brothers and sisters in Jesus Christ, our Alaska trip was long, cold, pretty intense, and we saw some of God's most beautiful artwork in His mountains and ocean!

As for cruises... it confirms I'm not a 'cruise' person, you can only eat so much.... But we had Mass every morning and praise and worship with prayer meeting every night. Those were the highlights of the trip for the group. By the eighth day hearts were melted and many people had their spiritual life reawakened. One lady testified to 'coming back to the Church' and now hungering for the sacraments again, a couple from Illinois, who werent' even part of 'our' group, heard the singing, and attended all the sessions, and on the last night, through tears, told how God had touched their hearts in a way they never dreamed possible.

I decided not to take motion sickness meds after hearing some stories of it causing people to 'zone out'. I didn't have one second of motion sickness. I did get a sore throat, which God used for His glory, my back-up singer had to 'step out' and lead, she received further healing of fear and received a new boldness through which she is rejoicing now.

Two days after we returned home we went to the SCRC convention in Anaheim Ca., an annual {31'st this year} Catholic convention sponsored by all the prayer groups from So. Cal. It's one of the only ones in U.S. that is still growing. There were 15,000 in attendance. We heard many messages of great hope for the Church, from Fr. Benedict Groeschel, Fr. Robert De Grandis, Fr. Jerry Bevilacqua, Robert Faricy, and many others. Yes we are in great crisis, tremendous crisis, but this is bringing us to our knees, and causing us to get serious about who we are as Catholic Christians! We are not to fear, but be encouraged, we have the Trinity living in us!! This is a great time of witnessing to His Church and her benefits.

On Friday night I attended the high school youth concert, with 1500 teens. Fr. Stan Fortuna, {Franciscan from the Bronx}, a close friend of Groeschel's, spoke, nothing but TRUTH, he came against all the MTV lies, all the media lies, telling the kids about God's plan and purpose for sex, 'your body's not your own', it was refreshing to hear it spoken so clearly. And the kids LOVED him.

There is something very vital about being in a community of one mind.We need each other to lift each other up when we get down. And we do get down. We will suffer. We must take His cross up daily, but in taking it to Him daily, He gives us His joy and peace, beyond understanding. And then we can rise up again, and be used of Him to heal the world.

May His peace be in our hearts today. Jake said the site was down again for awhile. I did think of you, John, Kath, Mary Lu, David thanks you for the prayer for my son, Matt I pray BLESSINGS ON your marriage! Gail, blessings on you!!! love, Theresa

-- Theresa Huether (Rodntee4Jesus@aol.com), September 04, 2002

Answers

Welcome back Theresa!!

Sounds like you had a wonderful trip. We missed you while you were gone. I'll bet the view you had of the mountains and the ocean were just breathtaking!!

IMHO I'd take a sour throat any day over motion sickness!!

Glad to have you back safe and sound.

God bless,

-- Kathy (sorry@nomail.com), September 04, 2002.

Hello, Theresa

Thank you for the prayers! We missed you. :-) I am happy to see you are home safe and sound. I know there is nothing like your own bed. God bless you.

David

-- David (David@excite.com), September 04, 2002.

Theresa, Glad you're back! I'm jealous, though, as it sounds like you had a really blessed time -- REVIVAL! Lord, let it fall like dew drops from heaven!

Gail

-- Gail (rothfarms@socket.net), September 05, 2002.

Hi, Theresa. Welcome back! While you were away, your son posted lots of excellent messages. I hope you have a chance to read them some day. You will be proud of him.
JFG

-- (jfgecik@hotmail.com), September 05, 2002.

Hi Theresa,

Welcome back. Your cruise sounds like it was a gift from God!

I've been invited to go on 4 cruises, but am not a cruise person. However, one cruise my husband and I want to go on is to Alaska. So glad the trip proved to be a spiritual blessing for you.

I am just returning to the forum, couldn't get on here for a while and then had a personal crisis to deal with, but the power of prayer is working for my son. He has made a miraculous turn-around. God is awesome and when we truly surrender to Him and let him take care of things for us, things do work out. He knows what He is doing, what has to be done, where to lead. Only God knows what other people truly need, what is in their hearts, minds and souls. We think we know, but we don't.

Please keep my son MJ in your prayes that God continue to heal him spiritually and emotionally. I pray we are out of the woods now.

He has returned to church - perhaps that is the blessing in the recent storm. There is a blessing in all of our storms but we don't see it while the storm is raging.

You are a blessing to this forum Theresa and I am so glad you are back. Please keep all of us in your prayers.

God Bless. MaryLu

-- MaryLu (mlc327@juno.com), September 05, 2002.

"While you were away, your son posted lots of excellent messages."

I'm speachless, John. To have you (who defend our faith and post so eloquently) say this is an absolut honor. I'm not worty to have this honor, for I am only learning, while you are learned.

From the bottom of my heart, Thank You!

In Christ.

-- Jake Huether (jake.huether@lamrc.com), September 06, 2002.

You are worthy of that honor Jake because it is true!

MaryLu

-- MaryLu (mlc327@juno.com), September 06, 2002.

Dear ones, thanks for the 'welcome home'. It is good to get another perspective on things, but yes, nothing like your own bed!

So many new posts I have to get reoriented. MaryLu, I pray for your son. Don't get discouraged. {I'm telling myself this too!} There's such a strong bond between parents and children, it's hard to eventually 'let go', after years of hanging on so tight. I was with a woman the other night who said something that stuck in my head. We had been praying for our son, and later on in the evening she said "It's really none of our business how God deals with them".

Profoundly, she is right. We pray, we trust, and then God is truly in control. He can't really work, if we keep taking them back and wishing our will to be done. I've also recently come to see the enemy, the devil would rob us of our joy if he could, and he will try at anything, our children for starts. We encourage each other, God loves our children more then we do. He will be victorious in our lives. love,T

-- Theresa (Rodntee4Jesus@aol.com), September 07, 2002.

Jake, you wrote: "I'm not worthy to have this honor, for I am only learning, while you are learned."

Funny how you are wrong four ways in one sentence! (1) You are worthy of compliments. (2) My compliment is not a great honor, though! (3) You may be "learning," but have already learned (and shared) a lot. (4) I am not "learned," but also learning (and will be until the day I die).
JFG

-- (jfgecik@hotmail.com), September 07, 2002.