus is our only spotless, w/o blemish sacrifice for our sins.

  God shows us a part of Himself through His Names: Jehovah-jireh: The Lord will provide which He provided for Abraham a ram as a sacrifice instead of Isaac.  Jehovah-raah: The Lord My Shepherd in Ps. 23.

  We had the privilege to visit this sheep farm two times.  We held a lamb that was 4 days old, & feed Noel corn tortillas.  These visits made Scripture jump off the page in 3D living color.  We saw how the sheep ran from a stranger, but ran to their Shepherd just like we need run to Jesus, keeping our eyes on Him & in His word.  Sheep need to be lead & not left to wander.  God never intended for us to wander. That is why Jesus calls us His friends.  We are His adopted daughters & sons; we are not orphans.  God keeps His promises & covenant: He is our God, we are His people, & He will dwell in each of our hearts if, & only if we ask Jesus to be our Savior.  We saw how sheep really do leap for joy, as we should do in our hearts in praise to our King.  It was so clear to see how the shepherdess loved taking care of her sheep; as God our Father loves taking care of us.   Finally, we learned all about the staff that really does comfort, guide & keep the sheep out of trouble; just as God’s Word does for us.

From the Garden of Eden, to the shepherds at the manger, to the finishing of the sacrifices once & for all at the cross—our story doesn’t end there!!!  BECAUSE IN REV 5 WE HAVE THE LAMB STANDING! THAT WAS SLAIN, & HE IS WORTHY TO OPEN THE SEVEN SEALS.  He is our Victor & will be called Faithful & True.  Yes, it was very much personal to Jesus, is He personal to you?

     

ann :)

My Anchor in Knowing Him

My Anchor in Knowing Him

{Community Bible Study Devotion given Nov 10, 2015}

As I have been reading through the Bible this year, God has also challenged me to do a word study on the word KNOW.  Not the word NO that my 18 mon old granddaughter says with great expression, 

but K-N-O-W. 

Here are some interesting facts about the word KNOW:

1. There are 1324 forms of the word know in the Bible,
2. In John’s 4 books alone, he uses know 145 times.  And In the book of Romans-Paul uses the word know 35 times.
3. The first time know (knows) is used in the Bible is found in Gen 3:5.  The Serpent was tempting Eve while her husband, Adam, was close by: “For God knows that in the day you eat from it your eyes will be opened, & you will be like God, knowing good & evil.”  Well, we know the rest of that story.  

     There are many definitions of the word know in Greek & Hebrew.  But, the meaning God brought to my attention was intimacy in marriage.  God wants intimacy, & relationship with us.  NOW! I understand more of why God wanted me to spend a year looking at this word. The meaning of this word KNOW is more than intellect.  It goes far past our thoughts & emotions.  KNOW goes to the core of our being.  What we firmly believe, trust in, rely upon is what we live out.  What is in our hearts correlates to our faith walk in life.

I have summed up this study in three categories.  I am sure there are many, more, but this is where the Lord has planted me.

1. God wants me to know His name.
2. God wants me to know His covenant.
3. God wants me to know His only Son-Jesus! 

A) KNOWING GOD’S NAME  

I love the study of God’s names.  By knowing His names, I can know & understand God’s character.  Many years ago I began praying, “God show me Your glory as You did for Moses.”  It wasn’t until very recently that God answered this prayer.  God revealed to me that when I have experienced one of His names, He has been revealing a part of His glory.

B) KNOWING GOD’S COVENANT

God made it very clear through out the Bible that He wanted His chosen people to know His covenant!  In Ex. 6:7 it says,”Then I will take you for My people, & I will be your God; & you shall know that I am the Lord your God, who brought you out from under the burdens of the Egyptians.”  Covenant is very simple.  Anywhere you see in the Bible one to three of these statements, God is talking about His covenant.  These statements are: 1) I am Your God, 2) You are my people, & 3) I will dwell among you.  By knowing God’s covenant, I will know Who God is, I will know my identity in Him, and I will know His deeds & promises.  

Jesus has many names.  One of them deals with covenant which was revealed at His birth: Immanuel—God With Us.

C) KNOWING GOD’S SON-JESUS

        I don’t know how to make it many more planner than that.  From Gen. to Rev. God wants us to know Jesus.  Not just intellectually, but relationally.  He is The Way, The Truth, & The Life.  Anyone who comes to the Father can only come by way of Jesus.

