Backsliders

She walked into the Female side of the clinic’s waiting area. Rubbing her lower abdomen, her face slightly grimacing. It was only 2:00 a.m.


“What’s wrong?” I asked her as she was giving me her yellow pass from her unit.


“My right side is hurting. I know it’s this way when I have bladder infection,” she answered as her eyes got a little teary.


Testing her for urinalysis from a little sample of urine she managed to give me, everything was normal, except for the strong odor and a dark hue.


“This tells me that you’re not drinking enough water,” I told her.


“You’re right. I think I only had 3 small cups since I got here 3 days ago,” she continued rubbing her right side now.


Motioning her to go into one of the exam rooms, I asked her to lay down on the exam table as I assisted her. During my evaluation, I discovered that this was her 6th pregnancy. She had 3 alive kids, 1 miscarriage and 1 history of abortion.


“I’m just concerned about my baby. I want to make sure it is okay,” she requested.


“Don’t worry. This is what I’m doing now. We’re going to listen to the fetal heartbeat,” as I warned her that I was about to apply some cold gel on her tummy and started scanning her abdomen with this special instrument that would detect the baby’s heartbeat.


After a few strokes, the faint heartbeats slowly became more audible…Loud…Louder…Louder…and the rate was within normal limits.


I saw her breathe a sigh of relief. But she didn’t know, I was aware of her original charges. She was jailed for hurting a child [not sure if it was her own] to the point of almost killing that child…I got confused…She harmed a child, yet there she was, crying in front of me, begging to make sure that the baby growing inside her womb was okay…


“Ma’am…I’ll have our doctor see you as soon as she gets here in the morning. In the meantime, if you can try to drink at least 8 cups or more water, that would really be great, not only for you, but for your baby, too.”


Small steps slowly left the same Female side door she walked into. She was not crying anymore and verbalized feeling a little better. But deep inside me, I would still be wondering how much she loved that baby…


My mind prayed that her love for her unborn baby would be strong. That she would not hurt this pregnancy. That she would be willing to care and love, not only for her unborn child but with the other children, unconditionally. That she would be the best mom she could ever be….


I could only wonder….and pray…




I could only wonder…and pray….for all of us, born-again Christians, who came to know the Lord’s love and grace. We are all on fire to love Him with all of our hearts…But have we turned our back away from Him? Have we turned away from our First love?


Are we crying because we are so in love with Him, or are we crying because there is no more joy as we have gone back to those same sins that grieve His Spirit?


Are we having pain because we are undergoing spiritual decay as we neglect to drink the Living Water?

Are we like that “pregnant inmate” who just hurt a child intentionally yet, she wanted to make sure that her unborn baby was okay? Are we verbally identifying ourselves with the Lord although we are “backsliding?” Our actions don’t show that we love Him with all of our hearts, all of our minds, all of our strength…


We can have all the right doctrines and appear honorable to men, yet, our minds and hearts are filled with lust, envy, jealousy, bitterness….etc…


I am a backslider, too. For though I chose this road “off the beaten trek”, I have the tendency sometimes to make wrong turns and not focus on what lies up ahead. I lose my enthusiasm at times to follow the One Who leads my way. This road is very long and narrow. I get bored. That’s when I notice some of the fun stuff if I make either a right or left turn on those wide, open roads. But they don’t serve me any good. The Lord warned us that we can’t serve 2 masters; either we will hate one and love the other or we will be devoted to one and despise the other.


Yes, this journey requires me to make lots of choices daily. My decisions may either draw me nearer to Him or cause me to fall away. And somewhere on different parts of this road, we have enemies lurking, waiting for any opportunity to make me ineffective for God’s Kingdom.


Let’s all make those steps…to RETURN and not go father away from the Lord…


Psalm 51:10-11 - “Create pure thoughts in me and make me faithful again. Don’t chase me away from You or take Your Holy Spirit away from me.” [Contemporary English Version]

Prayers, Praise and Thanks

Prior to going home after work, I usually call my son to tell him and his dad that I would be going home and usually, would ask him how his night went. They were supposed to play tennis early at a nearby high school, but I was surprised that they were still at home. That was when he told me that he had a little cough but already ate his breakfast. And he felt okay.


