Investments

There are many "investments" that one can make in this life, and we all prioritize them according to our perceived value.

Each one has a cost/investment to obtain them.

Then there is the "cost to continue" motivating us to carefully protect our investment.

Part of "maintaining" our investment is to "exercise" or use it as much as need be to "have gain" from it.

These investments can be both physical and spiritual.

The short list of mine would prioritize as such:

Highest value: Jesus Christ.

Cost: Faith in Him and His death and Resurrection.

Cost to continue: His Word, Prayer, and Servant hood.

Maintenance: Doing those things that He did and greater things.

The gain: Eternal Life, helping others out of a True Love and sincere heart, introducing others to Jesus.

I said this would be a short list. I have many investments in this vale but I give a very close second to:

My wife:

The cost: Unconditional Love.

The cost to continue: expressing Unconditional Love through thought, word, and deed.

Maintenance: all my attention when she speaks. That means "I listen". Nothing shows a woman that you Love her more than when you listen. Why? Because listening is more costly than silver, gold, precious stones or anything that can be made by the hands of man.

To listen costs the most precious price of all: "time". It's the only thing that once given it can't be taken back. You invest/spend it once, in it's frame,and then it is "set in concrete" as you cannot change what you did with it.

How many marriages would be alive today if the precious jewel of "time to listen" were given instead of expensive fillers.

Time to listen, especially with the heart, opens to doors to unlimited value perceived by the wife. "He took time to listen to me and what's important to me" is the basic heart cry of every woman that has bound herself to man in matrimony.

A man who can respond to his wife's words with the same importance as she spoke them will find that his wife will be free to "respect her husband". That respect will become the seed to grow into the Unconditional Love that is needed to "ensure" the marriage and it's future growth.

God designed men to be leaders in the marriage. He commands them to "Love their wives" and the woman to "respect" their husbands. Know this men, it's hard to respect the man when he won't even make the investment of "time", (that irreplaceable jewel), to "know his wife's heart".

Most men don't realize the potential that is locked within the wife to "come along side" as a help meet to make him the kind of successful he is destine for.

In marriage a man and woman become "one". "How can two : walk together unless they be agreed?" and I would add: agreement calls for "intimate, honest" conversation. That implies that "he who leads" knows the hearts of those who follow because he listens. The wife will give "non contested" support for her man when she knows that his decisions are part based on her intimating her heart to him.

What does it mean to "listen"?

To listen is to give equal consideration to the speaker as you want to have.

It means to recognize their passion as equal to yours.

Realizing that their vision is just as strong as yours.

The end means of "listening" is the root of marriage: to become one.

Two cannot become one if both speak and neither listen!

Two cannot become one if only one speaks and no one listens!

Two cannot become one if no one speaks!

Two cannot become one if neither have the "time" to invest "

The Biblical marriage of oneness can only be obtained by investing time and listening to each others hearts.This has a long lasting effect on a marriage and it bares it's own fruit of Love, Joy and Peace in the Holy Spirit. Name one marriage that couldn't use a good dose of that fruit? Believe it or not men that a simple thing such as lending an ear could empower your marriage to levels that you could only imagine or pray for.

All that you hold important to you convinces your wife of how important she is to you.

So be brave..............just ask her what she thinks about where she stands!

Let her answer the question "are we still becoming one"?

Then ask her "how can I make this better"?

Then ...........take time to listen!

Love

Jerry and Elise

Pure Love

Ever since we were married in 1972 the same question has been asked me countless times by both friends and complete strangers.

What was that question?????

How did someone who looks like you end marrying someone like her? (And you thought that Beauty and the Beast was fantasy! In reality it is my life story.)

Let me answer that obvious question:

Pure Love! That's it, just Pure Love.

Pure: not deceiving, not demanding, not expecting, not self indulging, Pure.

Pure: knowing that I could "lay down my life for her" without thought.

Pure: willing to commit my life to demanding labor to support her.

Pure: vowing to "be there" through thick and thin, laughter and weeping, up's and down's, trials and tribulations.

Pure: recognizing her full potential before I knew her. Seeing that she was innocent by her smile. Feeling her warmth in the touch of her hand, experiencing the passion for life with her that I could see lasting 46+ years and keeps on inspiring through eternity.

