This is the longest session ever! It could be a small book all by itself. It has 13,889 words and depending on the font… covers 14 – 25 pages. You have my, our, permission(s) to copy this now and read it and refer to it later.
Before we share with you the unmistakable times when the Holy Spirit moved us, ministering angels came to help, or heavenly intervention took place in our lives, we want to thank and congratulate you on your efforts to ‘Discover the Mystery – and Hearken unto God. It was a labor of love to do the research and present the Mystery for you to benefit from this wonderful gift that God has for every Saint. May your future be more joyous, peaceful and blessed. The Holy Spirit makes you this offer; bear your cross, crucify the old man, take your place as a Child of God, and become an overcomer. Continue to work the ‘Mystery’, to disassociate with the id, and share the power and ability of the ‘Mystery’ with all Saints. The time is running out. We know not the hour when our savior returns. We send our love and prayers to you, our sibling in Christ. Learning to Discover the Mystery and Hearken unto God is a process that fully unfolds and yet melds together over time with practice, dedication, and patience into your everyday life. While it's certainly possible to make this journey alone, walking this narrow pilgrim’s path with a loving, supportive community can make the journey richer, easier, and even more rewarding. You are welcome to come to services if you are in our area, you will accomplish three things: You will find that we provide a safe, friendly, and supportive place where mature Saints can learn how to deepen their experience of the Holy Spirit by using the ‘Mystery’ in their lives. You’ll learn and grow in your own experience of hearing God's voice by worshiping and praying in person with others. You will learn to activate a beacon in your heart when you allow the Holy Spirit to express love, peace and open up to those who are seeking love and communication with God. We would love to hear from you, get your opinion on this course; ‘Discover the Mystery – Hearken unto God’. Please take the time to send us your thoughts. Now, in the next two dozen or so pages we present our combined testimonies of the major times we felt God, prior to learning and sharing the ‘Mystery’, that span 65 years. They are listed in no particular order. May they jog your memory and allow you to remember times when, like these, you were moved to action, protected, comforted, or blessed. 1 Samuel 3 – We have both had this happen many times. From the time Judy was about 5 years old up to and including just last month, at the age of 70, and Michael from his early 30s up until now, have been awaken by a voice of urgency that appeared to becoming from just outside the entrance to their bedrooms. It is loud enough to shake them from a deep sleep and yet upon rising, and searching the house, they never find anyone. However, within a few days of being called some sort of accident always seems to follow; someone will rear-end the car, the vehicle will get a flat, the car battery dies, one of us will fall or trip and get hurt, one of us will learn of the death of a loved one, or work related machinery will fail to work properly causing one or the other of us to be in a near death accident. Too many things like those incidents happen to call this anything but warnings from, possibly, our guardian angels or the Holy Spirit. It was only a few years ago that we learned about the bible story that mentioned how young Samuel the prophet also heard his name called repeatedly as he slept, only to learn it was the Lord. Psalm 37:24 - This happened to me. I had recently turned eighteen and was living with my grandparents because my father and I did not get along. Although I was nearly 6’3” I was more like my mother, reserved and quiet, while my father was loud and critical. His brother was exactly like him. He claimed to be a Christian because he was raised to go to church every Sunday and still did. The sad part was he never ever showed God’s love to anyone, not even to members of his immediate family. When my uncle offered me a job working for his company my grandmother talked me into taking it. The job was working as an apprentice carpenter in construction on high-rise buildings. Because I was young and inexperienced I wasn’t allowed to go over four floors high. It took me a while to learn the ropes. Sometimes I would forget to carry up my tools, or wear my hard hat or other simple innocent mistakes. My uncle seemed to take pleasure in every opportunity to start yelling at me in front of the entire crew. He called me names and belittled me. I was so humiliated by his treatment. He said he would make a man out of me by treating me that way. I was either on the third or fourth floor, using a nail gun to connect ¾ inch plywood, when I lost my balance. I fell. Fortunately, when I fell I landed one floor below me. My legs were spread apart and my body was at an angle. I ended up straddling a steel beam, hitting the upper inside of my right thigh. Everyone said I was one fortunate fellow, because I could have died. My uncle was in rare form, with no sympathy or respect; he tore into me verbally, like never before. I continued working for him for a few more months but my spirit finally could take no more. Until then, I had never been a quitter. Looking back, I see that I was bullied but my pride plus respect for my elders kept me from reacting in anger. It was God that was teaching me and preparing me to be a man after His own heart, and not after the fashion of men. Although I had no biblical training somehow I knew that it would be better to be angry and not sin, to honor my elders, and I bridled my tongue. (Read aloud Ephesians 4:26, 1 Timothy 5:1-2, James 3:8) [Here I am inserting a bit of biblical trivia: While I was dating Judy we took a college bible course and we both learned so much. Something that has always made us giggle is that the bible has two words for patience. 1. Makrothumia is a Greek word (Strong's #3115) often translated in the Authorized Version as 'long-suffering' or 'patient'. In English long-suffering which is tending to fall out of use, but the dictionary definition is 'bearing problems or annoying behavior of others patiently'. A trait I have always had, as proven by the incident above, but it is not one of Judy’s strong points. 2. Hupomone, the other word for patience, (Strong's #5281) is also a Greek and comes from two words – hupo – meaning under and –mone – meaning abiding, remaining steadfast under trial with things especially. This is where Judy shines, and I must work at. We are both blessed with patience, just different types of it!] I thank God because He gave me an understanding about how to communicate without retaliation and that He never gave up calling me, protecting me, loving me. Psalm 91:11 – We were together when this happen. In 2011 Judy took early Social Security retirement and we celebrated by traveling to see the mighty work of God in the Grand Canyon. Neither of us had ever gone to see it before. We were on windy mountain Highway 4, in our 2003 Volkswagen Beetle, heading back to Reno, Nevada, when I suddenly felt a strong need to pray for the car. We were hundreds of miles from home, on a desolate stretch of road, at sunset. I had no reason to pray. The car was not acting strange or making any sounds. In fact, Judy thought it was an odd request but joined me in prayer as I asked our heavenly Father, in Jesus name, to send His angels to surround our car and get us back home safely and to a trusted mechanic. Several hours later we made it home and the next morning we went directly to the Volkswagen dealership maintenance guys to have the car get a once-over. We were both standing next to the car when it was raised into the air. As the head mechanic reached out his hand, the front axle fell into it. We turned to each other, wide eyed and mouths a gasp. We knew it had happened again, our guardian angels carried us. 1 Corinthians 15:51 – This happened to me. When I was in my late teens i was living with my maternal grandparents. On this particular day my Christian grandmother could not drive my grandfather to work because she was too sick. She woke me up out of a sound sleep and insisted that I be the one to take my grandfather to work at his dental office. I begged my grandmother not to make me drive because I was too sleepy. Grandfather got to work safely enough but on the return trip I fell asleep at the wheel, the car rolled over 3 times, and I escaped with only a tiny scratch on the bag-line below my eye. The roof of the car was upside down and on the ground, only inches from the seat above my body. I managed to crawl my way out. A Police Officer arrived only moments after the accident. Upon seeing me exit the car, the officer told me “You should be dead, son, Somebody up there is watching out for you!” One amazing fact is that even though the accident happened during the morning commute there were no other vehicles in the vicinity when I fell asleep and the car