I know an amazing mother/wife/sister/and friend. She is a good Woman of God and I have taken a lot of advice from her. She is also a fellow blogger. You can find the link to her blog Miraculous Romance a little farther down. I wanted to have a piece of her mind and of her blog on my blog to share with my readers. She is truly inspirational. So I hope you enjoy. =)
I just wanted you to let us know a few things that way my readers (now yours as well) will know a little more about you. Tell us your name and age...and anything else you think we may want to know. ; )
--My name is Crystal Nichole O'Rourke (Hooper). I am 24 years old. I have been married to an amazing man of God, by the name of Patrick, for almost 4 years now. I have 2 beautiful daughters by the name of Eden Neriah and Toula Michelle. If you would like to know more you can read my blog http://miraculousromance.blogspot.com/
--My name is Crystal Nichole O'Rourke (Hooper). I am 24 years old. I have been married to an amazing man of God, by the name of Patrick, for almost 4 years now. I have 2 beautiful daughters by the name of Eden Neriah and Toula Michelle. If you would like to know more you can read my blog http://miraculousromance.blogspot.com/
I am so glad that you were able to do this for my blog. I LOVE your blog and I'm glad to have a piece of it on mine.
--Thanks Jacqui! I love you and your blog! I am so blessed to have this opportunity. :)
My Jesus: Lifegiver
A good friend of mine once said that, “…In this world you will have trouble…” Well, I can most certainly testify to that. The past few years of my life seemed to have been full of that detestable “t” word. I have been bruised, broken, and at my wit’s end on more occasions than you could fathom. My heart has cried out for rescuing from the hurt and pain that I have suffered in this “world”.
Let me start by giving you a little taste of my experiences these past few years. When I was about 6 months pregnant with my first daughter my mother was hospitalized during a near death bout of what would be diagnosed as stage 4 cancer during my 7th month. She fought a good fight against the disease but only 3 months after the confirmed diagnosis was taken home to be with Jesus; which just so happened to land on my sister‘s birthday, July 4th. Then, in what seemed like an instant after her passing, my father began to date my husband’s mother and they were engaged before labor day. My husband's mother and I have had many issues in the past and were not the best of friends to put it kindly, so as you can imagine this was most certainly not celebratory on my end… not to mention the fact that my mother had only been gone for a whopping 3 months before the engagement. There was many a battle between all of the relatives near and far, and my family who had once stood so close was as divided as the Koreas. This most certainly put a strain on my husband and I causing our marriage to be pushed to the brink of near extinction. Needless to say, there were many roles in my life that were almost immediately damaged or completely cut-off. I was without a mother, a father, a husband, and half of my siblings were pried from my life. Though, I can honestly say that throughout all of the chaos and heartache there was a hope that came anew every morning…
I began to cling (more strongly than ever) to the only thing that I knew could give me the strength to withstand any blow that this world, the enemy, or any human being could throw my way: Jesus Christ. I HAD to trust that He is who He says He is. I HAD to trust that He could do what He says He can do. I HAD to trust that His word is Truth. I had to have faith that my story wasn’t over. I didn’t have a choice in the matter. He loved me (or shall I say loves) and I am His anointed daughter. This was the only thing I had to ensure that I would be able to get myself out of bed and take care of my beautiful first-born daughter. He gave me strength to pray and believe Him for the miracles that He was going to do in my marriage and my life!
I could hear his still small voice through the storm raging in my life reminding me that I am richly filled with His love. That I am not alone. I had the comfort of a mother as he nurtured me through the pain and heartache, just as His word promises in Isaiah 66:11 as he speaks of His gospel and zion... “She will nurse and comfort you, just like your own mother, until you are satisfied. You will fully enjoy her wonderful glory.” As I prayed and fought with my flesh to continue to trust in Him, I had the companionship of a sister or brother… Proverbs 18:24 says: A man of many companions may come to ruin, but there is a friend who sticks closer than a brother. This friend is Jesus! I had the support of a loving father when I need encouragement and discipline just as Psalm 89:26-28 clearly explains: “He shall cry to me, ‘You are my father, my God, and the Rock of my Salvation.’ And I will make him my firstborn, the highest of the kings of the earth. My steadfast love I will keep for Him forever, and my covenant will stand firm for him.” Most importantly I had God as my Lover and I as His beloved when my husband and I had a divided heart. He says of me (and you), “You have stolen my heart, my sister my bride; you have stolen my heart with one glance of your eyes, with one jewel of your necklace. How delightful is your love my sister my bride! How much more pleasing is your love than wine, and the fragrance of your perfume than any spice!” - Song of Songs 4:9-10. I began to see that God’s word was alive and active in my life and most of all in me! He was manifesting His Spirit deep within my being and I was finally coming alive after I felt that I could never really live again.