Pure Love. With a capital P and L to emphasize its strength and eternal purpose.

I have sought for this higher Pure Love before the time that woman ever had an attraction to me. At 12 yrs old I knew that woman were God's best gift to man aside from Jesus Christ. I knew that someday I would know how to Love the way man was meant to by design, God's design. Through all the temptation of maturing as a man, God had a plan for me that kept me "out of the pond" where all those woman were swimming. Just ask anyone that I went to school with. I'm not ashamed of the lack of participation along those lines. Actually it kept me from being "confused" about what Pure Love was. If I was going to participate in all the expression of Love it was only going to be once. A solid plan then and it still holds True now.

After I met Elise and started this Pure Love learning process my "need to know how" became front and center.

I applied all that I knew up to that time, then started to seek an instructor that "wrote the book" on it. God was my only choice as He is Love. Who better to teach then "He who is" what He is teaching? One of His first instructions to me was to "listen" to my wife on all manners of relationship that effects her as a woman. Then to make sure that I was listening He effected "things" to test my comprehension. At the beginning I failed a lot, but as time (years) went by my scores came up. To help with the process God did help me out with dreams and visions to help me understand what replicated His Love to her. Between God teaching and listening to Elise, obeying both instructors, Pure Love grew and will never stop growing. And I will never stop learning from both.

So what has this gained me?

A completely intimate growing relationship with God.

A completely intimate continuing relationship with Elise.

A wife that knows she is Love by me above life itself.

A wife that is confident in her husband.

A wife that knows that she is priceless in my eyes.

A wife who is not only free to pursue her dreams but knows that I support them.

A wife that knows that nothing she says will ever be received with criticism or mocking.

She can rest in my Pure Love knowing that I Love every thing about her.

But that's not the end of this post:

Love comes from a bottomless spirit that God keeps filling so that it never runs out.

I never expected Pure Love to be reciprocated because Love is Unconditional and doesn't need to be returned. But God in His great mercy showed me one day the depth of my wife's Love in a vision. It was at a time when her suffering with this tumor was at it's worse. I always knew that she deeply loved me but to see it for what it really was broke me as it still does every time I recall it.

So enough about me!

What about you?

Do you Love passionately enough to "lift up your wife"? Her heart? Her Spirit? Her Life?

Do you desire to Love her Unconditionally like God love's you both?

Remember that Unconditional (Pure) Love is a verb. It's always moving and thinking of new ways to express itself.

A word, a long hug, a tender kiss, a brushing touch. Words like "I Love you" while you are staring deep into her eyes. Opening the doors for her or serving her first. Telling her how much you really appreciate what she has done or what she is doing now. Hold hands publicly, better still at home where it won't be seen by anyone but you and known of her.

Love can be described in many words but most of all it's described in intimacy. Make everything about the Love you express in thought, word and deed be intimate! The way God designed it to be. Physical intimacy is very important but only a very small facet of Pure Love. Pure Love is intimacy with your wife on an ever increasing scale, in "all ways" and "always". Never ending.

So this was a little bit about me, a bit about Elise, some thoughts on God's design, but a lot about Pure Love.

The ball is in your court.

God bless.

Love

Jerry and Elise

Update on Elise 10-26-18

Greetings in Jesus name!
Good news, good news Christ died for me and by His stripes we are healed!
Elise entered the Mayo Clinic for an operation on 9-20-18 for a brain tumor of rather significant concern and here we are 10-26-18 at my daughter Sarah's house celebrating a miracle of healing.
Elise was released from the hospital on Friday evening 10-29-18 having obtained the title of "Miracle Woman." The Acute Therapy she was going to participate in was supposed to be 2-4 weeks but instead (by the hand of God) it was 13 days with her gaining back all use of her right hand and led except for full strength. She will spend 2-4 weeks in Out Patient therapy here near Sarah's house before we return home for good.
It was a tough battle for her to "rise from the ashes" of deep invasive brain surgery, loss of her right limbs, seizures, blood clots, and UTI's but she never gave up. Not saying that many times these obstacles made her miserable enough to weep but she still overcame each one of them by the grace of God and continue on to victory as we know it now. This doesn't mean that she has reached the finish line, but it does mean that she is 85% or better "whole" body, speech, mind, and spirit. All she has left to do is strengthen her cognitive depth, her muscles, and her balance. She is enjoying for the first time in 6 months walking by herself, sitting up straight, showering mostly alone, eating by herself, cutting her food for herself, putting on her own make up, and doing her own hair. These are all big deals when doing these things alone was impossible just months ago.
So some might ask what's so miraculous about that? The average rehab/recovery time for this operation is 4 weeks in house rehab then up to 3 months outpatient. We had, so far, 13 days in house and our outpatient will be no longer than 4 wks. We will find out on Tuesday 10-30-18 when they evaluate her.
All her therapy people couldn't believe how fast she advanced from no use of limbs to full use and range of limbs in less than 2 wks. Clearly a miracle for God's glory.
She is looking for the day next year when the pool will once again be her favorite form of exercise, and hours of sun and water will unite old friends again.
I cannot begin to tell you how effective your prayers have been during this period. Thanks again.

