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Pregnant Wife’s ER Visit for Husband With “Man Flu” Has the Internet CRY-Laughing!!

Faithit
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31
Pregnant Wife’s ER Visit for Husband With “Man Flu” Has the Internet CRY-Laughing!!

I’m sitting upstairs right now and both toddlers are downstairs with my husband and nasty colds. You know what that means? The man flu season is coming. It might not even be the flu, it could just be a cold, but he’ll treat it like the plague because it happens every year like clockwork. Just as sure as the sun rises and sets, I can count on him to be completely useless for a solid week if he so much as sneezes.

Throw it back to 2014. I was about nine weeks pregnant with Cora and Sadie was 6 months old. From the moment I woke up, I was violently puking all day. In the car. Out of the window. During our errands. I was miserable and nauseous but worked through it because #MOMLIFE. I honestly thought I had killer morning sickness or possibly a stomach bug so I went with it. Then 6 p.m. rolls around… it was definitely not morning sickness because I watched my husband transform right before my eyes, stumbling around saying he’s going to puke. Grreeeeeat. The moment he says he’s feeling sick, my eyes automatically roll into the back of my head and touch my spine. Instant dread.

Stage 1: Give this man a chance. Try the sweet approach.

‘Ok babe. You’re going to be fine. Just go to the bathroom and try to relax.’

Did he take my advice? Nope. First stop is our kitchen sink. He pukes all over a week’s worth of dirty dishes. He’s obnoxiously loud when he’s barfing to make sure I know this is the real deal. The neighbors know it’s the real deal. The next town over knows too. Cue me hating my life.

Stage 2: This is the actual worst and I’m going to kill him.

‘Seriously Ty?! Go into the bathroom!! Why would you do that?! It’s like 5 feet away and the garbage can is RIGHT HERE.’

He starts waddling to the bathroom and I breathe a sigh of relief. Thank God he’s in there, maybe he’ll pull it together. PSYCH. He’s being so noisy and dramatic with his heaving that I have no choice but to check on him and pretend I don’t want to murder him. I walk in and encounter vomit. Everywhere. But not in the toilet folks, nawwwww. In the bathtub. The freaking bathtub. BUT. WHY.

Stage 3: There’s no turning back, he’s committed.

He lays on the floor with his eyes closed and starts moaning ‘Syd. Syyydd. I can’t. I can’t see…’

Brain: Oh, so now he can’t see? Is this a joke. He has a flu symptom that doesn’t even exist. Actually, I can’t. I should probably leave. Where is this dude’s mom.

‘What are you even talking about?! That’s not real life!! Open your freaking eyes. We don’t have time for this. GET UP. NOW. RIGHT NOW.’

My voice was really serious at this point. He knew he poked the bear way too hard, or so I thought. He took the alternative route and decided to become unresponsive. Yes. Literally. He played dead like a possum. I’m standing over him about to puke myself and he starts whispering:

‘Syd…Call 911. Syd. I’m dying… call 911. Call 9….1…..1……’

Stage 4: This dude just told me to call 911.

Hold the phone: You want me to dial 9-1-1 and say what? My grown husband has an upset stomach? He stops responding to me AGAIN and mumbles incoherently. He’s rolling around like a pig in his own poop but in his own barf that’s everywhere but the toilet. I [decided] to try and call his bluff.

‘Do you need me to call 911??? We just have the stomach flu and I’M PREGNANT. I’m tired. You’re telling me I am going to pick up the phone and say this is an emergency. You know they’re going to actually come here RIGHT? Right? I’m gonna do it. I’m dead serious.’

He was sick for maybe an hour tops at this point. He’s a first responder. He’s the father of my children. He’s my best friend. He’s a combat vet. He’s a devil dog. He’s a biiiiigg baby. And then I made the dreaded call.

Dispatch: 911 what’s your emergency?

Me: Ugh. Hi. How are you? Ughhhh. It’s my husband. He’s… I don’t know, he’s umm. He’s throwing up.

Dispatch: …Ok? Are there any other symptoms?

Me: He can’t see. Or talk. Or move. He’s basically unresponsive.

Dispatch: Any chest pain or shortness of breath, ma’am?

Me: (whispering into the phone) Oh gosh no… he has *the flu*

Now I’m mortified because I just called 911 for the man flu. I tell him help is on the way. He fully grasps what I’ve done and says, ‘No Syd, wait… seriously wait. I think I pooped my pants.’

‘Scuse me?

Stage 5: I just called 911, someone pooped themselves, the countdown begins.

I morph into Bambi’s father.

‘Get up Ty. GET UP! You MUST GET UP! Dude the paramedics are on their way and you pooped your pants?! You’re NEXT TO THE TOILET?! Why wouldn’t you poop on the toilet?! Why are you doing this to me?!’

