A Doorkeeper......

Journal Entry from August 16, 2010:

At the end of the Beautiful One Conference, each woman was "randomly" given a slip of paper that had been prayed over with some scripture verses on it. These are the verses I received:

Psalm 84: 10-11

"Better is one day in your courts than a thousand elsewhere; I would rather be a doorkeeper in the house of my God than dwell in the tents of the wicked. For the Lord God is a sun and a shield; the Lord bestows favor and honor; no good thing does he withhold from those whose walk is blameless."

I looked up the meaning of "doorkeeper" in regards to the Lord's temple and found that it was a person who was able to lead others into the glory of God. This was our desire in our situation with Aliyah....to usher others into the glory and presence of God....to allow God to work in BIG supernatural ways.

 Rod and I were given opportunity after opportunity to share with others as to how God was working in our situation. My new prayer became...."Lord, teach me how to be a doorkeeper in your courts." I sensed that it was an awesome responsibility, but I wanted to do it well. When we are a doorkeeper and standing in the Lord's presence....He becomes a sun and a shield to us....He becomes our light and our protection.

Beautiful One Conference

Journal Entries from August 11-14, 2010:                                        

      At the beginning of August, I went to a women's conference called "Beautiful One" in Mechanicsburg with my mom and several ladies from Acts Covenant Church. One of the speakers, Winnie Banov, invited people upfront for prayer. There were many ladies up front praying for people. My mom asked Winnie to pray for the baby. Winnie looked at me and started saying, "Happy baby, happy baby, happy baby." I remember thinking, “This is a strange prayer.” She then put her hands on my stomach and as soon as she did the countenance on her face changed. It was like all fire let loose and she began screaming at my stomach “You will live, you will not die, you will live!!"

    As Winnie was declaring life to Aliyah, I felt that all of the Lord’s fury and anger at what the enemy had done was made known in both the natural and spiritual realm. As she prayed, I could feel the Lord’s jealous love for Aliyah and his hatred for what the enemy had planned for her life.

      I had been praying for more encounters from the Lord and I spent more time in the word I had become fascinated with the stories of angels in the Bible. Two nights after Winnie prayed over Aliyah at the Conference, I had a dream while sleeping in the hotel room. This dream, however, felt just like real life. In the dream, I was lying in the hotel bed and I opened my eyes and looked up at the ceiling. There was an extremely bright light coming down from the ceiling shinning directly on my stomach; the light was almost blinding. And behind the light there was a bright presence and I sensed a being standing there on top of me but I couldn't see any of its features.

      I immediately woke up and shot up in bed. It was completely dark in the room and I noted that everyone else was sleeping in the room. I asked myself, "What was that?" I smiled. The Lord had answered my prayer for an angelic encounter and I felt such incredible PEACE over my entire body and mind.

The Dreams Begin

    There were lots of people who were committed to praying along with us for Aliyah's healing. Many people who were contending for Aliyah's healing began having visions, dreams, and words of knowledge that Aliyah was healed. With each word we received, we continued to press in to the Father's heart in faith.

Journal Entry from July 8, 2010:

Father,
    I received a facebook message from Trishelle saying that she had a dream last night that Rod and I went in to get a follow-up ultrasound for Aliyah. The ultrasound showed that Aliyah was completely normal! Lord.....could it be true? Trishelle is known as a person who has prophetic dreams. She also had the dream on 7/7 which in Scripture represents wholeness and completeness. Lord, may it be so. May Aliyah be healed. Please continue to give us guidance and wisdom! Janae

The Butterflies Continue.....

Journal Entry from July 5, 2010:

Yesterday, Rod and I attended the wedding of some friends, Jon and Carly Buckwalter. While we were enjoying some appetizers at the reception underneath a white canopy, we began talking to Cory and Carrie Martin. They were asking if we had any updates in regards to Aliyah's condition. We started sharing with them about the word spoken over us at Christ Community Church a few weeks before and also about the vision Matt had received with a Gerber Daisy and butterflies.

Cory and Carrie offered to pray for us and began praying for Aliyah's complete healing. At the end of prayer, Carrie said, "Janae, look up." At the top of the canopy we were standing other was a beautiful butterfly circling above us! We felt so known!!

Healing Service

      Rod and I decided that if we were seriously going to pursue healing for Aliyah, we should seek out every healing service we could find in Lancaster County. We joked that we were some of the most prayed for people in the County!

