We all have an endless number of childhood memories. I was blessed to grow up in Riverside, a small community designed in 1869! This unique suburb of Chicago has winding roads and majestic homes designed by architects such as Frank Lloyd Wright. To this day, it resembles a modern day Mayberry R.F.D., a quaint town with a lot of history.

My best friend from the age of 5 was Ginny and only one house separated us. We grew up together and were adopted by each other’s families. We spent our summers playing on tire swings, building forts and sleeping outdoors in the field behind my house, riding bikes to Swan Pond, or swimming at the local pool. In the evenings, all the kids in our neighborhood would gather in our backyard for a game of Kick The Can or Ghost!

When we reached our teenage years, we attended different high schools. We gravitated toward new friends and moved in separate circles. Once I graduated high school and left for The University of Illinois, I don’t recall seeing Ginny again. Fast forward to last September when I attended my 40th high school reunion… I was speaking to Janice, another close friend of ours from Riverside and she inquired if I was in touch with Ginny. At that moment, I made a mental note to start searching for my long lost friend. I located one of her nephews on FaceBook and asked him to pass on my contact info but didn’t hear from her. Little did I know that God had also placed it on her heart to find me as well.

The evening of June 22nd, my husband and I attended the Glory Concert in Santa Clarita. In route to the venue, I received a text message from my sister Lyn in Chicago saying, “Guess who I talked to from our past?” We exchanged several texts and then she revealed that the mystery person was in fact, Ginny! I could not believe my eyes! After 40+ years, we reconnected the following day and had a lengthy phone conversation. It was as if there was no lapse in time with our friendship. What a blessing for both of us!

This past Sunday morning Derrick awoke early to prepare for a bike ride with a friend. As he planned to leave at 7:30 a.m., he leaned his road bike against the fence in our driveway while he grabbed his water bottle and snack from the kitchen. About three minutes passed before he walked outside and yelled, “Someone stole my bike!” I came running outside to find him distraught and both of us were trying to wrap our heads around what had happened. We were shocked that someone was bold enough to walk up the long driveway and grab his bicycle! He then jumped into his car to drive through the neighborhood and search for the person who had taken the bike.

As he drove off, I started messaging all of my friends to start a prayer chain. Although my mind was telling me there was little chance of him locating the bike, my spirit was saying that God could reveal the location to us. During those moments when fear and doubt would creep in, I would claim that God could turn this situation around. Derrick returned home with a heavy heart and we tried our best to make sense of the whole situation. The only answer we could agree upon was that God had protected him from a serious cycling accident.

About an hour passed and my husband received a call from his boss asking if he could come into the office for a couple hours. I think Derrick was relieved because his focus turned to getting dressed and moving past the unpleasant events of the morning. In the meantime, I called my dear Brazilian friend, Nazira to pray with me. After Derrick left for work, I dialed another prayer warrior friend of mine, Kimberly. She began praying with me and proclaimed that God would restore everything we had lost and more! At that very moment, Derrick was trying to call me so I placed her on hold. He sounded out of breath and blurted out, “I am walking toward the house with my bike and will be there in two minutes!” I told Kim that God had answered our prayers and I would call her right back. Then I ran outside to meet Derrick with his bike and cried out with joy! I grabbed him by the neck and hugged him, unable to control my emotions.

He proceeded to tell me the miraculous story of how he’d spotted his bike. He had driven only a few blocks from our home and was looking down one of the side streets. He’d noticed a woman walking with a backpack and she was wheeling a bicycle next to her on the sidewalk. He flipped the car around and pulled up to the curb. He asked her, “Where did you get that bike?” and she answered, “I just bought it for $20.” Derrick said, “That’s my bike; it was stolen this morning.” She did not offer any resistance and told him to take the bike.

This is our wonderful testimony of how God answers prayers when your faith is stronger than your doubts. Within the past 24 hours, we have shared this powerful story with our family, friends and co-workers. Please continue to share it as well with those you love and continue to spread His love.

My first encounter with my angel named Steven was on the night of the car collision. The driver’s side door was blocked so I hoisted myself over to the passenger seat and opened that door. I reached down to the floor to retrieve my phone and dialed my husband.  Steven then appeared and knelt down to comfort me and hold my hand. Then he kindly offered to give Derrick the directions to our location. As I was hoisted out of the car by the EMT’s and placed in an ambulance, my husband arrived at the scene. A young man stepped out of the crowd to ask him if he needed any assistance (a true angel of mercy).

After ten days in the I.C.U, I was transferred to a nursing care facility for the next phase of my recovery. When I reflected back to that traumatic night, I determined that Steven was heaven sent to console me in my time of need. He had programmed his number in my phone and I called him to give an update on my condition. This angel came to visit me during my second week at the facility. When Derrick shook Steven’s hand, he recognized him as the young man who’d approached him that night to lend his support.