Time to go home.

Just before leaving for the airport.

God is good all the time.

Update on Elise 10-21-18

Greetings Family, Prayer Partners, Friends and all who have been interceding in behalf of my wife Elise:
Thank you for your prayers and intercessions throughout this time of trial for us.
I would like to start with asking your forgiveness for not keeping up with these updates especially at the close of the most crucial part. There is no excuse on my part and I let my own weariness overcome my sense of duty to keep everyone informed. I found myself falling asleep every time I sat down with little energy to do anything else but "try to catch up" on rest. I would have never imagined that I would drop the ball like that. This is a new experience for me and my discovering how aging sometimes is selfish and somewhat irresponsible.
Please forgive my weakness of the flesh when so many have spent so much time faithfully to turn there hearts towards heaven in fervent prayer that certainly made the difference in the outcome. 

Now let me catch you all up:
Elise was supposed to be released on Wed. next week 10-24. Because of your prayers and Gods mighty intervention they changed that date to 10-21. We were approached by the discharge nurse of the change and asked if we could make that work. We said yes but then the Doctor that we had told us that there would be no therapy for Saturday and Sunday because there was a waiting list to get in and the new patients would get the therapy over us because we were in good enough shape to discharge now. We asked if we could discharge on Friday night and they said yes and that it would actually help them out, so we did.
All the therapists said that Elise had done great and was ready, and that staying wouldn't gain to much more, again so we opted to be discharged.
Gain:
3 weeks ago Elise couldn't move her right arm and right leg at all after the surgery. On Thursday night around 3 am I noticed her fussing in her bed and she said her leg was hurting. I got up and went to her bed and she had her leg pulled up with her ankle to her butt leg folded. I asked her if she did that herself and she said yes. Glory to God she could move it back and forth for the first time since the operation. When she would move before this all she could do is drag that leg, within 24 hours she was walking full strides. Within 30 hours she was walking 400' trips 3 times that day. Her leg was miraculously healed. The very next day the same thing happened to her right arm but this time at 1 am. Within 24 hrs she had movement up to her elbow then within 30 hours she had it up to her shoulder. Soon she was lifting it over her head, all she needed was to build strength exactly what the therapy was meant to do. Praise God another miracle so mighty and quick the Doctor in charge of the therapies called Elise his "miracle woman". That coming from a German Phyc Doctor (named Schmidt) was rather incredible. He was the one that had the say on whether or not Elise could get into the Acute Rehab there. Up until that time he said "no" and wanted her to "find another place' as she didn't qualify. But God had other plans!
Now:
She has finished what they considered to be "more than enough" healing to be released so the recommendation was to let her go.
A note:
Every therapist that worked with her fell in love with her "don't give up attitude" and when asked if she wanted a rest she would almost without fail say "lets keep going". That brought her to her first 1000' walk rather quickly then she went into the 4 hours of divided therapy without hesitation. The hand of God and your prayers got her there successfully. If I may boast I will boast in the Lord and your endless, passionate prayers. Now that's being part of something big, something miraculous. A heart felt thanks again. When it was time to leave there were plenty of hugs and tears all around.
Sarah has arranged to meet us in Chicago on our return flight Thursday and Rachael is going to drive here to help us pack and get on the plane to leave. Soon we will be at outpatient rehab at Sarah's when we will finish up our strengthening and safety rehab 2-3 days a week near her house. Then home to Tn.
We will have follow up MRI's every 3 months until they are convinced that the last chapter has been written on a recurrence so prayers are still needed there. Also there will be a follow up with a Neurologist to see how long she has to take the seizure meds. She suffered a small clot in her right leg during the time it was dormant so now she is on shots (2 x a day) for the next 70 days to make sure that doesn't move and dissolves. There is no follow up on this because it's a prescribed treatment for a set period of time. We need this to also be kept in prayer as we have no Rx insurance.
Discharge:
We discharged on Friday evening and came back to the hotel room. First a private shower, then a celebratory meal at the local Saints on 2nd restaurant next door, then for the first nights real sleep we have had in the last 30 days at least. Finally a dark, quite, undisturbed room for a almost perfect sleep. Together at last. Now that's a miracle too. Then Saturday a late wake up call and a home (hotel room) cooked meal of fried eggs, sausage, toast and coffee with my wife a benefit that we haven't had since we left Sarah's to come here. Once breakfast was over there was exercises to do mostly walking. So we walked the halls and rode the elevator, visited the exercise room for a little workout on the cycle and the elliptical. That kind of effort was rewarded with Elise getting a very sore back and me getting cramps in my calves. Easy does it is the word on that stuff. Saturday night was JJ's Gargantuan sandwich split between the two of us and a very welcome bag of Lay's chips for a side. Delightful. Sunday breakfast was Elise's favorite homemade egg burrito's with coffee and a cherry turn over. God is God all the time. We slept in late today and then took a needed nap to get up to speed for the rest of the day. Lol.
Time to wrap this up, more for later as it comes to mind.
God bless and keep.
Again thanks for your prayers.
Love in Christ
Jerry and Elise     
 

