WAITING FOR GOD - PRICELESS

Now, why would I title this post, "Waiting for God - Priceless"?

Because that's what I've been doing for months and months.

In fact, for so long, I stopped thinking about my question and

stopped praying for it. 

Seriously??

Oh, yeah. I'm old and it's not that hard.

Quickly, I should have died twice in the last 7 years

from two of my medical adventures.

Well, it should be obvious that I didn't 

as I'm the author of this post.

I started wondering why God didn't take me.

And, then I knew without a doubt that

he had something for me to do.

He started planting seeds when Skyler and I were

planning our road trip/mini mission trip

to Joplin............we thought!

God had other plans which happens to me

all of the time!

Cut to the chase:

He sent us to Bokenkamp Emergency Children's Shelter

in Corpus Christi, Texas.

I asked for donations to help defer the cost

of having 79+ kids make their own journal

and was humbled by how many people jumped in

to help us.

The planning and specifics of that mission trip

can be found in the previous post.....

Since that time the volunteer director has asked

me WHEN we're coming back.

The kids loved us, loved making their own journals,

the clinicians love how the journals are

helping them work with the kids,

and Joanne is anxious for us to come back.

We will be going back as soon as I can gather up

enough of our "budget" to buy canvas, paints

and brushes for the kids to paint their

self portrait on an 8 x 10" canvas.

This is a perfect project and will, again, be a

huge help to the clinicians in working with these

amazing kids.

I'm so excited!!

On the drive home from Corpus 

(I live about 3 1/2 hours north)

after the first time,

I heard God.

Loud and clear,

I heard him tell me what he wants me to do.

Not only does he want me to continue my work

at Bokenkamp, he wants

me to volunteer at the woman's shelter for

rape and domestic violence victims

(and their children if they're involved)

in Kerrville, 10 minutes up the highway

from Center Point, where I live.

I visited the shelter office on my way home 

from Bokenkamp.

Why wait when God tells you to do something?

I have filled out the mound of paper work 

and go for my orientation next Friday.

After that I will start my volunteering

which will include teaching art classes

for the woman and any children there,

along with other programs.

I am extremely excited that God has chosen

me to be his vessel

in working with his hurting children.

(His "children" are all of us:)

Wow. Bokenkamp is my heart.

And, I know that 

Hill Country Cares will soon

be my heart, also.

There is never enough money to run a shelter

so these programs, these art projects, 

are funded by me.

Me and any of you who have a heart

for God's hurting children.

I would gladly accept your help and

I can send you a letter so that your help

can be tax deductible.

Or do you think I should put a PayPal 

button on my blog?

I don't know what to do -

I've never been God's vessel to this extent!

Anyway, that's the story Morning Glory.

No matter how hard your life is,

and mine's been health-hard these

last 7 years,

when you reach out and help others

through Jesus Christ,

your life takes on a new light.

And it doesn't have to be a "big deal".

God will take all of the blessings

we are able to dump (dump?) on his 

children.

Pay someone's toll.

Pay for the lunch, or a dessert,

of the person behind you in line

at McDonald's.

(My sister did that as my

birthday present this past week.

Best present I've had in a long time!)

Hold a door open for an approaching person.

Smile at the checker at Wal-Mart

(can you think of anyone else that needs

a smile more than a Wal-Mart checker??)

See? There's a lot you can do to be God's vessel.

Oh, another one.

Last night Frank and I were at a restaurant

and next to us was an older woman 

sitting by herself.

She was finishing up her dinner and

reading her Kindle.

So, I simply asked her if she liked her Kindle

which started a very nice conversation

for someone that may have been very lonely.

We don't know people's circumstances,

even the put together people we see,

so always take the time to be a blessing.

Sermon's over.

And, the people said?

"Finally!" LOL 

God bless you and God bless 

the people I will be working with,

new and old!

                           Jan

BLESS OTHERS AND YOU WILL BE BLESSED TEN-FOLD OR...................... WHAT DO YOU GET WHEN YOU CROSS 3 DOLLAR STORES AND 79 NON-ENGLISH SPEAKING TEENAGERS?? .....PART 1

WOW. It's true - my blog title. It's true like 'paying it forward' is true. 

I live by those. Nothing blesses me more or makes me forget my problems than blessing someone else.

Like at the movies yesterday. I was approaching the door to go into the theatre and this 20 something girl has just walked out....long enough ago that the door has closed and she has taken the first couple of steps to leave.

She stops, turns around, walks back to the door and holds it open for me.

No special reason - I wasn't limping or anything.

