This one happened to me while I was in the Royal Carribean crusing in Europe. Every time the ship stops in a country or island we book an excursion thru the RC in order to get to know the history and visit important sites. One of the stops was in Kusadasi, Turkey and Ephesus. The tour consisted of a visit to the ancient city Ephesus, to the town of Kusadasi, and to the hosue where Virgin Mary spent the rest of her life after Jesus died. Like every tourist, we stood in line, the night before, in order to book the excursion. When it got to our turn the excursion was fully booked but there were other tours offered, but all of them did not include a visit to Virgin Mary's house. I told my husband that there was no way I would go if the itinirary did not include the house. My husband insisted to pick any tour but I did not want to. I was so upset, for this visit was the first on my list and I could not do it. I honestly was very upset and my husband kept begging me to take something else but I kept refusing. So I left the front desk line feeling disappointed and sad. We went to our dinner and decided to go along the Promenade for a walk. As we were passing by the front desk I decided to go back and check again hoping for a miracle. While I stood in line again, I noticed my friend talking to a young couple who were conversing with her in Arabic. When we got close to them, she introduced them to me and we started chatting. And what do you think HAPPENED? They were explaining to me their situation: the newly wed couple had received some bad news, the groom's brother died from a car accident and they were trying to return their tickets because they needed to get off the ship the next day when they arrive to Turkey. I really felt sorry for their loss and we talked for quite a while. He was asking the guy at the front desk to refund his tickets and before he gave them back to him, I asked him if I could see his tickets and I found out that their tour included the visit to St Mary's house. I could not believe my eyes. So I asked him if he could give them to me (both tickets for my husband and I) instead. He spoke with the attendant and he agreed to do that. I could not believe my luck...2 tickets, not just one, and to the famous house. I thanked them both for their ticket and I paid my respect to them before we left to go back to our rooms. I was all smiles and laughter...I finally was able to go tomorrow to Ephesus. I told my husband and my friend how God again made it happen for He knew how much it meant to me to go there. And I did go there the next day and I felt all kinds of emotions and feelings that swept over me when I found myself inside her tiny home which did not measure more than 7x7' but there was another tiny room where they have put a shirne in her honor. I touched the walls and I felt such a deep sensation, it was so strange that I started to cry and I noticed few women around me crying and feeling the same way. It was an amazing experience and a memorable one.
God surely wanted me to be there and HE MADE IT HAPPEN! Glory to God!
Tuesday, August 9, 2011
Have you felt or seen God's hand in your life?
Here I am writing again to share an amazing story with you. As a matter of fact there are 2 stories that happened to me while I was on vacation in June of this year. I will start with the first event and then will write a separate blog for the 2nd one.
It started when we booked our flights to Rome using economy seats. I know very well, that long rides or long flights can cause discomfort to my legs. Yes, major discomfort because I suffer from RLS (Restless Leg Syndrome), but I have no choice but to tolerate this long flight knowing for fact that it would be impossible for me to sleep on my seat with my legs getting stiff and numb all the time. So, before my journey began, I started to whine about it and getting anxious by the day. Lo and behold, the day of my flight arrives and I decided to leave it to God to help me get thru it. My husband surprised me the night before by telling me that he managed, due to his platinum membership with Continental, to get us front seats by the wall. I felt a bit relieved because I would be able to stretch my legs but that does not mean that I will be able to spend the night sleeping while my legs would suffer.