             

Here are a few examples of how God has made Himself known to me:

I believe that I am sinner totally saved by grace through faith in Jesus Christ alone, who gave His life for me on the cross.  Even though I came to this realization as a child, I was for many years an individual who tried to do all the right things.  I was a great Doer, but not a great Be-er!  This lead me down a dark road of great guilt & condemnation.  I was like a caged hamster on its wheel going round & round striving to be perfect, & if I wasn’t, then I would mentally beat myself up.  Most of the time I didn’t even know I was doing this.  This was all I knew.  For many years I prayed, & searched for God to free me from this internal turmoil.  It was not a sudden thing, but one day recently I realized I was not beating myself up anymore.  I had peace within concerning this issue.  The beating had stopped!  I was coming to know God as my Jehovah-shalom: the Lord of Peace.  Does this mean I still don’t put myself under condemnation?  Of course I do!  But, through God’s grace, mercy, & timing, God puts a cold splash of Rm. 8:1- healing my mind & heart-“Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.”

Another huge lie I believed was I didn’t hear Jesus’ voice even though Scripture said, “My sheep hear My voice, & I know them & they follow Me.”  This truly affected my identity, my worth.  As I compared      myself to others faith walk with the Lord; in my mind, I didn’t seem to measure up. 

In Oct 2007, I was attending a Women’s Bible Study.  I don’t remember what we were studying, but I do remember recognizing this & other lies.  I began to renounce them by faith through the blood of Jesus & His Word.  

This Feb 10th an amazing thing happened to me!  I had just finished visiting with this (CBS) Core Leadership Group on Tues, knowing I was going to be helping in the Children’s Ministry (in CBS) on Wed.  As I was crossing the 430 bridge on my way home, it hit my spirit like a ton of bricks, “You do hear from Me!  What about Our study on the Mothers of the Kings last Summer?”  I could hardly see the road through my tears.  This study is special to me, because it was only God Who taught me through my quiet time Bible reading.  Not only did God teach me many things, but He prepared me for last years CBS study-Journey to Jerusalem.  God is so faithful!!  In an instant I knew Jesus as my Shepherd, & Friend.  God had brought me full circle and that lie is put to dead!!!  

Finally, in Sept “1996” I took diet pills trying to be thin.  This act sent me into a psychotic mental breakdown that lead me into a horrible couple of years of depression.  Through this time I came to know God as my J. Rapha-The Lord Who Heals.  He was the great Healer of my mind, body & soul.  So many times God met me in this deepest hole and would bring me up in a split second through so many ways that only He could do.  He proved over & over His faithfulness, goodness, love & dwelling in my heart.  He truly gave me beauty instead of ashes, & the oil of joy instead of mourning, the garment of praise instead of a heavy, burdened & failing spirit.  I praise Him that I don’t suffer from that depression any longer!

A little twist to this story, is during the breakdown, I believe Satan put a seed of doubt into my mind causing me to question if I really believed I was God’s child, & would I be with Him in heaven when I died?  That thought terrified me!!!  When I came to my senses, I dismissed the thought quickly, knowing I was saved through faith in Jesus, but I didn’t put the thought to death.

All of a sudden during the last day of CBS Rev Bible Study during Core group, I knew I had been attacked by Satan with the thoughts from Sept “96”.  They came barreling on top of me &  I was terrified!  I was literally holding onto my chair with both hands.  No one in the room knew.  All I knew was I can’t fight this with my emotions or even my thoughts because they were going wild inside of me.  I knew I had to go back to my anchor knows of Scripture.  I was sobbing inside & out.  

As Sara began her lecture, I didn’t hear a thing on Rev. 22.  All I heard Sara teach was the washing of the grace of the GOSPEL. 

After our CBS luncheon I cornered my leader privately at our cars.  I am so grateful God used Beverly to splash a cup of His grace over my soul.  Very quickly she took me back to what I already knew-I am God’s child, because I know Jesus died for me, paying my price so I can be with Him in heaven.  God put to death that seed that Satan so desperately wanted for me to believe.