I’m panicking because I know I’m about to be embarrassed. I start trying to pull down his pants while he lays like a corpse. No luck. Then a lightbulb clicks in his head… He realizes there’s a really good chance he’ll know one of these paramedics and he miraculously found the strength to haul his butt to our room to change. The paramedics get to our house and I’m standing there with the worst case of resting [w]itch face. EVER. They ask him what his symptoms are and I’m dying to call him out.

Guys, it’s like an angel came down from heaven and cured him right there on the spot. All of a sudden he could talk again. He could walk again. He could even see again like a Christmas miracle. They proceed to tell me I need to follow behind them to the hospital because he was going via ambulance. For the flu. That I gave him. I drive my pregnant butt alone to the hospital while puking in a plastic bag with my husband in front of me on a stretcher being doted on. It’s the first and last time I’ve ever considered divorce.

Stage 6: Nurses are the bomb

I finally find his room and I’m throwing up while answering questions for him because he’s back at it again playing possum. He isn’t answering anyone and the nurse spotted that man flu crap from a mile away. We made eye contact and nodded. Solidarity. She’s all, ‘SIR. GET IT TOGETHER. YOU NEED TO GET IT TOGETHER. DO YOU UNDERSTAND ME?’ And I’m all, ‘THANK YOU JESUS, SING IT SISTER.’ They find out I’m with child and decide to admit me as well because apparently, the flu is usually only dangerous for pregnant women, elderly and newborns. Now I’m livid. We get our IVs. The nurses keep coming in to give me the ‘I’m so sorry’ look. The nod all women know. When someone says their man is sick we take a moment of silence for each other. United we stand.

We were finally sent home and he’s trying to chat it up in the car like nothing happened. Nothing to see here folks. That heinous act of horror wasn’t real. But it was. I have to go get the baby from my parents’ the next morning because he’s too sick (I’m still sick with what I gave him). I was up all night and I come home to what?

Stage 7: A whole lotta HECKKK NO.

A fresh batch of puke that ain’t in the toilet. I was positive the dog also pooped in the house. Sure didn’t. That would be my husband. Again. Just to remind me how sick he was, he re-offended the house while I was gone. I made him wear one of those bird flu masks and didn’t talk to him for a solid three days. I locked myself in our bedroom until he was ready to come back to earth. To this day it’s still a touchy subject in our house. Sometimes we laugh. Sometimes we cringe. But I told him one day I would share this story, maybe to help another family in need. So women won’t feel alone. If you think your hubs is the worst when they get sick, come and read this again for a reminder. Beware… the man cold and flu season is near. This could be you.

**This story was written by Sydney W of Strollin With My Homies. Used with permission. 

Be sure to SHARE this hilarious story on Facebook to give other wives fighting the ‘man flu’ a good laugh!

She Had No Idea Her Daughter Had a Food Allergy Until It Struck. Then a Stranger Saved Her Life

Jenny Rapson
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She Had No Idea Her Daughter Had a Food Allergy Until It Struck. Then a Stranger Saved Her Life

I’ve always been a little nervous as a mom. My personality type lends itself to always being prepared for the worst case scenario. To that end, when my youngest had an allergic reaction to oatmeal as a baby, I was on high alert for other food allergies. Thankfully, he outgrew the oatmeal allergy, although he developed a gluten intolerance. Fortunately, none of that is life-threatening and he doesn’t have any kind of allergy to other foods. It took a long time for me to relax about it, though, because the problem with those severe allergies is, many times you don’t know they are an issue at all until the first time a reaction happens and it’s immediately life-threatening. That nightmare scenario is what happened to Florida mom Meg George.

Photo courtesy of Meg George

In a powerful essay on TODAY Parents, George writes about how she discovered her daughter’s life-threatening cashew allergy in the exact moment of her first reaction, which was severe and critical. She was at a community Christmas tree lighting with her family when her daughter’s face blew up immediately after a couple bites of nut-based ice cream.

Incredibly, though George had no inkling her daughter was allergic, she immediately knew what to do to get her help. You see, just weeks earlier while touring her kids’ new school. she had learned about another child with a severe nut allergy named Oakley. In her essay, George explains how and what she learned about Oakley upon seeing red sneakers posted all over the school. She says:

“’What’s the red shoe all about?’ I asked the Head of School. She told me to look up a nonprofit called Red Sneakers for Oakley and read the story on their site…the shoes represented a favorite pair once worn by Oakley, a young boy who lost his life to an allergic reaction to nuts. He’d attended this very school at the time of his passing. Thereafter, his parents founded an organization to advocate worldwide for food allergy awareness and the use of epinephrine, something that was not used at the time of his passing, and that his parents openly wish had been.”