So, as soon as we settled in our seats, I realized that the seat next to me was empty although my husband told me that there were no empty seats on the plane even the one next to me was supposed to be occupied. But IT WAS EMPTY (GOD'S INTERVENTION). While I was adjusting my books, I noticed a familiar face on the plane 2 rows behind to my left. It turned out to be my cousin's fiancee who happened to be going to Rome upon my cousin's request to be there with him while his father (my aunt's husband) was slipping away. I did not know how bad he was until Mizar, the fiancee, explained to me the situation and she told me that we will be seeing my cousin at the airport who was coming to pick her up and drive her straight to the hospital. When we all buckled up and ready to take off, I turned to Mizar and noticed that there were 2 empty seats next to her...I could not believe my eyes for she also told me that she was informed by the hostess and the lady at the check-in desk that the seats next to her were taken. GOD'S INTERVENTION AGAIN. She was very surprised to find herself sitting alone. I explained to her about my legs situation and she told me that she had no problem taking my seat or the empty one next to me and I, in exchange, can use the 3 seats and lie down and stretch my legs...I could not believe my eyes, for her seats were the only empty ones and God has sent me a friend with whom I could exchange seats for if it had been some other stranger I wouldn't have been able to do it. I looked all around and noticed that there was not one empty seat except the one next to me and Mizar's. BELIEVE ME WHEN I SAY THAT THE SEAT NEXT TO ME AND NEXT TO MIZAR'S WERE THE ONLY ONE EMPTY AND yet we were told that it was a compltely fully booked plane...I began to laugh but at the same time tears were coming down my face. I could not describe to you what a feeling I had that moment knowing that God, knew my anxious thoughts and worry ahead of time and He made sure to coincide Mizar's trip with mine so that I get to lie down and stretch my legs. GLORY TO GOD! I told the story to my husband, but he said "yeah yeah". But that did not stop me from telling everyone my story and what God has done for me in order to be comfortable. Cast all your worries to Him and He will give you rest. Amen!
It started when we booked our flights to Rome using economy seats. I know very well, that long rides or long flights can cause discomfort to my legs. Yes, major discomfort because I suffer from RLS (Restless Leg Syndrome), but I have no choice but to tolerate this long flight knowing for fact that it would be impossible for me to sleep on my seat with my legs getting stiff and numb all the time. So, before my journey began, I started to whine about it and getting anxious by the day. Lo and behold, the day of my flight arrives and I decided to leave it to God to help me get thru it. My husband surprised me the night before by telling me that he managed, due to his platinum membership with Continental, to get us front seats by the wall. I felt a bit relieved because I would be able to stretch my legs but that does not mean that I will be able to spend the night sleeping while my legs would suffer.
So, as soon as we settled in our seats, I realized that the seat next to me was empty although my husband told me that there were no empty seats on the plane even the one next to me was supposed to be occupied. But IT WAS EMPTY (GOD'S INTERVENTION). While I was adjusting my books, I noticed a familiar face on the plane 2 rows behind to my left. It turned out to be my cousin's fiancee who happened to be going to Rome upon my cousin's request to be there with him while his father (my aunt's husband) was slipping away. I did not know how bad he was until Mizar, the fiancee, explained to me the situation and she told me that we will be seeing my cousin at the airport who was coming to pick her up and drive her straight to the hospital. When we all buckled up and ready to take off, I turned to Mizar and noticed that there were 2 empty seats next to her...I could not believe my eyes for she also told me that she was informed by the hostess and the lady at the check-in desk that the seats next to her were taken. GOD'S INTERVENTION AGAIN. She was very surprised to find herself sitting alone. I explained to her about my legs situation and she told me that she had no problem taking my seat or the empty one next to me and I, in exchange, can use the 3 seats and lie down and stretch my legs...I could not believe my eyes, for her seats were the only empty ones and God has sent me a friend with whom I could exchange seats for if it had been some other stranger I wouldn't have been able to do it. I looked all around and noticed that there was not one empty seat except the one next to me and Mizar's. BELIEVE ME WHEN I SAY THAT THE SEAT NEXT TO ME AND NEXT TO MIZAR'S WERE THE ONLY ONE EMPTY AND yet we were told that it was a compltely fully booked plane...I began to laugh but at the same time tears were coming down my face. I could not describe to you what a feeling I had that moment knowing that God, knew my anxious thoughts and worry ahead of time and He made sure to coincide Mizar's trip with mine so that I get to lie down and stretch my legs. GLORY TO GOD! I told the story to my husband, but he said "yeah yeah". But that did not stop me from telling everyone my story and what God has done for me in order to be comfortable. Cast all your worries to Him and He will give you rest. Amen!