     On June 22, 2010, Rod and I went to Christ Community Church in Camp Hill, PA for their healing service. We had never been to the church before, and had found out about their service online. We went into the church and sat down in the front row with about 15 other people who had come for prayer. We sat soaking in the music from the worship band playing up front.

     I noticed a painted picture on the stage as we were listening to the worship music. It was of a hand reaching out to touch the hem of Jesus' garment. This was what I had prayed so many times over the past few weeks....that Jesus would come close enough to me that I could just reach out and touch the hem of his garment for Aliyah's healing.

     The second part of the service was of children from the church talking what they felt that the Holy Spirit had given them to share. Many of the children were so scared to step up to the mike but some of them boldly talked about a word or picture they had received from the Lord. One of the children's leaders said that she felt the Lord had given her two words for two different people that evening. I don't remember what the first word was, but I will never forget what the second word was......"If someone has come for healing for their daughter tonight, your daughter is healed."

     I almost fell off the front row bench I was sitting on! Could this word of knowledge truly be for us and Aliyah? I quickly looked down the line of people to see if anyone else had brought their daughter in for healing. Everyone else was middle-aged. I of course began to cry and numerous people came around us and joined with us in praying for Aliyah's healing. We had been asking for a sign and confirmation of Aliyah's healing......could this mean that Aliyah was truly healed? We continued to press in.......

    

Rise and Thresh

Journal Entry from June 18, 2010:

Father, Yesterday as I was spending time with You, I felt that You led me to Micah 4:13 which says: "RISE and THRESH, O Daughter of Zion, for I will give you horns of IRON; I will give you hoofs of BRONZE and you will break to pieces many nations."

At first, I almost laughed and thought this verse had absolutely nothing to do with me or my life right now. However, as I prayed and pondered the words of this verse and spent some time studying Biblical commentaries, I realized just how very RELEVANT these words truly are for my life right now.

Some of the things the Lord revealed to me as I studied Micah 4:13:

This prophecy was actually given to Israel right after they were told that Babylon would come against them and take them into captivity. Micah 4:13 is part of the promise that the Lord gives to Israel that he will DELIVER THEM and STRENGTHEN THEM so that they are able to eventually overake their enemies. The Lord promises to eventually bring His people back to Jerusalem after being taken into exile by their feared enemies. To "rise and thresh" is to actually a call to take up the fight against our enemies....to remain strong in our faith and wait for the deliverance that the Lord has promised.

If you study the concept of Biblical threshing you will find that in order to separate the grain from the chaff, the farmers would drive their oxen and cart over the grain again and again.....this process would allow the good part of the crop (grain) to be separated from the bad or useless part of the crop (chaff). In the same way that threshing purifies and refines the grain in the natural, it also is a term that refers to the purification and refining our hearts spiritually. Spiritual threshing allows us to trample down the enemies of darkness in our lives.

Even when we do not understand what is going on around us and we are tempted to give up, we are called to maintain the fight of faith and to wait with EXPECTATION in seeing the deliverance of the Lord in our lives! This verse was a great reminder to continue to FIGHT with faith on Aliyah's behalf!!

Butterflies, Cardinals, and Gerber Daisies

      I love to hear the different and unique ways that the Lord chooses to speak into the lives of His children. At times people actually hear the Lord speak in an audible voice to them. But often the Lord speaks to us through the objects, situations, and people around us. The words the Lord declares over our lives at just the right time have the ability to bring such ENCOURAGEMENT and STRENGTH to our souls.......especially when we are walking through the valley of shadows and great darkness.

     Throughout my pregnancy with Aliyah, I often felt that my mind was a continual battlefield. I could literally feel the fear from the unknown of our daughter's future griping me and threatening to steal all life and joy from my soul. I could also feel the FAITH arising in my heart as I spent more and more time in the Lord's PRESENCE.

      Faith and fear are polar opposites. They can not exist together in our hearts at the same time. Scripture tells us that there is NO FEAR in the Lord's perfect love.....it is completely cast out. If we chose to allow ourselves to rest in the love and faith in the Lord, the fear that consumes us WILL BE driven out. My prayer each day while carrying Aliyah was that my FAITH WOULD ARISE causing all my anxiety and fear to flee! I often prayed out loud over our situation on days when my fear was so strong.....and this made all the difference.

