What a gift your prayers have been to me!  Thank you.  Thank you for caring.  I’ve been overwhelmed by your sweet notes of love, prayer and support.

What a humbling thing.  I love to pray for other people but don’t really like being the one in need.  I think that’s called pride, isn’t it?  Sigh.

I’ve been begging God to please restore me with the gift of normal hearing and to take away this screeching- ringing in my ear.  And maybe in His timing He will.  Until then, I’m trying so hard to remember there are many, many worse things people deal with on an everyday basis.  I have so many things for which to be incredibly thankful.

But yesterday’s doctor’s visit was tough.  Like… come home, crawl in bed, and pull the covers over your head kind of tough.  It was just really hard to hear the doctor tell me yesterday that there is significant nerve damage and I should be prepared this could be permanent.

I wasn’t prepared for the word “permanent.”  Wow.  That seems like a really long time to hear this awful noise in my head and not be able to hear everything else normally.

Sadly, normal hearing is such a gift that I’ve taken so for granted all these years.

On Thursday the leaders of my church are gathering to pray for me.  Again, quite a humbling thing.  But what a gift to have church leaders that came to me and offered.  I love my church.  Yet, another thing I’m very, very grateful for.

Please keep praying for me.  Of course, I want to be healed.  I really do.  But until then, I want to be brave.  And thankful.

Thank you so much again for caring about me…

This morning I burned the kids’ toast. Never one to be defeated by a situation, I stood over the kitchen sink and scraped off the burnt places. I smiled at being able to salvage the situation.

Taking burnt toast and making something good from it is pretty much a theme in my life.

I like seeing the bright spot.

I like intentionally looking for the good in all situations.

I like being positive.

But there is a time to set down all the positivity and just simply ask your girlfriends for prayer.

A week ago Friday I had to have emergency surgery on my ears. And while the pain is gone, there’s a really loud constant ringing in my left ear that hasn’t stopped. It’s now been two weeks with this awful ringing and while I’m trying to be brave, I’m feeling super weary.

And I’m having a hard time hearing. A really hard time.

When the doctor tested my hearing last week it wasn’t good.

Please pray for me. I really need the Lord to miraculously touch my ears.

And please pray for me to be able to concentrate.

When I’m supposed to hear something, I just want to hear it. And when there is supposed to be silence, I just want there to be no ringing.

These things are such gifts I have taken for granted.

God forgive me for taking so much for granted.

Thank you sweet friends. I really appreciate your whispers to God on my behalf. I need them. And I will certainly be praying for you today as well.

God treasures the prayers of His girls. Psalm 141: 2 (Message) says, “Treat my prayer as sweet incense rising; my raised hands are my evening prayers.”

Oh that we might fill the heavens with the sweet aroma of our prayers today. Which is a whole lot better smelling than burnt toast.