Tuesday, March 29, 2011
Have you seen or felt God's hand in your life?
I would like to share with you this story. It happened to me 2 weeks ago and I would like you to know and understand how He came to rescue.
It all started when I was getting ready to go to Princeton Junction train station to catch an early train to NY to meet up with my cousin who was going there too for the week-end, and, since I haven't seen her in few months, I decided to go and join her. But since I missed the early train I thought I would make the next one. I was praying hard to make it on time because I knew I was going to miss the train by just 2 minutes and since I didn't have the time to buy the ticket at the booth, so I decided to pay for it on the train. Lo and behold, the conductors were outside the train, lot of crowds and people swamping inside the station. At first, I did not know what was going on, but I decided to go and check with the person at the booth. She advised me not to buy the ticket until the last minute since it is not refundable and since the trains have stopped running since the morning. I felt such a relief for not missing the train but disappointed because I knew that I would only have few hours to spend with my cousin. So I approached the conductors to find out what really caused all this and one of them told me, with a big smile, that the power was off and that nothing was running from and to New York. So I asked him when will the power be back or if they are already working on it, but he shrugged off his shoulders and could not answer. He was telling everyone that there was going to be a long wait and it might drag till the end of the day and, with that answer, I decided to go to the coffee shop downstairs and kill some time. Fifteen minutes went by and still no news about any power repair or change. I went again to the conductor and he in turn sighed and looked concerned for he realized that it was going to be a long day, having to answer to every passenger and having to put up with all the frustration and anger around him. Half an hour went by and still nothing. I was pacing back and forth trying to figure it what to do, whether to head back home and keep calling the train station or stay and wait or just cancel my trip. The latter was an impossible choice for I really wanted to see my cousin and spend a nice time together shopping at Bloomingdales. I finally sat on the bench, closed my eyes, bent my head down and started to pray with all my heart asking the Lord to intervene and telling Him nothing can stand in His way and that nothing is impossible for Him. I begged Him to clear away this outage and to allow me and all the other passenger to continue our trip to NY. I ended my prayer with : "Greater is He who is in me than the one who is in the world". If the devil is trying to stop things to make it worse for us, I knew that God will come to the rescue and not let him enjoy this damage for long. When I finished praying, I got up and headed to the station door. It has not been 10 minutes yet since I prayed and there I hear the conductors screaming and calling everyone to get on board the train. I could not believe it but I saw everyone running inside and so I followed and got a seat quickly. Everyone around me was cheering and laughing because the ordeal has finally ended. All I did is praise the Lord and even tell the person who was sitting next to me how I prayed hard to God and how I ended up without a ticket, but I knew that this was not a problem. Then a thought came into my mind and I told the gentleman, who was beside me, that I have a feeling that the conductors will not come and check the tickets due to all the delay and the confusion. He told me that I look so assured and so positive and I told him that I have the Lord to thank for my attitude. So the whole trip went without a glimpse of a conductor and I ended up in NY without a ticket. Free ride! Yuppee, God has indeed come to my rescue. Who would have thought that the outage was going to be over so soon while everyone expected to drag till the end of the day.
