An Autism Awareness Thank You

Mark 10:14-15

New International Version (NIV)

¹⁴ When Jesus saw this, he was indignant. He said to them, “Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of God belongs to such as these. ¹⁵ Truly I tell you, anyone who will not receive the kingdom of God like a little child will never enter it.”


As April is Autism Awareness Month, I generally tell about my son and give facts on Autism.  This year I want to start with a HUGE thank you.  Day in and day out my family is touched by others.  Many make our day go better where there are a few that make it harder.

There is our physical family that I know would do anything within their power to help us with Steven.  Even the smallest thing as a like on a video or picture I post of Steven makes me smile big.  They could easily avoid us with the temper tantrums they have seen Steven throw.  But they don't they embrace us and Steven.  From our parents, siblings, nieces, nephews, cousins and more thank you for being there and aware of our life and supporting us in any way you can.

There is our spiritual family past and present  Always there to hug and cry with us and help when they can.  The sincere smiles when Steven would cry when the singing would begin.  The sincere words of "Oh he doesn't bother us, don't take him out."  Even when it would be Steven's idea to leave.  To the endless hellos and hugs Steven forces on them.  The prayers that are said on our behalf when we are at a loss.  Even praying when things are going smooth.  Thank you!

To my Godsipper girls who many have never met him, but love him and pray for him and hug me when I need it.  For understanding when I need to mess with my phone during study to make sure everything is ok at home.  Also when I have to dash when there is a blow up.  Thanks girls.

To the school- what can I say past thank you!  Even though we may not have always seen eye to eye,  I do know you had my son's best interest in mind and you were doing what you felt was best.  Again, thank you!

To our friends that are understanding when they don't hear from us for months on end.  They know we haven't forgotten them, they know that life sometimes gets in the way.  For the kind words and smiles that are genuine, thank you.

To all the workers at the stores that we go to with Steven.  For being so understanding and aware of Steven's needs.  Your patience is so greatly appreciated.  So are your questions of "Where is your son?" when I go to the store without him.  I get a kick out of it, especially when I see and hear some disappointment when it is only me.  Thank you!

To the Facebook friends.  What a wonderful thing Facebook can be!  So many kind words and prayers have come from people that I have never met.  I am glad that we have crossed paths.  My life wouldn't be the same without having known you.  Thank you!

To the strangers we meet when we are out and about.  The majority of the people just laugh and smile when they say hi back to Steven.  Even when it is the 5th time for Steven to greet them.  These make for wonderful days as I know my son is being treated as anyone else.  Then there are those that glare at us or look at him like he is contagious.  To those people I have learned to laugh you off.  Steven doesn't realize you are being rude, so why should I get upset.  Unfortunately those people seem to all be out and the same day.  Fortunately those days don't happen often.   Thank you!

Please remember not all disabilities can be seen.  Give the poor child and adult the benefit of a doubt.  You may think the child is just being a brat and needs spanked, but it might not be the case.  Either way the person doesn't need your snide remarks or condescending looks.  Just smile and say a prayer.  Everyone can always use prayer.

Take care and God Bless
Sherri

I am going to share my favorite video of Steven.

 

Chapter ?

Isaiah 43:18-19 NIV

¹⁸ “Forget the former things;
do not dwell on the past.
¹⁹ See, I am doing a new thing!
Now it springs up; do you not perceive it?
I am making a way in the wilderness
and streams in the wasteland.



I am not sure what chapter of life I am now on.  There have been to many to keep track of and I don't know that I want to keep track of them all.  Starting soon, Bryan and I will no longer be transporting Steven to and from school.  We have hit the wall again with him and know it will just continue to be a circle of behaviors.   So, Bryan will definitely be looking for a new job here soon.  I am going to wait and see how things go with the district driving him before I go looking.  If it doesn't work, the boy will be kept home.  So, I will either go back to work or be looking for activities for Steven.  He has this week off from school and I am going to try to do some things with him.  I guess with all the snow they got over around St. Louis it is good he was already off.  Bryan and I have both been fighting not feeling well and Steven has too.  I think we are most of the way over it all, allergies have been rough this season.  We had a good time at church today and Steven was excited to see everyone.  Of course, we did sell our camper today.  We told Steven they were taking it to fix it.  We should be getting our other one this week and then maybe he will be happy. 



