Photo by: Katie  Osberg

  

Becoming Your Best

By:  Kathy A. Weckwerth, Exec. Director 

  

 

Philippians 3:12 "I am not perfect, but I press on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me."

Kathleen Sogge, Dir. of Prayer

 A Lady Named Doris

By:  Kathleen Sogge 

Titus 2:3-5

"Older women likewise are to be reverent in their behavior......teaching what is good, that they may encourage the young women to love their husbands, love their children, be sensible, pure, workers at home, kind, being subject to their own husbands, that the word of God may not

be dishonored."

"How did you meet Doris?" you ask.

It was because of a locked door, more like a Divine appointment. I tell people.

I'll never forget that cold November day, back in 1977. It seems like yesterday. Jim and I were in our early twenties, and already separated numerous times. We moved into the little green house over Thanksgiving weekend. It was my first day back to work and I remember walking home on that cold day, feeling tired and hungry.

As I got home, I was shocked to find the door locked. I panicked for many reasons. First, I didn't know any of the neighbors. Next, I didn't have a cell phone back then, and lastly, Jim was working and wouldn't be home until later, or who knew if he would come home at all. We had been struggling, fighting and having lots of marriage issues. My heart skipped a beat thinking, where will I go?

And then I got up my courage to go next door. I knocked and I waited. After a bit, and much to my relief, came the smiling face of Doris.

"Well, hello!" she said in her Swedish brogue, "How can I help you?"

I told her that I had just moved in next door and was locked out. I didn't know when my husband would be home. "Well, come in," she said, "its cold out there." I sighed a huge sigh of relief as she led me through her home to the kitchen. "Here, have a chair in the corner," she said, as she pointed to the quaint chair and table that sat against the wall. There it was, the "corner." The beloved "corner," where years later, I, and many others, would find refuge and comfort in the storms of life over many cups of coffee and homemade chocolate chip cookies.

Doris' gift was encouragement. It was her nature to listen and nurture any soul who graced her home.

I didn't get much time to know her that first day because Jim pulled up to our house, and Doris said, "You come back again for coffee!"   It wouldn't be too many days after that first invitation that I returned for "coffee in the corner," but this time I entered the back door.

I was walking home from work, cutting across the backyard, when I heard her door open and the warm Swedish voice called out, "Hello, would you like to come for coffee?"

She again pointed to the corner chair and proceeded to bring treats and a big pot of coffee. John, her husband, was sitting across from me. "Here's your cup," she said, placing a beautiful china cup in front of me. "What's this?" I asked. "Your cup," she answered. "I'm not going to drink out of that!" I exclaimed. "Why not?" she asked. "Because it's so special," I answered while pushing it away. Pushing it right back in front of me she said, "Well, you're special." "But what if I break it?" I asked her. "Well then it breaks. People are more important than their things. I think I'll call you Tusha. It's means "special girl" in Swedish."

That would be a day that changed my life forever! I'd never thought of myself as "special." Doris would become like a mother to us and from then on her name for me would be "Tusha" and for Jim and me, she'd call us "the kids next door." 

How can you forget a woman who "stood in the gap" for our very lives? We were a mess, two troubled kids next door, dealing with alcoholism and depression. And yet, she seemed to feel a kindred spirit with me when I told her my own mother had died when I was ten.

These first days began the journey of many years of my life, as God used this wonderful woman to love us, care for us, and be the hands and feet of Jesus in our everyday world. Only God could orchestrate the details that would allow Jim and I to have the joy of living next to "A Lady Named Doris."

(Sometimes the least expected friends are the ones who make the biggest difference in our lives ... helping us to become who we are meant to be!)

You can find more encouraging stories from Kathleen Sogge about her mentor and encourager, Doris, in our YOUR BEST magazine issues.  Our next issue will be available at the end of March! 

 

Photo by:  Alexis Iskierka

 

    your Redeemer, the Holy One of Israel:
 

'I am the Lord your God,
    who teaches you for your own good,
    who leads you in the way you should go.'"

