God and Family

God In Us

Living a simple life in Orange County (the Orange Bubble) has afforded me many freedoms.

St. Norbert Parish is one of the main pathways that allows me to teach and guide others to God’s truth. For instance when catechism came to an end in late May, I felt compelled to do more. As a result, after reading  from the students’ Testimony Worksheet, I discovered that their hearts were yielded to understand the Word of God deeper.

An interesting question from the survey was  My Life Before I Knew Jesus Christ. “I was lost and unhappy, I didn’t know what/who to believe.”  This is a response from a former student, who is now attending the Bible study.

I sincerely cannot stop praising His Name! Teaching the Word of God always opens the door to truth and studying the Bible gives you godly wisdom.

Dodger Stadium
Party of eleven

Deep within us all God is ever present. I want to hear the Lord say, ” Well done, good and faithful servant.” It’s all for His glory!

Family

This past week we hosted some of our family from Louisiana. Torie is the middle child of my sister Jo. He married his high school sweetheart Stacie. He also played football for Tulane. They have three children, 15-year-old Julia and twins, Jake and Tyson, who are 12 years old.

The art project Jake and Tyson

Before they arrived Jacob and I picked up some plain wood artwork that needed painting. As they were busy painting, Julie shared her tips on how to be a good boyfriend.

Julia Newport Beach

Julia’s Advice

Julia made up these rules when she discovered that her younger brother Jake had broken up with his girlfriend and was no longer on speaking terms with her. Julia sat both of her brothers down for a lesson on how to be a good boyfriend.

There are 30 points; here are a few of my favorites:

 

Must be polite,  have good manners and be respectful;

Get along with her parents and friends;

Remember dates, such as  birthdays, first date;

Show that you love Jesus, go to church and pray;

Be good with kids, be playful;

Take pictures of her, make sure she looks cute;

Be funny but not too funny.  Don’t be desperate, have inside jokes;

Tell the girl you like her if she knows that she likes you;

Always pay for dinner;

Don’t be too flirty with other girls;

Be friends with her friends, but not too friendly;

Remind her how beautiful she is;

Make sure your standards are high, don’t settle for less than you deserve;

Don’t be in a toxic relationship and don’t date her because she’s popular.

 

What a life lesson for her brothers!  Julia’s rules are pure, sincere and filled with wisdom. She is well on her way to becoming the best girlfriend a boy could ever imagine.

The Car Switch

I do not organize or plan things well because of my disability; I suffer from dyslexia and ADHD. So this  means that when I read a text message, I do not necessarily comprehend the meaning,  and if it includes  dates and times, it’s more confusing.  Understandably, I would much rather have a normal telephone conversation to avoid all the drama.

Aside from my car, I do not like driving anyone else’s vehicle. Torie and the boys were meeting with Russ and our grandsons at Boomers to play miniature golf. Sonja was supposed to meet us there to take  Stacie, Julia and me shopping at the Irvine Spectrum. When we arrived  Sonja was nowhere to be found. Because of a misread text message I was asked to drive Russ’ car. This car is not equipped with back up cameras nor does it have navigation.  When we got on the freeway, I had forgotten to adjust the mirrors. It was a nightmare in broad daylight!

After finding a great parking spot, I parked the car. Stacie was not happy with my parking, “You parked really crooked, there is not enough room for the other car to open the door.” “Would you like  to fix it?” I responded. Stacie is petite, just  shy of five feet and took on the task of fixing the problem. But what happened next was worse than any nightmare. She got into the car, backed it up, then could not put it back into drive. The car kept rolling in reverse! By this time she had taken up the driveway so no other vehicles could pass. We are in Southern California and our citizen’s patience no longer exists. The more Stacie tried to drive the car forward, the further back it was going, to the point that it was about to hit another car. “Lynda, what do I do? Help me! It won’t go into drive!” By this time Julia and I were out of the car laughing because there was nothing more we could do.

In the meantime, because Stacie blocked the driveway for both sides of the traffic, the horns were blowing! In great distress to make the matter better or perhaps worse, I approached the couple in the car closest to us. “We are having problems parking the car, please be patient. Then I added, “Can you help us? ” The Asian man looked at me and said, “NO!” Again Stacie was desperate, “Lynda, please help! What do I do?”

Suddenly a light switched in Stacie’s head. “Julia, I’m going to put the car in neutral, and you’re going to push it into the parking slot.” Then I yelled, “Do you want to kill her? The car is stuck in reverse.  Julia, move out of the way!” Between the horns blaring and my phone blowing up with Sonja wondering where we were, it was truly by the grace of God that we got out of this mess without being shot. To add to the drama, Julia, who only has a drivers permit kept asking if she could drive!

