The Fago Family

For those of you who don't know the Fago family, let me tell you... they are awesome. Both Dale and Melissa were active leaders when I was in the youth group at my home church. Both of them, Melissa especially, were always asking how I was doing and how I was growing. They were both great examples and a lot of fun to be with!

Melissa and Dale were supposed blessed with three children; Corey, Tyler and Halle. Tyler was born with cerebral palsy and has never been able to walk or speak before. He was the sweetest kid with the sweetest smile ever, though. I had the privilege of babysitting Tyler a time or two and it was always a joy. They also have two other children that were always there to help Tyler and to make him laugh. Unfortunately, Tyler became sick and he was unable to recover. The doctors wanted to put in a chest tube, but they decided they'd rather bring Tyler home to spend his last days with his family and surrounded with love.

Tyler is now in Heaven, walking, running, talking, laughing, and singing like he has never been able to do before. I can't imagine the pain of having to bury a child, but I know the Fago family is comforted by the fact that their son now has a perfect body and is rejoicing with our God.

Praying for you guys! (This is the picture Melissa has for her Facebook profile picture, I'm sorry if you can't view it)

New...Everything

First of all, let me just say that I'm sorry that I have not posted earlier. I am safe and sound in Hungary again and hit the ground running! I had even started a blog post and just had to save it as a draft because I didn't have the time to finish it. Sorry!

It's a new year, new resolutions, new challenges ahead. There is new everywhere. It's hard not to get swept up into it. This year, though I've decided to keep my resolutions to a minimum to make sure that they stay manageable. I kind of summed up my entire thing into one word: dedication. I need to dedicate myself to everything: spiritually, mentally, and physically.

I've been working out at least 5 days a week and I love the feeling. I'm trying to get my eating habits under control as well. I just figured that I need to stop making excuses and if I want to establish a lifestyle that I will follow for years to come, now is the time to do it.

I've been doing a Bible study with my friend Joanna and it's about having positive self-talk and it's amazing. This lady really brings to light all the stuff that is in what she calls our "thought closet" and how we need to transform those thoughts with a more positive and biblical outlook.

God has been convicting me about a few things that I really need to work on this year and I'm actually really excited about them! I need to listen more, both to God and to others. I love listening to people, but for the past few months, I've been incredibly self-focused and have ignore that passion for too long. God also convicted me about praying for others more. I don't want to be one of those people that says "oh, I'll be praying for you" and I never do. I want to pray for others. I want others to be uplifted, encouraged, and see God working in their lives. Plus, one can never have too much prayer in his or her life, right?

So, lots to work on, but I'm excited about it. There is going to be a lot of experimenting happening to see what works and what doesn't. God has refreshed my spirit after being home for Christmas and I'm looking forward to taking on new challenges for a new year!