Blessings-
church
sold the camper

Take care and God bless,
Sherri

I told Steven today that he was ornery today and he said on er y.  All I could think of was "not to be confused with Henry.".  So here is the video of the song that has been going through my head all day.

Thank you God

Galatians 6:1-5

Brothers and sisters, if someone is caught in a sin, you who live by the Spirit should restore that person gently. But watch yourselves, or you also may be tempted. ² Carry each other’s burdens, and in this way you will fulfill the law of Christ. ³ If anyone thinks they are something when they are not, they deceive themselves. ⁴ Each one should test their own actions. Then they can take pride in themselves alone, without comparing themselves to someone else, ⁵ for each one should carry their own load.



The past few days have been eventful at the Gibson household.  Steven has had major meltdowns on the way to school on Mon and Tues.  We are looking at different possibilities to try and remedy the situation and especially figure out what is going on in his mind.  Please keep the whole situation in prayer.  We are once again faced with jumping into the future with no insight on what God has in store for us.  Yesterday and today, Steven has been home.  He woke up on Wednesday about 1:30 am and couldn't really fall back asleep.  I found out why about 4:00 am.  The boy got sick again.  He didn't eat much and mainly layed around whining.  Today was better and we did take him to the doctor.  The best we can figure out is allergies and drainage.  Without Steven being able to answer questions, we have to mainly guess.  Bryan and I are working on preparing for so many possiblities.  It is hard, but life has never promised an easy ride. 

Which is where we come to the title.  Thank you God for the blessing of people you have put in our lives.  It is so wonderful to turn to our families.  Both physical and spiritual and know they have our backs.  The school has been talking to us about a possible avenue to travel with Steven.  We have people at our church and at Godsippers that know about these things and have traveled the path before us.  I thank God for giving us the blessing of having them in our life.  It is important to know you have people to talk to that you trust and will talk to you straight.  Not that I don't trust the school, but having the others tell me helps me know if it is a good route for Steven. 

I know we have things that are coming up in our lives that we really can't prepare for, but we have those to help share our burdens.  I can't thank God enough for binging them to our life to help take care of us.

Blessings-
Denise F
Godsippers
Steven not having an ear infection

Take care and God bless,
Sherri

My son has been lining up and organizing things more and more again lately.

To each their own

Romans 14 NIV

The Weak and the Strong

14 Accept the one whose faith is weak, without quarreling over disputable matters. ² One person’s faith allows them to eat anything, but another, whose faith is weak, eats only vegetables. ³ The one who eats everything must not treat with contempt the one who does not, and the one who does not eat everything must not judge the one who does, for God has accepted them. ⁴ Who are you to judge someone else’s servant? To their own master, servants stand or fall. And they will stand, for the Lord is able to make them stand.

⁵ One person considers one day more sacred than another; another considers every day alike. Each of them should be fully convinced in their own mind. ⁶ Whoever regards one day as special does so to the Lord. Whoever eats meat does so to the Lord, for they give thanks to God; and whoever abstains does so to the Lord and gives thanks to God. ⁷ For none of us lives for ourselves alone, and none of us dies for ourselves alone. ⁸ If we live, we live for the Lord; and if we die, we die for the Lord. So, whether we live or die, we belong to the Lord. ⁹ For this very reason, Christ died and returned to life so that he might be the Lord of both the dead and the living.

¹⁰ You, then, why do you judge your brother or sister? Or why do you treat them with contempt? For we will all stand before God’s judgment seat. ¹¹ It is written:

“‘As surely as I live,’ says the Lord,
‘every knee will bow before me;
every tongue will acknowledge God.’”