went out of control. However, all that I could say repeatedly was “Oh my, look at my car, my grandmother is going to kill me! She was mighty upset but when she heard what the Officer said to me, she threw threw arms around me, hugged me harder than she ever had, and started praying. Psalm 150:1-6 - We were together when this happen. Winters had been mild for a few years, an occasional rain or a few flakes of snow were all we were experiencing. Our 1995 GMC Safari van did not have a working hearer fan. This meant that the defroster did not work and there was no heat in the cab so we rarely went anywhere, especially at night in winter, if it did rain or snow. As life would have it, in mid-February, on a clear Sunday night, we went to the evening services at a local church. Surprising to all in attendance, when the service was over, we all found our vehicles covered in snow and half covering the tires. From past experience we knew that this storm was only starting to dump its treasures. Generally we would have gone to a nearby coffee shop with a few other members of the congregation to fellowship but decided to head straight home. Home was only 15 minutes away under clear skies, but home was also 1,000 feet higher elevation form where we were. We knew that when the valley got six inches of snow we got a foot, and with over a foot already on the valley floor … there was no telling how much snow we already had in our driveway. We climbed into the van and headed home. The surface streets were already dotted with stalled cars and fender benders. I decided to take the freeway. Unfortunately the on ramp had quite an incline and three cars had already slid off the shoulder, hazard lights on and appeared to be waiting for tow trucks. We too, began so loose traction but instead of heading off the shoulder we were going up the ramp at 90 degrees, passing everyone, even a highway patrolman. It was at that time that Judy began to pray as her phone fell off of the console and right into her lap. She turned on her phone, and staring right in her face was the site that gave a long list of lyrics to classic gospel songs that she had used during services earlier. She began singing very loudly, one song after another, and I joined right in with ‘Jesus Loves Me’. Next we sang ‘Sweet Chariot’ as we made it up the ramp and fortunately there was no oncoming traffic to fear as we straightened out and entered the slow lane. More cars were on the side of the freeway, mostly abandoned. We each rolled down the door windows a bit to help the front window clear up from the warmth of our breath as we sang that was causing condensation. That did not help very much. We sang ‘Mansion Over the Hilltop’ as loud as possible, as Judy tapped out the beat on the dash. Folks with jeeps and hummers sped past us only to lose control, hydroplane, and swerve off the road moments later. When we approached our exit we could see that it and the side roads had not been plowed. A two foot wall of snow was being plowed through as we sang ‘Deep and Wide’. Two stop signs and 4 turns more found in our neighborhood. We live in an elaborate cul-de-sac with two entrances. Upon approaching the first entrance the van hit black ice and began to slide, hitting into a 4 foot high gravel and snow embankment. Because of the slant of the road our van gently and slowly rotated to the left so much that I was able to head back out of that entrance, looped around into the second entrance, and made it safe and sound into our driveway, with no damage to us, the gravel embankment or the van, shouting out the last tune of the night; ‘Victory in Jesus’! Hebrews 13:2- We were together when this happen. It was nearly 11 pm and we were on our way home from visiting my mother in the convalescent home. We felt the car lunge as the front right tire blew out. There was no loud pop like there normally would be with a flat, not even a hiss or whistle. We coasted into the parking lot of a 24 hour corner convenience store and pulled into a wide area in the back. There were no other vehicles in the parking lot. We had a spare tire but it was chained under the van and we did not have a lug wrench to get it down. This occurred a few years before we had cell phones, we had no money for the pay phone but that didn’t matter because we didn’t have towing service or any friends in the area to call. I left Judy safely locked in the van as I went into the store to see if any employees had a lug wrench that we could borrow. The only person working there was a young female clerk that told me she walked a mile to and from work every day because she did not own a vehicle. I took me all of 30 seconds as I hurried back to the van, climbed in, reached over and took Judy’s hand and said ‘Let’s pray’. We closed our eyes. Not one word had yet come forth from either of us when suddenly there was a tap on the driver’s window. Startled we jumped, turned toward the sound and saw a young man standing there with a huge lug wrench lying over his right shoulder. ‘Do you need some help’ the man asked’. We were confused. No one knew we were in need of a lug wrench. There was no way that clerk had time to make any call and have someone arrive to help us in less than 30 seconds. I motioned for Judy to join me outside as I opened the door to talk to this stranger. He was clean shaven, stood about six foot high, and wore a white tee shirt and jeans. After exchanging pleasantries he crawled under the van, removed the tire and asked if he could change the tire for us. We were so flabbergasted by his sudden appearance and the speed in which he dislodged our tire that we actually thanked him for his help, offered him $10, and said we’d do the rest ourselves. In the 15 seconds it took Judy to reach for her purse to get the money and Michael to pull the jack out of the back of the van… the young man was gone. He vanished. We had just entertained an angel unaware. Psalm 34:4. This happened to Judy. She was the only passenger, riding in the front seat, on her way to out to visit friends for the evening. The driver was out of sorts because they were running late due to the fact that the car wasn’t running right. It started okay but then it would act sluggish and stall out. It did this several times for nearly a mile. They suddenly realized they had taken a wrong turn and were lost in a notoriously dangerous part of town. They were approaching a school on the right, about a block ahead of them with several people standing around on the sidewalk, when the car died again. In the twilight they could make out that many of the people in the crowd were tossing or juggling things into the air. The driver tried frantically to get the car started again as the crowd began to slowly approach them. Knowing that the driver was not a Christian, Judy closed her eyes as she began to silently pray and sing hymns. When an ominous thud hit the car it shocked Judy into instantly sing ‘Jesus Loves the Little Children’ at the top of her voice. Sever more thuds were felt as the inhabitants of the car realized that the crowd was throwing rocks at them. Judy did not stop sing. The driver was screaming at the car ‘Start! Start already’. The instant the engine turned over the driver slammed on the gas pedal and the car lunged forward. As they sped away, one rock the size of a softball exploded through the front passenger window grazed Judy’s neck and landed in the backseat. The right side of Judy’s face, neck and her t shoulder were riddled with bits of glass as she sang all the louder. If the car had not started, or they were any slower, Judy might have been killed by the force of that rock if it had hit her temple. That was the last time she spent any time with the driver, went to visit those friends that were expecting her, or ventured anywhere near that neighborhood. Jesus does love His little children. Isaiah 54:17- No weapon forged against her prevailed – This happened to Judy. I do not believe there is a woman out there that does not like to be wooed, romanced, spoiled, pampered, and made to feel needed, wanted, appreciated, and pretty. Judy was at her lowest point emotionally, physically, financially, and spiritually when she met someone who gave her all of that, in the beginning. They only knew each other two weeks when they began to live together and over the next 10 years her hero became her darkest nightmare. She gradually was reduced to a puppet, willing to do as told in exchange for a few crumbs of kindness. She cooked for, dressed for, talked when permitted, performed on demand, and lived only to be bring pleasure to the monster, Ally. The changes happened slowly like cooking a frog. She was alone in the world. Her job, as she was paid by Social Security, was to be His care provider, 24 hour a day. She had no contact with family, friends, doctors, or anyone. Judy, who was 25 years old, 5’3” and weighed 120 pounds, was standing over the stove one spring afternoon making cabbage stew hoping to lose a few pounds in response to being calmed a fat hog. It was then that Ally, age 29, 5’ 7”and 160 pounds and able to bench press 165 