Last month on Thanksgiving morning, I received a message from Steven asking for our mailing address as he wanted to send us something. To our surprise, he wanted to invite us to his wedding and his fiancee was arriving from Brazil in a couple days. Derrick invited the two of them to join us for a post Thanksgiving dinner after he picked her up from the airport. Steven and Nathaly spent the entire afternoon with us and we learned they had met four years prior when he was on a missionary trip in Brazil. What a lovely couple and to think that God had brought them together in His perfect timing.

We attended their intimate wedding on Saturday, December 16 at a church in Pasadena. Their personal vows brought tears to our eyes and I whispered to Derrick, “God can bring good out of any situation.” We celebrated this blissful union with his loving family and friends. We just might fly to Sao Paolo next year to attend the second wedding ceremony in Brazil. God has revealed to me that there are angels on earth! Have an incredibly blessed Christmas season.

I want to clarify a misconception that a lot of religious people have; that yoga practice is not acceptable as a Christian. Actually yoga and religion are classically different. Meditating on the word of God or breathing deeply through a yoga pose brings peace and calmness to your mind and soul. I find that some of my deepest connections with prayer occurs during yoga classes.

During the past 15 months of recovery from my car accident, I’ve come to realize how yoga has promoted healing to my broken femur and spine. The stretching, twisting, and static poses have strengthened my body in ways that physical therapy could not. Many corporations offer yoga to their employees at their work location to improve physical health while decreasing stress and anxiety. One of my favorite instructors brings his  guitar to play at the end of class and anyone can join in with the singing.

I have been practicing yoga for over fifteen years and recommend it for anyone wanting more mobility. It will open and stretch you physically while releasing toxins and deep emotions. Incorporating essential oils into your daily regime is truly beneficial and healing as well. I am so thankful for yoga!

Source: Full Circle

I am scheduled for an outpatient surgery on August 8th to remove an IVC Filter from my inferior vena cava vein that extends from the neck to the groin.  This device was implanted in my body to prevent blood clotting after the head-on car collision last August. This will be the second attempt to retrieve the metallic filter; as the initial surgery last January was unsuccessful.

I have done my research on the risks of leaving this type of filter in my body.  It was frightening to read about the catastrophic effects of IVC filters that migrated to vital organs in the body after only a few years. Many of these filters become tilted and embedded within a short period of time making them difficult to remove. It is important that you educate yourself on this flawed device before it is implanted in a loved one.

On a positive note, this final surgery will bring closure to an entire year of healing. Although I have grown tremendously during my recovery, I fully embrace the future and am excited to see what God has planned.

Spring break and Easter are a time for celebration! 2017 has been a year of change and new beginnings. While perfect health is being restored to our bodies, I resumed my position at Van Nuys Middle School in early February and Derrick is back to teaching spin classes at Toluca Lake Fitness Center. He has also launched into a new career with New York Life Insurance and is excited about this opportunity.

Enjoy a beautiful Resurrection Sunday with friends and family! Take comfort in knowing how much God loves you and be thankful for all of the gifts He has blessed you with; the most priceless one being Jesus, our Savior.

The last blog I published was one month before I was involved in a head-on collision that could have taken my life. I suffered many serious injuries including a crushed lower spine, shattered femur, punctured lung, and some broken ribs. This is the first time I’ve written since that night because it’s been a very traumatic three months.

During the ten days spent in ICU, it is a blessing that I don’t remember the multiple surgeries. However, I do remember several surgeons telling us it was a miracle that all of my nerve endings were intact and that I would walk again. I thanked God every hour for sparing my life and knew that my battered body would heal in time.

Life is so much more precious to me now. The love that I have for my husband is greater than ever before. He has been my rock through this challenging season and I’ve had the opportunity to support him through his chemotherapy treatments. There are no words to express our gratitude to all of our family and friends who have prayed for us, visited us, cooked for us, and supported us in countless ways throughout this past year. We are both determined to fully recover and we love each and every one of you. God bless you!

Our recent diagnosis of metastasized prostate cancer has brought us many blessings in the first two weeks. We are receiving incredible support and unlimited prayers from extended family and friends from all over the world. Derrick is visiting our five year old grandson and spending priceless hours with him before starting his aggressive treatments.

I was guided to purchase an Air Rebounder last weekend and we picked one up in La Canada. If you research the term “rebounding” you will discover that it moves your cells around and can heal the lympatic system. Astronauts jump and bounce on trampolines when returning from space to increase bone density.

This morning as I was rebounding to praise music, I started to throw punches and incorporate boxing into my 20 minute workout. I was stirred in my spirit and began to cry out, “We are going to overcome cancer” and “We will be healed in Jesus’ name”! We truly believe that we will have an amazing and life-changing testimony once we come through this obstacle. God will take this situation and reveal his glory and healing power.

We are extremely grateful and thankful for all of your prayers this season. Our strong faith will carry us through and your love and prayers are welcome. Our God is AMAZING!