Kim has provided the website for Baby Hayden Shane. Keep the baby and his family in prayer - it's working!

Marcus and Alicia - Baby Hayden Shane was born on October 25 - he has a tumor on his tailbone and will require surgery after delivery in Cincinnati, OH possibly on October 26th.
www.carepages.com CarePage name: babymontooth2007
extra picture page - iniai.org/hayden

Baby Hayden

This is Kim Early (Drew's mom and Ben's wife). I have been meaning to send you this prayer request about a baby that is to be born today (I work with his father).

This baby's name is Hayden Shane. He is scheduled to be born by C-section at 8:30 am today (9:30 Cinci time) in Cincinnatti (8/25). He has a Sacrococcygeal Teratoma which is a large tumor on his tailbone. He will most likely have surgery tomorrow morning if all goes as planned and is expected to be in the hospital for up to two weeks. His parents names are Marcus and Alicia. They are very strong but need all the extra prayers that they can get.

Thanks so much,
Kim

We will keep baby Hayden and his family in our prayers - keep us posted!
Peggy

California Fires

A very close friend of mine (we've been friends since jr high school) who lives out in California took this picture and emailed it to me. I will post his email too. Please pray for him and his family as well as the firefighters who are working so diligently and selflessly to help residents protect their families and property. I know you all will come through.

Peggy

"This is an absolutely insane photograph from tonight, our firefighters are doing an unbelievable job! Foothill Ranch/Lake Forest is the city north of us.We are okay...staying indoors as much as possible, ready to bolt if we need to. The Santiago fire is about ten miles away, hopefully the Santa Anas will tone down and keep it at bay...The Westcoast HOs"

"

Angela Huntman told me about a courageous family going through a tremendously difficult time. Their blog says it all. When you get time, check it out and I think you will be touched and amazed at their strength and faith - we know the two go hand in hand. When we had our early ultrasounds and ultimately the amnio, this was the diagnosis doctors feared they would be handing over to us, and we feared we would have to hear. We were so fortunate Gabe's defect was fixable - you can't fix chromosomes. We may have been on quite a roller coaster ride, but it could always be worse. If you know anyone who has lost a child, for whatever reason, this site could offer some comfort - or at least hope for surviving it, eventually. Keep the family in your prayers, and as I have said before, if your children are healthy hug them tighter and be grateful.

http://conorbootheandgirls.blogspot.com

Update on the Anonymous prayers

Thanks for praying, even without the details. Two of the three have had dramatic improvements in the past week, so thanks so much for pitching in. One was a very likely cancer by preliminary tests that turned out to be clear, much to everyone's happy surprise! Praises!

The other has made some small improvements but still appears to have a long way to go, so keep praying!

There are 3 families I have been praying for that also need your prayers - but they wish to keep their stories private. Just pray for them as best you can without the specifics, obviously God will know.

Updates: last I heard, little Amanda is home and doing well. My Grandmother has gone into a nursing home, please continue to pray for her and her daughters.

Prayer of St. Francis of Assisi

This is one of my favorite prayers, I thought of it often when we were at Riley. Everyone there seemed to me to be living all that this prayer embodies. To truly live like this, to think of others in this way is beautiful and I hope this prayer offers comfort to someone else. I listen to it put to music often, when I need recharging or a reminder to reach outside of myself. When life is difficult, it can be easy to retreat within and try to block out the rest of the world - I admit I am guilty of trying to cope by doing just that. This prayer/song helps me resist this temptation - to remember that no matter how difficult life can be, someone else is enduring greater trials, greater pain. When I shut down, everything negative seems to be amplified and to rise up. If I focus on channeling without instead of within - on faith and hope, somehow everything works out as it should. If you have never heard it set to music, it is beautiful - I love the rendition by Robert Kochis. I know you can get it on itunes, and other places as well.

Lord, make me an instrument of your peace,
Where there is hatred, let me sow love;
where there is injury, pardon;
where there is doubt, faith;
where there is despair, hope;
where there is darkness, light;
where there is sadness, joy;
O Divine Master, grant that I may not so much seek so much to be consoled as to console; to be understood as to understand; to be loved as to love with all my soul.
For it is in giving that we receive; it is in pardoning that we are pardoned; and it is in dying that we are born to eternal life.

Amen