Gratitude

Welcome to February 2025! Several people have inquired about my health the past few days, so here is a quick update.

My body continues to slow down. I am sleeping the majority of the day the last few months. The doctors believe based on some recent infections, my neurological issues have gotten much worse. Harder for me to get around these days. This past Monday, doctors believe I had a small TIA (mini stroke). Thankfully I was not hospitalized. Sadly, my dementia is further along than first thought. Of course that could have been caused by the multiple infections and procedures I had towards the end of last year. The doctors have decided with the complex headaches and further risk for a stroke, that it’s not a good idea for me to be driving. I must agree. So this past Monday, we sold one of our cars and are happy with the one car we have.

I do not look at this as a sad time in my journey. I choose to look at all the amazing opportunities that are still in front of me. So I will continue to wake up every morning with gratitude in my heart and give God thanks for another day of life. Physically and Mentally, life is much harder these days, but honestly I would not trade my life and all of the beautiful moments I have experienced and will continue to experience. Laura and I are at peace.

My prayer for each of you, is that you will embrace every moment of everyday and find some sunshine among the clouds. ~OC

Today’s a new day! What are you grateful for? For me personally, I have so much to be grateful for.

I am grateful for the love, peace, grace and forgiveness of God in my life.

I am grateful for my bride Laura. She has been a rockstar, as we have run this crazy beautiful health journey. I am blessed to be her husband.

I am grateful for all of my friends and family, and for all that they do for me.

I am grateful for this crazy beautiful health journey. It has made me a better person. So many lessons learned.

I am grateful for my medical team. They have been a blessing to Laura and I the past 22 years and counting.

I am grateful for complete strangers that have shown me little acts of kindness.

I am grateful to God, for the life He’s given me.

I could go on and on about what I am grateful for, but that would take me days to share.

How do we live a life of gratitude?

When you think about it, simple acts of gratitude cost us nothing, but the effects of gratitude in our lives make such a huge difference.

God has given each of us so much, if we only choose to take the time to recognize it. I believe we owe it to God to recognize these gifts and to be grateful.

An ungrateful person will never use or understand God’s gifts as well as they should and will complain often – missing all the blessings that God is giving to them. And it’s only when we keep our eyes on God and all that He has given to us, that we will make the best use of His gifts.

And this gratitude shouldn’t end with only what “feels” good to us. Let your gratitude extend to all things in life, even to the less pleasant and even the more difficult things, which God allows us to experience. Because He has planned each of our lives with His wisdom and love. Nothing is by accident. And everything we receive in life is meant to help us to grow closer to God.

If I began to count the all of the things that I owe to God, I would never finish counting, because each added moment of life is another gift.

Gratitude keeps our hearts humble, it helps us to see everything as a gift from God and helps us to focus our lives on others – versus always thinking of ourselves.

I encourage each of us to always keep gratitude in our hearts. Never letting it fade away. It can change everything. ~OC

Today’s a new day! Here are three promises from our Lord and Savior.

God will always affirm your worth. Matthew 6:26

God will work things out for your good. Romans 8:28

God is faithful even when we’re not. 2 Timothy 2:13

I made one of the best decisions of my life twenty years ago. I had the honor of marrying my best friend Laura West Shoemaker. Oh, what a journey it has been. So many amazing moments and memories.

Laura and I met in January of 1999 and were married by September 1999. Crazy I know! I am sure a lot of people thought we were crazy when we exchanged our vows. Remember, we had only known each other for nine months. But we knew God had brought us together, to walk this journey called life as husband and wife. Of course, we had no idea what a crazy beautiful journey it would be.

Imagine being just a few years into your marriage and your life changing forever. That was what Laura and I experienced in 2002. Finding out that my body was beginning to betray me was life changing, but not in the way you might think. My health journey has been a struggle for both of us. At the same time, the journey has been an amazing gift. A gift Laura and I have decided to embrace with enthusiasm. Most days.

From the very beginning, Laura and I decided that my health struggles would not define us. Our story would not be a sad one. No, we made the choice to keep living. Not just living, but to truly Thrive in life.

Our faith has been a major part of our marriage. From the very beginning, God has been the center of our relationship. We did meet at church after all. God has walked with us every step of our crazy journey. Through the good times and the challenging times

From the highs of exchanging wedding vows twenty years ago to the continuing challenges of dealing with life threatening health issues in 2019, the journey has been one amazing ride. I would not change a thing. The good days and the challenging days have brought us closer together. This journey has been filled with so many amazing memories. No day or moment taken for granted. Each day celebrated. Each moment cherished. I am grateful God has allowed us to walk this crazy beautiful journey together. Let’s keep living this adventure and making amazing memories together. Love you girl! ~OC

Tag: Gratitude

Welcome to February 2025

Three Promises

Twenty Years Ago Today