That night George read everything she could find about Oakley, his parents, and their organization. Then she tucked the information away, no doubt hoping she would never need it.

And then, at that community Christmas tree lighting, seeing her daughter’s swollen and distorted face, she did need it. And she began doing everything she could to get her daughter help. Because of Oakley’s story, she knew what was happening, and what she had to do.

She explains the terrifying moments, saying “I screamed, picked her up and yelled incoherently to my husband that we needed help. Oakley’s images flashed through my mind at lightning speed — because of his parents, I knew we needed epinephrine…To be honest, I don’t know what I screamed, but I know that it was enough to attract the person who saved our child. A man approached us with his wife and young son trailing behind. ‘Do you need an EpiPen?’ he asked us, and then added, ‘I’m a doctor and my wife has one in her purse. Do you want me to administer it?’ It was like I was having an out-of-body experience. I shouted an enthusiastic yes while my husband called 911. Some of this felt like hours and some of it felt like milliseconds, but her symptoms started to improve within a minute of the injection, and I was flooded with relief when the doctor told the paramedic upon the ambulance’s arrival that she was going to be OK.”

Photo courtesy of Meg George

Reading George’s essay, I got a lump in my throat thinking about how Oakley’s story had saved another child’s life. His loss is profound, but it is not in vain. And I can’t help but marvel that at the exact moment that Meg’s daughter needed help, a doctor with an EpiPen was right where she needed him to be. It really makes one believe in guardian angels, and it makes one know without a doubt that you can use tragedy for good.

George’s daughter soon got allergy testing that confirmed her life-threatening cashew allergy, and she now says she is doing well but that “forevermore, epinephrine injectors are an extension of our body.” She says that because Oakley’s family sharing their story saved her daughter’s life, she is sharing their story in hopes of doing the same.

“No matter how painful the memory,” she says, “it’s our turn. Familiarize yourself with food allergies even if your kids don’t have them — we did, and I am grateful for it every single day. As with most things, time does heal wounds, and knowledge is more powerful than fear.”

Dear Parents, Please Stop Saving Your Children

Morgan Colander
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Dear Parents, Please Stop Saving Your Children

Dear Parents,

I know how much you absolutely love your child. How you want them to have a good life. How you want to protect them. How you want them to be happy. But, being a teacher who interacts with both children and parents on a daily basis, I need to tell you a few things.

Please, stop saving your child. Saving them from making a mistake. Saving them from every tough situation with a friend or peer. Saving them from consequences.

Schools were designed to teach academics, but even more so, I make it my first priority to teach life skills. To teach my class how to be kind. How to make friends. How to be responsible. How to stand up for themselves. How to accept the consequences of their actions. How to apologize for the wrong they have done. How to ask for what they need. How to handle the situations life will always throw at them.

And when you save them from all of this, they don’t get to learn any of it.

Just think about it, right now your child has the opportunity to learn so many of life’s lessons inside a building where there are adults everywhere, all there for the sole purpose of loving on your child and helping them grow into a kind, independent, able human. Right now is the perfect time to let your child fail. To let them struggle with a friend. To let them forget their homework. To let them go alone on a field trip. To let them miss recess as a consequence for being unkind. Because right now, when they mess up or struggle, they are doing it surrounded by teachers all ready to help them figure it out.

Twenty years from now, if they haven’t had the chance to learn these lessons, the repercussions are far worse. As an adult, when you forget to turn in your work before the deadline, your mom can’t just come drop it off, and the consequence isn’t missing five minutes of recess. When a coworker is being unkind to you, you can’t ask your parents to call their parents and talk it out. It takes learned social skills to interact with those people in our lives. When you need help, it becomes your job to ask for it. To know how to advocate for yourself instead of relying on your parents to do it for you.

Don’t get me wrong. I know you love your child. I know you are doing it because you are absolutely insanely obsessed with them. But, please, let them struggle now, so they better know how to deal with those struggles later in life.

One of the things I hate to see most is a missed opportunity of learning or growing for a child because the parents swooped in and saved the day, unaware of the learning opportunity they just stole from their child.

So, rather than solving their problems for them, give them the tools to try and solve them on their own. I always tell my students that when they encounter a problem, first I want them to try and solve it on their own. If that doesn’t work, then, I want them to come to me so I can help them. Our kids need to know that we (parents, grandparents, teachers, coaches, etc.) are all here to help them, but not always to save them. It is all about empowering them to be bold enough to stand up for themselves, advocate for what they need, and have the courage to be kind to others. We want them to know how to talk to others when they are upset, how to own up to their actions, and how to accept the consequences of their choices.

