The Saturday BEFORE Christmas

I'm sure by now that most of you have heard the latest with the Skinner family. The Saturday before Christmas they had a house fire. Thankfully no one was at home. Missy's sister-in-laws on Jeff's side came by and took her and Megan Christmas shopping. Their husbands came by and took Jeff out of the house for a little while.

During this time, there was a fire with the dryer. It has been said that there was an electrical spark that caused the fire. The insurance company has already been out and started the ball rolling. They are going to gut their townhouse down to the 2x4's and start all over.

The day of the fire they moved in to our house in Morris. You take the lemon and make lemonade. I thought for a little while that Missy was going to lose it. She got it together and has really had a good outlook on life.

On Saturday or Sunday night ( I can't remember because all of the days are running together.)Missy made a list of problems and blessings. Praise the Lord her blessings were many more pages than her problems. She listed only 10 problems in her life and had 6 pages of blessings! Do you see God at work? I do!

I am proud of myself. On Monday, I was left at home all day with the list and did not read it! I was so tempted! I felt this was a private matter even though she had told me about it. I knew if Missy wanted me to read it she would tell me so. Thankfully, she finally told me that I could read it. It was very touching. Maybe later I will share the contents with her permission.

Through all of this we have been able to spend some special time with Jeff, Missy, and Megan. If you want to see Jeff at his best, come over around 7:00 AM. It is still a long road ahead...but...with God all things are possible! Please continue to pray for healing and encouragement!

I almost forgot to share how good God is! On that blazing Saturday, when everything had settled down, you could choose to laugh or cry. So of course, we chose to find humor. We were joking about writing in to Extreme Home Make Over. We all felt that their story was sad enough that they might just get picked. On Monday, Missy called me and tearfully said...Who needs Extreme Home Make Over when you have a community, family, friends, work related acquaintances, and special people that God places in your life at the right time. God has truly taken the bad and turned it to good. He does what He says He will do. His blessings have been poured out on them. To all of you special people that have been a part of God's blessings...THANK YOU and PRAISE AND GLORY BE TO OUR GOD!

Jeff...The Doctor's words...MIRACLE

Since Sunday, December 7, 2008, things have not just been exactly right for our brother-in-law, Jeff. (Health wise) On Tuesday during his treatment they said he was having a seizure. Next no it is a stroke. No he is having continuous seizures. Things just did not add up. We left our apartment at 4:04 PM and talked with Chuck's sister to see if she needed anything and that we were on our way. She says, oh don't bother with coming he is fine. Within the next 30 minutes the next phone call is...they have put him on the ventilator and are calling in the family. By the time we reached the hospital they were preparing him for emergency surgery. He was suffering from swelling on the brain. They removed some dead brain cells, new cancerous cells, and the steel plate they put in after his first surgery. As if this wasn't bleak enough news, the doctor ends with we have done all we can do...he is in the Lord's hands. Well he has been in the Lord's hands for a very long time!

On Wednesday morning, December 10, 2008, his vitals are looking good but he is still non-responsive. We were there later when the doctor stood before Chuck's sister and said...Mrs. Skinner, do you know that your husband is a miracle! The answer of course was yes! He is doing better and is more responsive.

It has been a very long week for the family. Jeff was finally moved in to a room on Sunday, December 14, 2008. The goal of the doctors is to have him home by Christmas. It was determined that he did have another stroke on Tuesday, December 9, 2008. This is from the swelling on the brain. His vision has been affected. It will possibly get better with time. Reality has set in that this is going to be a part of life. Unless God intervenes, the Jeff we all know and love is in there somewhere but only through God will we every see that Jeff again.

On Wednesday, December 17, 2008, Jeff got to come home from the hospital. While he gave Missy and Megan a hard time about getting out of the car in the rain, the good part for all is that he is home in time for Christmas.

Please continue to pray for Jeff, Missy and Megan. As much as a healing is needed, encouragement is needed. Please have all prayer warriors that you know to pray and believe God for a miracle for Jeff. We are continuing to believe that God will heal Jeff. I praise Him and thank Him for one more miracle. All things are in His hands and His timing.

Skinner Update

I spoke with Missy this morning. Their story has been turned in to Magic 96 by Carla Bennett. They heard it on Friday evening.

Jeff starts his radiation and chemo treatment on Monday at 4:00 or 4:30 PM. Please keep Jeff in your prayers. We are believing for a Healing.

