Prayer for forgivenness = Healing?!

We are all praying for you.

Consider me your prayer warrior today, my day is saturated in it at the Rescue Mission Ministries we start every meeting checking in with God and reviewing prayer requests. Today is YOUR day because you just happened here, and your name will come to mind often in those prayer warriors who love you.

My own lil pondering for the week - lingering from a Sunday school study...

The book of Matt. has the story of Jesus forgiving a man of his sins,

and follows with, "in order that you may know that the son of man has

the POWER to forgive sins, I tell you, take up your pallet and walk."

The thought occurred to me that those who repent, and approach God for the first time with a humble heart, may have a greater need to know they are forgiven. Perhaps they have God's ear, and as He as wants them to know he has the

power to forgive, to demonstrate that He HEALS...

Does this mean that those in despair over their greatest sins would be in a position to have their prayers for HEALING granted?

Experiamental prayer study...Go out and find a repentant

sinner....and ask them to pray for anyone you know that is suffering

illness! and let me know what happens!

Watching for miracles....Kyle

A note to my nephew a junior at VMI who has been restricted to baracks.

The dog is staring at me and it is disconcerting - he does not have your typical "I adore you" puppy dog stare. When Tank takes notice of me, it means he is going to demand somethng. It's time for a walk, My water bowl is empty, my bone is stuck under the dresser or my least favorite It is time to go to the den It's bedtime !!! He paws, claws and gives impatient growls that escalate into sharp barks and is successfully teaching me to understand dogspeak! For all those who embarrass their pet by humanizing them with clothes and baby talk, mark one up for the canine, I have been puppyfied. I was going to write a long letter, but this bully here wants the light out. Just thought you'd like to know you are not the only one being confined to quarters!

Keep your spirits up! That little bible promise book that I showed you was telling Mr. Jackson, $ ;D

He will send help from heaven to rescue me, disgracing those who hound me (Psalm 57:3

Can you believe I randomly opened the book to that verse?? Really! Page 28 Are you sure this stuff doesn't happen to anybody else? Love you Aunt Kyle

My nephew (here) accuses me of being the "Oracle" because I am aware of "coincidences" and make more of them than I should. In short, an example would be riding in a van from the airport in San Diego, CA and surprisingly find that another passenger on the van was someone I had drawn in Wytheville, Virginia, in an alpaca barn. Another was being in the right place, at the right time to rescue a terrified small dog on the run. A chance meeting that turns into an answered prayer...you know small world stuff...most of it has no significance, some is just weird, but occasionally I wonder if these happen as it were, by divine appointment.

I created a brochure comp and needed a generic photo of a guy to fill in for what will be my clients portrait, at first I used a photo of my husband, but then decided I needed to find a picture of someone that was in a business suit (he never wears suits in pictures), so I jumped onto the millions of google images and found the perfect shot for a temporary fill in...Less than 24 hours later while picking up my local newspapers off the couch - I saw an ad for a local retirement community, and there staring at me was the same man...different picture casually dressed..

Most likely a model who was a major player in stock photography, which would increase the chances of that happening... nothing deep, no spiritual lesson, just a "coincidence". My nephew claims I have more of these "coincidences" than other people. I think that they do happen to everyone else, they are just smart enough to keep their mouth shut to avoid being taken for a nut! I kind of enjoy the curiosity and amusement of the moment and don't take it seriously - most of the time...

When the house directly across the street, identical in layout, came up for sale just when my sister needed a place for herself and three small children after a sad divorce, I mused that God had just made it possible for me to be closer to my niece and nephews - and over the next three years I was able to share with them many everyday moments, reading before bedtime, the first big snow, car washes....

Then Kim was tragically was killed in an auto accident, it suddenly seemed as if the fall had been cushioned by our proximity to each other... it made the transition easier for the kids as they could still come home to my house after school, until their Dad picked them up after work. Just a coincidence, her living next door, but it seemed to have God's purpose written all over it. Perhaps it was a God incident...

It is comforting to believe, the alternative would be to believe in randomness, which has no personality, or intent, and certainly isn't a Someone to share and anticipate an abundant and curiously coincidental life with.

Peter Pencil was looking over my shoulder...

July 4 was a big day for me with a gig at Poplar Jefferson Forest: http://www.poplarforest.org/ Did you know Thomas Jefferson died on July 4?

Born: April 13, 1743; Died: July 04, 1826

If you haven't pondered what our heritage has blessed us with recently, plan that trip to walk the acres, and view the panoramic vistas that Thomas Jefferson's own eyes looked on.