This only comes with struggle. And as a parent, sitting on the sidelines and letting the struggle happen is painful, but it is necessary.

I know how much you love your child, so as a teacher, I promise you these things. I will be fair with your child. I will help them learn from their mistakes, but I will also let them know it is okay to mess up. I will help them make friends when they are lonely, and I will coach them through the moments where someone is unkind to them. I will give them an extra squeeze when they just need some loving, and I will always listen to what they have to tell me. I will be sure that my classroom is a place where they want to be. A place where they feel valued, safe, and loved. I will be sure they know I am on their side and I am here to help them.

So please, stop saving your child. Let them grow. I promise, they will be okay. I’ll be sure of it.

Gratefully,
A Teacher

Lauren Daigle Shocked That People Are Criticizing ‘Sound of Freedom’: ‘This Is Insane’

Jessica Lea
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Lauren Daigle Shocked That People Are Criticizing ‘Sound of Freedom’: ‘This Is Insane’

It makes no sense that people are criticizing “Sound of Freedom,” which aims to bring awareness to the crime of child trafficking, says Christian artist Lauren Daigle. Daigle recently saw the movie starring Jim Caviezel and shared her thoughts on it in an Instagram video.

“I went to see the movie ‘Sound of Freedom,’ and I have a lot of thoughts,” said Daigle in a video she posted at the end of last week. The artist said she wants to discuss “some things I found very interesting,” one of which is that “people are having to defend this movie.”

“This is insane to me,” said Daigle, adding, “Children being harmed should never be something we question that we need to defend or not…I do not understand.”

Lauren Daigle Sees Connection to Judges 19

Lauren Daigle clarified that she knows no one involved in “Sound of Freedom” and her video is not a paid partnership. She simply went to see the movie with her friends and afterward thought, “Holy cow, something needs to happen.” The artist shared that she got involved in advocacy for human trafficking victims while she was in college at Louisiana State University (LSU). During that time, she and her friends would host 5K races to raise money for The A21 Campaign.

“I already had a tug on my heart for this years years ago and really felt deep connection to that,” Daigle said. In fact, she was a Child and Family Studies major at LSU and had planned to go to law school to do pro bono law for trafficking victims. Her mother suggested that Daigle see “Sound of Freedom” because of her past advocacy.

Daigle, who recently released the first part of her new, self-titled album, commented on the controversy surrounding “Sound of Freedom,” saying, “I saw a lot of pretty inflammatory news articles and headlines and people trying to shut this film down.”

Some critics have accused the movie of supporting the QAnon conspiracy theory, in part because of lead actor Jim Caviezel’s support for the movement. The movie, however, does not promote QAnon, and its distributor, Angel Studios, denies any association with the conspiracy theory.

“I never in a million years thought that this would be something that people could actually split hairs about, that people could actually argue about,” Daigle said. “Children being put in harm’s way by the people, a.k.a. adults, that are supposed to be protecting them in life—this should never be up for question. This should never be up for debate.”

Daigle said she had been in the process of reading through Judges when she saw the movie and was surprised to see some parallels between God’s Word and the film. Sometimes people think that the chaos they see in the world is new and not relevant to the Bible, Daigle said, but, “I just want to challenge people who think that there’s nothing relatable in here.”

The artist then read most of Judges 19, warning viewers ahead of time that she was about to read a biblical account that would be difficult to hear. The chapter describes events leading up to an incident where the inhabitants of the Israelite town of Gibeah in Benjamin gang rape a Levite’s concubine, after which the Levite cuts her body into 12 pieces and sends her throughout Israel. One of the results of the crime is that Israel goes to war and essentially wipes out the tribe of Benjamin.

God takes what happened to this woman so seriously that the nation goes to war and destroys an entire tribe, said Daigle, who wondered if Christians are willing to follow this example of Israelite unity and take a stand against child trafficking. “My question is, who is going to speak up for these kids if it isn’t us, if we’re not supposed to be the ones?” she asked. “If we live in disunity with one another, nothing will ever get done.”

Daigle also read Deuteronomy 24:7, which says, “If someone is caught kidnapping a fellow Israelite and treating or selling them as a slave, the kidnapper must die. You must purge the evil from among you.”

5-Yr-Old Boys’ Foolproof Plan to Trick Their Teacher Goes Mega-Viral for the Best Reason Ever

Bri Lamm
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5-Yr-Old Boys’ Foolproof Plan to Trick Their Teacher Goes Mega-Viral for the Best Reason Ever

It’s crazy in life, how many times God uses kids to teach us things. Of course it’s no surprise, as even Paul wrote to Timothy, “Let no person look down on you because you are young. But be an example to all believers in what you say, in the way you live, in your love, your faith and your purity.”