¹² So then, each of us will give an account of ourselves to God.

¹³ Therefore let us stop passing judgment on one another. Instead, make up your mind not to put any stumbling block or obstacle in the way of a brother or sister. ¹⁴ I am convinced, being fully persuaded in the Lord Jesus, that nothing is unclean in itself. But if anyone regards something as unclean, then for that person it is unclean. ¹⁵ If your brother or sister is distressed because of what you eat, you are no longer acting in love. Do not by your eating destroy someone for whom Christ died. ¹⁶ Therefore do not let what you know is good be spoken of as evil. ¹⁷ For the kingdom of God is not a matter of eating and drinking, but of righteousness, peace and joy in the Holy Spirit, ¹⁸ because anyone who serves Christ in this way is pleasing to God and receives human approval.

¹⁹ Let us therefore make every effort to do what leads to peace and to mutual edification. ²⁰ Do not destroy the work of God for the sake of food. All food is clean, but it is wrong for a person to eat anything that causes someone else to stumble. ²¹ It is better not to eat meat or drink wine or to do anything else that will cause your brother or sister to fall.

²² So whatever you believe about these things keep between yourself and God. Blessed is the one who does not condemn himself by what he approves. ²³ But whoever has doubts is condemned if they eat, because their eating is not from faith; and everything that does not come from faith is sin.


This verse goes through my head so much.  This basically says that if the Bible doesn't say it is bad to do this or that, get over it.  If it is not black and white in the Bible, you need to not judge over it.  I am trying so hard to teach my kids at Sunday School, that it doesn't matter the denomination you are.  It doesn't make you a good Christian or a bad Christian.  There are probably very few people that could fit 100% into a certain denomination without any contradiction.  There is NO denomination I fully agree with 100%.  You have to look at the person and their personal beliefs, not the overall beliefs of the church they attend. 

Please don't think I am saying that you can go through life believing what you want.  You have to go by the Bible in order to go to heaven.  I am talking about the things people quarrel over and men have made rules over because the Bible doesn't address the issue.  I don't think any man should make rules for us to live by that aren't in the Bible.  If you can think of one, let me know.  I am sure I am going to offend some people and I am sorry, but by now you should know I speak my mind. 

I guess Galatians 5 is a good place to go to get an overall picture of how to live a godly life.  My kids at Sunday school were asking when we were going to go over the Fruits of the Spirit again.  They know it is important to keep reminding themselves of the good things to focus on.  They were also discussing ways to raise money for the church.  I love the way they think.  They are independent thinkers for sure. 

On the way of personal life, Steven is being about 20 handfuls.  He is going up and down with behaviors.  It is getting worse on the way to school again and I ask that you keep our morning trip in prayer.  Thankfully, God talked me into spending more on a computer than usual the last time.  This one has been thrown so many times and is holding up like a champ.  Bryan is exhausted with his allergies.  I am doing so-so and am looking forward to my time with the trainer tomorrow. 

Blessings-
Good computer
Loving family
great friends

Take care and God bless
Sherri

 I know some people who read this blog like Duck Dynasty and some don't. But I couldn't resist putting this on after being involved in a conversation about the show tonight. I don't like the show much, but Bryan showed me this and it is funny.  Also, it is nice to know you don't have to bleep out every other word to have a popular show.

Conclusion

30 Days of Dealing Living: Conclusion

1 John 5:14-15

¹⁴ This is the confidence we have in approaching God: that if we ask anything according to his will, he hears us. ¹⁵ And if we know that he hears us—whatever we ask—we know that we have what we asked of him.


I am so glad that God answers prayers.  I have felt that so much in the past 30 days.  I have such a different outlook on life it is amazing.  Small prayers and large prayers alike.  Of course, you have to pay attention to the according to his will.  It may not be his will to give us what we ask for, but that is what we have to live with.  You know as in the old tv show, Father Knows Best.  God does know best.  It also may take longer than we want for the answer also, but we will live on.  I have been blown away by where God has lead me in the past 30 days.  I have touched lives I never would have imagined.  It is a blessing to have access to the internet.  These are the stats of people that have viewed my blog in the last month.