While I do not consider myself to be in step with our current presidents' aspirations (or angst) of "what will my legacy be" learning about history makes me wonder if what I produce will have an impact on people after I'm gone. I was honored to be able to draw under a shade tree, not just as entertainment, but to have it relevant the historical and educational mission of Poplar Forest. To justify the the budget item of having an artist draw big heads with little bodies of the guests, it was only right to have a historical reason connected to Thomas Jefferson. And happy surprise! I have Peter Pencil (or Pencill, depending on which cartoon you are looking at) and Cruikshank to thank for this. They left their marks, literally, on history by having a negative opinion about Jefferson ie: the embargo against Britain imposed during his presidency. There are only 5 Cartoons/caricatures that we know of - the first pokes of the satirical illustrators pen at an american president. I'm grateful for their opinions. They ensured that there would be an invitation for this humble Virginia caricature artist to be part of the celebration - 200 years later - on a picture perfect day on July 4, 2009 at Jefferson Poplar Forest. The minutemen fifed, drummed and marched. I drew - Big heads, little bodies and had a job. Thank You Peter Pencil, (and Diane Kinney! )

An EARLY CARTOON, 1980's probably my first...

Dear Kyle,

Interesting feedback. If you happen to run across anyone, or can search for someone that worked on the North Hills Horne's Department Store project at Flannery and Associates around 1964, they may solve the mystery for us.

Love,

Dad

Anytime my Dad writes, he is the "soul of brevity". I would not know where to search out the information he has listed here, so I throw it impulsively out to this blog and on facebook to see what happens... he is responding to my last post about birds...

On another topic...I found some caricatures I had done in 1992 and some cartoons in 1986, the first, I did for my mom for when she was head floor nurse and needed to put some "gentle reminders" up of some procedures that were not being followed. Perhaps 18 years from now (Ha, God willing) I will look back on my work now and say...that was awful but I am so much better now... I have a dozen of these that I did and looking back on them now, they were fun. I just wish Mom were here to share it with her.

Is it live or is it memorex?

There are birds, and there are birds.

In my last post, it seems I overlooked posting the obvious - a picture of my alleged "Alexander Calder" Birds. Even Jazz was looking at me askew with a "HELLOOO? mcFLY anybody home?"

Jazz is a humble bird, and like my Dad she has no aspirations of glory aside from performing for her next peanut - yes, inside joke here.* She will not mind being upstaged by her brass buddies should they, in fact have (by the world's standard) a more illustrious lineage. She is proud of her Creator, who has endowed her with inalienable rights, Life, pseudo liberty and the pursuit of any attention she can get at home - her greatest happiness.

My Father's Birds...and Alexander Calder.

I love my Dad. Before he retired, he was an Industrial Designer who received his degree from Syracuse University and worked all his life designing "things". As a child, I was vaguely aware of his projects, some of which he simply supervised, others he designed - interior design exhibits, hairdryers, rakes, tape measures, and noteably, the Disston cordless electric grass shear was his invention and a project which earned the company millions and netted him little or no recognition and no additional compensation.

But that was o.k. with my Dad, he hates attention, or glory, much to my mother's irritation, who, when he owned his own company gave him a plaque with "James E. Edgell, PRESIDENT" and insisted he put it on his door. After she passed away 4 years ago, he proceeded in short order to divest himself of everything he owned except for the barest of essentials, the clothes on his back and one avacado green Disston Cordless grass shear, which his new wife insisted on framing with a plaque reading " 22 million units sold" or some such thing. He lives simply, unencumbered by the desire for "stuff".

One of the his early projects in the 60's was especially memorable in my mind because Dad brought the "prototypes" home. Three beautiful bird-like sculptures in perfectly proportioned sizes, a small one in tin, the other two in brass. I don't know what happened to the tin one, but the lovely shining brass forms hung in our homes in Pennsylvania, Virginia, then Mississippi, and finally, when my mother died, they were one of the few possessions Dad kept until he remarried and they were almost tossed until I rescued them. I asked their origin - I was stunned, I knew this artist. I had studied him thoroughly in 3 separate tedious art history classes - didn't he KNOW what he had?! I bugged the heck out of Dad to write it down for me, to help me authenticate the bird's history, (and because my feeble mind could not remember the details) He finally dashed off a note to get me off his back. They have been in my basement for almost 16 months, and I'm finally getting around to hanging them in a place of honor.

I keep meaning to chase it down, to find out if they really are the prototypes for a mobile that hung in Hornes Department store in the early 60's. To see if they have value. I could really use the money. But their clean lines, and elegant beauty and simplicity remind me of my Dad, and his values. It's curious, the longer they hang in my home, the less I care about the "money" I might be able to get - even if they really ARE Alexander Calder's work and anyone on e-bay is interested. Dad would be proud of this current frame of mind... but sigh, I am my mother's child, however much I strive to be my Father's daughter...