There’s nobody who loves more like Jesus than children.

Jax and Reddy are the best of the friends. Both 5 years old, these two buddies are living it up in pre-K and melting hearts across America this week after their plan to trick their teacher went viral for the sweetest reason.

Last week, Jaxon Rosebush and his mother, Lydia, were having a conversation about his wild blonde hair. Lydia told her son that he badly needed a haircut over the weekend.

“He said that he wanted his head shaved really short so he could look like his friend Reddy,” Lydia writes.

Jax told his mom that he and Reddy wanted to prank their pre-K teacher. They came up with a foolproof plan like only 5-year-olds could, and Jax decided that if his hair was cut just the same as Reddy’s, no one would be able to tell them apart—including the teacher!

“Here’s a picture of Jax and Reddy from their Christmas program,” Lydia wrote. “I’m sure you all see the resemblance.”

Facebook 

Jax couldn’t wait to get to school on Monday morning.

“He thought it would be so hilarious to confuse his teacher with the same haircut.”

Reddy arrived at school before Jax and set everything up for the day, telling his teacher and classmates that he was Jax. The teacher played along, continuing her conversation with “Jax.”

“They are both pretty mischievous little boys,” Lydia said. “They are both kind of funny.”

Jax and Reddy’s master plan to prank their pre-K teacher went off without a hitch, and has been shared more than 100,000 times since Lydia first posted the story last Friday.

She says it’s a true lesson in loving everyone the same.

“If this isn’t proof that hate and prejudice is something that is taught I don’t know what is. The only difference Jax sees in the two of them is their hair.”

Jax’s haircut has gone viral, and while the 5-year-old loves seeing himself and his friend on the news, he’s clueless as to why his haircut has been so popular.

“He still has no idea why people care so much,” Lydia said. “He wanted to look like Reddy…now he thinks they look the same.”

What Parents Need to Know About the “Back to School Necklace” Trend

Bri Lamm
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What Parents Need to Know About the “Back to School Necklace” Trend

As kids head back to school over the next several weeks, experts are warning parents to learn the meaning behind a new “back to school necklace” trend.

For many students, returning to the classroom can be an overwhelming time. Kids are met with an array of emotions including anxiety and stress as the start of a new school year comes around.

But if you hear your child talking about shopping for a “back to school necklace,” experts warn it likely has nothing to do with jewelry at all, but may actually be a larger cry for help.

According to Urban Dictionary, a “back to school necklace” is actually a hidden term for a noose, and refers to the feeling of suicide.

Back To School Necklace Reference on TikTok

And while not every child who picks up the trend or even uses the phrase is suicidal, it’s important to note that any reference to the back to school necklace should be taken seriously. Suicide may not be on your child’s mind, but overwhelm likely is.

The American Academy of Pediatrics recently declared the child mental health problem in America a national emergency with suicide being the second leading cause of death among young people ages 15-24. The AAP has found that nearly 20% of all high school students contemplate suicide.

As mental health concerns among adolescence continue to skyrocket, any reference to suicide—whether it’s used casually or not—should not be brushed off.

Talk to your kids today about the “back to school necklace” trend and their mental health going into this new school year. Making these conversations comfortable, open, and having them often may just save your child’s life.

College Student Adopts His Homeless, Pregnant Cousin to Give Her a Better Life

Jesse Jackson
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College Student Adopts His Homeless, Pregnant Cousin to Give Her a Better Life

A 23-year-old student in Australia has been inundated with messages of support and praise after taking in his homeless, pregnant cousin when she had no one else to turn to.

Tommy Connolly, an aspiring athlete at the University of the Sunshine Coast, said he hadn’t seen his 17-year-old cousin for more than a decade when he moved to resume his studies and decided to get in touch.

He found out that his cousin had been sleeping rough on the Gold Coast, was 32 weeks pregnant, had no shoes or phone and was almost illiterate.

With the baby’s father in jail and her parents not on the scene, Mr Connolly said he took his cousin in “to make sure she’d keep the baby, stay off the streets and have a better life”.

Writing on Facebook, he said: “This was her only option. She’s spent more time on the streets than anywhere else, and knows the police better than she knows her own family.

“She could write the book on traumatic experiences. Not many people know her story. It’s very intense. Nobody deserves the life she’s had.”

Tommy Connolly posted pictures and shared his story on Facebook, and said he was there in hospital to cut his cousin’s baby’s umbilical cord.

Between studies and his track athletics training, Mr Connolly worked selling fruit and vegetables to cover the cost of moving into a new home and preparing for the arrival of the baby.

