Daniela's 4th Anniversary!

A whisper in the night woke me up to surrendering a call to take-in Daniela.

Tears and wrestling with the Lord all night turned into a yes, Your desire and will, not mine.  I finalized it with her sister on a Friday and Monday I picked her up.  She had nothing packed to bring.  Her neighbor even asked for her shoes back because they were borrowed. We both were a little shocked. 

Life was horrible in the beginning but I clung to the fact that God led me to the girls and anything else would be disobedient.  I don't even know how I lived without them now.

I sit with D often asking her to tell me her thoughts.  I want to hear the things the devil is saying to counter act what is real and what isn't real.  There are lots of secrets around her life that I am slowly releasing as she gets older, too.  I'm against telling her a story when she is 18 or 30.  Knowing the truth helps her to understand and process it all now.

She told me a few weeks ago, “I didn’t think I was ever going to be loved again. My Mom was gone, my Dad wanted to kill me, and my (older) sisters didn’t love me. No one loved me after my Mom died. I wasn’t even allowed to cry about my Mom. I would have to hide in the bathroom to cry. Then, I moved here.”

The devil’s lies run deep. I’m thankful for Jesus whom sets us free and replaces lies with TRUTH. A miracle took place the day mom died.

A miracle. 

2 little girls were kept from harm from a demon-possessed man screaming, “I killed your mom and I’m going to kill you.” 

But Jesus never allowed it to happen. 

Dad never found them even though they were feet away and Jessica had been hysterical in screams. Yet, Dad could not hear it? I do not know.  I just know Jesus said no.  They were saved from death.  The lion not only didn't kill them, it did not even scratch them (Daniel 6).  Daniela's name is derived from the name Daniel, "God is my judge."  Jessica means God beholds, or God sees. 

Indeed.

This is Love...From a Savior. 

2 years later the Holy Spirit would have me pray a very specific prayer over my kids to a Jehovah Witness claiming my girls as His kids and that will be in His Kingdom.  Then, months later they were both Saved from this earthly life and died with Him, to Live with Him (2 Tim).

D said she hid Jessica and ran back into the house to help Mom.  To see what she could do.  She was 9.  She stood frozen-- like we have in dreams when you can't move, as she watched Dad swing a hammer at Mom's body.  She said Dad was emotionless.  No crying and no anger, just swinging and swinging like a robot.  He looked up at her.  Looked at Mom, then turned to Daniela slowly walking towards her.  Finally the frozen body effect melted, and she ran out of the house screaming and the neighbor teens came out running to help.  Dad ran for the hills.

BUT. 

The real Father ran in. Jehovah Rapha. The One that heals. The One that is capable of erasing all of this horror and replacing it because He is Jehovah Shalom.  I asked D to tell me about her thoughts the other day.  Tell me what the devil is saying...her response was nothing to do with her mom and dad and the trauma. It was an everyday kid thing about getting along with her cousin.  Inside I cried the happiest of tears driving and looking out the window-- pacing my breathing to not allow tears to fall out of my eyes.  Really?? 

Happy 4 years, mija!  In a few more days, we would talk the other older sister into letting me have Jessi.

mom

Look at chubby Jessi in yellow, D is far left leaning in

with older sister and cousin

All these are photos of the girls before they moved in.

my favorite photo of Daniela

Mom's sisters and a cousin

Sister with my girls

Jessica's salvation prayer caught on camera!  Thought she was so cute praying.  Little did I know it was Salvation!

Daniela's baptism

Jessica's baptism, she was held under longer :)

brother's baptism

Grandpa O <3

Uses a peeler to peel an ORANGE

She is so tiny at 4!

Mom's 4 youngest <3

Pedicures before NY trip

Cousin Ethan

It's been the best journey of my life!  

Jesus' Love to Me

Taken on my walk tonight.  I couldn't see how the picture came out because of the sun until I got home.

I spent my evening reading Joshua and asking the Lord to show me what His love for me is like...in relating it to how I love others like He does to me. <3

To death, that which goes down to bring up

Quiet and powerful FIGHT

Love with no parameters, abounding

Eternal, not just present

Endured pain to release pain

Knows past, present, and future sins against Him and still said, "I want to be with you."

Constant, without fail- STANDS

Mighty

Too Long Gone!

Guys. I know.  It's been way too long.  My old blog is held up in blog limbo and I have no idea how to recover it. I really want to recover it to have my old stories of the miraculous things the Lord has done in my life.  When I started to blog, I stopped journaling!  ::tears::

Let's start new.  Let's start over with a sweet, sweet story about Jesus and His precious daughter named Jessica.

Jessica has been in her room for two days, mas o menos.  She gives me a headache.  Usually a heartache, too.  Tonight, she finally wants to repent and turn it all around.  As I prayed for the Holy Spirit to reveal to me what to say, I spoke to her.  The Lord reminded me how I read in Revelations, earlier this afternoon, that He is the Root.  I spoke to her about how He must be her root.  We spoke about how in order to produce fruit, she must be connected to Him.  Without Him, she dies.  Without Him, she fails.  Without Him, the tree falls over and cannot withstand ANYTHING.  We need His living water!

We finished chatting on the porch as the sweet wind blew on this gorgeous day.  As we cooked dinner, iTunes was on shuffle.  For Your Splendor by Christy Nockels came on and I just started to cry.  Jessica, LISTEN!! This is from JESUS to you!

His love is truly intoxicating.

I'm so concerned with what I look like from the outside

Will I blossom into what You hope I'll be

Yet You're so patient just to help me see

The blooms come from a deeper seed that You planted in me

Sometimes it's hard to grow when everybody's watching

To have your heart pruned by the one who knows best

And though I'm bare and cold I know my season's coming

And I'll spring up in Your endless faithfulness

With my roots deep in You I'll grow the branch that bears the fruit

And though I'm small, I'll still be standing in the storm

'Cause I am planted by the river by Your streams of living water

And I'll grow up strong and beautiful, all for Your splendor, Lord

So with my arms stretched out, I'm swaying to Your heartbeat

I'm growing with the sound of Your voice calling

You're bringing out the beauty that You have put in me

For Your joy and for Your glory falling