I like to believe, and I do believe, that she did it to be nice.

(And, not the "nice to old people" kind of nice)

I'm going to tell you about the Mini-Mission trip that I've talked about on Facebook and here on my blog this summer. I'm going to skip everything and get right down to it as I took a lot of pictures and have some amazing, over the top, God IS alive, stories to tell you.

But, before I get to that I want to thank everyone again (hopefully I didn't miss anyone) that sent me supplies for kids in a shelter that Skyler and I were hunting. Those supplies and the generous checks and gift cards....WHAT A BLESSING! Thank you. (And, if anyone is wondering if maybe I bought myself some Chanel No. 5 with your money, I saved all of the receipts if you want to see them. My cousin, Melinda, said that was ridiculous, but I feel better telling y'all anyway. *I was going to copy them and put them at the end of this post and she wouldn't let me*)

The story of some uber-remarkable kids goes like this................

Once upon a time there was me and there was my "little girl", Skyler, and we wanted to visit a shelter taking all kinds of cool art supplies for kids and spend a day or two with them "playing art". I knew it was a long shot, having worked as a volunteer in a shelter. They were going to want a background check before they let anyone spend time with the kids and you can't blame them. Heck, I could be as crazy as Jan Thomason.

And, that's exactly what we ran into......that and Skyler getting a temporary job, blah, blah.

Skyler's temp. job was over last Wednesday and I told her to look in the Corpus Christi yellow pages and find some shelters. She sent me the ONE shelter that had a website. I researched it and knew that it was where we were supposed to go and that they were going to let us "play art" with their kids. I just knew it.

Joanna Villarreal, the Volunteer Coordinator, and I exchanged emails and to make a long story short, THEY WANTED US. Praise God!!

So, I started my trip down to Skyler's. I had gathered up all of the supplies sent to me and cashed all of the checks. I stopped at three dollar stores to spend the money on further supplies as I made my way to Skyler's. I visited three dollar stores and can honestly say that I visited more dollar stores in that one day than in my entire life. 

I'll not be going back. Really, Wal-Mart is bad enough.

In one store I bought a Composition Notebook for every kid because we were going to turn them into journals. I bought 90 notebooks. Ninety. In one store. The checker didn't even look at me which I found rather odd.

The shelter that we spent Saturday at was like none I've ever volunteered in or been in.

It's called Bokenkamp and is in Corpus Christi, Texas. 

It is amazing and I am at a lack of words as how to describe it so I'm going to let it speak for itself:

(This part may seem long to you, but I encourage you to read it all - I think you will be a different person for reading it.)

BEFORE YOU CONTINUE, LET ME TELL YOU THAT BECAUSE BLOGGER ISN'T COOPERATING THAT I HAVE FINISHED THIS TWO DAY POST ON FLICKR.

PART TWO:)

VISIT MY FLICKR PHOTOSTREAM AT www.flickr.com/photos/polkadotbarn TO SEE THE PHOTOS AND READ THE STORIES ABOUT THE PICTURES AND ON ONE PHOTO YOU WILL LEARN OF THE HORROR THESE KIDS HAVE SEEN. THEY ALL HAVE THEIR OWN STORY TO TELL, BUT THIS STORY WILL GIVE YOU A GLIMPSE INTO THE LIFE OF ONE AMAZING YOUNG MAN. 

BE BLESSED AND I APOLOGIZE FOR BLOGGER NOT COOPERATING.

BELIEVE ME, IT WILL BE GROUNDED.

God bless you all,

Jan.............continue reading before you go to my flickr account. the following story is uplifting!!

Bokenkamp Children's Shelter is an emergency shelter for unaccompanied refugee children from Central and South America, ranging in age from infants to teens. (We had 10 - 17 year olds when we visited) These children have all experienced some form of traumatic separation from their families. Bokenkamp provides short-term care that will leave a long-term impact in these children's lives by offering shelter, education and spiritual care.

The children who come to live in our residential centers in Texas – New Life, Krause, and the Nelson Center – often bring with them pasts and stories of unbearable hardship and emotional pain. Miracles do happen, and sometimes seemingly insurmountable odds are overcome, and we witness a child’s life turn around from the brink of despair in front of our eyes.

Read this and you'll get a feel of the 80 kids that we worked with on Saturday:

Manuel – Safe at Last, A Bokenkamp Story

By: Scott Carroll

7/19/2011

Manuel was only 12 years old when his parents were killed. He was left alone in the small mountain village in Guatemala, in a very unstable environment. For two years, Manuel lived in fear and poverty often begging for food from villagers. When he was 14, he decided that his only chance for survival would be to travel to America to find his aunt and uncle who lived and worked “somewhere in Texas.”