When you pray, please remember not only Jeff, but remember Missy and Megan also. There lives are also effected. Missy has been a wonderful caregiver to Jeff. Megan has also been a great trooper. Together they are making it day by day.

God will turn the bad to good. The door for ministry has been opened. As they work on their Christmas cards, I pray that God will anoint each card. They are including a letter thanking everyone for their gifts, prayers, visits, phone calls etc. Also, they are sharing that God is their strength and that they are believing God for a healing. You never know who's heart might be touched and their life changed forever. Those cards will be going out to not only family and friends this year but to vendors and work related people.

Join me in praying that someone will receive the gift of Salvation this Christmas!

Thanksgiving 2008

We had a blessed Thanksgiving. I have a new outlook on Thanksgiving. I am trying my best to give THANKS each day with a grateful heart. Every new day is a blessing from God.

My Thanksgiving Holiday actually started on Monday when I got off from work. Chase and I drove from Huntsville to Birmingham. The boys and I had dinner with my parents. Good old greasy cheeseburgers and hand made french fries. My dad is a great cook! He even had chocolate pie for Chase. This was a real treat.

The boys had plans to play basketball with some friends later that night. I sat at home by myself and overdosed on TV and Internet. I stayed up past midnight catching up on life. We could not get cable or Internet at our apartment until the Wednesday before Thanksgiving. Chuck stayed in Gadsden until Wednesday evening taking care of this issue.

On Tuesday, I did work from home and then the Holiday began. Chase and I cleaned house for our Thanksgiving guest. I picked my Great Aunt Melba (she is 81 years old.) up in Homewood around 12:30 PM. We had lunch at the Paw-Paw Patch. It was delicious! We went to Ross in Fultondale. Around 5:00 PM we picked my Mom up and went to Tanya's in Warrior. Please keep in mind that at this point I still have not been grocery shopping. Around 6:00 PM we dropped my Mom off and picked my Dad up and went grocery shopping at Wal-Mart in Gardendale. I finally got home around 7:00 PM. I had to do a little more work for my job before kicking back to relax and enjoy more TV and Internet. The boys played basketball again on Tuesday night.

Chase and I started our Wednesday off with breakfast at my parents. My nephews were here from Dothan. We enjoyed a great big pancake and bacon breakfast! Next, my mom, aunt, and myself went back to my house to start the Thanksgiving cooking. We made the dressing, pecan pies, lemon ice box pies, mac & cheese, potato salad, and cranberry sauce. Tres had to work. Chase went to help Missy with the Thanksgiving meal at Reno Refractories. At this point Chuck is still in Gadsden by himself.

When we finished our cooking Mom, Aunt Melba, and I went to do a little more shopping. We got back home around 5:00 PM. Chuck rolled in around 5:30 PM. Our family Holiday started. We went to Chili's in Fultondale for dinner. The boys went to do something with their friends but for the life of me I can't remember today. Chuck and I went to purchase our youngest niece a Christmas gift. Of course what we decided to purchase for Kennedy is one of the top 12 toys this year. I had no idea. Chuck saw the advertisement and said that's what we are going to get her. You know Wal-mart was out. They told us they had 6 coming in on the truck that night and it would be on the shelf to purchase on Thursday.

Thursday morning the dressing goes in the oven and things are running smooth. We are watching the parade and enjoying life. Chuck and I decide to make a quick run to Wal-mart to purchase our top 12 toy. The shelves at Wal-mart had not changed one bit. Disgusted we went to Kmart to see if by any chance they might have it. They did! Yeah! By the way we have never gone shopping on Thanksgiving morning before. I felt a tinge of guilt shopping on Thanksgiving morning.

Back to the house we go. The dressing is ready and the mac & cheese is baking. Chuck makes his Thanksgiving gravy and I am baking the rolls. Our families are arriving bringing their holiday dish. There were 22 of us to sit down at our Thanksgiving meal. We are BLESSED!

For the first time my brother walks in with a box of casseroles with his new wife and all the children. It was a weird site watching him come in with food in his hand. It was weird but also thrilling. We had a peaceful family Thanksgiving. Again, I say we are BLESSED!

At the same time we are experiencing a real family feeling on my side of the family we are facing an obstacle on Chuck's side of the family. God is good all the time. All the time God is good. We are counting are blessings and believing the Lord for many more blessings! We are BLESSED!