pounds, entered the kitchen, machete in hand, screaming at Judy to stand still while he kills her. He raised the machete over his head and began to run the space of 20 feet toward her. Judy calmly said ‘I forgive you and I pray that God does’. It was then that Judy forgot about cabbage stew, being fat, or pleasing Ally. Her mind went blank. She froze where she stood. In the next few seconds everything switched to ultra slow motion. With that she raised both arms up and covered most of her face. She peered from between her forearms as she watched Ally draw close and closer, and then suddenly everything went out of control. Judy could see that Ally was still coming her way when she felt her wrists being smashed as she was shoved to the floor. Then when Ally was within inches of Judy the machete appeared to be knocked from Ally’s grip and flew half way into the kitchen door jamb behind him, 20 feet away. The arm that was holding the machete was twisted behind his back as he literally was lifted three feet off of the floor and thrown to the left across the kitchen table. There they laid for several minutes staring in silent shock at one another. Judy did not move as Ally pulled himself off of the table and left the way he had entered. Judy culled into a fetal position and stayed there rocking and crying for what seemed like an hour, afraid to move. As the evening passed the swelling in Judy’s wrists showed evidence that a pair of very large, very strong hands had moved her. Similar marks were on Ally, not counting the bruised ribs he received from flying onto the table. They both knew there were no other visible people in that kitchen except for them. Freedom came to Judy that day, and a revelation that she might not have thought much of herself, Jesus thought she was worthy of His love, enough to die for her.. Acts 2:17 – A prophecy fulfilled - We were together when this happen. We were living with my best friend, my matron of Honor, in central California when some friends of a friend from church told us sold us on Amway. Unfortunately it was a mixed blessing, our team and sponsors were in Reno Nevada. I say unfortunately because every month we had to drive over the mountain in rain, shine, snow or fog. Judy was a stay at home wife and I was earning just a wink more than minimal wage. We didn’t gamble or rent a room, just attended the two hour meetings that were either at 2 pm or 7 pm on Saturdays and then headed the two and a half hours back over the mountains so we could get a decent night sleep and attend church services the next morning. We did this for a couple of years, never making any real money, but managed to entice a few friends and strangers to climb on the band wagon with us. It was when we were returning from one of these meetings that I suddenly got super excited and had to pull the car to the side of the road. I could hardly believe what I was seeing. The week before, at church, the entire congregation asked God to please show each of us individually what we were called to do or where we were called to go. By the time I went to bed that night I had completely forgot about that morning’s church service or even what I had for lunch that day. That night I had a very vivid dream about seeing a mountain range and knew beyond a shadow of a doubt that I should be living on that side of those mountains. Of course, like most people, I forgot the dream as soon as I woke up. The rest of the week was business as usual. There they were before me. The sky, the weather, the mountains, everything was exactly as it had been in my dream and I was standing there looking at it in total amazement. I was almost jumping up and down, telling Judy ‘This is it; this is where we are supposed to live! We need to move here as soon and possible’! We realized that God used our involvement with Amway to show us where our riches were to be stored; Matthew 6:19-24 I explained my dream to her, showed her the mountains, and my sweet wife instantly said ‘Let’ start making plans as soon as we get home’! That happened in mid-November. Every two weeks, on payday, we would load up more of our possessions, as much as we could into our small Mazda car, and drive them over the hill to Reno, put them in storage, have lunch, refill the gas tank, pick up a local paper and another local publication called the ‘Big Penny’ and drive home again. Between those trips we would study Reno’s local paper for job opportunities, housing, and see about the cost of groceries. We learned that Nevada had no State tax and that the sales tax was 2% lower that where we lived. We soon learned that although the branch of Amway we had joined did teach you about the benefits of their amazing yet overpriced items, how to get out of debt, follow God, and work hard for your dream, we eventually came to the full knowledge that we cannot serve two masters and left Amway behind. Matthew 6:24 Then while looking in the ‘Big Penny’ we knew one of the reasons we were to come to Reno. We could buy our own home, a mobile home, for as little as $1,000 down and have lower home payments than rent payments would be. We decided that we would use my 401k as a down payment and began looking for a home to buy right away. Within six weeks of both living in Reno we had a mortgage on a cute little two bedroom single-wide mobile home. That home was paid off in just two years and provided us with nearly 17 years of happiness. Learned that the main reason we were to move to Reno was for our eternal salvation. It was during the first few years living in Reno that we started really reading our bible and learning the differences of belief between denominations, non-denominations and how none of them actually fully taught what the bible advocates. Every one of them quoted scripture but were unwilling to stand by it. They all preached varying degrees of importance as it related to the commandments, the Lord’s Supper, tithing, and baptism. There were pre-tribulation, mid-tribulation and post-tribulation beliefs. The ‘faith only’ folks denied the importance of full immersion baptism even when confronted with bible verse 1 Peter 3:18-22. None of them preached about the traditions of men or on the conditional promises. All of the churches were unwilling to forsake the traditions of men and tried to talk their way around it when shown Colossians 2:8, Mark 7:8, and especially 1 Corinthians 6:15-18 where God days to stop being like the heathen or He will not be our father! These churches broke our hearts but not our spirits. Instead for turning away from God, our convictions grew stronger. Many would say we are into legalism but we say we are only walking on a narrower path of the pilgrim that is homeward bound. Most believed that a simple prayer would save them yet there is not one instance or example of any such prayer or occurrence in the bible. They all ask for money as tithes but when the Bible mentions tithing it refers to food. The Bible states that the ‘store houses’ need to be filled with different types of grain and spices, not money. Matthew 23:23 The law of the land cannot change the law of God. The Bible says that homosexuality is an abomination but many churches have ordained then. We have come out from among those that do not preach the whole truth. They are wolves in sheep’s clothing and will kill, steal and destroy. John 10:10, Matthew 7:15-23. God sent us into this literal and spiritual dessert to learn the word of God, to get clothed in the righteousness of Christ, discern the truth, come out from among the daughters of the harlot and share the ‘Mystery’, the blessings of hearkening unto God! John 8:32. Exodus 23:20- An angel ahead of you to guard you. We were together when this happen. We were on our way home from the grocery store like any other day. When the thought crossed Judy’s mind to pull to the right suddenly and she did so, but not quite fast or far enough. I was startled and immediate asked her why she did that… when, before I could say anything else, a car came squealing up behind us, Latino music blaring from their radio, and hit our left rear bumper so hard it threw the car within three inches of a tree that was 6 feet ahead of us. The impact shoved the bumper into the tire but did not puncture it. We were shaken but not hurt at all. Unfortunately we could not move the car one inch. Judy stayed with the car as I walked to the nearest pay phone, yes, it was that long ago. I called a friend that had a tow truck and pulley, that lived on a ranch. He came right away, took us and our car to his place, re-positioned the bumper and all was fine except, from that day on we drove with a pillow wedged into the side of the trunk where it no longer closed all of the way. We were to learn that our car was on a recall list because when hit directly from the rear the cars blew up on impact, killing all passengers. What made Judy suddenly pull over; women’s intuition, a word from the Holy Spirit, a whisper from her guardian angel? The one thing that we are sure of is that God had a hand in it! That was the same car that latter helped us move to Reno. Psalm 91:4 Under His wings we found refuge - We were together when this happen, kind of. Well, let me explain. The night before this incident Judy had given a perfume party with the new business that she had just started using a loan from her 401k for financing. All of her supplies, order sheets, and demos were in our living room waiting for her to process the when she came home from work the next day. That was never to happen. Judy and I both worked swing shift. We only had one car. Judy dropping me off where I was lead custodian at a manufacturing plant that built slot machines then headed straight to work at a call center for a major bank. Half way through my shift one of the security guys, that always teased everyone, came up to me and handed me a sheet of paper and told me to call the number written there because our house was on fire. I tossed it back to him and told him to try that on someone else. The look on his face then changed. I instantly knew this was not a joke. The number on the paper was to the fire chief that confirmed the truth; the place we called home for the past 17 or so years was gone. I will never forget the feeling of the Holy Spirit encompassing me. I was fine. I knew God was in charge no matter what. I just felt like I was told ‘You’ll be fine! Have faith in God. Everything will work out.’ I placed a call to Judy and told her that there was a problem at the house. She thought I meant that we had a break in. When I told her that the house was on fire she gasped… and said she would be right over to pick me up. When she arrived I told her everything I knew. We only lived a couple of blocks from the freeway and our hope increased as we got closer and didn’t see any smoke. There was no smoke because the fire practically was out. We lost 95% of everything we owned. As we drove down our street we could see the fire truck and dozens of people and fireman mulling around. The majority of our living room was gently smoldering in our two car driveway. Our full grown 7’ lilac tree was chopped down, our tiny garden was trampled. On the opposite side of the house there was a huge 6’ x 9’ gaping hole into the living room where the fire had started. Our surge protector quit protecting. We had no homeowners insurance because our home was so old no one would insure it. Everything had to go to the dump because of smoke damage. I kept saying to Judy “Have faith, trust God, He has this, remember He always has a plan for us.” She would say okay and then a few moments later she would say, we’re home now and don’t even have a shopping cart. At least we can sleep in the car. Then the managers of park approached us once the crowed cleared out. They wanted to help us and not see us leave. We were the only home out of 300 that had never been late on payments and kept our yard and kept property in good order from the moment we arrived. We arranged to meet with them in two days because neighbors let us sleep in their spare from for the night and Red Cross got a motel for two more nights. When we did meet with the managers they offered us a newer double-wide mobile, with nothing down, for ten years at 10% interest only one street over for the home that burned. We took it. Judy is only 5’ tall but I am 6’5”. For over 30 years I had slept with my feet hanging a foot or more over the end of the bed. Our new home has a very large master bedroom. You guessed it! The first thing I went and bought was a king size bed! Both of our employers got us gift cards for local stores, co-workers gave us pots, pans, dishes, towels, and king size bedding. The Fire department gave us a check too. Some friends even bought us complete living room furniture including lamps and a rug. Within three days we were in our new 2 bedroom 2 bath home with a built in hutch, laundry room, island stove, and perfect floor plan. God arranged for it to be completely furnished and color coordinated. There was enough parking for five cars to come to bible studies, a huge 1/25 acre for gardening, and shade in the back yard for us to relax during hot August days, we knew it was all from God. That week we signed over our old house as the down payment and the managers gave us 5 days to empty our possessions before they would demolish it per the safety inspectors. Five friends and a few strangers showed up and for three days we filled garbage bag after garbage bag and made multiple trips to the dump. The only item we were able to retrieve from this home was a tapestry that said; ‘As for me and my house, we shall serve the Lord, Joshua 24:15.’ We had planned to live in that old home another ten years as we saved up the rest of our 401k’s for a double-wide. God decided that we shouldn’t have to wait that long. A month later we had a huge house warming. We invited all of our friends, co-workers and even the fire department showed up in their big shiny red fire truck for a barbecue, as a way to thank them all. Of course I had everyone join us in a prayer to give thanks and praises to God, for them, the home, and His blessings on all. Romans 13:7-8 & Romans 8:28-29 – When one door shuts - We were together when this happen, kind of. I had worked my way up to Senior Lead at a Fortune 500 manufacturing plant for ten years. I really loved my job. The crews I managed were hard workers. Those in upper management were, for the most part, reasonable and fair. Then things started changing in high places over a three year period. The company lost its Fortune 500 status; VP’s, engineers, and managers were quitting left and right. Bonuses and perks that had been given to employees since the company first started 20 years prior were slashed or completely eliminated. Rumors were flying for months that several departments were going to be shut down, mine was one of those. First my immediate supervisor was fired for embezzling. Then her replacement was walked off of the premises without even being able to enter his office, the cause; stealing equipment, supplies and more on the very day they eliminated the whole custodian department for restricting. I found myself unemployed. They had us sign papers for severance pay, closing our 401ks, scheduled us for offsite retaining for job interviews, and lots of other paperwork. Everyone around me that lost their jobs were crying and moaning. I was laughing and excited. I knew when God closed one door He always had a better plan. No one could get over the fact that I was not least upset! Judy had taken an early retirement a few months earlier and there was nothing stopping us from taking a month long vacation. We had never been to the Grand Canyon to see the effects of His mighty flood, or to Fremont Street in Las Vegas and friends that lived there or Nevada’s most famous retirement town of Bolder City. We could also swing over into California and visit friends and family that we had not seen in years. This was the perfect time. All of the money came in the mail. We went straight to the bank and got a cashier’s check in the amount of the outstanding balance on our doublewide mobile home mortgage, plus six months of advance lot space. Boy, were they ever surprised to get that check, in person, in one lump sum, eight years early! We also sent the phone, the power, and ‘Flo’ six months’ worth of advance payments and still had a nice bankroll for the vacation and a nest egg to hold us over. The funny thing is, I expected to find another job within weeks after our trip, but weeks turned into months and just as our six month grace period ran out… I landed another custodian job. We continue to Praise God because our Father really does take care of us. By the way, if you have never been to see what God did to the Grand Canyon, do so the first chance you get because it is more amazing flying over and through it than to see it on postcards or in the movies! (John 1:3.) Hebrews 2:6-13 – Who’s driving tonight? – This happened to Judy. Judy had already retired. Her days were mostly filled with thoughts and activities of bible studies, gardening and taking care of the house, and once in a while she thought about me. On this night, time somehow got away from her. The house was cleaned, the dinner was on low in the oven, all the dishes were washed and the table was set. But she wasn’t aware of the time or that the weather had changed. It was 11:15 pm, on a very showy night in February and Judy had only had fifteen minutes until I was to get off work. She was not dressed for the commute. She threw on warmer clothes and a coat over her house clothes, grabbed her purse and keys and ran for the van, falling twice in the six inch snow drift that blanketed the driveway, wrenching her right wrist. The car was so cold it did not want to start. She looked at her thumb watch; she was not going to make it on time. Frustrated, she went back into the house to call me. This was pre-cell phones. I told her to try starting the car again and if it did not start to call me back. I told her if I did not hear from her in a few moments I would get a ride home. She climbed into the car, sent up a prayer for the ignition to engage and for traveling mercies to