Then, in mid-March, he posted a picture to his Facebook page showing both mother and baby healthy in hospital and said: “Well… I just filmed a birth and cut the umbilical cord!”

In an interview with Daily Mail Australia, Mr Connolly said he was aware he’d done a “really good thing” but “felt guilty getting all this attention”.

“We’ve had all these messages which has made us realise there are so many other people in this situation, I don’t want people to think it’s a unique thing,” he said.

Mr Connolly admitted he had taken on “the father role as you’d imagine,” but added: “[My cousin] does 90 per cent of the work – and if it’s one or two years of my life I have to put on hold to make sure two lives are going to be saved it’s nothing at all.”

On Facebook, the cousin said she was “the luckiest girl in the world”.

“Since carrying this gorgeous boy, all of my friends kept telling me that he would be taken away from me,” she said. “This made my pregnancy very difficult. All I wanted was to give this little man a better life than I had – a second chance was all I wanted. Thank-you, Tommy for everything, and for helping me with my spelling.”

Mr Connolly has previously cycled from Brisbane to Sydney to raise money for underprivileged school children in Ecuador, and on the Gofundme page his brother said he had “always been the most generous one”.

“I set this page up to give Tommy the kick start that he needs and to try and give this little baby boy the life that his mum never had,” he wrote.

“If everyone out there gave just a small amount it could create a life for a new born baby boy that almost missed out had it not been for my brother Tommy stepping in to rescue him from an uncertain future with no family there to protect him.”

7 Million Knocked Breathless by ‘Angel Cloud’ Hovering in the Sky

Kelsey Straeter
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7 Million Knocked Breathless by ‘Angel Cloud’ Hovering in the Sky

Cory Hearon was near the fire station in Camden, South Carolina when he spotted something in the clouds that stopped him dead in his tracks.

It was a single cloud hovering in the sky that had the distinct outline of an angel.

angel2
Screen grab via Facebook Watch // Epoch Times

Knowing he would be accused of Photoshopping the image if he just took a picture, Cory decided to record the sight on Facebook Live, and he waited there for 45 minutes until it completely dissolved into thin air.

“I’m not gonna wait very long because nobody would believe me if I didn’t do this live, but look at this cloud in the sky,” Cory said just before he turned his camera to the angelic masterpiece.

man
Screen grab via Facebook Watch // Epoch Times

Check out the full video below:

“I almost didn’t video it,” Cory told TODAY. “It was the first time I had seen something that remarkable with my own two eyes.”

He says the video doesn’t do the real-life version justice, but it’s breathtaking nonetheless.

Moreover, he’s overwhelmed by the reaction he’s received from millions across the web. The video has already been viewed over 7 million times and shared 245,000 times. “It has touched so many people from across the world,” he said. “I can’t believe it. I’m still in shock.”

One Facebook commenter wrote, “No words to describe this except truly amazing, and ain’t God good!!!! And people say there is no God!?”

To this, Cory replied, “And friend, I don’t need a beautifully shaped cloud to know that the God I serve is real…but it sure as heck brings peace, joy and comfort to myself and others, roughly 2.5 million so far to throw you a number, to see it on display so clearly and to feel the presence of the Holy Spirit!! You see because God is real, because He is alive, because of His word and through His son Jesus Christ I have a relationship with Him!! I know God exists without a doubt!”

I couldn’t have said it better myself! What a remarkable display of God’s goodness and creativity in revealing Himself in the little ways.

angel
Screen grab via Facebook Watch // Epoch Times

Girl Dancing in the Middle of Church Choir Proves “AIN’T Nothin’ Gonna Steal” Her Joy!

Bri Lamm
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Girl Dancing in the Middle of Church Choir Proves “AIN’T Nothin’ Gonna Steal” Her Joy!

One thing is for sure, there ain’t nothin’ that’ll steal Loren Patterson’s joy.

The youngster from Burns, Tennessee, was part of a choir concert where she quite literally stole the show!

Lined up with all of her fellow peers and small vocalists, Loren is hard to miss. As the music begins, she immediately finds her groove, dancing and moving to the lead vocalist and piano.

But the real performance comes when the choir joins in unison singing “There Ain’t Nothin’ That’ll Steal My Joy.” While the kids around her are focused on the audience in front of them and the lyrics to the song, Loren is carefree—dancing, tapping and moving to the beat of the music.

With Jesus in her heart and joy that can’t be stolen, Loren’s incredible performance is pretty much the only thing you need to see today!

You go girl! There ain’t nothin’ that’ll steal your joy!!

Flight Attendant Leaves Note in Bathroom for Teen Being Sex Trafficked—When the Plane Lands, Police Are Waiting

Bri Lamm
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Flight Attendant Leaves Note in Bathroom for Teen Being Sex Trafficked—When the Plane Lands, Police Are Waiting

Human trafficking is all around us. It is estimated that there are as many as 30 million slaves in the world today who are victims of human trafficking and sexual exploitation. Eighty percent of which are women and half are children.

