From the desk of Steve Shultz:
I seriously don't know what I would have done without Cathy and her husband Dennis. I had never heard this story before. That says it all. We serve a God of Miracles.
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Cathy Shepard-Wilhelm:
Serving the God of Miracles
Today there were a few emails going back and forth between Steve Shultz (my boss and founder of the Elijah List and Breaking Christian News) and a few of Steve's friends. I was reminded of something that happened to my husband Dennis (Director of Operations for the Elijah List and Breaking Christian News) and me many years ago after we moved to Oregon in 1988. Steve has asked me to share this story with our readers. When the boss asks for something, I try to comply!
This is a story of being thankful and also just one instance when the Lord saved my life and the life of my husband. I would guess that most Christians are thankful. Even when we don't verbalize our thanks to the Lord, most of us are aware of the fact that we would not even have one breath to breathe if it wasn't for Jesus and what He did for all of us on the Cross. I would not be here on this earth to enjoy my life with Dennis (who is my very best friend) and with my awesome son, if it were not for Jesus Christ and the many times He has saved my life.
God's Miraculous Protection
Shortly after Dennis and I moved to Oregon we were driving on a curvy country road between Sweet Home and Lebanon. Dennis was driving. We looked up as we came around a corner and there was a huge truck right in front of us, coming straight toward us in our lane. There was no time to do anything and nowhere to go. The truck was only a couple of yards in front of us and both vehicles were traveling about 40 MPH. I screamed, "JESUS!!!!!"
That truck did not hit us, we looked behind us and the truck was behind us. It just disappeared before our eyes and reappeared behind us and continued to drive on. Of course we were so thankful, a bit in shock and forever changed. Over and over we said, "What just happened? Thank You Jesus!" A miracle is what had happened! The Lord totally saved us that day and I am convinced He has saved us countless times since that day.
I know the Lord steps in to "save" us more times than we could count or remember, because He can, and because He loves us. He just doesn't allow us to see or know it every time. Does He protect us from everything we choose to do even when we do something we know is not very smart, but we do it anyway? Nope, I don't think so.
Today I was in my backyard enjoying the beautiful fall sunshine and throwing a ball for my two German Shepherds to chase. One time the ball landed in a brushy area that I know has a bees nest and I could clearly see at least 30 bees flying around the area where the ball landed. I got myself a long pole and went for it anyway thinking I would be fine, those bees will leave me alone. Not too smart, right? Right! After about 15 seconds of thrashing around with that pole, those bees were after me and I was stung 3 times and it hurt.
Could the Lord have stopped that? I am sure He could have, BUT I truly learned something very quickly and I think it was for my own good that I got stung. I had a check that I should not do it and I did it anyway and common sense would be to not do it! I know that sounds like a silly story and maybe some of you are wondering why I would take the time to tell it... well I think the Lord does allow us to walk through things that will help us to learn something, so that in the future we will make a better choice when it might be very dangerous. Who knows, we might even have a testimony that could make a difference in another's life.
A Thankful Heart
I have so much to be thankful for. I have a kind and generous husband, awesome son, wonderful family, faithful friends, hard working colleagues and a kind employer. The list goes on and on.
Do I have challenges? Yes, many of them. Just this year there have been numerous health issues that have attacked my immediate family and it has not been fun to say the least. Am I thankful? Yes. It could be so much worse.
I don't think the Lord wants us to dwell on the past or the bad things that have happened to us. He wants us to move on and let those things that the enemy meant for harm to be worked for good to those of us that love the Lord. I could write pages and pages of things for which I am thankful. I find when I am going through a rough time, it is good for me to start thanking the Lord out loud.
I thank Him and I praise Jesus for what He has and is doing for me and my family. My perspective quickly changes and I get the focus off of me and what I am going through and I continue to praise, and that leads me to pray for others. Almost daily, Dennis and I pray together before he leaves the house and at night the three of us pray together before we go to bed. When we travel together in the car we pray together and always find many things to be thankful for.
If you are in a tough situation know this: Jesus loves you. He died for you. He will be there for you. You can go to Him anytime as many times as you want to or need to. No appointment necessary. Don't listen to a lie that the Lord doesn't care about your situation, because He does. We all have things we can be thankful for. I would encourage you and your family to actively thank the Lord each day for all that He does for you and you will find yourself laughing and smiling more often. I know it works that way in our home.
Here are a few Scriptures to start with: Psalm 100:4, Isaiah 40:31, Philippians 4:8, 1 Thessalonians 5:18.
Thankful and praising our precious Lord,
Cathy Shepard-Wilhelm
The Elijah List
Contact:
cswilhelm@elijahlist.net
Cathy Shepard-Wilhelm has worked for the Elijah List for more than 7 years. She has been married to Dennis for nearly 24 years and together they have an awesome son. They all serve at their local church in Albany where they have attended for more than 15 years.
