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kj88il
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RE: Shifting Gears with Kimberly - 10/3/2008 11:22:08 AM
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kj88il
Posts: 2048
Joined: 3/3/2008
From: IL (NW Central)
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y'all excuse today's devotions being late...i'm NOT getting sick (exercising PMA, dontcha know)...so got a late start this morning. but God is keeping things slow at work to give me time now. 
and not only is it fitting for what i'm personally/spiritually going thru...it's in 'my language!" 
Exit Numbers
Job 23:10 But He knows the way that I take; when He has tested me, I will come forth as gold.
Have you ever driven on a long road trip, with the responsibility of getting from point A to point B falling squarely on you? It can be a bit overwhelming if you are not used to it. When you anticipate the many highways and unfamiliar cities you will pass through, you think it will take a miracle to get you there! I have always admired people who have driven long distances to unfamiliar places, but never thought I could do it myself.
I recently had the opportunity to travel from my home in North Carolina to my sister’s home in Florida . It took nine hours to get there, with many roads to travel during those nine hours. As I looked at the directions I had printed off from the computer, a plan of action formed in my mind. I quickly circled all the exit numbers for each point on the trip. When I got to a new highway, I simply noted what exit we were on, and then gauged how far we had to go based on the exit numbers. By focusing on those numbers, I was always able to take the right way. In the end, what had overwhelmed me became quite simple because I had my exit numbers as my guide!
God has provided us with exit numbers in our lives. He has provided us with His Word as a map for how to find our way. He has promised in His Word that He will provide us with a way out when we face temptation. He has given us the Holy Spirit to whisper directions to us when we feel lost, confused, or panicked. He has written these exit numbers on our hearts. The challenge for us is to focus on them and not get sidetracked or overwhelmed by the cars speeding past us, the neon signs flashing at us, or the scenery that can divert us from the right way.
We all have these elements in our life - each one taking a form that is unique to us but no less devastating in its potential. Satan loves to taunt us with these, waving them in front of us and telling us how hopeless our situation is. He wants to destroy us, to cut us off from the Father. He wants us to stop focusing on those exit numbers so we will lose track of where we are on our journey with God.
Have you lost sight of the exit numbers because other stuff has distracted your attention? Do you need to go back through your directions and mentally place a big red circle around those things that keep you on the road He has for you?
Maybe today you feel like you have pulled off to the shoulder of that road and all the other cars are just whizzing past you. Everyone else seems to be intent on where they are going and how they are going to get there. But you just feel lost and hopeless. Do you need someone to come along and help you accelerate back into the flow of traffic? Just for today, I invite you to pray and ask God to help you get where you are going. I challenge you to listen for the Holy Spirit to speak to you - to open up God’s Word and let it guide you. The exit numbers are all there. And, with God’s help, you will get where you are going.
Job 23:11 My feet have closely followed His steps; I have kept to His way without turning aside.
Isaiah 48:17 This is what the Lord says - your Redeemer, the Holy One of Israel: I am the Lord your God, who teaches you what is best for you, who directs you in the way you should go.
John 14:6 Jesus answered, ‘I am the Way and the Truth, and the Life. No one comes to the Father except through Me.
Lord, I need Your help to make it where I am going. I confess that sometimes I don’t even know where I am going and get overwhelmed by the distance it is going to take to get me there. Yet I know that You have provided me with the Way to get there. Help me to trust in that.
While I praise You that I still feel I'm on the right road....it seems the horizon is nothing but an empty road. If it be Your will, show me a road sign today, Lord...just a hint of what's ahead...of what direction I will be heading. But I trust Your will...may Your will be done. All these things I pray...in Jesus' name...amen.
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Kimberly (aka KJ)
Shifing Gears w/ Kimberly
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RE: Shifting Gears with Kimberly - 10/5/2008 2:05:51 AM
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humbleinspirit
Posts: 18075
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From: Just Outside of Boston
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Howdy Kimberly, just popping in to say hi!