      I began asking the Lord for signs of His presence around us....specifically I asked Him to send cardinals and butterflies my way! And the most amazing thing happened after I began praying this prayer....I began to see cardinals and butterflies EVERYWHERE! I mean EVERYWHERE. A cardinal decided to take up residence in our neighbor's tree and nearly every time I went into our backyard, I would glimpse his beautiful bright red feathers or hear him singing a song. Butterflies also came in ABUNDANCE. They showed up on so many days when I was feeling discouraged. I even had one come and land on me!!

      
     At the beginning of June 2010, my sister-in-law's small group from church came and prayed for us. As the group laid hands on us and contended for Aliyah's healing, one of the guys (who we had never met) told us that the Lord had given him a picture. The picture was of Gerber Daisies with their heads completely drooped. Matt noted, however, that as the sun rose upon the daisies, they raised their heads up to the LIGHT and butterflies were released from the flowers' centers. Matt had absolutely no clue how much the Lord was already using butterflies to speak LIFE into our situation!

      "ARISE, SHINE, for your LIGHT has come, and the glory of the Lord RISES UPON YOU. See, darkness covers the earth and thick darkness is over the peoples, but the Lord rises upon you and his glory APPEARS OVER YOU." Isaiah 60:1-2

Choosing a Name

      A few days after finding out we were having a girl, I was looking over the list of baby girl names we had complied. The name "Aliyah" stood out to me from that list and I felt the Lord saying that this was the name we were to give our daughter. I found that the name "Aliyah" actually meant "rising" and immediately the middle name, "Joy" came to my mind. "Rising Joy".....how appropriate. I was excited that Rod loved the name when I presented it to him......our decision was made!

     An except from my journal at the end of May 2010: "Rising Joy"....Father, this is what Rod and I need so much from you right now. A JOY that goes beyond our circumstance. A JOY that is based only on the foundation of having you as Lord. God, in the midst of everything, Rod and I continue to go back to the fact that You are so GOOD to us."

     A few days after naming our daughter, a Jewish co-worker asked me if I knew what Aliyah's name meant. I told her I knew that it meant "rising." She informed me that in Jewish culture, An "Aliyah" is the name that is used to describe the journey of the Jewish people going back to the temple of God. An "Aliyah" includes "rising up" the temple stairs to meet with God, to seek His face, and to come into His PRESENCE......Rod and I were amazed! Once again the Lord had gone before us showing how He was giving LIFE to our situation before we were even aware of it.

It's a.........GIRL!!!

Journal Entry from May 28, 2010:

      We went for our third ultrasound today to find out if we were having a boy or a girl. Dr. Ballis reviewed the ultrasound results and informed us that we were indeed having a little GIRL! (I just had this feeling we were having a girl).

     He did inform us that our daughter definitely still had Anencephaly and the progression of the disease had taken its affect on her brain causing it to slowly deteriate. It was tough to receive this news, since we had beeen praying for her healing and knew that many other persons were praying for her healing.

     Our baby girl looked beautiful on the utlrasound pictures. Dr. Ballis informed us that everything else about our daughter looked perfect; there were no other abnormalities. He assured us that this birth defect is very random and is pretty much like getting struck by lightening. The birth defect did not appear to be genetic.

     Rod and I went home and crawled into bed after our appointment. We continued to believe the Lord for his promises of HEALING and continued to ask the Lord to BREAK INTO into our dark situation!

When Heaven Invades Earth.......

       A book that completely changed my views on the Lord and healing is "When Heaven Invades Earth" by Bill Johnson. I would encourage each one of you to read it if you have not already. It will most definitely challenge your faith and increase your faith in regards to praying for healing.

      Some of Bill Johnson's points from the book that stuck out the most to me:

"If people are not being healed, I will not supply a rationale so that all those around me remain comfortable with the void. Instead, I will pursue the healing until it comes or the individual goes to be with the Lord. I WILL NOT LOWER THE STANDARD OF THE BIBLE TO MY LEVEL OF EXPERIENCE."

"Jesus healed EVERYONE who came to Him."

"The ministry of signs and wonders will go nowhere if we are afraid of failing."

"If we teach and preach and nothing happens, we go to our KNEES. Don't make excuses for God's powerlessness. For decades, the church has been guilty of creating doctrine to justify their lack of power, instead of CRYING OUT to God to change them. This lie has given rise to an entire BRANCH OF THEOLOGY which has infected the Body of Christ with a FEAR OF THE HOLY SPIRIT. The word must go forth with power."