On Friday, we put up our Christmas decorations. Later Chuck, Tres, Chase, Charlie, Sissy, Sallie, Kennedy, and I went to the movies. We saw Four Christmases. It was cute.

Saturday, Chuck and I went to purchase his dad's birthday present. Next it was off to purchase food for the Ironbowl. We all went to his parents to watch the Ironbowl. ROLL TIDE! We enjoyed watching Bama beat Auburn 36-0! Chuck and I had to hurry back to our house and grab our things. We left to head back to Gadsden.

On Sunday, Tres, Chase, Charlie, Sissy, Jeff, Missy, Megan, Shane, Sallie and Kennedy all joined us in Gadsden for church service. After church we all went to Top of the River for lunch and to celebrate Charlie's birthday. After lunch they came by to see our new apartment.

That was our Thanksgiving week! Again, I say we are BLESSED!

Cathedral of Praise...A New Adventure

Wow! What an adventure. We had a "meet and greet" our first Wednesday night at our new church as first time Senior Pastors. Now that's a lot of first. However, I left one first out. It was our first time to attend a new church without our children. I think that transition was harder than making the transition from Student Pastor to Senior Pastor.

We enjoyed meeting our new church family. You know I enjoyed the sweets as we met everyone. Sunday, November 16, was our first official service at Cathedral. Everything went well. Chase was able to be in service with us. My boss and his son also came and supported us in our first service. Our next Wednesday night Chuck taught the adult class. How different is that. On Saturday, we helped the women with their fund raiser. Chuck and I learned a lot about baking. We made pumpkin rolls ALL day long. It was great! I don't really care for pumpkin but...the pumpkin roll was delicious! Sunday was a GREAT service! After service we enjoyed fellowship as we had our Thanksgiving meal. We are blessed with many WONDERFUL cooks. I appreciated the way EVERYONE pitched in from set-up to clean-up to make sure our Thanksgiving meal went well.

Our Student Pastors, Joe and Erica Bain, have been great to help us get settled in. We are enjoying getting to know them and their son Malachi. They were kind and invited us over to enjoy some TV time. Joe and Erica are also Survivor fans so we went over and watched Survivor with them. We still do not have cable or Internet at our apartment! As of Wednesday that will change! Thank the Lord!

On Saturday, Tres and Chase came to visit us. Yeah!!! They got put right to work by a couple of the women that were there decorating for the Thanksgiving meal. It was funny they were sent to Hobby Lobby and didn't really know where they were going. I of course have been so turned around that I was not of any help. Thankfully Chuck was able to give them directions. Later we went to a little shopping place called Martins. I love this place! I live about 200 yards from their door. This could also not be a good thing. Anyway, we had to go and spoil our boys a little. We have MISSED them! Later we ordered take-out from Struts (a wing and tender place) and went back over to Joe and Erica's to watch some football.

Like I have already said, Sunday was a great service. Both of the boys where with us in service. I can't believe that my second Sunday there Chuck had me come to service as a silly character. The children were in service with us and he wanted to do something special for them since this was really our first time to be in church with the children. We had already gone out to a youth service and met the teenagers.

The church secretary, Ashley and the custodian, Regina have been a huge help also. Dusty and Jen, the Music Worship Leaders, have done an outstanding job. We are getting to know the Children's Pastors, Andy and Belinda. There are so many people that have been helpful I can't list them all. I just need to simply say THANKS to everyone.

The boys stayed over on Sunday night also. When we finally got back to the apartment on Sunday afternoon, we got hooked on a new to us TV show...Prison Break. Joe and Erica let us borrow the first season on DVD. Who would have ever thought you would be sitting around hoping some prisoners break free.

Well, I could keep rattling on and on and on but I guess I better end here. This new adventure is Ministry has been great! God has a plan for each of us in His time.

Happy Thanksgiving to all!

Update on Jeff

Jeff went to the doctor at UAB on Friday. He was there from around 9:00 AM until around 6:00 PM. He saw multiple doctors and had many test ran. On Monday at 6:45 AM the doctor called and told them the test showed that Jeff has also had a stroke. I truly believe this happened on the Tuesday that he was so bad in ICU. He has an appointment with the radiation doctor on Monday. Missy says that the radiation and chemo will probably not start until after Thanksgiving. When he does start radiation he will go every day for 6 weeks.