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RE: Shifting Gears with Kimberly - 10/5/2008 9:50:51 AM
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humbleinspirit
Posts: 18075
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From: Just Outside of Boston
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Good Morning Kimberly, yes its been a while! How is your weekend going?
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RE: Shifting Gears with Kimberly - 10/5/2008 2:44:59 PM
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AngelInWaiting1983
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Prayers are definitely going up!
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Reflecting with Terri
Dance like no one is watching. If they are, who cares!
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RE: Shifting Gears with Kimberly - 10/5/2008 3:26:50 PM
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kj88il
Posts: 2048
Joined: 3/3/2008
From: IL (NW Central)
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quote:
ORIGINAL: kj88il
my weekend........not so great.
i found out last night they're going to sell this funeral home...so i will have to move again. fortunately, i think i can just move into another apartment over their main funeral home.
+ it's in the same town my bestest gf lives in
- it's just across the street and 2 lots away from my ex-man's house
+ it's 9 miles closer to work and my folk's (which will save me almost 2 tanks of gas a month)
- it'll be a huge headache to move again
+ at least the weather's not bad yet (although i don't know when i'd be moving)
thought of a couple more...
+ think there's a W/D there
+ think they have wireless....so i'll have faster, more-dependable internet access
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Kimberly (aka KJ)
Shifing Gears w/ Kimberly
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RE: Shifting Gears with Kimberly - 10/5/2008 11:13:27 PM
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humbleinspirit
Posts: 18075
Joined: 4/13/2005
From: Just Outside of Boston
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(((((((Kimberly))))))
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RE: Shifting Gears with Kimberly - 10/6/2008 11:11:06 AM
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kj88il
Posts: 2048
Joined: 3/3/2008
From: IL (NW Central)
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thanks, mike (and everyone else).
on the bright side...they have to do some work before they can list...so i don't have to move right away. (whew!!) i just would prefer not to move in the middle of an IL winter!
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Kimberly (aka KJ)
Shifing Gears w/ Kimberly
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RE: Shifting Gears with Kimberly - 10/12/2008 8:46:28 PM
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humbleinspirit
Posts: 18075
Joined: 4/13/2005
From: Just Outside of Boston
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Bummer Kimberly, I hope that it all goes ok for you!
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RE: Shifting Gears with Kimberly - 10/15/2008 8:57:41 AM
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kj88il
Posts: 2048
Joined: 3/3/2008
From: IL (NW Central)
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today's devotion...
Setback or Cutback?
Jn 15:2 He cuts off every branch in me that bears no fruit, while every branch that does bear fruit he prunes so that is will be even more fruitful.
My eldest son is a born leader. That’s a nice way of saying he’s strong-willed. I’ve often heard Dr. James Dobson, President of Focus on the Family, describe determined, strong-willed children this way: “They come into the world smoking a cigar and asking to speak to the administrator of the hospital to complain about the temperature of their room.”
That’s a good definition of my son. For example, in Jr. High, Mitch struggled in his relationship with his basketball coach. Why? Because he didn’t think he was a good coach. While Mitch never said so, his attitude reflected this mind-set, which in turn affected his game. The coach ultimately benched him, and his attitude. Devastated, Mitch couldn’t understand why the coach would bench one of his starting players.
We’ve all been there. You and I have experienced “setbacks” in our jobs, relationships, and even in ministry. These setbacks cause us to wonder, “What’s going on? Why is this happening?” If we’re like my son, you and I may not always see what God is doing behind the scenes. That’s where our key verse comes in.
God is more interested in our character than our comfort. He desires that we produce more spiritual fruit. Therefore, He’s always at work pruning the areas of our lives that don’t match His plans. So, when God allows our world to be turned upside down, we are not experiencing a “setback” but rather a “cutback.” In God’s economy, a cutback can be a good thing because it makes room for more good stuff to come.
However, sometimes the pruning process can feel like it’s going to kill us. I remember one fall when I was pruning my rose bush. My daughter, who loves flowers, was distraught when she saw what I had done to the bush.
