Life saving device... It's called the Demolizer

In early 2010, the Lord told me that this year would be a year of travel, and a significant amount of travel at that. I didn’t know how much or when or where to, but I knew that I was supposed to go and He would show me along the way… (I love to travel) :) and so I was excited when He showed me this!) So when I was presented with the opportunity to do some traveling with my job, I knew the Lord again had already prepared everything. So far this year (with Iowa as my starting point), I have been to Branson, Missouri, Chicago, IL, Connecticut, Vermont, Washington DC, and Zimbabwe, Africa . The first half of the year is over… six more months to go and I am curious to know where my travels will continue to take me.

My latest trip was to Washington DC for 2 days of business meetings. I was privileged to learn about a life saving device called the Demolizer. (I find it completely ironic that it is called that!) It is a machine that will dispose of medical sharps (i.e. needles) and biohazardous materials (i.e. blood from the needles, especially HIV and Hepatitis contaminated blood),. Basically, you put all the sharps in a tin and put the tin inside the machine. It sets the timer for 90 minutes and when it’s done, you get a sterile brick of plastic that is ready to be recycled. Hence the name ‘Demolizer…’ It completely demolizes the sharps. Many doctors offices around the United States already have this machine in use.

In Africa, as you know, a large percentage of the population has been devastated by AIDS/HIV. Most countries do not have sharps disposal regulations. Many people scavenge the dumps looking for old needles to sell because of their desperation to make a little money. Many people, including children have had accidental pricks by needles. Who knows where the needle has been or what they will now be infected with! Studies of this machine estimate that it will reduce the worldwide AIDS/HIV infection rate by up to 10%. It will remove sharps from the dump and prevent future infections of HIV and hepatitis.

The ministry that I am partnering with while I am there is Celebration Ministries International. They have an entire department of their ministry that is solely dedicated to Health and health related issues. (If you want more information about this, you can check out the website at www.celebrate.org/health.) Celebration health wants to put 10 of these machines in the hands of their medical clinics and promote the use of them to the Ministry of Health.

I don’t have the exact figure, but each machine will cost less than $10,000. If you are interested in partnering with Celebration Health, please send an email to health@celebrate.org or you can email me directly at songsofheaven@gmail.com. Maybe you own a business, or are involved in the medical field… Let your fellow employees know about this project. Maybe you could all make a large donation together. Wouldn’t that be amazing if you could completely fund one machine for a clinic?!

I will keep you posted on the progress of this project. Without any funding, they won’t be able to get any machines. So, I ask you to please consider making a donation to Celebration Health. I know this is a little long so thanks for reading all the way to the end. Be blessed! Till next time…


Amy

Got My Ticket!

I'm sorry I haven't posted much of anything about my return to Zimbabwe. I didn't know any details or how long it was going to be before I got my ticket. But I just bought the ticket today. YAY!!! :) I don't want to give out the specific dates for safety sake, but I'll be flying mid-August.

Can I just tell you... I am super excited!!!! Not only am I going back, but the travel time back to Zim is less than 20 hours... quite significantly less than the 38 hours it took me to get there the first time! woohoooooo....

I am still in Connecticut visiting my family and working from here... gotta love a mobile job! I will be traveling to Washington DC next week for some business meetings and I'll even have a little time to do some site seeing. I am in awe of how much the Lord loves me. I LOVE HIM SOOOOOO!!!!!!!

This is all of us together.



Here's a quick testimony: My older sister was talking to my mom's best friend and the Lord started showing her some things to share with my mom's friend. So, a few days later, my sister asks me to confirm the Word she gave. I didn't know anything at all what my sister had said. I prayed and closed my eyes... I almost always 'see' when my eyes are closed. I had a vision, very detailed and intricate. I shared the whole thing with my sister and she just started laughing. The vision described exactly what my sister had already told my mom's friend. So, I shared it with my mom's friend and it gave her the confirmation she was looking for. Yet again... God IS SO COOL! Are you looking for confirmation for something? Ask a friend to pray and don't tell them what it's about... I bet you they will hear the Lord and give you the confirmation you are looking for! Email me your testimonies!

Howie

When I was 15 my parents had another baby. Howard Dennis Waldron III was born on December 20, 1995. He is one of the biggest joys in my life and he always will be. I have loved every minute of watching him grow up into a young man and I am SO proud of him!

Had I gotten away with it, I would have tried to take a picture of Howie the other day with his shorts pulled up like Steve Urkel. It definitely looked uncomfortable, but it made us all laugh... We told him he looked like Urkel when he did it and one of my nieces (she's 8) said, "Who is Urkel?" AND I knew I had reached that point... Remember when you were a kid and your mom would tell you such and such about that old TV show and then laugh and you had no idea what was so funny...? well... i had this sudden realization that 'it had happened... ' I had somehow reached the other side and we all laughed again.