He is getting better daily. With God on his side...He will be well! His memory is doing better. Physically he is getting stronger each day. Missy and Megan are doing well. They all make a good team. God is there strength!

Please continue to pray for each of them. There is still a very long road ahead of them. God is there tower of refuge and strength...a very presence help in a time of need.

Trip to Savannah, GA

This was a great trip! We try to go somewhere for our anniversary every year. It doesn't always work out but when it does it is always a cherished memory. This trip was planned for the week after our actual anniversary so we could also go to watch Chase play in a golf tournament.

We left later than we had actually planned because so much has been going on in our family. The thought entered my mind to just cancel everything but the little voice in my head kept saying GO so we did. I am so GLAD that we did go. This ranks up at the top of our travel list.

On Friday evening we traveled to Atlanta, GA. We spent around 2 hours in the IKEA store. This is an amazing place. If you are looking for something unusual for your home or office, great organizational ideas, or just want to make the most of your space, this is a must place to visit. We finally checked in to our hotel around 9:30 PM and had dinner in the restaurant there. On Saturday, we slept in. This is very unusual for us. We have gotten old and normally don't sleep past 6:00 or 6:30 AM. We dressed in our Alabama attire and headed for Savannah, GA. Roll Tide Roll! We did hear and see some of the game. Along the way we made some stops and tried to make sure we ate at places we do not normally eat at around home. Some of the places we tried were: Big Chick, Village Pizza, Five Guys Burger & Fries, The Lady & Sons, Uncle Bubba's Oyster House, and The Shell House. You can't have a road trip without at least one stop at McDonald's.

When we arrived in Savannah, GA we stayed at The Marshall House. This was a beautiful place in Historic Savannah. It was built in 1851. It was voted Best of Savannah, featured on the Travel Channel's Great Hotels, named to Fodor's Hot List 2008 and listed among Coastal Living Magazine's Top 20 Favorite Hotels. Our room had been renovated in 2008. From the friendly people that greeted you, the valet parking, the nightly turn down service, the mints on your pillow, your complimentary bathrobes, the newspaper delivered to your room, the maid service, the delicious breakfast, and to the people at your beacon call to make sure stay was pleasurable, you could become spoiled. It was great!

One of my main goals was to eat at Paula Deen's restaurant The Lady & Sons. Chuck is such a good husband. We were up, ready, had breakfast, and standing on the curb by 9:00 AM to get our name on "the list" to have the Sunday Buffet at some point and time on Sunday. They don't even start taking names until 9:30 AM. Mission accomplished we were to eat at 2:00 PM!

To pass the time while we waited to "put some south in our mouth", we took the Oglethorpe Trolley Tour of The Historic Savannah Foundation. In 90 minutes we saw 250 years of history. Just to name a few we saw: River Street, Colonial Cemetery, Forsyth Park, Oglethorpe City Plan, Restored Waterfront, City Market, Waving Girl, Beautiful Churches and Synagogues, Davenport House, Hamilton-Turner Inn, The Old Pink House, Pirates House, City Hall, and The Mercer House. There has been many movies filmed in Savannah. I'll just mention a few that I can remember: Bagger Vance, Let's Give Them Something To Talk About, Forest Gump, The Garden of Good and Evil. How fitting the first golf course was always developed in Savannah. By the way, a Forest Gump look-a-like jumped up on our trolley. It was comical!

When it came time to check-in at The Lady & Sons we toured the gift shop. It was crazy! The place was packed. It was finally time to eat! Paula tells it like it is, "Everything does taste better with BUTTA y'all!" The Sunday Buffet is $15.99 per person. Your meal includes: Southern Fired Chicken, Baked Chicken, Roasted Pork Lion and Vegetables, Collard Greens, Mashed Potatoes, Yams, Lima Beans, Black Eye Peas, Green Beans, Creamed Corn, Mac and Cheese, Salad Bar, Banana Puddin', Peach Cobbler, Gooey Butter Cake, Hoe Cakes, Cheese Biscuits, and tea. It was finger lickin' and lip smackin' good!

To top the night off we went to Tybee Island to see "The Lighthouse" and the beach. On our way back to our hotel we made one more stop...Uncle Bubba's Oyster House (Paula Deen's brother). How cool is this. We ate at both of the places I really wanted to eat at in the same day! There we had: Crab Bites, Shrimp Quesadillas, Fried Pickles, Calamari, and Chocolate Pecan Pie with Vanilla Cream. We stuffed ourselves! It was delicious!

