Life Threatening & Life Loss

 A life threatening illness and/or it's diagnosis will instantly throw your life into a tail spin.  Week in and week out, I see so many lives that have been altered by aplastic anemia, sickle cell anemia, leukemia, hodgkin's lymphoma, neuroblastoma and other childhood cancers and blood diseases.  I see very innocent, yet courageous, kids who are fighting for their lives and parents that are doing all they can to take care of them, provide the best medical care they can and give them some semblance of normalcy.

I love Mireya and I know we are blessed.  I believe with everything in me she is cured and we will continue to reach milestones and take strides over hurdles until we reach the end of this race victorious.  I spent most of the night crying my eyes out as I learned through little Emily's Mom of two little angels that lost their battles this week to cancer.  One is a beautiful ten-year old girl named Faith, who like Mireya, loved all things princess and was also dubbed a 'Warrior Princess'.  The other, an adorable five-year old girl named Gabby who just after three short months passed away from brain cancer.  I don't know either of these families but my heart is broken for them.  I can tell from their pages and sites that these precious little lives have touched and reached many.  I didn't get much sleep and I've been consumed by the pain I know these families are going through.

There is nothing that prepares you for the diagnosis of a life threatening illness and certainly not for the loss of your child.  Hug your child(ren) tight, tell them you love them and cherish every moment you have with them.  The good ones, the bad ones, the ugly ones and everything in between, regardless of their age.  Make those wrongs right.  Tomorrow is not promised.  My personal prayer is that everyone know Christ as their personal savior because outside of the life we are not promised on earth, we are promised eternal life with Christ.  It's a simple confession.

Lord Jesus, I believe You are the Christ, the Son of the living God and that You died on the cross for my sin. You say in Your word that if I confess my sins and ask forgiveness, You are faithful and will forgive my sins and remember them no more.  You will not hold them against me and You will give me everlasting life. Come into my heart, I receive You now and make you the Lord of my life.  I thank You for the blood You shed on the cross just for me.  In Jesus name, Amen  

If you said that prayer, it's a blessed assurance!  If you're not at a place to do so or you don't have full understanding of what it is to be a Christian and have a relationship with Christ, I encourage you to get connected. I'm not the officiant on Christianity, but I am counted in that number and I love the Lord with all my heart, soul and strength. I don't know where I would be without him in my life.  I don't know how I would have endured all that has transpired in our lives this year without Christ in my life.  There is so much more I could go into here, but let's keep it simple and to the point. My heart has been so heavy.  I don't take this lightly, it is extremely important to me.  We all have faults and no one is perfect.  We miss it some times, but God forgives us.  He extends his grace and mercy to us beyond what we deserve, but that's the kind of God he is. God is love and I strive every day of my life to share and extend love to others and in turn I have been so fortunate to be on the receiving end of God's love for me and my family exhibited through the hearts and kindness of so many.

My heart goes out to these two families who have lost their precious little girls.  My thoughts and prayers are with them as they find the strength to endure this.  Live your life intentionally, let go of things that, in the grand scheme, just don't matter!  Don't sweat the small stuff, be thankful and give thanks for your life and the lives of those you care for so dearly.  Smile (your on Candid Camera), be kind, show love and most of all, have compassion for others because you never know what someone else is going through.  You have the power to make a difference!