That year God showed me Jesus in a new & living way as I had never seen before.  And now as I am looking forward to the time that I will see Jesus face to face.  I can’t wait to see Him & be apart of His Kingdom as in Rev 19:11-16:

“…Behold, a white horse, and He who sat on it is called Faithful and True, and in righteousness He judges and wages war.  His eyes are a flame of fire, and on His head are many diadems; and He has a name written on Him which no one knows except Himself.  He is clothed with a robe dipped in blood, and His name is called The Word of God. …  And on His robe and on His thigh He has a name written, “KING OF KINGS, AND LORD OF LORDS.”  

ann :)

RDH Update

Written : December, 2012
Six of Six Blogs on God's Faithfulness concerning my AR RDH Boards 

Well, I did it.  This past week I worked my first three days as a Dental Hygienist in AR.  I had many emotions going into this job.  During Sunday morning Bible Study I gave a praise report concerning getting the job.  Then, you might can guess my next prayer request?  Yep, "Help Lord with the computer portion of the job.   As I have already stated in the previous Blogs, I really am not too nervous concerning the DH part, but somewhat nervous about the Xrays & the computer.

God gave me many blessings this past week.  You might now care about all this DH detail stuff, but God knows that it is important to me.  By listing all these blessings, just keeps reminding me of God's faithfulness & it encourages my faith.
1) Before I went to work I noticed that I didn't cram with any studing.  Normally, with all my other jobs I would study & cram.  I found myself letting all that go.
2) I loved working with Laci, the other Hygienist, who didn't judge me or look down on me.  She was so helpful & I learned a lot from her.  She kept telling me that I can do this, slow down, & that I'm thinking too much.  She was awesome.
3) The computer software was pretty easy to work with due to my last job that I had in Franklin, NC over a year ago.
4) I struggled with making appointments that were due in 6 mon, but on the second day I finally sat down with Laci & wrote out some cheat notes.  After that I didn't have any problems.
5) Xrays: After a couple of times, they became ordinary.  Before I was trying to talk patients out of them.  Now, it is no big deal.
6) Jamie the receptionist was so very helpful.
7) I stayed on schedule & many times there were cancellations that helped my time schedule.
8) I couldn't believe it, but Dr. Lane paid me extra money than he told me.  Either he forgot or a bonus due to Christmas, or he changed his mind.  Whatever, I'm grateful.

I am actually looking forward to going back.  Also, there might be other days that I can work than the suggested 10 days that were suggested.

I just thank the Lord for the answer prayer & blessings for & during this first job.

Thank you Lord.  You were faithful again.

ann :)

PS-Jan 13, 2013-Asked our Bible Study to pray for 2 extra days of work.  Yesterday 1.21.13 I was asked to work for Wed. 1.23.13 due to the other RDH sub was sick.  I hated that she is sick, but I'm grateful for the extra day.  Thank you Lord. 

10.3.2016

Well, After reading all of the blogs of faith on my RDH Journey, I wanted to give a quick update.  I can't remember too long during the next year, I gave up my RDH shengle.  The jobs were not coming along, I had lost so much confidence in my knowledge ability, I wasn't enjoying it-a huge stressor,  the cost for keeping up with the expenses of three States, & 47 hr of credit every other year-- was too much on us.  I felt my real ministry was helping with the family-enjoying a lot of baby sitting at the time, plus going back & forth to check on the Mothers.

At the present time, I am still enjoying keeping & helping with the grands, but the Lord has directed me to being a Core Leader with a ministry called CommunityBible Study (CBS), which is a huge commitment.  I'm so grateful for this opportunity.

ann :)

I Can't Believe It!

Written :  12,13, 2012

Fifth of Six Blogs on God's Faithfulness concerning my AR RDH Boards 

Anytime I see God answer prayer & see His faithfulness, it certainly blows me away.  I can hardly contain myself.  It never gets old & this situation is no exception.  I love time lines, so please be patient with me as you read this blog.

I have not felt lead to search for an RDH job this year.  I don't know if I'm putting it off due to fear or I just don't want to work.  The real truth is probably yes to both of these statements.  But, I really haven't felt lead to hunt for a job.  In fact, I thought I found the perfect job at Dr. Eiler's office which should have begun this December, but that is not looking promising at the moment.  I really was dreading job hunting due to there are so many Dentist in the Little Rock area, & I don't know where to begin or who to trust.  I did want to get into a good office that produces awesome dentistry no matter where I work.