We did see Chase on Sunday afternoon as he finished up his practice round. Chuck and I went and bought the team a few snacks and energizers for the hotel and tournament. On Monday morning we were at the golf course at 8:00 AM to watch round one. This was a very hard course. Chase was also not feeling very well. Let me just say it was not a pretty round of golf. He shot 82 on Monday. Chase was 6 over after 3 holes. For all you non-golfers out there...this is not good. You could tell it was going to be a long day. The entire team did not play very well. Oh, by the way the temperature was a breezy and cold 70 degrees.

Another Alabama A&M family went to this tournament. So, that night Chase, Tyler (teammate), Cody (teammate), Tyler's parents, Chuck, and I went out to eat at The Shell House. Believe me when I say...There was a ton of seafood put away on this night. We had: Fired Shrimp, Boiled Shrimp, Snow Crab Legs, Oysters on the Half Shell, Crab Cakes, French Fies, Cole Slaw, Corn on the Cob, Salad, Baked Potatoes, and Peach Cobbler with Vanilla Ice Cream. This was a fun night. We got to know Tyler and his family and Cody a little better.

Tuesday was a little better temperature wise and for Chase a little better golf wise. Chase shot 80 on Tuesday. He had the best score on his team on Tuesday and overall for the tournament on his team. Let's just say the Bulldogs were glad this tournament was OVER! They placed 10th out of 11 teams. This was the last tournament for the Fall golf season. They start back in the Spring. They will be missing one player, Larry. Larry will graduate in December and not be playing in the Spring. We will truly miss Larry. It has been a pleasure getting to know Larry.

Praise the Lord everyone returned home safely after a very long drive home! It's back to the real world today!

ChristWay...A Thing Of The Past

As many of you know, Wednesday, November 5, 2008, was our last night at ChristWay. Not only was it our last night at ChristWay but also our last night as Student Pastors. Chuck has accepted a position at Gadsden Cathedral of Praise as the Senior Pastor.

As I think back about our years in ministry, I must be honest and say, there were moments when I thought this day would never come. I truly believe we have been through the process to prepare for this new journey in ministry. We have been blessed. There were many lessons along the way. I pray that we learned what God intended for us to learn. We have had ups and downs and hit a few bumps along the way but through it all...the Lord has been with us every step of the way. To those of you that God has put in our paths along the way I pray that we have made an impact on your life that will glorify the Lord.

I remember the day that Chuck told me he felt like he was at a crossroad in ministry. He felt as if the Lord was leading him in a different area of ministry. I told him that as always...I would support him in whatever decision he made. We are a TEAM!

We have been praying for God's wisdom, direction, favor, His will, etc. for quiet some time. That God would open the door and place us where he wanted us to be. It is not an easy task to leave the position of a Student Pastor and move into the position of a Senior Pastor. Along the way we found ourselves in need of a miracle. To keep things short I will simply say...we kept the faith, believed for a miracle, and trusted the Lord! He moved mountains and changed hearts. God continues to pour His blessings out on us! I thank the Lord for the opportunity He has given us. Let me just say again we are BLESSED!

Please keep us in your prayers as we begin a new journey. Sunday, November 16, 2008 will be our first Sunday as Senior Pastors Chuck and Misty Kennedy. This will be our first Sunday also to start a new position as just Chuck and Misty. This particular Sunday, Tres and Chase will be in Gainesville, FL at a Florida Gators football game. At this time they are both in college and will be living in different places. We have never made a move without them since they have been born. It is a strange feeling. I know that the Lord has His hands on both of them! He will help all of us with this adjustment.

I would like to end with this...If you need a miracle keep the faith! To every mountain there are two sides!

Alabama A&M Wins Tourney

Chase and his team went to Pine Bluff, Arkansas last week to play in the Arkansas/Pine Bluff Golf Tournament. Alabama A&M came in first place! Go Bulldogs! Marco (Freshman), Chase (Freshman), and Larry (Senior) made the All Tournament Team. We are very proud of Chase and the entire Bulldog Team!

Unfortunately, Chase didn't have any fans to travel to this tournament with him. That means...no pictures! I am so sad about that! We did send the Bulldogs a travel goodie basket.

