Basic HTML Version
Page 4
Dee ’ s News
Vo l ume 3 I ssue 2
Counting Blessings of 2011!
Joe Keim:
One of the greatest things that hap-
pened in my personal life during 2011 is
when my dad and I forgave each other
for the many hurts that we caused each
other throughout my growing up years.
It was without a doubt one of the most
precious events in all of my life. Every
son, regardless of his age, desires to
have his dad’s blessings and words of affirmation. Even at
44 years of age, I needed to hear my dad say, “Son, I am
proud of you!” I needed to hear him say, “Son, I give my
blessings to you and your family!” I needed to know that he
accepted me with an unconditional love, just like Jesus.
Without it, I felt a constant void within my soul and the
terrible pain of rejection. After my dad gave me a hug and
blessed me and my family, I felt a spirit of empowerment go
all through my body. In some sense, it felt like my whole
world just came together. Even God seemed more re-
al. Overwhelming joy spread from the top of my head to
the bottom of my feet.
I believe with all my heart that many of you former Amish
deal with what I just shared. Some of you have given up
that your family relationship will ever be restored. This pain
that you feel is like a throbbing thumb that just got hit with
a hammer and continues to rob you of joy and complete-
ness; you question whether you will ever have a story like
mine to tell. But can I tell you something? Don’t ever give
up! It took 25 years for my dad and I to get to a point of
reconciliation. 25 long years! But I never once gave up. I
knew that our God was bigger and more powerful than ei-
ther one of us. And I knew that as long as there was breath,
there was still opportunity.
As I reflect on my experience, I would like to encourage
you: do not wait on your family to come to you. Go to
them. Let’s not forget that when we left, we hurt them very
deeply; which in turn caused them just as much heartache
and confusion as it did us. Maybe even a lot more. So I
challenge you to make the first move. Go give them a hug.
Tell them how great your love is for them. I promise, if you
will do that, it will change your life forever. May God em-
power you to live a life that counts.
David and Verna Wengerd:
I just thought I would say a few things about some wonder-
ful blessings God has given me in the past year. I met a
wonderful guy and we got married in October.
Praise God! I also was able to get off meds
after being on them for over 6 years. And next
month it will be 2 years since I have left everything I knew
for the sake of being able to live a life without bondage and
my love for my Savior. Blessings!
Rebecca Yoder:
My blessing for 2011 is that I was delivered from inherent
fear in my life by a revelation of God's perfect love and ac-
ceptance of me because of his Son Jesus Christ. I went
through a program called Deliverance and Healing and I'm
very thankful to my friends in Missouri who helped me out
with that.
I love how many times God woke me up in the morning, just
in time to get to work. Not too late, but not too early either.
Every now & and then, my alarm clock won't go off. Some-
times, I would just wake up really quickly, or there was some
sort of noise, like sirens or something. Always makes my day!
Mattie & girls Erica Rose & Marissa Lorene:
Oh so many blessings! In July of 2010 I came to Montana.
The church here welcomed us with open arms. I was a single
mom and was pregnant with no #2. In Sept of 2010 my
Marissa was born. God blessed me with a job when she was
5 weeks old, and a week later, an apartment that I could af-
ford. During Christmas of 2010 and New Year’s 2011, I had
talked to some different people about starting to make jams
and jellies to sell and what people like. One
person asked me to make jalapeno raspberry
jelly. I hadn't heard of it before, so I started to
play with a recipe. I changed it to his liking
over the spring and summer of 2011. I baked
pies, breads, and cinnamon rolls to sell at a camp ground,
along with this jelly (and other kinds too). I worked at my job
full time in the summer and baked two days a week. Now
when people see me they want the jelly mostly. I cannot
make it fast enough, and am looking to go commercial with it
and all kinds of other things. (Oh, and in March of 2011, I
became debt-free!) God has blessed us so richly. In Decem-
ber, I wanted to bless a family who had invited others over
for dinner so I called to ask if I could help with dinner. God
blessed me five times over what I gave to this family. We
serve an amazing GOD! My website is: mattieshomemad-
ekitchen.com.