Isaiah 48:17 

 It's time to start listening to God.  What's He telling you today?  Do you have gifts and talents that He has instilled in you?  Things that you are very aware of, that make you feel happy and content?  Now is the time to step out of your comfort zone and begin to embrace who God has made you to be ... and who you will become!

Your Best Health with Dr. Justin

Lessening Your Risk of Heart Disease

Heart disease is the number one killer of men and women in the United States, and most of these cases are preventable. I will repeat this statement, heart disease is the number of killer of all people in the United States, and most of these cases are preventable.  Many address heart disease with diet and exercise, while others treat it with medication, and some will treat it with a combination of both. A few unlucky individuals find out too late and will be unable to reverse the effects of heart disease.

LDL or bad cholesterol has long been known to be the culprit of heart disease. Although lifestyle factors do play a role in high cholesterol, some individuals have a genetic predisposition to an increased risk of heart disease. For those concerned because of family history, an increase risk due to lifestyle, or are just looking to prevent heart disease, nutritional supplementation may be beneficial.

CoQ10 is an enzyme found in mitochondria, the energy producing structures in all cells. This enzyme is required to make the body's engine run, as it works as an antioxidant to protect DNA from damage, helps provide energy needed to heal and has been linked to helping control cholesterol levels. A low level of CoQ10 has been seen in individuals with cardiac failure.

If you have heart disease, you know that statins are the medications of choice and you may know that muscle pain and weakening are common side effects of these drugs. Researchers believe that taking CoQ10 may reduce the risk of serious muscle damage due to statins and it may reduce the muscle and joint pain that results from taking statin medications. Statins, along with aging, reduce the amount of CoQ10 that the body produces. Decreased CoQ10 causes decreased heart muscle repair and decreased energy.

 Yours in health,   Dr. Justin Hildebrand, DC    

               (Photo by: Jenessa Grossman)

Saving Mr. Banks is a story filled with lessons such as keeping promises and understanding and coping with the past. Furthermore, it is a must see for any Mary Poppins fan.

While initially Saving Mr. Banks may sound like the story of how the movie Mary Poppins was made, there is much more to it than a behind-the-scenes feature. While it does give some interesting insight to how the Mary Poppins movie came together, this is far from the basis of the movie. 

We meet P.L. Travers (played by Emma Thompson), the creator of the beloved Mary Poppins in financial distress and therefore reluctantly willing to meet with Walt Disney (played by Tom Hanks) after twenty years of Disney's attempts to bring the character to the silver screen as a promise to his daughters.

Travers grudgingly agrees to allow Disney to write a screenplay as long as she has the final say. The writing process which Travers detested was quirky and immensely entertaining. Additionally, it is interesting to see how beloved songs such as "Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious" and "Let's Go Fly A Kite" were developed with the Sherman Brothers. Travers also cultivates an unexpected friendship with her limo driver (played by Paul Giamatti) and through this relationship, you can see her true character reveal itself.

Throughout the film we learn a great deal about Travers through flashbacks of her childhood and through these flash backs we meet the real Mary Poppins. We also see how a person can come to peace with and even honor a difficult past.

While the run time is just over two hours, the movie moves at a good pace, blending thought provoking drama and laugh aloud humor. I recommend seeing it, but it may not be appropriate for younger children. The movie is rated PG-13, for some darker subject matter, such as alcohol abuse and depression.

Bottom Line: This movie was great! The entire cast does an excellent job of becoming the characters and drawing you into the movie. Even the secondary characters are a great complement to the movie, which makes it easy to get lost in the time and story. Moreover, you can walk away from the movie having learned from P.L. Travers mistakes of holding on to the past and not letting negative things from our past define who we are ... or what we do.

  

BLM Welcomes Rob to our staff!  

 
April 5, 2014

Friendship

Church 

Shakopee, MN

April 13, 2014 

Cross of Glory  Church Hopkins, MN

May 3, 2014

Church in the Grove, Benson, MN

There's still room in our schedule for a conference this spring at your location!

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