Lord, what would I do without you! xoxo
It all started when I was getting ready to go to Princeton Junction train station to catch an early train to NY to meet up with my cousin who was going there too for the week-end, and, since I haven't seen her in few months, I decided to go and join her. But since I missed the early train I thought I would make the next one. I was praying hard to make it on time because I knew I was going to miss the train by just 2 minutes and since I didn't have the time to buy the ticket at the booth, so I decided to pay for it on the train. Lo and behold, the conductors were outside the train, lot of crowds and people swamping inside the station. At first, I did not know what was going on, but I decided to go and check with the person at the booth. She advised me not to buy the ticket until the last minute since it is not refundable and since the trains have stopped running since the morning. I felt such a relief for not missing the train but disappointed because I knew that I would only have few hours to spend with my cousin. So I approached the conductors to find out what really caused all this and one of them told me, with a big smile, that the power was off and that nothing was running from and to New York. So I asked him when will the power be back or if they are already working on it, but he shrugged off his shoulders and could not answer. He was telling everyone that there was going to be a long wait and it might drag till the end of the day and, with that answer, I decided to go to the coffee shop downstairs and kill some time. Fifteen minutes went by and still no news about any power repair or change. I went again to the conductor and he in turn sighed and looked concerned for he realized that it was going to be a long day, having to answer to every passenger and having to put up with all the frustration and anger around him. Half an hour went by and still nothing. I was pacing back and forth trying to figure it what to do, whether to head back home and keep calling the train station or stay and wait or just cancel my trip. The latter was an impossible choice for I really wanted to see my cousin and spend a nice time together shopping at Bloomingdales. I finally sat on the bench, closed my eyes, bent my head down and started to pray with all my heart asking the Lord to intervene and telling Him nothing can stand in His way and that nothing is impossible for Him. I begged Him to clear away this outage and to allow me and all the other passenger to continue our trip to NY. I ended my prayer with : "Greater is He who is in me than the one who is in the world". If the devil is trying to stop things to make it worse for us, I knew that God will come to the rescue and not let him enjoy this damage for long. When I finished praying, I got up and headed to the station door. It has not been 10 minutes yet since I prayed and there I hear the conductors screaming and calling everyone to get on board the train. I could not believe it but I saw everyone running inside and so I followed and got a seat quickly. Everyone around me was cheering and laughing because the ordeal has finally ended. All I did is praise the Lord and even tell the person who was sitting next to me how I prayed hard to God and how I ended up without a ticket, but I knew that this was not a problem. Then a thought came into my mind and I told the gentleman, who was beside me, that I have a feeling that the conductors will not come and check the tickets due to all the delay and the confusion. He told me that I look so assured and so positive and I told him that I have the Lord to thank for my attitude. So the whole trip went without a glimpse of a conductor and I ended up in NY without a ticket. Free ride! Yuppee, God has indeed come to my rescue. Who would have thought that the outage was going to be over so soon while everyone expected to drag till the end of the day.
Lord, what would I do without you! xoxo
Thursday, February 3, 2011
God's hand in my life
ok, it looks like so many of my friends looked at my blog and commented on it by sending me a private email, but I would prefer to see their comments on my blog. Please, to those who did or are going to read my blog, be part of my experience and reach out as I did. I would like to encourage everyone to speak openly of their personal experience or someone else's personal one and who would like to share with all. I have lot of examples when I felt God's hand in my life and I will continue sharing more of my stories with you all. This time I am going to take you back to summer of 20008.
When I was in Capri, I flew to Venice along with 19 others from my family (from brother to cousins etc). Unfortunately the flight was late at night and, by the time we got to Venice and got out of the airport, it was about midnight. We were exhausted, hungry and thirsty, but mainly looking to lie down after such a long day. The airport was almost empty, the streets were empty and we were trying to figure out how to get to the heart of Venice. So, since I speak Italian, I decided to go back inside and find out about the gondola taxis. They told us that no one comes at this hour and our only way is to take a bus to the center which will get us another way of transportation to our destination. I did not want to give up, so I started to pray while I was waiting at the pier along with others. I asked God to take care of us and help us get there. I told Him that He always gets me out of situations and that I trust His coming to my rescue. After waiting for another half hour (1:00am) we saw a tiny light on the water and the more it got closer the more we realized it was our rescue. It turned out to be a kind of taxi boat...actually gondola. The guy decided to come to the airport and, obviously, come to our rescue. We could not believe it specially that everyone gave up hope except me. I jumped off my seat and told everyone that God answered my prayers. It was such a relief to see the guy and I asked him to take us to the main square. He did not want at first, after seeing so many luggages, but I begged him and told him he was our only chance and way to get there. He finally agreed and we helped him loading our bags on the gondola. We finally made it to the hotel and I THANK GOD FOR HIS RESCUE. So what's your story?
