Thanks for asking.  We are fine, now that we have had a chance to dry out.  A very frightening ordeal.  We had floods going on in many places locally.  We almost lost our cabins on the river, water came within 6 inches of the floor beams.  It was the rapid rising water that takes everything with it.  My family was down there moving furniture out and up the hill.  Also during this flood was the Walnut Valley Festival, a huge Bluegrass Festival that draws international flatpick championships and is an annual event for acoustic musicians  (www.wvfest.com).  Campers from all over the USA had to be evacuated from Winfield, KS within hours.  I couldn't get there to move mine becuase I was flooded in here, and thankfully local farmers swarmed in with tractors to get almost everyone out (normally 12,000 campers are set up for that festival, so it was no small ordeal).  Winfield is a small town, so they handled the crisis with amazing skill.  This was a year that festival goers will never forget.  Although displaced like refugees, they made the best of it.  Thanks for the prayers!  It is what kept us "afloat"! 

 

I truly think it is time to pray against fear.  These are truly scary times.  I know as the remnant and children of Mary, we are to be confident under her mantle.  But it seems we are in the birthpangs now, and there are natural disasters, and other calamities endangering all of us.  I especially get worried because I have 3 children to protect alone (I am raising them solo, because of their father's alcoholism), and I am an old mother (I am 49, my boys are 9, 7 and 6; pretty challenging for a woman my age).  I know that especially the prayer warriors tend to get it between the eyes, that doesn't bother me, as I accept this as part of my call, but It seems we have been battered down from every side to the point that we need some special grace to sustain our strength.  Perhaps it is my own weak faith, I dunno, but I try my best and know many other prayer warriors who are seeking this "extra mysterious strength" that we know is there, we just need to know how to feel more confident in it.  If you have any suggestions on inspiration in this area I would greatly appreciate it.  I will pass it along to the prayer warriors that I host on the e-list.

 

I would also look forward to an article/link about annulments.  Even though I was married in the church, I cannot see how God could have deemed this situation as valid.  I know there is alot of controversy on what the church deems as valid annulments.  I have prayed and suffered much for his soul, but unfortunately I see no hope.  I noticed you do not have any references or links regarding this.  Mr Brown, addictions are one of the enemy's hugest arsenals against families and marriage, because it takes out not just the addict, but creates damage and disorder to a huge circle of people, for generations.  This is a spiritual disease that we need to learn how to battle.  A parish priest told me recently he wants to learn everything he can about alcoholism and pornography because they are the two biggest destroyers of marriage and family that exist.  And the reason the enemy has his stronghold on humanity now is because of the damage he started in the nucleus, the marriage and family.   I surf your site almost every day - thanks again for all your inspiration and updates!!  Strange days we live in....God Bless!!

Julie Buresh
Children of the Tears
http://www.childrenofthetears.blogspot.com/