and from my work. The car jumped into action and Judy shouted out praises to God. She made it to the first stop sign and notice there was an accident at the freeway on ramp. She instantly knew that God had protected her from being in this situation and she sent up more praises to God along with a whole lot of thanks. She wanted to continue forward, knowing another freeway ramp was only a mile in front of her, but remembered that I had warned her of that treacherous section of road, with no guard rail along the passenger side which dropped off into a deep ravine. She could see that road was recently plowed, leaned on her own understanding, proceeded to take that road anyway, and then it happened. She had the only vehicle on that stretch of road when she hit black ice. The car started hydroplaning straight for the ravine. The steering wheel did not respond to her, it just froze. Judy closed her eyes, and prayed for God’s mercy, as she wiped the tears away that had streamed down her face. In the next second, with her hands still on her face, her eyes flew wide open. The horn started to blare as the car lunged to the middle of the street. Shocked she grabbed the steering wheel as the car rolled forward to safety. Once we made it back home, and were having that delicious dinner, she told me of the events that had happened. That night she was protected by God and her angels again, not once but twice, or even more that we were not aware of. Praises and thanks to our Father for His protection and love. Isaiah 34:16. - Not one will lack her mate. We were not together when these things happen. This is a two-fold testimony. I lived in the bay area and my life was in the dumps. I was tired of partying, having a chain of women. I began to physically fight with and verbally abuse the woman I was with one I was with whenever I got drunk or stoned. I found her barely tolerable when I was sober. She was a needy-Nelly and it wasn’t working. I had a good work ethic but on the weekends I had no ethics. I was not raise in a Christian family but was studying with the Jehovah Witnesses for three years. I thought all religions that mentioned Jesus were the same. I was tired of my life and needed a fresh start. One night, sitting all alone in my living-room I cried out to God about my situation. I wanted someone that would care about me. I wanted to be loved and respected. She needed to smart, talented, funny, and faithful. Then I said her name had to have four letters, like mine, Mike. It could be Judy, Sara, or Lacy. The next day, in mid June, I packed up my belongings and headed to Marysville with needy-Nelly but it did not last long. Fortunately I was near my parents, drove taxi covering both Yuba and Sutter counties, and waited. Looking back, and knowing both of our histories, it is easy to see how God orchestrated my requests. The night was hot and sticky in the Sacramento valley, but no more so than any other August night. Judy led a simple yet happy life. Both sets of her grandparents were Protestant preachers. After her mother’s first of six marriages she had given up on God, but she always made sure that Judy and her siblings went to church every Sunday. Judy was on her 4th marriage, praying this one would be the one to go the distance. She thought that she and her most recent spouse were content in their marriage, with three dogs, and a few close friends from church and couple of non-profit organizations that they belonged to. That night Judy’s spouse went alone to another fundraiser dinner while he insisted she attend the church function, alone. Those nights with conflicting obligations were taking up too many of their nights she thought. Their calendar was filled with as many of them as there were opportunities to worship God, go witnessing or choir practice, or a movie. They seemed to be torn apart by their priorities. As she dressed for bed she decided she would make time this week for them to talk about this and see if there could be some sort of compromise. She locked all the doors, closed all the windows, and turned on the fan in the bedroom. It was 11:30 and she was tired of waiting for him to come home. She said her prayers and drifted off to sleep. “What? Who’s there?” she cried out as she jumped out of bed to the sound of glass crashing. There was the smell of cigarette smoke and neither of them smoked. Next came someone cursing as they stumbled into furniture, and then the beam from a flashlight was right in her face. The flashlight fell to the floor as two strong hands wrapped around her throat and Judy was suddenly gasping for air. As one hand loosened its grip Judy thought she was going to be okay but just as fast the hand became a fist and slugged her in the left temple. Judy fell back side-ways across the bed as the intruder ripped her nightgown. Then the intruder began the clawing and biting of Judy’s torso, legs, face, arms, and her entire body like a wild animal. Judy was already hitting, kicking, and screaming in self defense when the blood began to flow from her torn flesh. At that exact moment her radio-alarm clock went off. They both jumped backwards. It was set for her to give a friend with a wake-up call. That call was never made. The radio-alarm clock started blaring out a sermon from a Christian radio station about ‘No weapon formed against you will prosper” from Isaiah 54:17. This could not be a coincidence. Then the intruder mumbled something about ‘goody-two-shoes’ and ‘your angels ain’t funny’. Just as suddenly as the intruder appeared, they were back at the front door yelling, “Not everybody loves your Jesus, or is honest, especially your ex! This is only a taste of what lies ahead if you cause any trouble.” Then Judy was alone. Sitting in the middle of the bed trembling, she could not comprehend why the intruder was there, why she was attacked, or what in the world they meant as they left. What would her ex-husband have to do with this? He was dead! The only person that ever called her ‘goody-two-shoes’ was her current spouse when he came home drunk after one of his meetings. No, this was too dark to even think about. She sat there in fetal position against the head of the four-poster bed until sunrise, afraid to go check the front door in case the intruder way lying in wait. She drifted off to sleep from exhaustion. The terror returned the moment Judy opened her eyes and her sore battered body tried to move. On her night stand there was a note that was not there when she crawled into bed the night before, nor when the radio alarm scared the intruder away. It informed her that her spouse of ten years, her sole source of support, was calling it quits, out of the blue. He admitted to having a long standing affair on the nights he told her he was at meetings, had emptied their joint account, and was not returning. The front door was wide open, the living-room window was smashed in with a bottle of Jim Beam with its remains stinking up the place, the chair by the hutch was knocked over, and magazines that were on the coffee table now were all over the floor. Judy was dumbfounded. The attacker came on his orders. She had loved him, trusted him, and never thought this was possible. She was left with a rented home with rent due in two days, a full two bedroom house of furniture, three dogs to feed or find homes for, a car with only a half a tank of gas, a couple of days of food in the cabinets, and only seventeen cents in her purse. To say she was in shock and disbelief is mild, but she was not without hope. After praying for God to get her through this day, she made a few calls. She did not want to stay in that house one more night. There was nothing to say for. She knew it was time to move on, as fast as she could, her spouse already had. By lunch time she had talked with a few friends that would take her in. She had employable skills and was promised a job come Monday at a friend’s drapery factory. She passed on that offer because the drapery owner was one of her spouses’ best friends. Several other people promised to take assorted pieces of furniture and two of the dogs within the next two days. Later that afternoon she had taken a drive to Soda Springs, to clear her head and talk to God. While sitting out on the grass overlooking the valley, she took out her bible, read, prayed and sang songs to God. There was a blank page in the back of her bible and she decided to write God a note: Dear Lord, as you know another chapter of my life is over. Please do not be in a rush to send me my next relationship. When you do, I would like him to be tall, dark and handsome. He needs to have money in the bank, be of royal lineage, riding on a white horse but not be a cowboy! She closed her bible, drove back to town, and began a new life. By late October 1984 she had met a woman social worker at the wedding of a mutual friend who offered her sanctuary, in Yuba City. It took Judy a few months to get on her feet, learn the lay of the town, and find a job. The job was swing-shift supervisor at the Marysville Greyhound bus depot. She sold tickets and helped process transactions within