Doctor’s, Tea, and Me

Busy, busy, busy … but isn’t that the way summer is?

We were truly blessed to have my sister and her family come down to visit.

My brother in-law deserves a metal! After driving the long journey, he was left to deal with two sisters (me and his wife) and four kiddos. Not only did he take them to the park one day, but on another day he took the kiddos to lunch and then swimming at their hotel while we ladies went to tea. I have a thing for tea and tea accoutrements so I have to show you the set my sister gifted me with:

Isn’t it beautiful!

Of course, since they don’t normally visit every year and they had just come last summer, they purposely timed their visit so that my hubby could accompany me to the doctor while they watched the boys.

So here’s the scoop:

• There is more than one type of atrial fibrillation and the type that I have is not fatal (that means when I have an episode my heart should not explode). That’s good news! However, if ignored and allowed to continue that status could change.
• Unfortunately, with all types of atrial fibrillation, my blood can pool in my heart, clot, and cause a stroke.
• The beta blocker medication I was on is not an option – it didn’t stop the episodes and the side-effects where considerable and life controlling.
• Ablation is still an option; but, due to obvious risks and a small chance of failure we opted to try a new medication in the calcium blocker category first.
• Apparently, the hormone prescribed to me, which began this whole ordeal, is capable of “rewiring” your heart electrochemically by burning new pathways. However, if the episodes can be stopped completely for about 6 to 8 months: the older, God ordained pathways can re-immerge as the dominant pathways and negate the surgery.
• As usual there are a slew of side-effects, so here is a prayer request: that this medication stops all episodes, no side-effects, and that the heart reverts so surgery is mute.
  

PS – take a gander at the Entrepreneurial Days to the right, I hope to write a little about my experience in 2006 when I’m not so disoriented (side-effect) both the beta and calcium blockers tend to make me a very distractible with the inability to focus, confused, air head (thus not many posts as they are very difficult to compose at this juncture). So, please excuse any grammar, spelling issues, etc.

Jamestown vs. Plymouth Providential Differences

You might not agree with everything that I say, nor I with you; but we still can be friends. This is the foundation of America. We view things differently but choose to work together. This too, is Dr. Paul Jehle’s premise; when he asserts that God orchestrated the spiritual foundations of our country through Plymouth and Jamestown.

The Providential Nexus of Plymouth and Jamestown by Vision Forum Ministries is not an argument over which town began America, but a call to today’s Christians to unite and fulfill God’s ultimate plan for America.

From the summary blurb (below) I had been expecting a documentary comparing the historical significance of Jamestown and Plymouth followed by some startling evidence as to how the two were entwined. Instead, Dr. Jehle delivers a sermon with a poignant reminder of our spiritual foundations. He uses historical evidences, concerning the towns, as an insightful object lesson to drive the point home: that regardless of doctrinal or worship differences, if we agree on the fundamentals of the Gospel then we have enough to unite and fulfill God’s purpose.

In all Dr. Jehle does well with defending his argument with historical information, not being a scholar myself, I trust Vision Forum to be correct on these points. That being said, The Providential Nexus of Plymouth and Jamestown would be an excellent video for anyone studying American History and a wonderful way to introduce pastors and congregations to the idea of a community worship service and/or missions initiative.

To obtain your copy of The Providential Nexus of Plymouth and Jamestown by Vision Forum Ministries click on the Vision Forum button or link to the right.

From the back of The Providential Nexus of Plymouth and Jamestown:
Was the Jamestown Settlement founded for solely commercial purposes? Was the Plymouth Colony formed simply to establish religious liberty? For centuries, there have been tensions among historians about the legacies of these two early settlements, resulting in a geographical turf battle over which colony gave birth to the American ideal. Jamestown claims to be America’s birthplace. Plymouth claims to be America’s hometown. So how do we reconcile the two? In this illuminating message, Dr. Paul Jehle clarifies many misconceptions and demonstrates that while Jamestown and Plymouth had real differences, each had vital strengths that the other needed — and that, over time, God would providentially weave together these elements to form the greatest nation in the West.