December 6, (Thur)-I love Chat.  This is the women's ministry at Summit Church.  We meet 3-4 times during the school year for a couple of hours.  Every Chat is different, & again I love helping & being apart of it.  This Chat I got there early to help, but there was nothing for me to do.  Marty Heard was standing around.  To my surprise, she was a major part of the program.  I just thought she was there early, like me.  I met her when I attended our new church homes Women's Spring Bible Study this year.  She is a wife of a Dentist in North Little Rock.  She has been so supportive & very sympathetic as I went through the AR DH Board process.
     We usually have about 90 women to attend Chat.  So, for me to have run into Marty & had time to chat, would have been a little difficult.  Amazing how God orchestrated this interaction.
     Anyway, we were catching-up & she wanted to know where I stood with RDH.  I told her my thoughts & feelings.  (1) Marty said that they might can use me in Feb 2013 & to bring by a resume; (2) & that they (she & her husband-he meets with other Dentist in a Bible Study) would pass the word about me to help steer me in the right direction.

December 9, (Sun)-During a different Bible Study that my husband & I attends that met after the worship service, I asked for prayer concerning a RDH job.  I had already told LaRue & Dianna about my situation during our tea, & had ask them to pray for me concerning this.

December 10, (Mon)-I got dressed up, traveled about 30 min for a 5 sec meeting & left the resume at Dr. Heard's office.  Then, I got lost & it took me about 45 min to get home.  Getting lost, NEVER makes me happy, if you know what I mean.  Plus, Marty wasn't even in the office that day.  Oh well.

December 12, (Thur)-While I was keeping Haven (our 2nd grand baby), I got a phone call from Dr Heard's office to ask if they could fax my resume to Dr. Lane's office.  I was spell bound.  He also asked if he could meet me today.  I got cleaned up & was at the office for over 2 hrs.  The office & staff were great!  Here I go again, being overwhelmed with the computer responsibilities.  I was experiencing many mixed emotions: excitement, overwhelmed, & fearful.  This was obviously to me & to Dr. Lane that this was a GOD THING.  

After it was all over I had to naturally call Dave first, then Dianna, La Rue, & of course Marty who already knew.  Later the kids & Mother.  You see, this goes back to when I CAN'T HARDLY CONTAIN MYSELF, I HAVE TO TELL EVERYONE.

Lately, I have felt in my spirit the Lord taking me back to the verses to claim & declare though-out preparing for the Boards.  I believe that God wants me to keep declaring these verses, not only with my RDH skills, but also with these computer skills that I now need to learn as I work.

Ex 31:1-5
Then the Lord spoke to Moses, saying: 2 “See, I have called by name Bezalel the son of Uri, the son of Hur, of the tribe of Judah. 3 And I have filled him with the Spirit of God, in wisdom, in understanding, in knowledge, and in all manner of workmanship, 4 to design artistic works, to work in gold, in silver, in bronze, 5 in cutting jewels for setting, in carving wood, and to work in all manner of workmanship.

Prayer-Father, I just thank you for this awesome opportunity of seeing how you care for me (us), seeing You work, seeing Your faithfulness in this area of my life.  Again, You are so faithful.  Thank you for the 10 day of work & maybe more with this office.  I also want to thank you for other sub-jobs that You will bring my way.  Thank you that this job should pay us back about 2/3's of what we owe ourselves in RDH.  In Jesus Name, Amen

      ann :) 

Update Concerning AR RDH Board

Written :  12,13, 2012

Fourth of Six Blogs on God's Faithfulness concerning my AR RDH Boards 

I can't believe I am writing so late.  The Board was Saturday, Apr. 28, 28th, 2012. Well, here is the rest of the AR DH saga! 

The Board was given within a 3 day period.  Each day there were two different sessions that you could have been assigned to.  I was assigned the last day, & the last session to take the Board.  Nothing like giving your nerves the opportunity to have their full benifit to perform!

The day of the Board finally came.  Yes, I was nervous.  I showed up for orientation at 6:30 am.  Then I had to wait until 12:45 pm to take the exam.  Since I really could not go home between orientation and my Board, I walked, & walked to help pass the time.  I even walked to the zoo & bought our zoo passes for the year, & walked some more.  I then sat down & ended up talking with a Mom who was waiting on her daughter who was taking the exam.  My stomach was still churning.

Well, it was finally time.  My patient showed up.  Praise the Lord!  I had even bought him a Nook for him to play with during the 3 hr exam.  You do what you have to do to get your patient there.  I also had to pay him at least $100 for me to clean 1/2 of his mouth.  He was a good sport I have to say.