“Why did you kill it?” she asked with horror in her voice. I reassured her that I didn’t kill the bush. I only cut it back so that next year it would produce larger and more beautiful roses.
Though it may feel like it at times, I assure you that God is not trying to kill us either. The Lord cuts us back in order to produce more—more Christ-like fruit in our words, attitudes, and deeds.
Eventually, Mitch apologized to his coach for his attitude and for not performing up to his potential. Ah, a new bud of humility was beginning to sprout! That’s the positive effect of pruning. It stimulates the growth of good fruit. So take a look at your life and see where God may be pruning. Then get ready to produce some fresh fruit.
Gal 5:22-23 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control…
Matt 7:20 Thus, by their fruit you will recognize them.
Lord, at times, You know I'm struggling with this right now! Your pruning may be painful, but I am really trying to trust You. Help me to see from Your perspective that it’s not a setback, but a cutback that can help me grow in You. Lord, I submit to Your timetable for me...if I have to be cut-back...bare and ugly for a while...in order to come back more beautifully and fruitful than ever...so be it. I trust Your will, Lord...may Your will be done. All these things I pray...in Jesus' name...amen.
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Kimberly (aka KJ)
Shifing Gears w/ Kimberly
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RE: Shifting Gears with Kimberly - 10/19/2008 8:46:29 PM
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humbleinspirit
Posts: 18075
Joined: 4/13/2005
From: Just Outside of Boston
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Good devotion Kimberly!
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RE: Shifting Gears with Kimberly - 10/20/2008 7:46:11 AM
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kj88il
Posts: 2048
Joined: 3/3/2008
From: IL (NW Central)
Status: online
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the last couple weeks i've been fighting constant headaches....thus i've not been sleeping well. and i've gotten into the habit of hitting the snooze...twice!...and lying in bed DREADING going to work and feeling my headache build...and missing out on my devotion time.
that has to stop.
today's devotion...
Your Roots Are Showing
Jer 17:8 He will be like a tree planted by the water that sends out its roots by the stream. It does not fear when heat comes; its leaves are always green. It has no worries in a year of drought and never fails to bear fruit.
Okay, I admit it, I color my hair. Like millions of women, I color my dull, dingy, drab, lifeless, gray hair. Ordinarily I wouldn’t think of mentioning this, after all a southern woman never admits two things: her age, or that she colors her hair. However it’s more than obvious that my roots are showing. My appointments are always scheduled months in advance because of the overwhelming demand for my hairdresser’s time and talents; but circumstances dictated that I miss my last appointment.
While you may be thinking this is a simple, vain complaint there is a spiritual application here. As believers we each have spiritual roots and those roots feed and nourish our spiritual lives. For instance, if our spiritual roots are planted deep in God, strong and well nourished, the roots may not be seen but our lives will show forth the fruit of the spirit found in Galatians 5.22: “… the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness.” However, the opposite is also true. If our roots are shallow or showing, they will be too weak and frail to nourish the growth of spiritual fruit. Our lives and our witness for Christ will be dull, dingy, drab, gray and lifeless, just like my hair.
Although a professional hairdresser uses her skilled hands to color my hair, her work is only temporary and I must return on a regular basis to maintain the desired results. The same thing can be said for maintaining deep roots in Christ and a fruitful life.
The benefits and power we receive from spending time with Christ can only be maintained as we commit to a regular routine of spending time with our sweet Jesus. Sadly, too often we allow circumstances to dictate our lives and we miss our daily Jesus appointment. It is in those times of neglect that our weakened roots begin to show. If you’re anything like me, living with my roots showing is not a good thing. My attitude and actions soon become unpleasant and unattractive. My focus turns to selfish desires and my witness for Christ soon turns from positive to positively ugly!
Our Jesus is in constant demand, but unlike my hairdresser, we are assured He has time for us in every day. He is always available to listen and to provide exactly what we need to maintain the desired results of a spiritually fruitful life.
If we are to be strong witnesses for Christ, maintaining a life that produces the fruit of the Spirit even in difficult and stressful times, we must spend time with our “root specialist” Jesus on a regular and routine basis.