Airline Ambassadors International is an organization that is training flight attendants to spot human trafficking victims and provide humanitarian services by leveraging their connection with airlines.

The organization has already started to see the fruits of its labor.

Alaska Airlines flight attendant, Shelia Fedrick, noticed a teen with greasy blonde hair on a flight from Seattle to San Francisco. She said she instinctively felt something was off.

The girl “looked like she had been through pure hell,” said Fedrick, who guessed that the girl was about 14 or 15 years old, travelling with a notably well-dressed older man. The stark contrast between the two’s appearances set off alarm bells in her head.

She tried to engage the two passengers in conversation, but the man quickly became defensive.

“I left a note in one of the bathrooms,” Fedrick said. “She wrote back on the note and said, ‘I need help.'”

The flight attendant notified the pilots of the situation, and police were waiting at the terminal when the plane landed.

Fredrick’s ability to recognize signs of human trafficking likely saved that victim’s life. It’s what Airline Ambassadors hope to instill in every person they train. The organization was founded by former flight attendant Nancy Rivard who is now committed to teaching and equipping flight attendants to recognize the signs of human trafficking.

“Airports and supporting travel hotels are major hubs of entry and exit for perpetrators and victims alike,” Airline Ambassadors says. “Training is needed for airport and travel industry personnel including airport employees, hotel employees, tourism companies, ground transportation, and law enforcement.”

Airline Ambassadors Equips the Skies

According to their website, Airline Ambassadors provides a series of short, impactful online training videos focused on teaching employees in the airline industry how to spot and report human trafficking victims. In the past, they’ve also exercised hands-on training in major hubs to put their skills to work.

One of the most important tools flight attendants learn in this training is the method of “pulling back,” something many find hard to do once the signs of human trafficking has been detected.

“We tell people not to try to rescue because you can endanger the victim and yourself,” Rivard said.

Flight attendants call the pilot when they suspect a human trafficking victim is on board. The pilot then calls ahead to the flights’ destination where authorities are notified to meet the plane.

When You’re Not Your Husband’s “Woman-Crush Wednesday”

Faithit
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When You’re Not Your Husband’s “Woman-Crush Wednesday”

By Molly Morgan Tolar

We’ve all seen the posts. The sappy, romantic, love-letter-like, nearly obsessive social media posts that significant others put out there about each other. Sometimes the “Man-crush Mondays” and “Woman-crush Wednesdays” can be almost nauseating to scroll through each week, especially if that particular person seems to want to boast about their bae what seems like every day of the week.

Annoying as these over-posters may be, I have to admit…I have caught myself feeling jealous of the women whose beaus gush and ogle over them online for everyone to see. It’s a strange female urge, I think, to feel adored, loved, even boasted about. As a gender we tend to be more openly self-conscious than men, feeling that we need the men in our lives to provide us with the self-confidence and self-worth we desire. I can’t think of any girl who wouldn’t like a boy to post a flattering selfie of her to Instagram for #wcw. It’s like an insta-ego boost.

My husband and I have been together for over six years, dating back to my high school days. I can count on one hand how many times he has posted anything online that was specifically aimed to admire me as his girlfriend or wife, and I have never been anyone’s #wcw. He doesn’t comment on my photos telling me how “gorgeous” or “hot” I am to him, and I don’t get the “I love you too, baby’s” whenever I post something admiring him. We’re happily married, and very much in love. So why doesn’t he want to show me off to the cyber world?

Because he doesn’t have to.

My husband doesn’t need to tell his followers he loves me, because he just does. So he doesn’t say I’m his woman-crush Wednesday. Maybe instead, he lets me have the cinnamon roll with the most icing on it first. Or massages my back when I’m having a bad ache. Or vacuums up the dog hair so I don’t have to. Or gives me a kiss on the forehead when I keep him awake with my tossing and turning at night.

He doesn’t need to tell the world about his love for me, because he already does it with his actions. You know that old saying “actions speak louder than words?” It’s not a saying for no reason.

I finally realized, when it comes down to it, I would much rather have a surprise hug from behind than a boastful statement made about me on Facebook. I can easily do without him sharing that “Share if your wife is a hottie!” post, when he continues to be actively faithful in our marriage day by day.

When I was able to grasp that perspective, I realized the problem with feeling social media envy is my problem, not his. That desire to be boasted about online isn’t his responsibility to satiate, because at the end of the day, it’s just irrational envy. Based solely on my husband’s actions in our relationship, I should feel more than secure enough in myself and how he truly feels about me, without him having to broadcast it for the world to see. He put a ring on my finger. He promised before God and our families to be the best man he can be for me. He sacrifices himself daily for this country as a US Airman. What more should I feel bold enough to ask for?

