Christian Photographers Community

Jane, you and I have been prayer partners on behalf of Bry and some of my children for years. May God be with him and guide his every step.

Ruth Ann

Thanks, Ruth Ann.   

Bless the Lord, O my soul,
And all that is within me -
Bless His holy Name!

For He has done great things!
He has done great things!
He has done great things -
Bless His holy Name!

Oh AL that song runs around in my head/heart all the time!  God has indeed done great things ... and I expect Him to continue to bless His children.

Last word about Bryan is that he has received "rave reviews" on his probational interview and that he also has been promoted to the Fuel Station at Safeway. He says the night manager really wants him on his team but, Bry says, the guys on that shift goof off a lot and smoke and use bad language (because there are fewer customers) and he just doesn't want to put himself in that position again.  Whatta guy!  He likes the fuel station.  As he says: "It's like being manager of my own mini market." 

God is blessing this young man and there will come the day when Bryan will be able to help many along the way to knowing Him more intimately.

I hope to see Bryan in a few weeks.  I'll tell him how so many of my friends have been/are praying for him. 

God is soooo GOOD -- ALL the time!!

Thank You, Father, for what You are doing in and through Bryan.  I pray You'll make Him a living testimony in his job to Your saving grace and mercy.  Oh do this in him, Father, through our Lord Jesus Christ.

What great news, Jane! I'll continue to pray for healing and recovery for Bry.

Thanks, Ruth Ann and Al. for your prayers and support.  If you have a chance, I have posted pictures and comments on my visit with Joy and Bryan recently.  It is under the heading "My two weeks with family" in Photography Here....  He is doing reallly well, and Joy (his mother) has just joined CP ... You'll love her!  I do.   

Joy has such a sweet spirit. 

Jane, I am continuing to remember your dear Bry, as well.  And it's so nice to be able to welcome Joy here.  (I love her name!)

I still have bry's photos in my Bible that I use everyday. I am still praying for those who have returned from Iraq with problems.

Thank you ALL for your prayers -- I write with tears streaming down because of your love and prayers for my family.    

There will always be a need to pray for this one I believe.  He really has some Post Tramatic Stress symptoms going on ....but God brought him out of the "fire" and there is a genuine call on (and a fight for) his life.  You are all like extended family that I just met.........Hi Y'all, I'm glad to meet ya!

Joy

Joy, Bry has become special to many of us here---he has lots of grandmas!  I emailed him wile he was in Iraq and assured him of my prayers.  And we are so glad to meet you, too!  Welcome to the family!

Thank you thank you ---- you know as a fellow diver you might relate to this...

I just thought of it while in another location --

the term Buddy-Breathe......

when you run out of your own air your dive partner draws you close and shares out of their abundance.  That's what prayer support feels like.......when the wind is knocked out of you, look to your prayer partners for life support until you can get to the surface.........

weird, how my mind works sometimes...you'll get used to it, I think!  Love you in Jesus!! Joy

Yes, Joy ... with tears streaming down my face, too.  I'm glad you have joined CP and come to know of all the prayers that have (and are) ascending for our guy Bry.  I know you will love these people as I do ... God is good -- all the time.  He is with Bry and will be his all sufficient supply...we have to trust Him to know and do what is best for all concerned. 

Joy, I love your illustration about buddy-breathing!  May I use it sometime?  NEAT!!  Thanks for telling me.  (And isn't the underwater world awesome?  I LOVE it!)

You may use whatever your beautiful heart desires......and YES I absolutely love going down under to that other world beneath the surface.  What an amazing experience.  God is so creative!

What a great description of "buddy breathe", Joy!  Yes, we continue to pray for our Bry on this site and my prayers continue!

Ok, so I will give an update --- he is keeping his smile firmly in place, but he is currently homeless.   I won't go into details, but he has no place to live, no car, and pretty much only the clothes on his back right now.  I have called his work a couple of times and he answers the phone with a cheerful voice.  He spent one night in the break room (he works at a 24 hour grocery store) and the next night he stayed at work until 4 am and then went for a walk until he came to a bench...where he slept until daylight - a couple of hours - and I worried on my knees for him all night and the next day and then waited until his shift was ending at 11:30 PST (1:30 my time) to call to (hear his voice) and ask where he planned to sleep....and he didn't know....then he called me right back and had an invitation at a friends house for a couple of nights. 

This is hard for me to write -- It is hard to speak of my son as being so smart and wonderful with a purpose of God - a VFW etc....that is sleeping on park benches.   BUT he is not depressed - PRAISE GOD - he says, "Mom, when I look back on my life forty years from now, this time will not even register as significant"   as my mother would say "This too shall pass"  All things are temporary, what we do for Christ is all that's important.  Well, he wants to register for Jr college, and I can do that online......so the prayer request for this time is

Pray that he will acquire a safe place to stay that is close to his work (which is close to college) -- and that his attitude remains positive and future oriented! 

Thanks ---- I trust you with my son's needs ----

I mentioned to him the California Conservation Corps and the Peace Corps - two places where you get free housing with your employ and you are in a community of people who are dedicated to serving others - for either one or two years.   He said that it sounded like a place for desperate people with no other choices.....I said---hmm hmm, you are homeless right now...and that is when he came out with that "when I look back on my life..." quote -- He is such a great guy --- and he said that if it gets "that bad" he would just go back into the military.........but he is sure it will be ok.  He has such faith!

Thanks again  --  I know you all have family with "stuff" too -- thanks for adding us to your list......you are a blessing!

Thanks, Joy, for letting Bry's situation be known.  I truly believe that God is totally in control and this will one day be a great testimony to His faithfulness.  A mother's <and grandmother's> heart is always very vulnerable ... I love you and you must know that Bry has lots of loving, praying "grandmas" here at CP.  Know that this situation is all in the Great Plan of our Saviour ... I have not mentioned this to anyone but, since you have, I can assure you there are MANY who will be covering our guy Bry in prayer.   God will have all the glory in this ... I pronise you.   