Oh Lord, You always give me the devotion that I need! How appropriate was this?!?! I've let my physcological and physical depression outweigh my need to spend time with You. Prayer is not enough...I need time spent in Your Word, drinking in Your nourishment to see me through these dark and dreary times.
Thank You for always being available to me, and for the power I receive through Your Holy Spirit to live a fruitful life. Thank You for restoring my desire to begin my day in quiet time with You. Bring me back closer to You, Father...I need You so badly...I'm so full of hurt and despair right now.
Help me to focus on Your will for my life...and to be paitent until You're ready to reveal it to me.
I don't know what You have in store for me today...let alone the future...but I trust Your will...may Your will be done. And Lord, I thank You and praise you in advance for the wonderful blessings and abundance You will bring into my life. I love You, God. All these things I pray...in Jesus' name...amen.
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Kimberly (aka KJ)
Shifing Gears w/ Kimberly
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RE: Shifting Gears with Kimberly - 10/20/2008 10:01:51 AM
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AngelInWaiting1983
Posts: 10842
Joined: 6/8/2007
From: South Carolina
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Hey! I gots recently colored hair too!
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Reflecting with Terri
Dance like no one is watching. If they are, who cares!
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RE: Shifting Gears with Kimberly - 10/21/2008 7:42:32 AM
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kj88il
Posts: 2048
Joined: 3/3/2008
From: IL (NW Central)
Status: online
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today's devotion...
Give Them A Chance
Ecc 4:10 For if they fall, one will lift up his companion, but woe to him who is alone when he falls, for he has no one to help him up.
Recently, I read an interview of a seventeen-year old girl that absolutely blew me away. In the interview, she talked about how badly she wanted her parents to know what was going on in her life: who she was dating, how far they had gone, how he treated her and the mean things he had said to her. She didn’t tell them, though. She was afraid; afraid of how they would react.
As a parent, this scenario crushed my heart. I want my kids to be able to tell me the hard things in life that they are struggling with. I want to be that safe place for them and for them to know that they are not alone. I want to be able to pray for my daughter, love her and hold her when she needs to cry. None of that is possible though if my child does not feel that she can be honest with me.
Honesty. That is a tough one. We expect our kids to be honest with us, yet how do we respond when they are?
The Lord has made us, as parents, to be His hands and feet to our children. Yes, we need to discipline them. We also need to be the ones to show them the Father’s love and forgiveness. We need to be the ones who love our kids when they find it hard to love themselves.
Give your kids – or any kids in your life – a chance. Let your child know that you are aware of what is going on in her culture (make sure you do!). Through non-confrontational conversation, open the doors for honesty and let them know beyond a shadow of a doubt that no matter what happens, you will be there for them.
And when they come to you, lovingly point them towards the guidance and grace offered by our Heavenly Father.
Ecc 4:9 Two are better than one, because they have a good reward for their labor.
Ecc 4:12 Though one may be overpowered by another, two can withstand him. And a threefold cord is not quickly broken.
Ps 51:6 Behold, You desire truth in the inward parts, and in the hidden part You will make me to know wisdom.
Jer 29:11 For I know the plans I have for you," declares the LORD, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.
Lord, Show me today how to open the doors of conversation with the children in my life so that I can be a safe place where they are heard and cared for deeply. Thank You, Father, for my beautiful babies...and for the openess between us. May that continue to grow as they become older and face new and even more difficult challenges. Continue to make me the mother you want me to be. Help me to always be as loving and patient and forgiving as You, Father. I pray all these things in Jesus' name...amen.
< Message edited by kj88il -- 10/21/2008 7:50:56 AM >
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Kimberly (aka KJ)
Shifing Gears w/ Kimberly
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RE: Shifting Gears with Kimberly - 10/21/2008 7:47:53 AM
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kj88il
Posts: 2048
Joined: 3/3/2008
From: IL (NW Central)
Status: online
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my first instinct was to choose another devotion. the last couple years, with my babies both out of the house...i've been in that weird mama phase. i'm not 'hands-on' anymore. my mothering only comes in spurts now...and usually thru the phone. 'empty nest' is a very odd place to live after almost 2 decades of having them under my wing.
but...it never really stops. that's evident in how much i depend on my folks...and how much deeper my relationship has become with my mother as i age. i guess there are always trade-offs, huh?
