An evening to remember

     Tonight was an amazing night and one worth blogging about for sure! Every summer we take a Sunday night and offer a Baptism Ceremony for those counselors who would like to be baptized. Over the past several summers, there have been lots of staff who have been apart of this night. We usually have some acoustic worship, a little explanation of what baptism is and then get right to it. 
     In the year's past, I have been on the shore taking pictures of these young people as they made their declaration of a different life, however, tonight was different. I was apart of it. I was a member of the baptism crew and it was more overwhelming than I was ready for.

     My son looked on with curious eyes as each person went under the water and came back up again. It was precious to watch him try and process what he was seeing. I love that even at a young age, we are teaching our children the things of the Lord.

 

 

     David gave a quick word explaining what they were actually doing and then one by one they stepped into the water. As I watched the first young lady go into the water then assisted in pulling her back up, it was an overwhelming feeling of gratitude that I felt. I watched as this young woman made  a public declaration that her life was different than it was before.

     One by one they walked into the water. Some of them had tears in their eyes realizing the pivotal moment they were in. They each went into the water, laid their old man in a watery grave and came up a new person.

      The significance of baptism really hit me tonight. It is a burial of our old man and a resurrection of a new man. What an awesome thing! These are the things that we get when we choose to serve the Lord. We don't just have to hide what we have done. We don't have to live ashamed of our poor choices. We actually get to bury those things and start all over! How amazing is that?

 

     After the last person had gone, we all sat on the bank and my dad prayed to close out the evening. 

 

 

     Then, in true Brookhill fashion, we posed for a picture. One reason being because we can't do anything without taking a picture and the other being to capture this life altering moment for everyone.

 

     Even though I have already been baptized, I felt as much apart of their experience as I did my own. It was a moment I will never forget!

 

 

     To update you on the miracle! It's still in effect! I began my Vegan lifestyle again and I feel great. I am so happy in this lifestyle. I know I'm healthy, I know I'm doing the right thing for my body and I know this is the avenue God used to channel His miracle in my life through.

 

     I do not have the personality that allows me to do things in moderation. I am not a moderation person. I am either all in or all out. If I was able to do moderation then I could have some more relaxed eating habits but I am not therefore, for me to be successful in living healthy, I have to live a very strict lifestyle. There has to be clear cut lines drawn for me to succeed. This is what the plant based diet has done for me.

 

     Thanks again to all my readers who have continued to support me through each up and down I have faced over the past year and half. It has been quite a ride and I'm really looking forward to the continuation! 

Testify!

     Yesterday was an amazing day! One I am determined never to forget. Several years ago, I was diagnosed with a chronic ear disease. This disease affected the estuation tubes in the ear and their ability to equalize pressure. Long story short, there have been tubes in my ear drums to keep an opening so the pressure could equalize. When these tubes fall out, I can always tell. My ears immediately begin popping constantly to try an equalize the pressure. Everyone sounds like they are talking under water. It has been a very frustrating situation for the past 27 years.

     Last March, after watching the Forks over Knives documentary, I decided to become a Vegan for a year and see if it would help my overall health issues. One of the things that it said in the documentary was that when your body is not busy trying to break down animal proteins it can heal itself. So, I told one of my friends that I was going to see if this could work for my ears. The documentary talked a lot about people getting healed from diabetes and cancer but I thought I would test it and see if it would work for my ears.

     After the year was up this past March, I began to add chicken and got back on the dairy wagon and although I haven't had a lot of red meat, I have had some. I have paid dearly for the dairy, as always. Well, yesterday, I had my 6th month check up with the surgeon who put in this last set of tubes. These were a different type of tube and were supposed to last for several years. The right tube is still in and holding just fine however, the left tube has fallen out. When he told me that, my heart sank until I realized that I had no idea it had fallen out! NONE. No clue! There has been no hearing loss, no popping, no pain. Nothing! The tube fell out 4 - 6 weeks ago and there has been no symptom! Not one single one!

     There is only one explanation: A miracle has taken place! A full on, real life, healing miracle! All the way home I thanked the Lord. We have been believing for a miracle for the past 27 years! While on the phone with my husband, we recognized the miracle but he made the observation that the channel the Lord may have used could have been through the No Dairy! Then, when talking to my mom, she said the exact same thing. She said it was the only thing I had done differently. Last night, I began thinking about that fact. The truth is, I became a Vegan and that is what I had done differently. We began to wonder if the fact that I hadn't had dairy, therefore had not put the ears under infection for a year and the fact that my body hadn't been breaking down animal protein, had allowed my body to heal itself. Just like it said in the documentary. The longer I thought about this, the more convinced I became that this was the avenue God used to bring us our miracle.

     Of course, the devil wanted to come right in and steal this victory. Every pain I felt in my ears yesterday would make me think that what was happening wasn't actually real. The doctor did say that there was a little retraction in the left ear drum but not a lot. This could have happened because of the diary and meat I have been consuming since March.

     Anyway, today, I restart the Vegan lifestyle. The Dr wants to take a look at my ears in 2 months. Just to see what it looks like and where we are. It takes 12 weeks for the body to begin responding to the Vegan lifestyle and to begin repairing itself. I am just going to believe that the repairing that needs to take place will begin early.

     I am writing this blog today from an extremely different point of view. My heart is overwhelmed with thankfulness to the Lord for this miracle in my life. I am so thankful that I had the discipline to give this lifestyle a try for a year and that I am now reaping the benefits from this. I am so thankful that I just HAD to testify!