German Chocolate Cake

Last year at this time, I sent my brother a text. "what kind of cake do you like?" His response was "german chocolate." I made a cake from scratch and sent down a couple gigoonda pieces with Mom--it was his birthday.. His response was full of gratitude and wistful. "Thanks for the cake. You are a good cook. Wish I had a whole cake.."
When Caleb's birthday rolled around, so did Mom's little blue Bingamobile, with a whole, made from scratch, german chocolate cake. From sister to brother.
His response? "Love you. Thanks 4 the cake. Hope u have a good B-day on Sunday." My brother celebrated his birthday in Heaven this year. I spent the entire day thinking of him, praying for his family and missing his tenderness..thank You Lord for my brother's life. He modeled You in the way He loved and cared for those around him.
Tomorrow, Hannah "takes a leap" of faith. Me too. Tim too. Her tibial tubercle transfer (TTT) is at 1pm at Lansing's Ingham Regional Medical Center. Surgery is out patient. Please pray for her--we are trusting this will help her whole knee be better--she has suffered with pain for quite some time and this surgeon thinks it will help. She is looking at 4 weeks of no weight bearing, which is a fancy way to say, crutches are her only mode of transportation. Please pray it will go better than anticipated, she will stay on top of the pain and her body will not have any infection. The suburban is ready to roll at 7 am...Thankfully, we heard an amazing message this morning from John 14. It begins with "Let not your hearts be troubled, believe in God, believe also in Me." The whole message was about not allowing your heart to get agitated or stirred up, which is the more biblical definition of "trouble." I love Psalm 46:1
"God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble.."
Amen..

Mother's day was good this year..we celebrated together. The kids all made a scrumptious dinner for Mom and I. The girls made my Mom a beautiful gift for our HOPE garden. Nathan got me a single, red rose. I also received a new CD player/Ipod player doodad for my VW as a collective gift from everyone. Very cool. I am so blessed to have my children! I love the homemade cards they create for me. Each one reflects their individual talents and gifts. And that Sunday, Hannah played keyboard and Nathan played bass, for worship. I couldn't look at them very long because I didn't want to blubber like a walrus. I want nothing more than to know my children will walk with the Lord...no gift on this earth comes close to that longing of my soul.

I have been reading R.T. Kendalls' book, Total Forgiveness. The subtitle is this: When everything in you wants to hold a grudge, point a finger and remember the pain, God wants you to lay it all aside.
Absolutely a must read.

I must get some shut eye. 6 am will be here before I know it..

He is faithful,
Bonnie