When I got home, I took his temperature and it was normal at that time. But before lunch time, I could feel that he was starting to get warmer. His temperature showed 100.4 degrees F.


He took a nap and by God’s grace, had a long one. He is always good about taking in a lot of fluids, too as long as he can tolerate. That’s what I was thankful for to God, was that despite that low fever, my son has appetite and no other pain or other symptoms. I just got concerned knowing that it is flu season and he hasn’t gotten his yearly shot yet as it is not available yet from his primary physician.


Having that “mommy mode radar” working all the time, I thought of asking all of you to pray for him anyway yesterday. With my own ups and downs in my life, I know that God’s wonderful promise of never leaving us nor forsaking us, always surrounds me with peace. To know that He is in control, is another reason that my rising worry, was immediately detected and destroyed by that Power that supplies my “mommy-mode radar”. He is my son’s Greatest Physician.


After I posted that prayer request, you guys, overwhelmed me and my family with your love and prayer support. We want to thank you and most of all, thank the Lord, the One Who answers our petitions. All night long [Saturday], he maintained a low grade fever. I was still praising the Lord that he had no other symptoms. This morning, Sunday, his temperature has been normal! He’s taking advantage of resting all day so he can go back to school tomorrow.


“How often have we prayed something like, ‘O Lord, be with cousin Billy now in a special way”? Have we stopped to consider what it is we are requesting? Imagine that you are a parent who is preparing to leave your children with a babysitter. Would you dream of saying, ‘O Betsy, I ask you now that you would be with my children in a special way’? No way. You would say, “Betsy, the kids need to be in bed by 9 pm. They can have one snack before their baths, and please make sure that they finish their homework. You can reach us at this number if there’s any problem. Any questions before we go?” We are very specific with our requests and instructions for our babysitters. We want them to know the specifics. It should be no different with prayer.
~ David Jeremiah


As my family was eating lunch today, I had reminded my son, “to always be thankful for God’s goodness.” Even in sickness, we can pray for others sicker than us. When we are eating, we can pray for those who are hungry. When we are shielded from the weather elements, we can pray about those who are homeless and who just lost their homes.


So, I want to remind you, too the same. There are others who are in great need and the least we can do….is to PRAY….as we THANK God for all His goodness.


I want to end this post with my favorite verse:


Philippians 4:6-7 - “Don’t worry about anything, but pray about everything. With thankful hearts offer up your prayers and requests to God. Then because you belong to Christ Jesus, God will bless you with peace that no one can completely understand. And this peace will control the way you think and feel.” [CEV]

Prayer Request

Friends and prayer warriors, if I may ask for you guys to pray for my son who started getting sick this morning. He has a little cough and low grade fever. Thank you and God bless. Trusting here in the Lord knowing that this will come to pass. Thank you for all of you. I treasure you all!

Please scroll down for my previous post for Spiritual Sundays. Thank you.

Spiritual Sundays - Armor of God

A Fight to the Finish [From Ephesians 6:10-18; The Message]:

10-12And that about wraps it up. God is strong, and he wants you strong. So take everything the Master has set out for you, well-made weapons of the best materials. And put them to use so you will be able to stand up to everything the Devil throws your way. This is no afternoon athletic contest that we'll walk away from and forget about in a couple of hours. This is for keeps, a life-or-death fight to the finish against the Devil and all his angels.


13-18Be prepared. You're up against far more than you can handle on your own. Take all the help you can get, every weapon God has issued, so that when it's all over but the shouting you'll still be on your feet. Truth, righteousness, peace, faith, and salvation are more than words. Learn how to apply them. You'll need them throughout your life. God's Word is an indispensable weapon. In the same way, prayer is essential in this ongoing warfare. Pray hard and long. Pray for your brothers and sisters. Keep your eyes open. Keep each other's spirits up so that no one falls behind or drops out.





It's a great day to reflect on the One Who sustains us with strength...For more of encouraging posts, please visit Spiritual Sundays.

Thank you sisters Ginger and Charlotte for hosting this special place of nourishment. God bless you all and "Be strong in the Lord's mighty power!" - Ephesians 6:10.