"The Supernatural is HIS natural realm. Jesus was an EXACT representation of the Father's nature."

"Signs and wonders remove the MIDDLE GROUND. People must make a decision as if they believe in them or if they don't."

"The testimony of God creates an APPETITE for more activities of God. Expectation grows when people are aware of His supernatural nature."

"Getting us into heaven is not near as great a challenge as it is to get heaven INTO US. This is accomplished through the fullness of the Spirit in us."


*Link to Bill Johnson's Church (Bethel Church) in Redding, California: www.ibethel.org/

Pushed Out of My Comfort Zone

Journal Entry from May 13, 2010

Dear Father,
      It has been awhile since I journaled...not that I am not processing a lot, but more because I have been taking so much in and feeling like a sponge soaking up everything! Rod and I have been reading books on healing and the Holy Spirit, listening to worship music nonstop, listening to sermons, spending lots of time in prayer, and receiving lots of prayer from others.

        I feel that we are wanting to learn anything that you are willing to teach us. I was just reading the other day about how the Holy Spirit often makes us uncomfortable when he moves in NEW WAYS in our lives. I have felt uncomfortable, but at the same time it feels so good. I feel pushed to INCREASE MY FAITH and to TRUST YOU like never before.

        No other experience has brought me to my knees more, made me shed more tears, or helped me to realize our COMPLETE DEPENDENCE on you.

        I feel a shift in my soul to contend for healing for our baby. The more I read in Scripture about miracles and healings and the more testimonies of people I hear that have been physically and mentally healed, the more I desire to see your miracles, signs, and wonders NOW.

       God, regardless of the outcome with our baby, Rod and I are desiring more miracles, signs, and wonders to be manifested in our lives and in the lives of those around us. Whatever that may look like, we ask for it........for a greater outpouring of your Holy Spirit upon our lives.

        Forgive me for my unbelief in the past...increase my faith. Let your KINGDOM come......

May This Not Be a Wasted Time

An excerpt from my journal in May 2010:

       A few verses that have stuck out to me over the past few days, "For You, O God, have tested us; You have REFINED us as silver is refined. You brought us into the net; You laid affliction on our backs. You have caused men to ride over our heads; we went through fire and through water; but you brought us out into RICH FULFILLMENT." Psalm 66:10-12.

       Lord, we proclaim these verses for our lives and ask that we not go through this situation without experiencing MORE OF YOU and the rich fulfillment that you want to teach us during this time. May it not be a wasted time, but a time where much PRUNING can take place and more FRUIT can come from our lives.

        God, we declare that YOU are still very much in charge of our lives and we love you and want to worship you despite our circumstances. We know that the enemy has plans for this circumstance: to increase our fear, to cause us to doubt and not trust YOU, to pull apart our marriage....the list goes on and on. Jesus, we pray against any strongholds that Satan has set up against us and ask that they would be ripped down. We ask for protection upon our household and ask that you would guard our hearts and minds in Jesus' name. Jesus, may YOU have your way in our circumstance.

A Stirring in Our Hearts

An excerpt from my journal from beginning of May 2010:

       
       God, I feel like this is a time of GREAT REFINING for both Rod and I. Getting rid of the junk in our lives and replacing it with a heart for You, for others, and possibly new ministry. God, I am not sure what that ministry will look like, but I sense a REAL STIRRING in our hearts...a thing that can only be from you.

       Rod and I both sense an EXCITEMENT as to how you are going to use our situation and how you are going to change us. Rod and I have already been able to have so many conversations with people about Your heart, how You are working in our lives, etc.

       You reminded me today of some verses that you had highlighted to me in January before I even knew I was pregnant. Isaiah 54:2-3 "ENLARGE the place of your tent, STRETCH your tent curtains wide, do not hold back; LENGTHEN your cords, STRENGTHEN your stakes, For you will SPREAD OUT to the right and to the left; your descendants will dispossess nations and settle in their desolate cities."

       Father, I feel that these verses are the call that you have put on our hearts at this time. May we not hold back, may we grow in you and your strength as you prepare us for what you have for us for our future!

Pressing into The Father's Heart

     The choice to press into the Father's heart after receiving our baby's diagnosis was not always an easy choice. In fact, on some days, it was the last thing that I wanted to do. However, the more I spent time sitting in the Lord's presence, the more I realized that I needed Him and His power and strength to face the journey before us.