United States	892
Germany	15
United Kingdom	5
Ukraine	5
Sweden	2
Czech Republic	1
Kazakhstan	1
Portugal	1
Venezuela	1

It blows my mind that I have people from different countries reading my blog.  I thank God for the opportunity and pray that I have touch them in a good way.   I will continue to do blogs 2-3 times a week to keep up with my life and helping me stay focused.

Steven had a so so day.  This afternoon was a wild ride.  He was so would he literally couldn't calm down.  He eventually did and fell asleep at a decent time.  Did pretty good with my diet.  I did buy puppy chow at Casey's and didn't eat the whole container.  Before that would be gone in 20 minutes.  I had a good session with the trainer and was exhausted at the end.  I will be working with him next Monday, Wednesday and Friday.  I am really looking forward to being challenged to push myself. 

Blessings-
Good workout
Steven fell asleep easy
Godsippers

Take care and God bless,
Sherri



The view of God's beauty

Day 30

30 Days of Dealing Living: Day 30

1 Corinthians 6:19-20

¹⁹ Do you not know that your bodies are temples of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God? You are not your own; ²⁰ you were bought at a price. Therefore honor God with your bodies.


Well today was a better day for Steven.  He was pretty happy all the way over until we pulled up to the door.  He walked all the way to his classroom door and then flopped and wouldn't go in.  So close, yet so far away.  We had a pretty good night except for the last 10 minutes before he went to sleep.  He decided he was going to hit and kick me.  Not overly bad even on that though.  I went to the gym today and when I was done, I talked to a trainer.  I am going to do some sessions and see where it goes.  I don't know how much I can afford past the initial 4 sessions, but it will happen if it is supposed too.  I have to get my self in shape and take better care of myself.  I thought about coloring my hair with my b'day money, then I thought about pre ordering Los Lonely Boys tickets for a concert in June.  Then I decided on the trainer.  (Honestly I might have settled on the tickets, if I knew for sure what June held.)  Bryan and I both did good on eating today and stayed out of the snacks.  I am feeling pretty good, but would really like to crash, but I do have housework to do.  I think I will go do some things and watch/listen to the Big Bang Theory.  I love that show.  It is so funny.  This is my last day of the 30, but it will not be the last day of my journey.  I am going to summerize the 30 days tomorrow with some things it has contained that I don't think I have shared. 

Blessings-
Steven was better
pretty sunny day

Take care and God Bless,
Sherri

Day 29

30 Days of Dealing Living: Day 29

Romans 8:15

¹⁵ The Spirit you received does not make you slaves, so that you live in fear again; rather, the Spirit you received brought about your adoption to sonship. And by him we cry, “Abba, Father.”



Well, today was not a good day on the way to school.  Actually it started before we left home.  It has been a while since he has hit and kicked about going to school, but it came back today.  Which was weird because it was YMCA day and usually it is a better morning.  So much for understanding my son at all.  Diet hasn't been the best today.  I am proud of myself though.  Girl Scout cookies came in on Saturday and I still have half of them left.  Before, they would be gone in 24 hours.  Had a Blimpie wrap for lunch and a good supper, so hopefully it all evens out. We did make it to the gym today and I tried the elliptical machine today and it all but killed me.  I could only do about 4 minutes on it before my knees were ready to jump off of my body and kill me.  I spent the rest of the time on the treadmill with a 0 incline.  Tonight went pretty good at home, Steven didn't want to go to sleep.  I think he was trying to make up for the time he lost his computer on the way home.  Which comes to the fact I forgot to tell you he threw his computer while pulling up to the school.  So he didn't get to play his new Mickey Mouse game on the way home.  Which he didn't like and we heard about it most of the way home. 

Blessings-
ICA, they are so supportive and good to my boy

Take care and God bless
Sherri

I must remember to be happy happy