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How I've Grown!!!
by Peggy McIlveene
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Click thumbnails for larger images. The second photo was taken in February 2007.
The Lord has sure grown me up during the past years, especially 2006-2008! Here are some of the ways:
In 2006, I quit smoking, and have never had so much as a single puff since then. I also talked many of my friends into quitting, as well as my daughter! And I feel GREAT now!
For 27 years, since I was 27 years old, I didn't drive. When I was 27, my daughter (now 35) was 7, my son (now 28) was 3 months old. I had just turned the corner from my Mom's street, when I drove through some loose gravel, lost control of the car, when into a 6' ditch, came out of the ditch, went spinning across a busy street during rush hour traffic, and saw the car was going to hit a hug oak tree in the 6' ditch across the street. Shelly didn't have her seatbelt on yet, and Chris was in a carrier. I let go of the steering wheel, lay down over the carrier, and tried to reach Shelly. Where I had moved from the seat, the steering wheel met the seat; I would have been crushed. Chris had a few superficial cuts on his forehead from the windshield shattering, and Shelly had a bruise on her arm. My head went about 8" into the windshield, left my hairs hanging from it, but never blacked out, no cuts, no concussion, nothing. It scared me so badly, though, that I refused to drive again. Then when Richard had his third open-heart surgery in December 2006, his surgeon said that if he got into an accident, it would kill him. That was it! I told Father Yahweh, "That's enough of my nonsense; please remove my fears of driving. I had to drive him twice all the way to Houston, rain, ice, whatever! Then when I went back to work, I began driving myself to/from... 100 miles/day, 3 hours/day... from nothing to 100 miles/day! Sheeesh! :) Even after I totaled my Neon last June, I still got right back into my new car, and kept driving.
Richard began hurting again, and it was back into the hospital for him! This time, since I now drove, I could leave work, stop by the hospital to see him, stop by the grocery store, go home and feed the dogs, etc. When I thought his heart was hurting him again, I was terrified! Almost every year in the 12 years we've been together, he was back in the hospital with heart problems, bypass surgeries, and on and on and on. Richard is my very best friend on earth, and this always terrified me! Besides, I was sure that Father Yahweh had healed his heart after his last surgery, now here he was hurting again! So I fell to my knees, cried out to the Lord, apologized for my lack of faith, and started the very first fast I'd ever been on! Richard said I didn't have to do without food, just to decide between me and the Lord what I was going to fast from, for how long, and tell Him why I was fasting. So I merely cut out meats and sweets, except for lunch time, then it was back to no meat, no sweets until lunch the next day. I did this until Richard came home from the hospital. Well, it turns out it wasn't his heart... it was gastro problems. His doctor gave him medications for it, and he is doing MUCH better!
Earlier this year, my doctor insisted that I take a physical... full blood workup, pap smear, mammogram, x-rays, the whole 9 yards! I had to drive almost an hour each trip for these tests, and I am petrified of needles! Scared? Maybe a little, because I'm used to Richard going everywhere with me. But he was working, so I had to make all the trips by myself. Not to mention, I'd never had a mammogram in my life, and all the women I know said it hurt like the devil! Well, it didn't hurt a bit! I also hadn't had a pap smear in about 20 years. Everything turned out well, but I was so happy I was able to do it all by myself! :)
I also grew up spiritually, and began to truly live totally for Him! My mode of dress changed, my morals changed, my whole life changed (Richard's too!). We are very, very happy now, because if He is happy with you, you can count of MANY blessings from Him!