It’s true, God is my comforter. He has filled every role in my life that is or has been lacking and has never let me down. You know that quote I had written in the beginning of this article was actually something said by Jesus and is quoted in the bible in John 16:33… and it didn’t end there. He went on to say… “but take heart! I have overcome the world.” Sure, I have faced trouble. I have been up to my eyes in it. But the truth is that with Him, I was always able to find His peace.
Please know that it was Jesus who gave his life to share in a miraculous romance, a sacred bond, with you. He promised that if you would come into communion with him that he would never leave nor forsake you, His beloved. He died for the opportunity to have you fall in love with Him just as he is madly in love with you. His beautiful spirit is calling your name... Will you answer?
“For God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten son, so that whoever shall believe in him shall not perish but shall have eternal life.” -John 3:16
Let me start by giving you a little taste of my experiences these past few years. When I was about 6 months pregnant with my first daughter my mother was hospitalized during a near death bout of what would be diagnosed as stage 4 cancer during my 7th month. She fought a good fight against the disease but only 3 months after the confirmed diagnosis was taken home to be with Jesus; which just so happened to land on my sister‘s birthday, July 4th. Then, in what seemed like an instant after her passing, my father began to date my husband’s mother and they were engaged before labor day. My husband's mother and I have had many issues in the past and were not the best of friends to put it kindly, so as you can imagine this was most certainly not celebratory on my end… not to mention the fact that my mother had only been gone for a whopping 3 months before the engagement. There was many a battle between all of the relatives near and far, and my family who had once stood so close was as divided as the Koreas. This most certainly put a strain on my husband and I causing our marriage to be pushed to the brink of near extinction. Needless to say, there were many roles in my life that were almost immediately damaged or completely cut-off. I was without a mother, a father, a husband, and half of my siblings were pried from my life. Though, I can honestly say that throughout all of the chaos and heartache there was a hope that came anew every morning…
I began to cling (more strongly than ever) to the only thing that I knew could give me the strength to withstand any blow that this world, the enemy, or any human being could throw my way: Jesus Christ. I HAD to trust that He is who He says He is. I HAD to trust that He could do what He says He can do. I HAD to trust that His word is Truth. I had to have faith that my story wasn’t over. I didn’t have a choice in the matter. He loved me (or shall I say loves) and I am His anointed daughter. This was the only thing I had to ensure that I would be able to get myself out of bed and take care of my beautiful first-born daughter. He gave me strength to pray and believe Him for the miracles that He was going to do in my marriage and my life!
I could hear his still small voice through the storm raging in my life reminding me that I am richly filled with His love. That I am not alone. I had the comfort of a mother as he nurtured me through the pain and heartache, just as His word promises in Isaiah 66:11 as he speaks of His gospel and zion... “She will nurse and comfort you, just like your own mother, until you are satisfied. You will fully enjoy her wonderful glory.” As I prayed and fought with my flesh to continue to trust in Him, I had the companionship of a sister or brother… Proverbs 18:24 says: A man of many companions may come to ruin, but there is a friend who sticks closer than a brother. This friend is Jesus! I had the support of a loving father when I need encouragement and discipline just as Psalm 89:26-28 clearly explains: “He shall cry to me, ‘You are my father, my God, and the Rock of my Salvation.’ And I will make him my firstborn, the highest of the kings of the earth. My steadfast love I will keep for Him forever, and my covenant will stand firm for him.” Most importantly I had God as my Lover and I as His beloved when my husband and I had a divided heart. He says of me (and you), “You have stolen my heart, my sister my bride; you have stolen my heart with one glance of your eyes, with one jewel of your necklace. How delightful is your love my sister my bride! How much more pleasing is your love than wine, and the fragrance of your perfume than any spice!” - Song of Songs 4:9-10. I began to see that God’s word was alive and active in my life and most of all in me! He was manifesting His Spirit deep within my being and I was finally coming alive after I felt that I could never really live again.
It’s true, God is my comforter. He has filled every role in my life that is or has been lacking and has never let me down. You know that quote I had written in the beginning of this article was actually something said by Jesus and is quoted in the bible in John 16:33… and it didn’t end there. He went on to say… “but take heart! I have overcome the world.” Sure, I have faced trouble. I have been up to my eyes in it. But the truth is that with Him, I was always able to find His peace.
Please know that it was Jesus who gave his life to share in a miraculous romance, a sacred bond, with you. He promised that if you would come into communion with him that he would never leave nor forsake you, His beloved. He died for the opportunity to have you fall in love with Him just as he is madly in love with you. His beautiful spirit is calling your name... Will you answer?
“For God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten son, so that whoever shall believe in him shall not perish but shall have eternal life.” -John 3:16
Talk to you soon,
J
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