the small Western Union booth. She had stopped going to church out of fear. She turned down almost everyone that asked her for a date. Those she did date, was only once. She became a campfire leader to fill her off work hours. We met one evening shortly after she started working at Greyhound when I went by the depot to see if anyone on the last bus needed a taxi ride home. She had the most amazing green eyes. I did not realize they were colored contacts. Time after time I would sit across the lobby watching her work. I finally mustered enough courage to ask her out. I got my ‘Judy’… and she got me. Although we started dating in 1987, became engaged in 1998, and had a huge church wedding on April 13th, a Good Friday in 1990 with a full moon, renewed our vows on our 25th anniversary, we both agree that we still need a lot more time together. Did God grant her the prayers she wrote in the back of her bible all of those years ago? Let’s see! Please do not be in a rush to send me my next relationship. Judy was single for three years before we met and we took three more years getting to know each other before we got married. All of her previous weddings happened in less than three months of meeting her mates, and lasted, in order: 1 year two months, 8 months, four months, six months, and nearly 10 years, with only three weeks to six months between moving in with each one. The period after her 10 year marriage ended until we were married was six years. Happily, she definitely did not rush into marriage with me. I would like him to be tall, dark and handsome. I was 6’5” when we met, with dark brown hair, and after dating for two years, when she saw me clean shaven and wearing my security officer’s uniform she melted. That was the day I proposed and she agreed to marry me, as long as we had a one year engagement, which we did. He needs to have money in the bank. I had a bank savings account with a $2.47 balance. While dating I started working for Gottschalks Department Store and enrolled in their 401k program. By the time we got married we had enough in the account for a down payment on a home. That was better than money in the bank at that time. He must be of royal lineage. I accepted the Lord as my savior and was baptized while we were dating, making me a son of the Most High, a Prince to the King of Kings. He must ride up on a white horse. I owned a light baby blue 1971 Ford Pinto that the paint was so faded that it looked white to everyone. He must not be a cowboy. I am defiantly NOT a cowboy. I am not a horse lover. I’ve worn New Balance shoes for over forty years. I’ve never owned a cowboy hat until the summer of 2012. I hate plaid shirts, Pendletons, kerchiefs, and bandannas. I think a bolo looks silly, bulls are scary, rodeos are only good for cotton candy, corn dogs and rides, and snuff is disgusting. I would have to say a resounding YES! Her prayers were answered too. Although she giggles every time anyone who asks about this, if you are going to write your own list for God about your requirements for a mate, you need to be specific… be very, very exact as to certain details: the amount of money in the bank, the type of royal lineage, and the horse needs to keep running. Plus she says you may not be as blessed as she was because she also got someone who was gentle, understanding, kind, patient, sensitive, hard worker, with some similar interests, but a lot more opposites, which do attract, and makes life interesting and that is a good thing and a wonderful blessing, too. Our 30th wedding anniversary = 2020. God is Good! Isaiah 53:5 - Trip the life fantastic - This happened to me. Honesty is always the best policy, but can be hard on the pocket book. Here’s why. One snowy winter Monday, shortly after Judy retired but before her Social Security checks started to arrive, we over slept. The power had gone out in the night. I was literally running late to work. As I got dressed she made me several sandwiches, some for breakfast when I got there and the rest for lunch, so I could brown bag it. We kissed at the door and flew down the stairs. It was only five steps, but my right steel toed work boot froze to the top step as my left leg extended and slammed on all five steps all the way to the bottom, jerking my torso up and down on the top step, with my right steel toed wok boot tucked directly under my right …. HIP! Yes I screamed! I very slowly got up. I dusted the snow off of me, kissed Judy good by again, limped to the car, and drove to work. My supervisor was sitting at her desk when she saw me limping in, carrying my snow soaked brown bag, and asked what happened. I slid into the chair next to her just to get off of my feet. I was hurting so bad but did not want to miss any work. I told her the truth. She told me not to repeat the truth to anyone and she would fill out an accident report for me saying she saw me fall right there at work, after I clocked in. She ran her hand gently across my knee and started up my thigh when I moved her hand off of my body. I was stunned for a few seconds. Then I realized she had ulterior motives. I jumped to my feet. I told her no thanks but she decided if I wasn’t going to play along with her, I should go to the doctors and not come back until I got a release. I was furious, but maintained myself. I thought ‘be angry and sin not’, over and over as I tuned and left the building. I headed straight to urgent care. They sent me to the nearest hospital emergency room for x-rays. Nothing was broken but I had ripped my tendon and ligaments. I was fitted with brace, had to be off of work for six weeks, do physical therapy three times during each of those weeks, and pay for it all myself. When I returned to work I told Human Resources what had happened between my boss and I and they acted like I made it up. That was embarrassing and humiliating. Remembering what it was like during the six weeks of recuperation, and the first few weeks back at work, Judy was my greatest cheer leader. Human Resources told her of my complaint, which she denied, but that made working with her all the harder when she started piling extra work on me, in hopes to break my spirit. However, Judy and I had bible studies, prayed and sang praise to God. We kept asking God to have His will with my boss and give me the strength to endure. Within months Human Resources discovered that she had illegally doctored several male employees time cards, gave them paid days off, and gave a few of them unwarranted refunds, equipment, issued others unapproved bonuses, and was having inappropriate relations with several employees, on and off the clock. She was escorted off of the property and was never heard of again. Vengeance is the Lords! (Romans 12:19) Mark 11:24. – Five Different Cars - We were together when these happened. Let me tell you about car number one. Within three years of moving to Reno we traded in our small rear wheel drive car with a horrible oil leak for one bad car after another, which we purchased from a pot lot in Sun Valley, which would each break down within four weeks to a year. The balance remaining on each dead car was added to the next one purchased. After about the fourth time, we never went back. We paid off the last dead car and rode buses to work. In 1998 we asked God to please provide us with transportation that we could afford. Within a week of that prayer Judy’s best friend, her Matron of Honor, with no prior knowledge of our situation, called to tell us that she had a car for us, no strings attached, but that we had to come and get it. She could not afford the time off work to bring it to us and have us take her back home. I could not take off work for both of us to go. Judy had to take Greyhound alone. It was mid November and the first big storm of the season was due to hit that week end. She made it there fine. She decided to stay a day or two to visit and pray with her friend who was having horrible migraines. I was worried about her driving back in two days in the snow and the freezing cold, so over the phone we asked God to make His way known as to what Judy should do. God moved mightily! The storm came sooner than expected and all roads were closed coming and going over the pass for six days. To this very day Judy cannot think about how wonderful it was to spend that time with her dearest friend, without crying and thanking God. I will tell you why in a bit. When the roads finally opened and Judy was able to drive our car home, the roads were scraped, the winds were mild, and instrumental gospel music CD that her friend also gave her played from the dashboard CD player all the way home over those mountains. The car may be long gone but that CD still gets played on a regular basis, sending love to our Savior. Now for the story about car number two. Car number one ran for quite a while and we were able to buy one or two others after it. Unfortunately, we were nursing the car we had. Judy was relegated to take buses because there were no buses running at the time of night when I got off of work. Judy had just landed a job in a call center for a nationally known