Even though my brother can be silly and pretend he's Urkel like most 14 year old boys can be sometimes, he has a kind heart and loves to love other people. I love him with all my heart!!!! He is growing up into a strong and handsome young man, with a great calling and destiny on his life.

I love you Howie!!!!!!

A visit in Vermont

I wrote this blog a few days ago and I didn't post it because I was trying to get a picture of me and my dad... but that will have to wait. I'll post a picture of my Dad and I appreciate all of you who have been praying for my family!

As I got into the car on Saturday night, my sister whispered to me, “You have lost your mind.” At the time, it seemed like a perfectly rational decision to go to Vermont with my Dad. Nothing seemed out of the ordinary to me. I didn’t know why she didn’t want to come … But all of a sudden I had the realization of my decision hit me and I wasn’t sure if I should go.

So, my Dad, my brother and I jump in the car and off we go. We’re well on our way into the drive and my Dad starts telling me about this church that him and his wife have been going to. It’s been a really busy summer for him and he says he hasn’t been in like 2 months, but he says that he really likes it. If I could do one of those really cool sound effects that they do on tv, I would make that sudden screeching of the brake noise right HERE… Let me back up … you have to understand that this is not normal for my Dad to be talking about church. I have never been to church with my Dad, nor have I had his approval to go. I even had to wait until I was 18 years old to be baptized because he didn’t approve. So, he says he likes it??? What??? MY father… going to church… and liking it??? Wow, I could hardly believe what my ears were hearing.

We wake up Sunday morning and we all go to church together. He was disappointed that there was a guest speaker because he likes the pastor so much that he wanted me to hear him preach. I didn’t know what to quite think of the whole situation, but my Dad is hearing the Word of the Lord by his own choice. This is the first time I have ever gone to church with my Dad. I think he may have gone to see me in a play or something like 25 years ago…

I am still praying: Lord, that my Dad would walk in the fullness of your love, that he would know you and love you with all his heart. Amen.

Don’t give up on praying for your unsaved family members. If my dad, who has not gone to church his entire life and who wouldn’t even let me baptized, is starting to seek relationship with God, then I KNOW the Lord can work a miracle in your family too. I stand with you in agreement that your family and friends will come to know the love of the Father too!

Here is a picture of the beautiful scenery that I saw in Vermont on a hike. That's my Dad at the bottom.






These is me and my little bro Howie. (And yes, I did hike in this dress... ) :)

Last night in Iowa... don't go!

My last few days in Iowa were jam packed with errands, arranging things, packing, moving, deciding what would be important to me in 5 months from now... saying 'see you later' to some of my closest and bestest friends (which led to crying of course)... I had so much to do and so little time to do it, but I knew the Lord was with me. One of my closest friends called me and said the Holy Spirit prompted her to pray that I would be able to get everything done quickly and she didn't even know that I was leaving so fast. The Lord is so good to me... watching out for every little detail. Isn't that the way it's supposed to be though?! When I saw her, we hugged and wept. It was amazing how the Holy Spirit flooded us. I was a little surprised by my reaction and so was she. We both know that this is not good-bye, just see you later... She only had a minute and away she went. I felt so unsettled in my spirit but I was so glad that I got to see her one last time. My schedule forced me forward and I tried not to think about it. A little while later, I was praying with some other friends and she kept coming back to my mind. My heart wished that she was there with us, but I knew she had some other things to do. Just as I was thinking she should be there, she comes waltzing in with a big smile on her face. She had gone out and bought me a beautiful decorative plate with a 1 Cor 13 love verse on it. It went right in line with all the things my friends and I were praying. The Holy Spirit was right on again! I'm noticing a pattern here :)


After that heart wrenching good bye, I still had one more to go... I wait in line for prayer as she is on the other end praying for others. It was a good wait. Not only did I get to pray for a few people, but a few people in line prayed for me and I got some cool prophetic words! Thank you Lord! So, anyway, I finally get up there to where my friend is and she starts sharing with me what the Lord has been speaking to her all day about me leaving. We all just started weeping as the Holy Spirit fell on us again. It was so powerful. She said she had been seeing a picture of herself wrapping her arms around my legs and yelling "Don't go! Don't go!" And she said that she saw as I went out to speak to others and share with them, that they would do the same when I had to leave. They would throw themselves at my feet and say "don't go! don't leave us! we don't want you to go!" She threw herself on the floor wrapping her arms around my legs and wept at my feet, yelling "don't go! don't go!"... I couldn't do anything but weep... I am so glad I have that recorded to so that I can listen to it again. It was so moving, so Jesus!



This has been the hardest and easiest decision I have ever made...