Manuel traveled for two months with strangers under treacherous conditions. He mentions hearing the screams of children as they were abused, and some killed, by the men guiding them all across the border. He was spared and is still not sure why.

When Manuel finally made it into Texas – after traveling more than 1,200 miles, alone and mostly on foot – he was apprehended by authorities and taken to Bokenkamp Children’s Shelter in Corpus Christi. He arrived at Bokenkamp hungry, tired and scared, identified only by a number written on a piece of duct tape placed across his chest. Staff at the center immediately gave Manuel food, water, a shower and a chance to tell his story.

For the next month, Manuel stayed at Bokenkamp while staff worked to locate his aunt and uncle. While at Bokenkamp, Manuel experienced many firsts. He ate three hot meals a day. He attended formal school. He was given a Bible. He received therapy to help him deal with the trauma of his losing his parents. He was safe. Manuel was united with his aunt and uncle and cousin in Houston, Texas, on June 20^th. He left Bokenkamp a healthier, happier teenager, with hopes and dreams of a promising future.

......................NOW FOR PART TWO:)

A MISSION TRIP TO JOPLIN?? ARE YOU TEASING ME, GOD??

I know God doesn't tease

but, these last couple of months

have been a merry go round,

so for just a moment I cocked my head...

I have spent hours trying to find a woman's
shelter that would allow Skyler
 and myself to come in and

teach some art project
for a couple of days.

Everywhere I turned I was turned down
because we didn't have the
criminal background checks.

I totally understood where
they were coming from

but, it was very frustrating.
(Misunderstanding God IS
frustrating, isn't it!!)

So, I sat back and waited for God to show me

where he wanted us to go.

JOPLIN.

JOPLIN, MISSOURI.

Well, I did't ignore him,

so I called Skyler

and told her the change of plans.

She was excited about going to Joplin

and helping the people that live there

and have found themselves

smack in the middle of Hell.

I was excited, too.

We can be very effective in Joplin.

There is so much to do.

And, even though God changed "our" plans,

we feel we're still able to help

the children.

We are going to hit every

Big Lots, Dollar General store and

the other dollar stores

and I am going to buy every

coloring book and crayola product

I can find.

In our hotel at night

we are going to stamp lunch sacks

with precious stamps

and fill the sacks with

the loot I am able to gather!

We're going to fill hundreds of sacks

(that's my hope)

and find the Salvation Army when

we get there because I've heard that

they are keeping the kids

during the day while their parents

work on putting their lives back together.

Isn't this just the best thing??

God is so good. He knew all along

where he wanted us and we're thrilled

to follow his lead!!

Do you still want to help?

You can send checks or

coloring books, construction paper,

glue sticks, kids scissors,
glitter sticks

and crayola products.

Your help would be such a blessing
And, remember, we're leaving
June 24th!

And, if you've already sent me

tags, don't worry about them being used.

You know what else God have let

me know??

He wants me to volunteer at the

woman's shelter here, in Kerr County.

I can do general work

and I'm hopeful that I can teach

art projects to give the women

a break from worrying about their future.

Isn't that just the best??

I love God!!

So, if you want to help with

our mission trip, send donations to me at:

Jan Vermillion-Thomason

5720 Hwy. 27

Center Point, Texas 78010

Can't help with donations??

We need lots of prayer and that

would be a huge gift.

Thank you, God bless you,
and I think you

are absolutely wonderful!

         Jan



ROAD TRIP TURNS INTO A MISSION TRIP!

I am taking a "random" road trip this July

with my 'little girl', Skyler.

We started planning this trip about 9 months ago

and it was simply going to be a road trip

with no agenda.

We were going to find some

Diners, Drive-In's and Dives,

take back roads and my camera.

Check out some junk stores.....

just several many days of relaxed fun.

It's not changed in that sense.

What has changed is that we now

have a mission!

I love, love, love it when God speaks to me

and I'm quiet enough to hear Him.

In thinking about the trip, He told me

that turning it into a short mission trip

would give it meaning.

It would give us more of a chance to

be a vessel for God.

Whenever I travel I always

do what I can to be a vessel for God.

I pay other people's tolls, anonymously.

I pay for other traveler's meals, anonymously.

And, I am extremely blessed each time

I do a random act of kindness.

(if you've never done a random act of kindness,

give it a try - it's the bomb.)

You've probably figured out our mission...

we are going to volunteer for two days

at a Center for Women and Families

in the eastern part of the U.S.