When I was in Capri, I flew to Venice along with 19 others from my family (from brother to cousins etc). Unfortunately the flight was late at night and, by the time we got to Venice and got out of the airport, it was about midnight. We were exhausted, hungry and thirsty, but mainly looking to lie down after such a long day. The airport was almost empty, the streets were empty and we were trying to figure out how to get to the heart of Venice. So, since I speak Italian, I decided to go back inside and find out about the gondola taxis. They told us that no one comes at this hour and our only way is to take a bus to the center which will get us another way of transportation to our destination. I did not want to give up, so I started to pray while I was waiting at the pier along with others. I asked God to take care of us and help us get there. I told Him that He always gets me out of situations and that I trust His coming to my rescue. After waiting for another half hour (1:00am) we saw a tiny light on the water and the more it got closer the more we realized it was our rescue. It turned out to be a kind of taxi boat...actually gondola. The guy decided to come to the airport and, obviously, come to our rescue. We could not believe it specially that everyone gave up hope except me. I jumped off my seat and told everyone that God answered my prayers. It was such a relief to see the guy and I asked him to take us to the main square. He did not want at first, after seeing so many luggages, but I begged him and told him he was our only chance and way to get there. He finally agreed and we helped him loading our bags on the gondola. We finally made it to the hotel and I THANK GOD FOR HIS RESCUE. So what's your story?
Saturday, January 29, 2011
Have you seen or felt God's Hand in your life?
God's everywhere. I am thankful for His presence in my life, for His protection, His care and mostly His love. He has shown me in so many instances, and ways how much He cares. I am so thankful for such a strong Hand in my life, a protective, a shield and a wide shoulder to cry upon. I am also thankful for his favors. Yes, favors indeed. I witness that every day and I realize that He is there watching over me. I don't know how I was able to live without knowing Him when I was in my teenage and adulthood years. But I know Him now and I want to know Him more. I am thirsty for Him, His love, His guidance, His protection and mostly for knowing Him as He was, is and will Be. He is always the same, He never changes but we do, everyday, we change our mind, we change our clothes, we change directions in our life etc...
But God is the same and always will be and knowing this stability and consistency that's coming from Him, gives me great relief knowing that He will never change towards me. There is so much I want to say but I need to tell you about my latest encounter or feeling God's Hand in my life.
I was getting ready to sell my investment property (being a seller and a realtor too) and I thought I had everything under control, but the inevitable happened 2 days before the closing. I found out that the inspection for Smoke Alarm, Carbon monoxide, etc was not done. Misunderstanding with my lawyer who told me that Co was no longer required in East Windsor, and, I thought, that it also included fire extinguisher, alarms etc...At that moment, I felt so stupid and knew that it would cause a big issue to the buyers who were also closing on their home the same day. Oops, yes, big OOOOOPS.
I could not go that day due to a bad blizzard, had to wait for the next day so that roads can be cleared somehow and specially my driveway. I was able to leave the house at 1:30pm and headed straight to the township. But I had all kinds of fears, panic etc. I saw trouble in my path and knew that it would be impossible to accomplish the impossible in a day...
I was greeted by the boss and I found out that the inspection takes place from Monday to Thursday between 8:00am and 11:00am and no Friday. It was Thursday when I showed up at the township. I admit that I prayed so hard when I was driving there and I asked God to put an end to the bad and wrong thoughts that were going in my mind and since GREATER IS HE WHO IS IN ME THAN THE ONE WHO IS IN THE WORLD came to my mind, I started repeating it and telling God that NOTHING WAS IMPOSSIBLE FOR HIM...With that, I went in to face the inevitable, the unknown...
