My Life as a COMMA!

Okay!! Okay!!

So…maybe I’ve been toying with a few of my friends…..telling them I have big news but not quite spilling the beans! It’s been kinda fun….I have to admit! And I’ve loved all the guesses!

Before I spill the beans….I do want to turn your attention to something a bit more serious.

On my way to work this morning I heard about the family in Texas where the mother, father, two boys and two girls were murdered and only the 15 year old daughter survived. She was so brave….and even in her own suffering and through her own injuries…she was able to dial 911 and identify the attacker so that police could catch him before he went and killed more of her family members.

So now, as she is fighting for her life and recovery….she will have to start the process of redefining what her life is and her new “normal”. She will forever have a date in her life that is before….and after. A date that to some….will define her.

My prayer is that she will cling to the One who held her and her family during that very day and trust that she is still here to fulfill a purpose for His Kingdom! I pray that she doesn’t go through “survivor’s guilt” and that she is surrounded by people that will allow her to heal emotionally as well as physically….in her own way….and in her own time.

I know these feelings. The before and after. The feeling that my life, being National news for a while….was not my own any more. I pray for space for this girl. Space to grow up and to make her own choices. Once your story goes public….it’s as if the public feels they have a say in your life….a say in who you are or even in how you’ve responded to the tragedy that put you into their news in the first place!

Let me tell you….this is NOT an easy place to be. When your life is exposed to the public….it’s as if people think that since they know a part of your story…that they know you! This isn’t true! Partly because what you see isn’t always the whole story. You don’t see the emotions and everything that has truly happened. I pray…..I sincerely pray….that this girl is given her privacy as she grieves and mourns her family.

I went to work in silence. I turned off the radio and just prayed. It brought back a flood of memories. I asked my family NOT to speak to the media after the boys died. And my family and friends respected my wishes. I was given a police liason and was told national shows like Geraldo and others were calling….and I didn’t respond to any of them.

But then, the Oprah show came along.

The first show I did was such a surprise. It wasn’t like they were calling me and doing a show on my story….it was a contest. One that THOUSANDS entered. I thought….NO WAY…..but then it happened.

Then, when they found out I had remarried and was going to use the trip Oprah gave me as my honeymoon….I went and did another show. This one was more low key……….. and really not as big a deal.

But then I got the call to do the third show. The premise was to help someone who had been through a similar tragedy. Their hope was that since I was farther down the road…that I would be able to help. Instead of the “textbook” answers, they wanted to provide hope from a “survivor”….so I did the show again. The show was title, “The Worst Day of My Life”. It was difficult…but my thought process was that if I could help someone….then that is exactly what I felt I was supposed to do.

I REALLY would rather just live in my house with my sweet family and be a mom and a wife and live as “normal” a life as I can….

But God has shown me…that those aren’t His plans for me. He has been revealing that to me in a mighty way over the past several months.

So….here is my news!

In case you haven’t figured it out…..I’ve done ANOTHER Oprah show!!!!

The Oprah Winfrey Network has a show titled, “Where Are They Now?” and I was asked to be a part of this show. I just received confirmation today that the show will air on OWN (the Oprah Winfrey Network) on Sunday evening, July 20th!

This has really not been easy for me. Please join me in prayer that God will use this update to speak to people that don’t feel like they can make it through whatever they may be going through……and give them some hope!
That….truly…is the reason I agreed to open my life….my family…up to this in the first place.

This will be the first show you will hear from my ENTIRE family. My sweet husband, son and daughter will get to be a part of this show and I’m so proud of each of them for stepping up and doing this with me! I can’t even begin to share with you how much they each mean to me!

Please just be in prayer with me that God will use this show to give someone out there hope. Pray that if this be His time, that this could be the catalyst of someone becoming interested in having me speak and for me to gain more of a larger voice that could help spread the love and hope in our Lord and His Kingdom!

Pray that by opening up my family to the public again…that we be protected from the difficulties that can sometimes cause and the protective hands of Christ be over our household.

But mostly…..just pray that others will see Christ through me…in me….and want what I’ve had…through Him!

Much love to you all……
May you step outside your comfort zone to glorify His kingdom and be blessed by so many friends….just as you’ve each….blessed me!!
~c