Basically a shelter for victims of

domestic violence or rape.

(because of confidentiality I can't tell you any more than that)

We are so excited to be a part of

the healing process of

these women and children.

We will be helping them create art.

Here's where YOU come in.

Here's where you can be a part of the healing process.

We'll be supplying the art supplies to make journals

and keepsake boxes out of cigar boxes.

We could use some help with these supplies

so if you are interested in helping with

glue sticks, patterned paper (for women and children),

fabulous embellishments,

AND/OR AN ENCOURAGEMENT CARD OR TAG FOR

THE WOMEN AND FOR THE CHILDREN,

please do what you can and

mail everything to me.

Don't sign your name on the cards/tags,

And, don't "address" OR seal the envelopes. (This is sooooo exciting!!)

and add a note of encouragement in your card or on your tag back.

I WOULD LOVE TO HAVE ENOUGH CARDS/TAGS

FOR EVERY

WOMAN AND CHILD IN THE CENTER.

Those will touch these hurting women and children

more than money.

Think about it - receiving a letter of encouragement from

someone that doesn't even know you. WOW.

God bless y'all and

if you can help with some of the above,

thank you.

And, if you can't, would you please pray

that we can be effective representatives of Jesus Christ

and that the women and children who we encounter

will see Jesus in our eyes and in our actions.

Jan Vermillion-Thomason

5720 Hwy. 27

Center Point, Texas 78010

I'M DOING THE BEST I CAN

I'm blessed to the max, but a fairytale??

.......not so much

How do y'all do it??

You make it seem so effortless.

I've come to the conclusion that some of you

might be a wee bit O.C.D.

And the rest of you never sleep.

Me??

I feel like Barbie every minute of every hour of every day.

Did you know that I qualify for that Hoarders show on T.V.?

Yeah, I'm a Mixed Media Hoarder.

It's gotten so bad that I haven't completely unpacked from two art retreats....

both held last year and then there's this year's p.c. retreat...

Oh, and estate sales, flea markets, resale shops, junk shops,

people's trash by the side of the road,

crack house apartments being demo'd - I stopped to see

what treasures I could find.

I found a pick-up load. No kidding.

In an effort to keep up with something,

I made a promise to myself - it was about a week ago -

I was going to keep up with my blog roll.

Then I got this great idea that I would "rotate" some blogs

 off to get the number of blogs I read  I'm supposed to be reading

under 200. It didn't work.

I added six new blogs.

Oh, and my blogging??

I think it's so cute that you feel you have to ask.

I'm about 8 or 9 posts behind.

I plan on catching up.

Surely I can find the time.

The rest of you manage to blog, read your blog roll,

scour estate sales, create!, list all of your many creations

in your Etsy shop,

mail out all of the orders you get "the next day",

host swaps, be in five or more swaps at a time,

teach workshops, attend art retreats,

raise your well-behaved children,

cook well-balanced meals for your well-behaved children

and your darling husband,

and I'll bet you clean your own house, too.

AND, you work.

YOU WORK!...

I don't.

Work, that is.

I will admit that I have a couple of medical adventures

that I deal with on a daily basis, but I DON'T WORK....

Where are you finding the time??

I'm beginning to wonder if this isn't a master plan

of *church lady's voice* "Saaa-tan".

I can hear him now, telling his evil little elves,

"Let's drive Jan nuts. I know just how to do it..."

I see you looking at the picture above of my kitchen

and at the picture just below of our bedroom.

These pictures are a few years old.

I've been pretty immobile off and on for the last six years

and I can assure you that the kitchen doesn't look

like the picture above.

The Tank's had free reign and that speaks volumes.

And the bedroom??

Well, both areas had probably just been cleaned

by my cleaning lady when these pictures were snapped.

That cleaning lady was 'let go' yesterday.

Let's just say I didn't vote for Obama

and we use to have money left over

every month for that cleaning lady...

for the last 25 years.

I'll be doing the cleaning from now on.

Well, all except the Tank's bathroom.

I refuse to go into that room.

There's a reason a man should have his own bathroom.

Oh, and one last special little thing I want to

share with you about my life...

I haven't cooked or baked in years.

Mostly because of illnesses, broken bones,

snapped tendons and leg braces, blah, blah, blah.

I told Frank yesterday that I'd start cooking again.

Yeah.

I think my meds need to be adjusted.

So, here it is, sweet friends.

I'll probably re-read this story and realize

that it's completely disjointed

but, heck, I really don't care.

I have dinner to cook.

And, I'm doing the best I can.