Update on Elise 10-13-18

Here we are 23 days after the operation having obtained objective of Acute Rehab at the Mayo Clinic a prized effort to follow up with the prized surgery.
The greatest praise goes to "the Lord God Almighty" for His intervention and restoration of Elise. "Having done all we could to stand, just stand!" That is how we made it through thus far. We had to
"trust the system", first Gods, (by faith and His promises), then the medical system which I was completely ignorant of. Having the right priorities (God first, doctors second,) and the prayers of uncountable saints, we have "overcome" the enemy at our gates and witnessed new height's of "the movement of God".
But the road has been rough and the journey beset with many obstacles. Right at this time Elise is fighting a particularly nasty urinary infection. The actual antibiotic needed for quick results cannot be used because it can nullify the anti seizure med's and cause seizures. So at this time they are using a lesser med intravenously fir the next 5 days and hopefully it will end this. She is in a room with another woman that is quite the opposite of her. This is difficult for her as she is pressed out of measure with the outcome. It seems like everything that pushes her out of her comfort zone is happening here, now. But God's grace is enough.
Right now after 1 day of observation (last Monday) they have assessed that she could possible be released on 10-23. The assessments come out twice a week: Tues and Thursday. We will wait to see what they have to say having see her preform for a whole week. Could be longer and could be shorter. She is doing so well that the head doctor of the teams calls her (openly) his "miracle woman". Many of the staff are saying that her kind of recovery has never been witnessed like this before. All her PT, OT, and Speech Therapy are amazed daily as to her progress. Let me make this crystal clear that it's not been without much weeping on both of our sides but the "Good News" is that Jesus is Lord and the Holy Spirit is our Comforter in everything that has "beset" us.
Well I am so beat that I can hardly continue here, but not to weary to humble myself with weeping and thank the "King of Kings" for His Divine Intervention in this attack on the most dedicated woman I have ever met.
I have so much more to write but lack the energy to "write on".
Thanks for all the prayer past, present, and future. We certainly need and covet them till this affliction is over and we are home once again.
Elise misses Family, Friends and the Church and longs to "come home".
God bless and keep all of you!
Love (with thanksgiving)
Jerry and Elise