The team did receive their first place trophy at the actual tournament. Of course, the All Tournament Team trophies had been ordered but did not arrive in time for the tournament. So...at least I will get a picture when he actually receives his trophy.

The Bulldogs will be travleing in the morning (Nov. 9th) to Savannah, GA to play in the Savannah State Golf Tournament. Please pray for them...they are leaving at 3:00 AM.

Jeff Is HOME

Jeff moved to a room in Rehab on Thursday. He was released from the hospital on Saturday afternoon. At the moment he is at the in-laws watching the Alabama game. WOW! God is so good!

The road ahead is still a very long road but with GOD all things are POSSIBLE! He will be going through outpatient rehab. They are working with his balance, speech, memory, etc. I was there on Friday when a couple of his therapist came by. One of the therapist explained things that made alot of since. She said his brain is like file cabinet that has been knocked over. All of the files have been scattered and Jeff has to go and gather up the files and sort through them to figure out all of the information that he needs.

They are going to see a doctor at UAB that specializes in the type of cancer he has. His doctor at Trinity will continue to oversee his care. The doctor at Trinity is also working with a doctor at Duke. They will probably be making a trip to Duke. However, we are still believing that the GREAT PHYSICIAN will minister to Jeff with a complete healing!

Thank you for all of your prayer and contacts. Please continue to pray for the Skinner family!

Jeff Moves Into A Room

Praise the Lord! Jeff is finally moving out of ICU and into a hospital room. Please continue to pray. The Skinner family needs your prayers. Pray for a covering over them. The days ahead are going to be tough but with God all things are possible! We are believing for a complete healing!

Jeff

Here is a quick update on Jeff. PRAY!!!!!!! Jeff has had some ups and downs this week. There was more swelling on the brain again on Friday. They started the medication again that helps to reduce the swelling. It just really wasn't a good day. Today he did seem more alert.

Missy and Megan have really been troopers through this. God has truly been their tower of refuge and strength. Friday seemed to be a tough day on Missy. Today she was much better.

Please continue to pray. We are believing God for a complete healing! God is at work! Praise the Lord!

Happy Anniversary

Today is my 22nd Wedding Anniversary. I love Chuck today more than I ever thought possible. He gave me a card and stated in the card, "you are my best friend". The bracelet he gave me says, "A true friend reaches for your hand and touches your heart". Chuck truly is my best friend. We have been through many things together and our love for each other has grown stronger. I pray we are blessed with many more years to come!

Marriage like life is a great adventure. Take the time to stop and enjoy each moment. Don't take each other for granted. Remember we are not promised tomorrow.

Please Pray

My brother-in-law, Jeff Skinner, has been diagnosed with a Stage 4 malignant glioma brain tumor. They removed the tumor on Monday. He did well through the surgery and actually seemed to be doing good on Monday evening. Around lunch time on Tuesday, his condition seemed to be changing. By Tuesday evening we all knew that something was not right. Most everyone had gone home on Tuesday night just not having a good feeling. We had actually just gotten home and laid down in the bed and were having prayer for Jeff when the phone rang and Chuck's mom asked us to come back to the hospital. I knew deep inside that we should have never left.

We jumped up and headed back to the hospital. We had prayer, read scripture, and listened to praise and worship music all the way there. By the time we had arrived things went from "if this doesn't work, we don't know what else to do", to he is doing much better. The treatment is working. On Wednesday morning the doctor told Missy he could not medically explain the what took place with Jeff. Well all of you believers out there know WHO was at work! Praise be to the Lord God Almighty! Thank you for all of your prayers! Please continue to pray! Jeff is still in need of a miracle from God. We are believing!

"You Dance Over Me While I Am Unaware"

Lately, I have been praying for God’s wisdom, protection, favor, will, direction over my family for a specific area in our lives. My prayers have also included with man things are impossible but with God ALL things are possible. I’ve been praying for a miracle! At least that is what I thought. “How great and mighty is the Lord our God…How great and mighty is He!” He knows exactly what we need when we need it.

On Monday, October 6, 2008, we were all doing our own normal things for the day. I received a strange phone call from Chuck. Please keep in mind he works in the Birmingham area and I work in the Huntsville area. He said, “I’m sick, I don’t know what is going on, here talk to Leigh Anne”. I truly believe that God sent Leigh Anne (Doorknob), Tim Stewart (Frog), and Nicole Pope at His appointed time. Had I have received this phone call from a complete stranger…I don’t think that I could have handled it. Leigh Anne informs me that Chuck has had an accident, a blow-out, he passed out, he is ok, the police and paramedics are here, what hospital do you want them to take him to?