(sighhhhhh) now i miss my babies. but at the same time, this devotion reminds me how proud i am of them. (((my babies)))
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Kimberly (aka KJ)
Shifing Gears w/ Kimberly
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RE: Shifting Gears with Kimberly - 10/23/2008 7:48:43 AM
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kj88il
Posts: 2048
Joined: 3/3/2008
From: IL (NW Central)
Status: online
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today's devotion...
Cooked Through
1 Sam 16:7b Man looks at the outward appearance, but the LORD looks at the heart.
Despite the fact that I cook every night, my spiritual gift is definitely not in the kitchen.
Last night, I was running behind as I cooked burgers on the grill. I needed the meat to cook more quickly so, novice cook that I am, I figured that turning up the heat was a pretty good option. I cooked, I flipped, and I added cheese. I garnished each masterpiece with lettuce, tomato, and onion, and I waited for the compliments to rush in from my beloved family.
“Mom, why is my bun soaked?”
“Whoa, look at how gushy and red this meat is.”
My youngest tried to come to my rescue, “Well, from the outside, this burger looks amazing!”
The outside…I thought that if it looked good on the outside then surely the inside must look just as good.
As women, we can be so focused on our outward appearances that we neglect the meat of what God sees.
Each morning, we spend time applying our makeup and fixing our hair, but do we have the same resolve to prepare ourselves inwardly to face the day, every day? Maybe the shine from the lip gloss is imperative for the world, but what about the shine that God wants to develop from within?
We take time to dress in our stylish clothing and accessorize with our fashionista jewelry, but even with these condiments, we become like that burger—cooked on the outside but not yet ready on the inside. The pathetic truth is that quite often the necessity for personal grooming to look good to the world pushes aside the quiet times of grooming that would make me look better to God.
I have to wonder whether God looks at me some mornings and says, “Are you going out looking like that? Baby, you’re not ready. Why don’t you let Me help you?”
What I really need to realize is that it’s only man who looks at my outward appearance. The Lord is looking right at my heart. All the makeovers in the world will do nothing for my beauty compared with the daily heart makeovers that He wants to perform.
Next time I’m grilling burgers, I’ll be certain to leave enough time to cook them completely. And tomorrow morning, beyond the primping time, I’ll be certain to leave plenty of room for God to work as the Master Chef ensuring that I, too, am “cooked through.
Ps 16:8a I have set the LORD always before me.
Ps 143:6 I spread out my hands to you; my soul thirsts for you like a parched land.
1 Peter 3:3-4a Your adornment must not be merely external—braiding the hair and wearing gold jewelry, or putting on dresses; but let it be the hidden person of the heart.
Lord, sometimes You just make me laugh! Here I sit...with my wet hair and no make-up...cuz I had decided that it was more important to do my devotion...and if I"m running short on time it would be my outward appearance that suffered...not my inner. And then i read this!!! (lol)
Thank You for having a sense of humor! I'm so glad I chose wisely today...for having the right priority. (I don't do everything wrong, huh?) Oh Lord, I just pray You will show me what it means to have a heart that is wholly devoted to You...and help me to desire the inner beauty that only You can provide. I want to be beautiful to You! All these things I pray...in Jesus' name...amen.
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Kimberly (aka KJ)
Shifing Gears w/ Kimberly
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RE: Shifting Gears with Kimberly - 10/23/2008 7:59:09 AM
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JustJeannie
Posts: 4544
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From: the state of confusion
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i'm just walking around the house carrying my Bible today...flipping from psalm to psalm. it's the only thing keeping me sane. i cried all night. and even when i did fall asleep...i'd wake up sobbing. i'm drained. 