By the time I walked into the clinic I saw my dear instructor, Ms. Pace.  I couldn't believe it but, she had my entire opertory prepared, which saved a lot of time.  I took my time doing my perio probing & calculus detection.  I knew I would take a hit with not meeting the Board's criteria & also calculus detection portion.  Now, this was my fourth state exam that I had taken.  It never gets any easier, but I couldn't believe what was happening within myself during this exam.  I was actually enjoying working on my patient's mouth.  I couldn't believe it.  I enjoyed it & had PEACE & JOY :) just like I prayed for.  

Again, God was faithful!!!

I did pass the Board with the exact grade I thought I would make!  God, You are so good.

Now, I beginning a new journey in finding part-time jobs.  I do enjoy the Dental Hygiene work, but going into a new office everytime to sub, is becoming very difficult for me, especially mentally & emotionally.  Every office has a different computer system.  This always freaks me out to some degree.  Why can't I just clean the patient's teeth :-/

AGAIN, as I begin this new job on Monday, 12.17.2012, I'm reminded of God's faithfulness; plus He took me back to the two sisters, Mary & Martha, that I wrote about in my last entry, Where is My Focus?  God is good!

            ann :)

Marinade vs Faith? Part Two

Written : March, 2012
Second of Six Blogs on God's Faithfulness concerning my AR RDH Boards 

continuation...
I had the opportunity to take a wonderful 2 1/2 weeks trip in March of this year (2012), to go back to Highlands, NC then to Valdosta, GA & on to Atlanta.  I hadn't been back to Highlands since we moved the end of Sept. 2011.  It was great spending time with my Mom but, it was also a bitter sweet time because it was my first time back at home since my Dad past away this past Jan (2012).  The Dental Conference in Atlanta is always fun.  I learn a lot of information, got many CE credits, & I had so much fun being with Dr. Dyer's office.  Along the way I got to visit with many wonderful friends, & went to a wonderful Women's Retreat.

While in Valdosta I got to visit with one of my dearest friends named Gaye.  We went out to lunch, driving in style with her new Jaguar.  Boy, did I give her a grief about that.  After talking about the families & all our girlie stuff, I began to talk about the woes of taking the Dental Hygiene Boards, again.  The bottom line of that conversation, was the Lord was with me through the NC boards, He will be with me through the AR boards.

Then, I began telling her after the joy of passing this AR DH board, I now get to pay over a $1000 to take a course for a week about Dental Hygiene Local Anesthesia.  In other words, I've got to learn how to give shots!!!  Not only do I have to learn how to give a shot, I get to be a guinea pig for someone else for five days for someone else to practice on.  :( :( :(  

Now, the Dentist & Hygienist AR love doing this.  I am the person who HATES shots with a purple passion.  I have hated them since I was a very small child.  I can't even watch someone else on TV with a knife or an animal attacking another animal on the Discovery Channel.  I can dig in your mouth & get all that gunk out, but forget a shot.

As I was telling Gaye all this, we started dieing laughing.  The more expressive I got, the more we laughed.  About the end of this conversation, it was time for us to depart.  Right before I got out of her car to get into mine Gaye then came up with this great illustration.  "Ann, just think of those mouths as being a chicken!  As you are giving those shots, you are marinating a chicken.  Just imagine that medicine spreading out like marinade all through the mouth."  By this time we were roaring with laughter.  Laughing tears were flowing down my cheeks--one of those belly laughs.  In fact, I am laughing all over again while writing this story.  

Well, I must admit, that if I ever take the course I might kill over laughing with the shot in my hand & never make it to the patients mouth.  At this point in my journey in preparing to take the AR Dental Hygiene Boards, I don't have a patient & my board is Apr 28th.  That seems like a long time away, but really I have about 1 1/2 weeks to find a patient or maybe I need to withdraw from the exam & give up practicing DH.  If I don't get my license, then I don't have to take the course.  Hey!! :)

Some anchor concepts of faith that I have really hung onto are: 
-that God is good no matter what;  
-He loves me & He wants the best for me & my family; 
-& He is faithful no matter what!  
-He hasn't failed me, 
-& I haven't failed myself through this process.  
-If I take the board or not, if I pass or not; He is still a good Father.
  
Again, these concepts keep me grounded in my life.  Other faith steps through this journey have been clinging to the verses that God has given me; not giving up; studying for the course before I pass the boards (I have to pass the boards to take the course).

Well back to the marinade.  Shots or no shots, God wants to marinade me in His Word & in His goodness everyday.  Don't you love that?!  Also, don't you love dear friends that help you keep life in perspective?!  I do.

                                 ann :)