Chuck has a medical condition where his heart rate and blood pressure drop at the same time that causes him to faint. He has had this happen to him four times in the last five years. We are about to celebrate our 22nd year of marriage and you can probably count on both hands how many times he has ever been sick. This condition is brought on by stress and can also be brought on by improper nutrition. (Like when you go on a long fast.) Lately, he has been stressed to the max! I felt immediately that this condition was what caused him to faint without talking to him anymore.
Unfortunately, when he fainted this time he was behind the wheel of his automobile, driving down
I-65, in the left lane. God had His hand of protection, favor, direction, miracles, etc. on Chuck on this day at this very moment. When he fainted, he fell back which thankfully allowed his foot to fall back off of the gas pedal. He veered over into the concrete barrier, and eventually came to a stop. His tire was rubbing constantly on the concrete barrier which caused the tire to blow-out. If you can’t see God in this situation, then you need to look again. Did I mention it was during the lunch hour traffic in Birmingham? Chuck really has no recollection after getting on the interstate at Montgomery Highway until the Oxmor exit. The person behind him did not hit him; he did not hit the person in front of him. Not one other person or vehicle was involved! Praise the Lord! When he regained consciousness, he realized he was in the middle of the interstate with traffic blocked listening to JOX Radio.

He finally made his way to the emergency lane on the right side of the interstate and realized his tire was blown out. Chuck got himself together enough to get off at the exit and pull over. He turned the air conditioner on high to cool off and see if he would feel better. By this time a police officer tapped on his window and asked him if he was ok. Chuck’s reply was, “no, I’m sick”. Then the paramedics arrived and then our friends passed by and thankfully recognized him and stopped. Did I tell you that not one person around him when everything happened stopped and got out of their car to see what was going on? Someone had to of called 911. No matter what I know who was helping Chuck! The one and only true God! Thank you God!

Test where run and Chuck is doing fine. It was his medical condition. He has an appointment with his cardiologist on Wednesday. As he was being released from the hospital, his nurse said, “Your angels have been working over time today. I don’t see how anyone can not believe in God”. How great a God fearing young woman was his nurse. It makes you stop and think about how much worse things could have been. Believe me this had already gone through all of our minds. I praise the Lord for keeping Chuck and everyone around him safe!

I would like to say thank you to someone out there that must have called 911. Many thanks and appreciation to our special friends that God had to of sent so that He could use them to give me the assurance that I would need to know that Chuck was ok. To my prayer sisters and close friends…Thank you for your prayers in my time of need. When fear tried to grip me as the what could have been set in…you prayed through and the peace of the Lord came upon me! To our family, friends, ministers, etc. thank you for being there and your prayers. You each hold a special place in our hearts. To the police officer and the medical people that took care of Chuck thanks! Thanks also to our special friends that took care Chuck's car also. To the Lord God Almighty, THANK YOU!

The song “Amazed” came to my mind. How true it is that God’s love is truly amazing. He truly watches over us when we are unaware! “You dance over me, while I am unaware, and You sing all around, but I never hear the sound, Lord, I’m amazed by You. Lord I’m amazed by You; Lord, I’m amazed by You, How You love me. Lord, I’m amazed by You, Lord I’m amazed by you; Lord I’m amazed by you, How You love me.”

Chase Golf Tourny # 2

Well...This was not such a great tournament for Alabama A&M. They really stunk up the course. They played in the Hall of Fame Black College Invitational Golf Tournament. I think they wound up beating one team. Chase had his best round on the last day of the tournament. I can't even remember what his score was for the practice round. His scores for the tournament were...80 and 77 for a total of 157. Oh well...you win some and lose some. Of course, the "Chase supporters" thought he did well. Grandmother, Chuck, Tres, and I had a great time.

They are hosting an AAMU Alumni Association Golf Tournament this week during their Homecoming. Chase can't play in the tournament because he has to actually work the tournament. Of course he has family and friends going to play in the tournament. That's what a good family and good friends do...they support you in all you do. Like the unconditional love of Jesus. Thanks family & friends for your continuous support!

The next tournament should be sometime in November in Savannah.