He tried to reach the inspector but to no success. I asked him to try to find my previous certificate on the computer but he could not access Kevin's (the inspector) files. So he called again but still no answer. He told me that Kevin does not come back to the office because he has rounds to do in the afternoon. I started begging the boss to help me and to find a way to solve my problem, while I was doing that I started to pray again and tears started to run down my face. I did not want to give up for I never do and this is my nature...I don't take no for answer and I kept persisting but the boss felt helpless and told me to wait till Monday...so I cried again...Lo and behold, someone comes in from the back door and looked at me and the first thing I did was ask him if he were Kevin and he said, YES. I explained to him the situation and he stood there thinking. So the boss asked him if he could spare few minutes and do the inspection and guess what kevin answered, YES. So, my first reaction, was to jump and hug him and thank him for his time, precious time. I hopped in the Police Truck with him and went to the house and, after half an hour, he told me that everything looked good and asked me that it would take few minutes to have CO ready. How UNBELIEVABLE was that? Who did ever schedule an inspection and have it done in the same day, not only that, but same hour? I cried again for God has put Kevin in my way and made him come back to the office. He told me that he usually does his shift and leaves but he decided to show up. So tell me, was God not in it or what? PRAISE the LORD. He made it happen and I went outside and lifted up my hands and thanking HIM for the gracious thing he did, for saving My neck. Had I not had the CO, the buyers would have been on the street with their moving truck left in the driveway and it would have created a big problem. I thank again my God for helping me out. So what is your story?
But God is the same and always will be and knowing this stability and consistency that's coming from Him, gives me great relief knowing that He will never change towards me. There is so much I want to say but I need to tell you about my latest encounter or feeling God's Hand in my life.
I was getting ready to sell my investment property (being a seller and a realtor too) and I thought I had everything under control, but the inevitable happened 2 days before the closing. I found out that the inspection for Smoke Alarm, Carbon monoxide, etc was not done. Misunderstanding with my lawyer who told me that Co was no longer required in East Windsor, and, I thought, that it also included fire extinguisher, alarms etc...At that moment, I felt so stupid and knew that it would cause a big issue to the buyers who were also closing on their home the same day. Oops, yes, big OOOOOPS.
I could not go that day due to a bad blizzard, had to wait for the next day so that roads can be cleared somehow and specially my driveway. I was able to leave the house at 1:30pm and headed straight to the township. But I had all kinds of fears, panic etc. I saw trouble in my path and knew that it would be impossible to accomplish the impossible in a day...
I was greeted by the boss and I found out that the inspection takes place from Monday to Thursday between 8:00am and 11:00am and no Friday. It was Thursday when I showed up at the township. I admit that I prayed so hard when I was driving there and I asked God to put an end to the bad and wrong thoughts that were going in my mind and since GREATER IS HE WHO IS IN ME THAN THE ONE WHO IS IN THE WORLD came to my mind, I started repeating it and telling God that NOTHING WAS IMPOSSIBLE FOR HIM...With that, I went in to face the inevitable, the unknown...
He tried to reach the inspector but to no success. I asked him to try to find my previous certificate on the computer but he could not access Kevin's (the inspector) files. So he called again but still no answer. He told me that Kevin does not come back to the office because he has rounds to do in the afternoon. I started begging the boss to help me and to find a way to solve my problem, while I was doing that I started to pray again and tears started to run down my face. I did not want to give up for I never do and this is my nature...I don't take no for answer and I kept persisting but the boss felt helpless and told me to wait till Monday...so I cried again...Lo and behold, someone comes in from the back door and looked at me and the first thing I did was ask him if he were Kevin and he said, YES. I explained to him the situation and he stood there thinking. So the boss asked him if he could spare few minutes and do the inspection and guess what kevin answered, YES. So, my first reaction, was to jump and hug him and thank him for his time, precious time. I hopped in the Police Truck with him and went to the house and, after half an hour, he told me that everything looked good and asked me that it would take few minutes to have CO ready. How UNBELIEVABLE was that? Who did ever schedule an inspection and have it done in the same day, not only that, but same hour? I cried again for God has put Kevin in my way and made him come back to the office. He told me that he usually does his shift and leaves but he decided to show up. So tell me, was God not in it or what? PRAISE the LORD. He made it happen and I went outside and lifted up my hands and thanking HIM for the gracious thing he did, for saving My neck. Had I not had the CO, the buyers would have been on the street with their moving truck left in the driveway and it would have created a big problem. I thank again my God for helping me out. So what is your story?
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