bank. The walking before, in between, and after the two bus rides it took her to get to work hurt her back so much, and her breathing was bad. At first the doctors diagnosed her with OPCD and arthritis, only to discover that she had a hiatal hernia and spinal stinosis. The back pain was gone by the time she got off work, only to go through it all over again just to get home in the evening. She used pain creams, over the counter meds, and herbal remedies to try and minimize the pain. However she needed surgery for her hernia. She suffered terribly, so much so that she occasionally had to call in to work sick because she could not endure it. 2007 was a hard year for Judy. I knew that it would be great if Judy could get the time off to go visit her friend that gave us car number one. I had Judy call her to see if she would be open for a visit that weekend. She wasn’t home. The stranger that answered the phone informed Judy that her friend was in the hospital having some tests and should be out in a day or two. Judy decided to call back after she figured that her friend was home again. Judy never made that call. The very next day that stranger called Judy back to tell her that her friend had died of brain cancer during the night. Judy had no idea she was that sick. She thought it was only migraines because that was what her friend had told her was wrong. We took the time to attend the small funeral and headed back home. Weeks passed with many tears. Out of the blue her friend’s brother called to say that there were a couple of joint savings accounts with Judy’s name on them totaling nearly $37,000. With the funds Judy insisted we get out of debt, buy new clothes, get another car, but use the money to totally pay it off, and take a vacation to see a few friends of her late friend for closure. That is how we got ‘Baby Blue’, our 2003 Beetle Volkswagen, with only 32,000 miles, and ran for 7 years. We were praising God that Judy no longer had to ride the buses to work, we owed no man anything, we no longer dressed like hobos but not like the ‘Jones's’ either. The blessing of the vacation with old acquaintances and friends was mixed with joyous tears and bitter sorrow. Now for the story about car number three. We had been worshiping with a local body of believers for about two years when in 2014 our ‘Baby Blue’ Volkswagen died. The shops wanted $6,000 to replace the engine. We did not have any savings and the fact is we had to go to food ministries and eat from our garden just to get by. I was unemployed with MRSA, and Judy’s Social Security check was only a little over $500 which covered our rent space. By the grace of God different members of the congregation took turns blessing us with the funds to keep a roof over our heads by giving us cash to pay for our internet service, our phones, utilities, gas and car insurance, laundry soap, and hygiene needs. One couple, leaders in the congregation, came over to talk one afternoon. They were willing to give us $2500 to put toward buying another vehicle if we would be willing to sell ‘Baby Blue’ and give them the funds from the sale. We placed an ad in Craig’s List, sold the car for $600, gave that couple the funds, and within two days we were praising God every time we went riding around in our 1995 GMC van. Now for the story about car number four. The Wednesday night news was predicting an unusually severe winter coming for 2017. The GMC van was rear wheel drive, with no defrost/heater fan so the windshield steamed up every time we drove in the cold of winter. Unfortunately, on the north end of town where we lived, in the foot hills at 5,500 feet, winters last about eight months. The same day we heard that weather prediction we saw a nice car with a sign: For Sale $2000 OBO, front wheel drive, good gas mileage. At that instant I told Judy that if God wanted us to have another car for winter He would do it again. We stared praying right then and there, praising and thanking God for his will to be done. Sunday came and after services one of the regular members of the congregation hurriedly followed us out into the parking lot. He urgently motioned for me to come over to his car and upon arriving next to him; he asked me what I thought of it. It was a fire engine red two door, front wheel drive 2000 Alero. Except for the color, It was identical to the car we had seen on Wednesday. There were no dents in this car either, but the interior was a bit ragged. I asked him if he liked the way it ran and he informed me that maybe I should take a spin behind the wheel for myself. I tried to beg off; relating that my wife was hurting and needed to get home to take her medicine. Then he really pushed, telling me that the car was ours if we wanted it, for free. He informed us that he had too many cars and this was the one he wanted to give to someone in the congregation, us. Again he asked me what I thought of it. Judy and I looked at each other. I inquired as to how much he wanted for the car and that is when He smiled real big. “NOTHING”, he replied. He only wanted me to drive him home so that he could sign over the title of the car to us. Judy drove herself home in the van and I came home shortly, knowing and declaring, nothing is impossible with God! That Alero drove all over town without a single problem that winter. Now you will need to actually ask us about car number five. Romans 8:28. -MRSA - This happened to Michael. During the last week of February, 2012 a near tragedy struck us again. While emptying trash, on the job as a custodian at a local care facility I received a tiny ‘1/16 inch’ cut on the largest knuckle of my baby finger on the right hand within minutes I put a band-aid on it and continued working without another thought. Unfortunately, like most of you, I did not consider this tiny cut an injury bad enough to report to my supervisor or make an accident report, and just went on working. Mistake #1. Three days later a blistery rash appeared around the tiny cut. Because we had no insurance I tried to treat it myself. Mistake #2. One week after the injury, unrelated to the injury, my supervisor had a talk with me. . I was an on-call part time employee that hoped to make this a full time job. She informed me that census was down and they had to reduce hours throughout the facility by 50%… that left me unemployed once again. When I came home from work that night and removed the bandage… there were about 3-dozen tiny little blisters around the cut. We washed it with soap and then peroxide, and put on a new bandage. The next morning those little blisters covered my entire knuckle down to the web of my palm. We no jobs, no insurance, could not claim workmen’s comp because I had failed to report my injury. Judy wanted me to go to the doctors. With money an issue I was determined to continue to self-medicate and sent Judy to the internet to find out how to treat this problem that I believed was some kind of staph infection. Mistake #3. Research results were obviously non-conclusive:
We were more confused than ever! So what did we do? We tried it all, rotating the treatments, all to no avail because the infection was spreading at an alarming rate. Mistake #4. By the 10th day Judy was freaking. My finger had gotten so bad she thought it looked like some hideous part of the ‘CREATURE FROM THE BLACK LAGOON’! By that evening my hand had swollen to nearly twice its size, the infection was dripping a yellowy, watery, tea-like fluid constantly and the tissue on my finger had turned shades of green and gray. Judy could no longer take it. She insisted that we go to the emergency room right then, no matter the fact that it was midnight! Fortunately this time I did not argue. When we arrived at the emergency room, most of the swelling had reduced and my prayers grew stronger. At check in I had to sign the admittance forms… with my other hand. After waiting nearly seven hours, we were able to get a room in the ER. Another two hours passed as they performed blood tests, took cultures of the infection, ran x-rays and an EKG. The ER doctor told Judy that if she and I had waited a few more hours to bring me in – a few hours, not a day – chances were that I would have been dead. My heart and lungs were weakened and my blood pressure was dangerously low; although my faith was strong and my spirits high, I was one very, very sick man. We sat in that room in the ER and watched, as the infection got worse. I was finally assigned a bed in the hospital where they hooked me up to an IV and every three hours changed the antibiotic… giving me a cocktail of sorts… because they had no idea how to treat the infection until all of the tests results were in. They wrapped the hand and spoke a few platitudes and that was all that they could do. They did nothing else for me for the next 3 days. That is when Judy developed symptoms on her right cheek. We prayed over her face and my situation before she went down to the ER only to be told that the ER can’t help everyone… the rash must get as big as a nickel and be draining in order to get a culture. They just told her to go away and come back