I have just prayed for Bry's situation and will continue tohole him up to the Lord in prayer. I am sitting here with tears in my eyes.

When My son Gilbert finished his Junior year of college he decided he wanted to travel and see what it was like to be homeless and traveling the USA. He did that for a year and I worried over him every day. During his travels he met Sarah his mate in wisconsin who turned out to be from California too. They are still togeter all these years later and have two beautiful children. They were both traveling following the Grateful Dead around the USA.

After allthat he went back to college and finish he senior year and graduated with a BS in Wildlife biology and Natural resources. He is now a glass blower.

Thank you Mom for honoring my request to not share my email..sometimes I write things to you hastily and then by the time it gets around, the situation blows over and it was "unnecessary" to worry.....well that's what I was hoping here, plus, I guess my pride is at stake here, I wish I were able to help him -- I have taken time to help him with housing, but he has not been able to maintain.  He still has his job which he loves -- but it doesn't pay enough to afford an apartment...Yet, after hearing of stories like Marilyn's I gain hope that God has this and every mother's child in His hands if we stay on our knees.  I cry out why? - but s you said, this will be a part of Bryan's testimony one day.  He may be right where God wants him to be....and I am trying to mess with that.  Well we will just pray God's Will --- as I asked you to pray that his smile remains and he continues to have hope and faith.....I can't stand it when he is depressed.  Thank you Mom , Thank you Marilyn

Joy, I cannot say I have ever had a child or grandchild in Bry's present dilemma, but I am continuing to pray for this dear young man.  I am so glad he isn't depressed, for depression makes everything seem so hard, or even impossible.  Keeping his smile firmly in place, and his trust in God are both great things!

I am praying for Bry's angels to keep guard round about him wherever he is and whatever he is doing.  We can't understand why life must be so hard for some of our kids, but Bry will come out with much to praise God for, and a testimony to bring Him glory.  I pray the same for my Beth.

((((hugs))))
Janet

Thanks, so much, Janet.  I am praying for your Beth, too.  I agree: we just don't understand why it is that some of our kids have to go through the things they do.  But GOD knows and understands and has always had a plan for each one!  It is up to us to TRUST HIM to make all things work together for good and for His glory.

Hi Joy:

Its such a pleasure to meet you.  I had the priveldge of meeting your Mom in Pennsylvania at a bash.  I loved her then....and love her now.

I KNOW I'd feel the same about you, and hope that perhaps someday, we will meet too.

I have prayed for your Bryan in the past., and after reading the emails printed here, I will know how to pray more earnestly.

So many of our kids and grandkids need our prayers.  Mine are no exception.  My daughter, Karen, is a lovely girl, excellent wife and doting mother, BUT - has no desire at all for spiritual things.  Her 12 yr old son, has NEVER set foot inside a church!  Hard to believe eh?  But its TRUE!

I never go to sleep at night, without bringing this family to the Lord!

Much love,
Judy

Thanks, Judy Mc.    You're really special, did you know that?   

Oh Father, I pray You'll bring something along - a friend's house, some other shared housing, an extra-special rental situation - whatever You know is best for Bryan.  Oh bring it quickly, and move us all, Bryan included, to give you thanks.  Oh do this through our Lord Jesus Christ.

I add my prayers to all the others.  I've prayed for Bry almost ever since I met his gramma.  Just as she's prayed for my kids and grandkids.  And I'll be in continuing prayer for Bryan.   I pray for Beth too. 

It's so wonderful to know that we have a family of believers who will pray when we let them know of our needs.  Someday we will know why God allows some to have so many struggles.  We do know He tells us to pray for one another.

Oh - thank you Jane.  I needed that encouragement today!

Bryan is still homeless, but still in good spirits.....he says the other day on Sunday he hooked up with a friend and was able to sleep two nights in the friend's car.......I guess this guy is also sleeping in his car.....wow, what a perdicament....but tonight he is searching for a new snooze site.  He says that he catches  a few nods in a posh coffee shop nearby where they have really comfortable high back chairs by a fake fireplace, nice and cozy and the back is toward the counter so the workers may think he is just reading a book.  Of course he has to buy his coffee and maybe a croisant, but it is a nice place to hang out.  No snoring allowed.......

While I was on the phone with him he had to help a customer and then he came back on and sid that the guy offered him a job in construction starting next week --- trouble with that is he needs transportation and his truck is locked up at the place where he used to live and does not run, the registration is overdue and his insurance has lapsed.  So this will cost him - us - a few hundred dollars just to get him up and rolling.  I was looking on the internet for rooms for rent in his neighborhood and the cheapest room in a shared environment was 350 pluse shared utilities...that is cheaper than I expected, but his salary is only 750, so I relayed that information to him, and he said that if he got his truck running, he could just sleep in it and not spend money on rent.    Ok, I guess - don't know where he showers, fraid to ask.  So I pray that he is able to get another good paying job that will not be too taxing on his sleep deprived body......but the college registration that I have been working on for him is now on hold.....money is more important right now. 

Thanks for your prayers, not out of the woods yet, but we are seeing some movement. 

Joy

I appreciate all of you very much!

I have also been in contact with social services regarding homeless shelters, and Bryan agreed that he would humble himself and stay in one if there was one close by. 

Thanks, Hon, for keepting everyone alerted to the prayer requests for our guy Bry.  I know there is a plan and purpose in all of this ... God has Bry in His plans and knows exactly how this will all work out.  We need to keep in prayer for Bry and release our desires to His ultimate will...

I am still praying and I know you are as well.