CJ,

Thanks for that wonderful testimony.  Glad to have you on the list.

As for being verbose, that's a common condition for Echurch members.




JulieMelton
visit me at
www.heart-and-music.com
Keep smiling!





>From: CJ Daniel <[log in to unmask]>
>Reply-To: The Electronic Church <[log in to unmask]>
>To: [log in to unmask]
>Subject: Hello Everyone
>Date: Wed, 29 Mar 2006 00:39:18 -0700
>
>Hello,
>
>My name is C J Daniel & I'd like to thank everyone who has taken the time 
>to welcome me to the list.  It seems that taking a few minutes to post 
>something about yourself, as a new subscriber, is traditional.  So without 
>more fanfare, I will attempt to do that, without taking up to much of your 
>time, but in hopes of covering the most salient points of my walk with 
>Jesus Christ.
>
>I, like Phil, was blinded @ the age of nine-years by retinal detachments in 
>the early 70's.  I will fast-forward through the next thirty-years, for 
>which you can all be thankful, as there is not a lot that is holy or 
>righteous to report on during this period.  Generally speaking, I would say 
>it was full of the normal amount of stupidity & sin that is found in the 
>day-to-day life of the average back-sliding believer.  But, there were more 
>interesting "valleys of the Shadow" in my future.
>
>In 2001 shortly after 9-11, my 4-year-old daughter, Sarah, was diagnosed 
>with trilateral retinal blastoma.  For those of you who don't know, this is 
>a form of the disease that spreads from the retinas to the pineal gland, 
>which is located in the center of your brain.  This form of the disease, 
>unfortunately, has a nearly universal mortality rate.
>
>I will not detail the year that followed Sarah's diagnosis.  I will simply 
>say that in the midst of great anguish there can be great joy & laughter.  
>In that year, I saw a little hero struggle bravely with her fate.  She did, 
>with dignity & courage, what I doubt I could accomplish with even half of 
>the grace she displayed.
>
>The night before she died in our home, I prayed that the Lord would take 
>her.  She had already seen so very much, & we had been informed that her 
>ending could be extremely uncomfortable.  I didn't want to see her under-go 
>anymore suffering.
>
>It was as if I felt a warm and golden light suddenly surround me as I 
>prayed.  And, a voice inside me seemed to say, "I've only waited for you to 
>be able to let go."  @ that place & time, & in that circumstance, I knew 
>the peace that surpasses all understanding.  The next day @ noon with her 
>family around her bed, Sarah passed quietly to our Lord in heaven two-weeks 
>in advance of all medical predictions.  I learned, later that same day, 
>that every adult present had been praying @ the same time as myself, all be 
>it separately, for Sarah's release from her travail.
>
>Within months of that passing, our family was dealt another body blow.  
>Sarah's mom, who had shared a milder form of the ailment, was diagnosed 
>with a recurrence of the disease, after more than 30-years of remission.  
>The disease led to major surgeries, chemotherapy, & many hospitalizations.  
>But most insidious of all, it led to a general erosion of her personality, 
>values, & faith.  I learned later that this is not uncommon with cancer 
>that effects the brain or, surprisingly, the liver.  In the end she left 
>myself & our two surviving children.
>
>I will not speculate overly much about her leaving.  In fact, I believe 
>that simply stated she had endured to much.  Her own illness coupled with 
>the loss of a much beloved daughter had taken its toll.  Also, my belief is 
>that it does, as the old saw says, take two to make a marriage.  I confess, 
>fully, that  I bare a measure of the blame for her confusion & 
>disillusionment.
>
>However, I bare witness that throughout the time since Sarah's passing & 
>that prayer for her final deliverance, the Lord has comforted me.  He has 
>made his face to shine upon me.  I have clung to him as a small child 
>clings to his father.  And in these last few years, he has blessed me.  He 
>has, indeed, led me beside still waters.  He has made me to lie in green 
>pastures.  Like Jobe, he has restored me.
>
>A little more than a year ago, I met & married a woman who's first words to 
>me were, "can we pray."  We recently had a baby girl named, Juliana 
>Katherine Daniel.  Our blended family is a blessing to me each & everyday.  
>The Lord continues to teach me through my little flock.
>
>But more importantly, he continues to walk & talk with me.  He led me to 
>leave my job as Director of Client Services @ a small guide dog school in 
>southern California & move to Tucson, AZ.  Both I & my children have 
>benefited immensely, in ways I could have not predicted, by this God 
>inspired move.  He has recently opened doors that allow me to share the 
>songs of worship that he has inspired me to write.  In addition, I am soon 
>to be a community group leader for my new church.
>
>I know that I have gone on overly long in writing this.  But, I am so 
>excited about what he has done for me that I just want to share my 
>testimony with the world.  Also, quite honestly, it is my way of sharing 
>some of the things that I learned from Sarah's passing.  I hope you all 
>will forgive me for my verbosity.  I trust, I will not be so lengthy in the 
>future.  I look forward to sharing with each of you the love of our Lord.
>
>In Him,
>
>C J Daniel
>