if it got worse. (For that we received a $600 bill in the mail.) She returned to my bedside in the hospital, reported the situation and then immediately started wiping it with germicidal wipes followed with tea tree oil and left it uncovered. Three days later, to her relief and mine, her symptoms were gone! Praise The Lord! Finally a doctor informed Judy that they needed to do surgery ASAP. I was asleep... when they informed her that they may need to amputate my hand and half way to my elbow, but she emphatically told them NO! The expenses just keep growing and that old devil was starting to like a victor. I underwent major surgery on my right hand, two days in a row… both times my blood pressure, heart rate and oxygen were both extremely low for several hours. They considered moving me ICU but by the Grace of God I rallied. The first time they came to change the bandages after surgery the room was dim, making picture taking nearly impossible. On the 5th day in the hospital we finally got the results from the culture that was taken in the OR the night I was admitted and focused my IV’s on Vancomycin. It was only then that we heard the term MRSA (Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus). By this time the flesh eating contagion had spread to the crook in both elbows, under both armpits, and on the top of thumb on my left hand. ‘Doctor Torture’ (as I rightly refer to him), finally looked at the spread of infection on the left hand and when he did… without warning or a pain shot… he turned his attention back to my right hand, silently put on a pair of gloves and started 'RIPPING' the flesh off of my new puss filled blisters that had developed after surgery. I was released from the hospital a few hours later to go home. The hospital staff had to arrange with the Wound Care Clinic and IV Infusion Center to accept me. We began asking for help. After three consecutive days at the Wound Care Clinic we were told that no treatment would be given to the areas on Michael's body where the infection was spreading because they only treat the parts of the body that had surgery. Judy had to become my wound care provider (Saving us $750 per visit to change one bandage). Both the wound care and Infusion center wanted me to go back to ER… those medical folks were sure that I would lose his life or at the very least body parts because it was so bad. My medical expenses were growing as fast as my infection was spreading. These accumulating medical bills, food, utilities, gas for the car to get IV Infusions 7 days a week for 28 days, rehab, special medical supplies to care for the wounds once I has returned home, emotional and spiritual needs and support, so that we could both move forward with some kind of promise. This was very expensive. The day wound care refused to help care for the entire infection it was as if lights turned on in our minds at the exact same instant... We wasted no time in driving to a local health food store that was also the place that a Naturopathic Doctor was was practicing. Praise the Lord that we found the shop open and the doctor in. The Lord brought the health food store to our minds. After a mere $20 consultation with the doctor and picking up the $53 2-ounce jar of topical salve and a $25 2- ounce jar of pure Emu Oil that he recommended we mix together… we headed home and followed his advice to the letter. With in two days the boils started to dry up, the draining stopped. The swelling went down after another 2 weeks (3 inches from my upper right arm). Tiny red pinpricks of the infection kept trying to come back but with the ND’s treatments it slowly recedes and is kept at bay… reducing the problem, shrinking the area of infection, stopping the pain and itching, all the while returning healthy tissues where the MRSA had eaten away at me. By following the ND and MD doctors suggestions for me to return to the hospital daily for a full 30 days of IV infusions cost me $6500 per day, totaling to a whopping $195,000. That amount was for those infusions alone, not counting my wonderful surgeries, bills from the surgeon, anesthesiologist, or the room charges from the hospital. The 57 stitches came out on the 12th day after surgery… (This visit and the procedure to remove those stitches added additional costs) and then I developed a reaction to the tape they used and which gave the infection a new foothold. However, within 4 days of applying that topical salve, that flare up was gone. What still remained, from what I thought at first to be 'spider bites' and aggravated by the MRSA battle was the constant insane itching like with MRSA, or shingles, on my back that we now know was Morgellon, and so I decided to try the salve on my back, although persistent, it too eventually eased up and gave way to the topical salve. Half way through intensely battling Morgellon we ran out of the last jar of salve. That ND had closed up shop and retired, going back to his home town in India. His products were no longer available. Now what? When most people are in shock their brains either dummy down, go into advanced memory projection or like in Judy's case just take time to move emotions aside in order to function. Six years prior she had graduated from an Australian Institution that offered online homeopathic, herbal, and naturopathic courses that awarded her the tiles and certificates of 'Naturopathic Doctor' and 'Doctorate of Homeopathic Medicine', but she had never thought that she would ever need the information for herself or a loved one. She never pursued her dreams in that field once her certificates burned in our house fire. She used the ingredient information found on the side of the last topical salve jar that we had purchased at the health food store before it closed, and after doing the research, recreated that concoction to the best of her ability, and the new salve worked just as well as the original. It was this new salve that we believe helped me eventually kick not only the MRSA but also the Morgellon to the curb. In 2017 Judy used the topical salve when she came down with her first case of eczema and a horrific case of athlete’s foot. Her friend of nearly 30 years used it to help soothe the redness, pain and swelling in scars from open heart surgery. They are both happy campers now! We are certain that if it had not been for the Lord, faithful praying Saints, the hospitals’ surgeon, that ND herbal doctor that has returned to his birth country, the knowledgeable staff at the health food store that unfortunately has long since closed, and the items purchased there, I would be dead, disfigured or disabled for life. I may have scars and Judy may feel the regret of turning to the allopathic side for healing, followed by peace because of turning back to the healing provided in nature, but our faith is strong and so are their bodies, now, in this regard anyway. WE cannot say that we have developed an ‘Herbal Cure’… but if this is not… then it is a super close answer that helps one live with many of the associated symptoms. We believe it has been an answer from God, and you may too… They are sharing this information… as a gift from God. Most people are like us, to the extent that they do not want to waste good time and money going to a doctor or seeking a cure, thinking that their bodies will just magically heal themselves. So many times as soon as the symptoms were gone I stopped applying the salve. We cannot see what lies below the skin awaiting a chance to resurface. The salve can penetrate up to seven layers deep. I would stop applying the salve too soon; it would resurface because there was nothing to stop it. This happened time and time again because I was not persistent long enough. We finally understood the problem and applied the salve daily whether or not there were symptoms for over a month and that finally did the trick. As of April 8, 2016 I was totally healed. I expect this full recovery from my brush with MRSA and Morgellon to last but was left devastated by huge medical bills that we are still trying to pay, topping over $750,000 and surgical scars. If you desire more info about the salve, the ingredients, see pictures of my hand, or purchase some salve for yourself, we have a website; https://mrsa-morgellon-magic.weebly.com. We are faithful stewards of our money, I cherish my scars because they show me how frail life is, and I am blessed. We are blessed to be around to tell you, to tell everyone we can, that God is real; God loves you, and me, and wants relationships with each of us. * * * In Closing * * * If you will take a good hard look at the times you may have been spared in a near death situation, you just might find that God and His angels have been watching over you because you are one of His elect. Take this course over and over as often as needed to help you establish a real relationship with Jesus. Visit our church website often for solid biblical instructions, videos, sermons, and family entertainment: https://homeward-bound-pilgrims.weebly.com May God bless and keep you. Michael & Judy Peck
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