      I felt so thirsty for more of the Word. I could not get enough of it. I spent hours pouring over Scriptures and was amazed at how many of the Scriptures seemed to JUMP OFF the page and go directly into my soul. The countless hours that I spent in the Word provided such LIFE for my soul. Rod told me that he could usually tell the days that I had spent a lot of time reading Scripture because my eyes seemed to be more “lit up.” There is something about spending time in the Word that actually changes our hearts and our countenance. It truly is NOURISHMENT for our souls.

A Choice to Make

     Upon returning home from the doctor's appointment that day in April, Rod and I knew that we had a CHOICE to make. It is the difficult choice that every human being is faced with when they are confronted with a circumstance that goes against the very thing they have planned and hoped for.

      It is the choice that Job is highlighted for making in Scripture. Every human being has been forced to make this choice at one point in their life......whether it be a circumstance with poor health, a broken relationship, the loss of a job, a financial hardship, the betrayal of a friend, the death of someone close to them.......

     The choice is this: In the midst of my dark and difficult circumstances do I "curse God and die" or do I choose to "proclaim the He is GOOD no matter what my circumstances and set my face and heart on seeking HIM, and Him alone?"

      Rod and I chose the second option....and I'm so glad that we did. We chose to call Our Father good and faithful. We chose to believe in His GOODNESS in the midst of not understanding the reasons behind our circumstance. We chose not to go down the path of cursing and accusing God, allowing our very heart and minds to become calloused and grow cold to the Very One who gave us life, to the Very One who gave our baby LIFE.

      This very choice to choose LIFE in our circumstance and continuing to seek the Lord's face opened the door for us to enter in to an amazing journey of seeing Our Father work in such powerful and loving ways. A journey that allowed us to see part of Heaven come to earth....to see how the Lord's kingdom truly can come now. A journey that caused us to contend for our baby's healing instead of allowing the diagnosis to be the final word. A journey that many standing on the outside did not understand. A journey that was so difficult at times but yet also full of so many blessings and testimonies.

Incompatible With LIFE

Journal Entry from April 16, 2010:

     It felt like this day would never come! We met with Dr. Boley at Maternal-Fetal Medicine and he did another ultrasound on our baby. He informed us that our baby had a NEURAL TUBE defect called ANENCEPHALY. This birth defect actually is found in 1 out of 1,000 babies. Many of these babies are aborted, so not many people are familiar with this birth defect.

      Within the first few weeks of conception, the baby's neural tube forms. If the tube does not completely close at the bottom, the baby develops Spina Bifida. If the tube fails to close at the top of the tube, it's called Anencephaly. The baby's skull never forms, leaving the brain and rest of the head completely exposed and unprotected. As a result, the baby's brain deteriates and the baby is left with only a brain stem.

      It was hard to take in all that Dr. Boley was telling us about on this day....we had never even heard of this birth defect before. How could our baby have Anenecephaly?? I had been taking a prenatal vitamin and was sure that I did not have low Folic Acid levels (Low Folic Acid levels have been linked to some cases of Neural Tube Defects).

      One main thing stuck out from that day with Dr. Boley. He informed us that Anencephaly is ALWAYS FATAL......that babies born with this defect are INCOMPATIBLE with LIFE. Anencephalic babies are not able to see, hear, or feel and if they live to be full term, they usually die during the natural birthing process or shortly after.

      Dr. Boley politely told us that there were "OPTIONS," and we kindly told him that we did NOT want to hear them. The Lord had given this child to us and we were commited to being his or her parents whether or not they lived for a few months, a day, or a lifetime......

A Day That I Would Like to Forget......

Journal Entry from April 10, 2010:

      It seemed like a normal Saturday morning..... Rod had left to go to Gateway House of Prayer and I enjoyed sleeping in. When I got up, I noticed that I was bleeding some and quickly called Rod. My mom took me to the Triage Unit at Women and Babies Hospital and Rod met us there.

      I noticed the large the amount of peace I felt in the midst of feeling fearful. I felt like the Lord was saying to me, "Janae, TRUST me."

      We were pleasantly surprised to see the baby moving around on the ultrasound screen! We ended up waiting five hours for Dr. Wyse to come and go over the results with us as she was doing an emergency c-section. My bleeding had stopped and the baby seemed to be doing well, we assumed that we would be given a good report.