So that got me thinking. All those times I sit around getting nostalgic or mushy feeling, and I have the urge to post yet another memory of us for Throwback Thursday, maybe instead I should show my love for my husband in a way that actually speaks to him. Maybe I whip up a batch of his favorite homemade cookies. Maybe I surprise him at the door after work with a big sexy make-out session. Maybe instead of posting that I’m so honored to be his wife, I actually tell him face to face.

Not only do I not need him to brag about me to others in a social media forum, he doesn’t need me to either. We can find security in the daily acts of service we make for our marriage, for each other.

So when my husband inevitably shares that new Star Wars trailer for the third time this week, you won’t see me complain. Because I know he would rather see it in theaters on opening night with no one more than me.

P.S. I in no way mean to condemn or criticize everyone who posts about their significant others online. If such words of affirmation are his/her love language, I hope you are showering them with love in this way! However, as with any topic one could choose to post about online, I feel that when it becomes excessive (in frequency or content) it can be a little too much.

Thanks for reading!

** This post originally appeared on QueenLionheart.

“You Were Breaking the Law, Weren’t You?” — Why We All Need a Savior

Ethan Renoe
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“You Were Breaking the Law, Weren’t You?” — Why We All Need a Savior

For the longest time, I’ve had this little illustration bouncing around my brain with no place to put it. So here it is.

Imagine driving down the road, doing a mere 3 miles over the speed limit when a maniac flies by you, easily going 25 mph over the limit. You see red and blue flash in your rearview and think Good, they’re getting that lunatic.

But the cruiser hovers behind you instead of going after Dale Earnhardt Jr.

The cop sidles up to your window to shouts of furious protest. Are you kidding me?? That guy flew by me! Why aren’t you going after him?? He’s the REAL lawbreaker! I was just going 3 over!

The cop leans down and says, “You were breaking the law, weren’t you?”

Silence.

“…and that’s why I pulled you over.”

See, it’s not the degree to which we break the law, but the fact that we break it at all. Our tendency is to point fingers and say, ‘Are you kidding me? Look at that guy! At least I’m not as bad as him!”

I think of the beautiful passage in Luke where a prostitute falls to her knees before Jesus and begins washing His feet with her hair. When His disciples are perturbed by this, Jesus tells them, “Therefore, I tell you, her many sins have been forgiven–as her great love has shown. But whoever has been forgiven little loves little.”

A while ago, I realized what Jesus is actually saying in this passage. He is not saying that some of us have only sinned a little bit, and therefore, are only capable of loving in proportional amount. Rather, He is instructing us to recognize that we ALL have sinned as much as the next prostitute, and the more we are able to realize this, the more we will be able to love those around us.

It’s not about the quantity of sins you have committed, but about realizing that we all are equal in our depravity, and therefore, in need of a Savior.

This is why Jesus was so hard on those Pharisees (Religious teachers of the Law). The fact that they swept their sins under the cupboard only indicated to the Lord that they were, in fact, striving to be their own saviors.

The only difference between the Pharisees and the prostitutes is that one’s sins are out in the open for all to see, and the other does their best to seal up the cracks where anyone may see their faults. They can’t accept the help of a Savior.

I think Jesus gravitated more toward the Prostitutes and tax collectors because they already were in the proper mindset of

‘I am a sinner.
Everyone knows it.
I cannot save myself.
I need help.’

In fact, the case could be made that Jesus can ONLY save these kinds of people, for they’re the ones who are not busying themselves thinking they’re good enough to live without Him. The fact is, we all need Him, for we all have sinned against Him, turned our backs to Him, and slept with other lovers.

I love Donald Miller’s quote in Scary Close, “Grace only sticks to our imperfections. Those who can’t accept their imperfections can’t accept grace either.” The more we accept our flaws, fallenness, and brokenness, the more we can allow the Lord to come and heal us. The prostitutes who broke bread with Jesus were not pretending to be someone they weren’t.  And for this reason, He was able to love them as they were.

I’m grateful that the ground before the cross is level ground.

I’m grateful that He still pursues us, the unfaithful lovers.

While Jesus was having dinner at Matthew’s house, many tax collectors and sinners came and ate with him and his disciples. When the Pharisees saw this, they asked his disciples, “Why does your teacher eat with tax collectors and sinners?”

On hearing this, Jesus said, “It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick. But go and learn what this means: ‘I desire mercy, not sacrifice.’ For I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners.~Matthew 9:11-12

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