Stacie had the keys and asked, “Should we lock the car?” I answered. “No, let’s go!”  We were so flustered that we did not pay attention to where we parked. By the time we reached the elevators Julia announced that she left her purse in the car! We walked two levels of the parking lot, but still could not find it. Suffering from dehydration and delusional thoughts, I said a silent prayer to help us find the car. Finally we found it, and this time we paid attention to where it was parked.

My Prayer

Dear Lord, I thank You for family and that we can unite in Your love. May we always have You in our hearts, and may You continually guide us to always show love. Amen.

 

 

 

 

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Third Prison Visit

Tower Four and staging area for visitors

It was too warm to wait outside, so from my car I decided to take a few photos. I got out of the vehicle to take a better picture, then from high on tower #4 came the blaring announcement, “You can’t take photos!” I waved my hand as a gesture to say, “Okay.”

Yellow pants, cream-colored shirt, sports bra, two bracelets, sandals with  back straps, and the booking number – but I still got it wrong. The appointment was at 11 a.m., but I didn’t receive clearance for my visit until 12 p.m.  At the first check point I was informed that my shirt was see-through.

From a far distance I could see the  familiar building where I needed to change.  The woman in charge was late,  so three of us had to wait another 30 minutes for her arrival.

I started a  conversation with a strikingly beautiful young lady dressed all in black. She was driving a Tesla and forgot to bring the card to unlock the vehicle, so she had to store her phone. We had been talking about whether we should have our visit outdoors or indoors, we both decided outdoors.  I asked her who she was visiting, and she said a friend whom she had not seen in over a year. In the usual manner I was all up her business and from the looks of the visit this was her boyfriend!

Praise Report

The last time we visited, Mario shared with me that he was not comfortable in the cell he was in. The violence was at a high level due to so many young gang members. Blacks against Hispanics, it was a constant battle.  Mario hated it there and prayed to be moved. Praise be to God, he was moved to a another building where there is more peace.

New Ministry

On the drive to visit Mario I called my sister Jo. She mentioned that I must have been very close to Mario because I was visiting him so often. “I’m close to a lot of my nephews,” I answered. But I really felt a calling to continue to visit Mario.

Our parish has a prison ministry but they minister in Tehachapi, which is a four-hour drive  north of  Orange.  I could not wait for all the red tape and delays to get Catholic clergy to visit; so I answered the call.

The prison system does have Christian outreaches that serve Norco Rehabilitation Center, but Mario did not care for the recent message that a particular pastor was sharing. He felt that the pastor was out of the spirit.  As a result of his spiritual need, we have Bible studies. These studies are enriching to both of us, and because of this we have developed a spiritual bond. This has become my new ministry.

The Meal (Spiritual)

As soon as I arrived the first priority was to get the Good News Bible. Then we start the visit with a meal. Mario did not want the fried chicken, so I purchased two sandwiches, chips and a Dr. Pepper to wash it down. Mario wanted to study the Book of Haggai.

Haggai

Haggai is a minor prophet with a powerful message:  the Lord wanted to call the people  of Judah  back  from the Babylonian exile and  to re-establish them. Since we are the Temple of God, this message can apply to all of us who are living a godless life. Those who belong to the world and are thriving in every area of their lives but fail to give God the glory for His blessings are empty. You can have all that the world offers, but deep inside there is a huge void, an emptiness that only God can fill. For the glory of God to live within us, there must be a cleansing of our spirits. This is how we obtain peace.

Mario’s Prayer Time
Mario shared that he gets up at 5:00 a.m. and reads the Bible for an hour, then he has breakfast at 6:15 a.m. Through this trial, he has disciplined himself to look toward the future. He recently completed a Microsoft Word class and is looking forward to the next one. On July 8, he will start a class on Excel. He said that most of the incarcerated operate in a spirit of negativity. I told him to start praying the Hail Mary (Luke Chapter One) when he hears this.
Adios
As we held hands and prayed, I asked that the words spoken during the Bible study would remain in our hearts.  I believe that God will watch over Mario as he continues to grow closer to Him.
My Prayer
Dear Heavenly Father, I pray for all incarcerated individuals, especially those who do not know You. Lord, speak to them in dreams, bring peace to their troubled minds, and deliver them from the hands of the Evil One. Lord, protect Mario and let his days be filled with joy in knowing how much You love him. Amen.

 

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