Update on Elise 9-29-18

Well we are on day 9 after the surgery and there has been many ups and downs to this journey. The Good News is that Jesus is Lord over all whether stormy seas, mountains or valley's, alien army's, or afflictions. He is Lord of all.
I don't know all that I have posted in the past as lack of deep sleep and "learning" how the "system" works have stolen most of my time to participate in these updates.
Since the operation Elise has had 5 seizures, 1 about 2 mins and 4 at around 30 seconds. That may not sound bad but they shoot for 0 seizures because they can delay the brain from reconnecting with the limbs and in this case her right arm and leg. Usually 3-4 days after surgery the limbs effected start to "come alive" again, but because of meds and the anesthesia fro the operation hers have not. They cut her meds back a bit and this is the 3rd day she is able to start learning her right side again. With that said she is gaining progress as they expected before the seizures. Right now she can wriggle her right foot toes and roll her right leg side to side. She even lifted it to step as she was being moved from her bed to the chair. Her right arm is still not responding with the same success yet, but there is some brain/hand, arm connecting going on.
She is sad at times with the desire to "go home" but realizes that interceding prayer and hard work will bring that goal to past. So we invite all to "pray without ceasing" that this woman will make the cut for the in house rehab program which is equal in quality to the surgeons skills and a good match. Our surgeon and his team is pulling to get us into the program as he says, "why waist an excellent operation by following it up with less than excellent rehab. If the truth be known they have set the bar awful high to get in and it will only be the Hand of God that opens that door. In order to qualify Elise has to be able to do 3 hours of rehab a day. 3 sessions 1 hour each. That might not sound like much but with muscles weakened from surgery, age and lack of tone that is a tall order. If she gets in we can stay here and they will set her up on the rehab floor and I can stay across the street at the hotel seeing her as much as I can. If she doesn't make it then we have to head back to Sarah's and she will have to stay "off site" with me only doing day visits. This would crush her and I because we have become one and to be without the other is more than just painful. Some men might say "that's life get over it this stuff happens", but Love just won't let me respond with such cruelty to the woman who has allowed me to share her life for the last 46 yrs. Love never fails, it is not cruel! Unconditional Love is the glue that binds us together as one, and it cannot be broken.
Elise is a strong woman, a woman of faith, a woman of strength, and woman of (and in) prayer , but she also is a woman that needs to feel the saints "lifting her up" as this battle to gain back her life will take all the grace she has to see it through. Again we are trusting our Savior to heal and deliver her realizing that you are part of that "brotherhood of saints"which forms the army in agreement behind Him.
"I am weak but He is strong" is very true in my case. There has been times that I have wept with joy and thanksgiving, then there were times when I just wept in deep intersession with no direction for prayer. A ship in the storms of life waiting for Jesus to cross the stormy seas so we could "get to the other side". As of yet I have not been given the time to "pour out my soul" till I am completely emptied of emotion and revived by the Comforter, the Mind of Christ, who comforts all those in distress.
I have had many battles in my life against both the spirit realm and the carnal realm, they all seem as nothing to what I am facing in this present affliction. For a man it's easy to "do battle" when the attack comes against him personally, but when it's the "flesh of his flesh and bone of his bone" and he cannot "ascribe" aid to that "Beloved" it's a whole different fight arena. Man cannot "loan" out strength to another no matter how much he desires, but God, I say but God, can ascribe divine strength to the weak and weary so that He through the victory would gain praise and glory for Himself. That is His purpose, that is our offering.
This experience has both deepened our intimacy with Him, and our faith in Him, continuing to  perfect our revelation of Him, so that we can be used by Him, in all things. 
We may be broken in the flesh but we are mighty in spirit laying hold of the hope that is within us, Jesus Christ our Lord.
Deep Love to all who read this coming from deep pain from Elise and I who need this.
God bless and keep.
Love
Mom and Pop's
Jerry and Elise





 

Update on Elise 9-20-18

It's 5 am in Minnesota and in about 25 minutes we will be on our way to achieve healing for Elise. It's been a long 3 months to get to this point filled with praise, thanksgiving, weeping, and worship. Now it's the doctors turn to be used of God and have his skills "divinely" enhanced for the expected outcome of restoration. Elise is ready to work her way back to normality and start functioning at full capacity. That might take some time in rehab but at least it's a ladder going up to climb instead of suffering around the lower levels of life. 
All your prayers have brought us to this point and we are sure the Lord God Almighty will see it through the rest of the way.
Thank you all who have participated thus far and will continue until this chapter in our lives is closed.
God bless and keep.
Love
Jerry and Elise