       We were extremely surprised when Dr. Wyse informed us that it appeared that something was wrong with our baby's brain. Dr. Wyse mentioned words like choroid cysts or possible mental retardation. It was absolutely CRUSHING to receive this news.

      Rod and I went home and crawled into bed crying together....the future was so uncertain. We would go for a more in-depth ultrasound at the specialist in a week.

Positive Test!!

Journal Entry from February 11, 2010:

     
      I took a pregnancy test....actually I took two and the results were both POSITIVE!! I was so excited to tell Rod that were were pregnant, that I ran outside in my pajamas and snow boots! Rod was out shoveling lots of snow. He was so excited to hear the good news. He said that the snow actually felt lighter to him as he shoveled after he heard that we were expecting. =)

     I journaled on this day: Lord, I commit this pregnancy to you and ask for your BLESSING to be upon this baby even now as it is tiny. God, I am asking even now for the SALVATION of this child. God that he or she may have an extremely close relationship with you....a calling. MARK THIS CHILD for your service Lord Jesus. I thank you for this gift. Jesus, please give me the WISDOM I need to be an excellent mother. Over these next 8 months, continue to mold me and shape me into the woman you wish me to become. Jesus, have your way in my life, I give you permission to CHANGE whatever needs to be changed in my life!

Isaiah 60:1-3

Journal Entry from January 17, 2010:

      As I was spending time with the Lord on this day in January, I felt that he highlighted the following verses....they seemed to JUMP right off the page as I read them.

      Isaiah 60:1-3 "Arise, shine, for your light has come, and the glory of the Lord rises upon you. See, darkness covers the earth and thick darkness is over the peoples, but the GLORY of the Lord rises upon you. Nations will come to YOUR LIGHT, and kings to the BRIGHTNESS OF YOUR DAWN."

     That day I journaled this: We are called to be a blessing, a priesthood, to all the nations. We are called to be a light to the world and to the darkness around us. As the Lord rises, the nations and kings will come to His brightness and they will bring with them their wealth.....they will open up their storehouses for God to use.

Go Forth in Boldness........

     In December of 2009, just six short months after Rodney and I got married, I went to an anointing service at our church (In the Light Ministries) in Lancaster City.

      I was first prayed over and anointed by Pastor Phil and his wife Yvonne and then was also prayed for by another elder, Sandra. I thought it was interesting that both Pastor Phil and Sandra prayed almost the exact same prayer over me that evening. Especially since they were standing in two different places upfront and had no way of hearing each other as they each prayed. It definitely got my attention and I sensed that the words spoken were important and directly from the heart of the Lord.

      Their prayers included the following: "GO FORTH IN BOLDNESS to advance against the kingdom of darkness with your husband. That there would be NO FEAR and that you may be sensitive to God's whisper. May you pour out God's blessing on others as he has blessed you. May God continue to bring those to you who are weak. May you SHAKE THE GATES OF DARKNESS. May you be a LIGHT and blessing to your family. May you be FULL OF COURAGE. God loves you."

I had no idea just how POWERFUL and meaningful that prayer would become for Rodney and I over the next six months........

It is Time.......

April 10, 2010: It is a date that I will never forget. 

A day that has been forever cemented in my mind. A day that has forever changed me. It is the day that my husband, Rodney, and I received the news that the little girl growing inside of me had the fatal diagnosis of Anencephaly. 
    
Her birth defect, we were told by doctors, made her "incompatible with life" and she would be born stillborn or die shortly after birth. The doctor told us "there were options" and we told him we did not want to hear them. He was respectful of our decision.
    
We knew that the Lord had given our daughter to us and we were committed to being her parents regardless of if she lived for a few hours, a few days, or for a lifetime. On April 10, 2010, we began a six month journey of pressing into the Father and seeking Him for our daughter's healing. This very choice to choose LIFE in our circumstance and continuing to seek HIS face opened the door for us to enter into an amazing journey of seeing Our Father work in such powerful and loving ways. 
     
It was a journey that allowed us to see part of HEAVEN COME TO EARTH....to see how the Lord’s kingdom truly can come now. It was a journey that many standing on the outside did not understand. A journey that was so difficult at times but yet also full of so many blessings and testimonies.

I have felt the Lord stirring in my heart over the past several months to share more of our story with our daughter Aliyah. So, today I am starting this blog. I invite to you journey with me as I share the GOODNESS and FAITHFULNESS of the Lord over the past few years in our journey with our daughter, Aliyah Joy......