There Is a Miracle in 21: God Completes!

By Lorieen D. Henry

With a unique candor and glimpses of desperation,
God allows Lorieen to use Th ere Is a Miracle in 21: God
Completes! as therapy. Welcome to Lorieens therapy
with God! Journey with her through the mess to the
miracle! It is an unorthodox book, where she shares her
struggles while simultaneously pouring out her heart,
hope, inspiration, and encouragement as the Lord
allows. Whether she is sharing feelings of inadequacy,
confessing faults, or sharing words of encouragement,
she does it with a heart to glorify God.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Xlibris UK
• Release date: Aug 24, 2012
• ISBN: 9781477155257

Lorieen D. Henry

Lorieen D. Henry is a homemaker and veteran of the United States Army. She holds a BA degree in Journalism from the University of Southern Mississippi. She spends most of her time exhorting others for the glory of God. Lorieen, the ordinary, has been graced to do the extraordinary. She and her family currently reside in Germany.

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Copyright © 2012 by LORIEEN D. HENRY.

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the copyright owner.

To order additional copies of this book, contact:

Xlibris Corporation

0-800-644-6988

www.xlibrispublishing.co.uk

[e-mail]

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THERAPHY CONTENTS

Acknowledgements

Introduction

How Does This Therapy Apply to Me?

Section I: The Mess

Chapter 1 Hot Mess

Chapter 2 The Bathroom Experience

Chapter 3 Let the Shovel Go

Section II: How to Press

Chapter 4 My Journey and His Formula

Chapter 5 The Devotional: What Intimacy with Him Reveals!

Section III: Receiving God’s Best

Chapter 6 Weapons of Mass Destruction—Praise! Pray! Plan!

Chapter 7 The Miracle—God Completes!

References

And I will make of thee a great nation, and I will bless thee, and make thy name great; and thou shalt be a blessing. (Gen. 12: 2, KJV)

But seek ye first the kingdom of God and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you. (Matt. 6: 33, KJV)

And the LORD answered me, and said, Write the vision, and make it plain upon tables, that he may run that readeth it. (Habakkuk 2: 2, KJV)

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I dedicate this book to

Ronnie & Reagan

Henry

You light up my life! GOD blessed me beyond measure with you.

It is my honor to serve you, and there is nothing that compares to it.

YOU ARE MY 1st MINISTRY!!!

I LOVE YOU!

Dear Friends,

Let us invoke the presence of God upon this book so that in my shortcomings,

you may receive what God has for you.

A Song of Invitation: Welcome into This Place (Verse 1), by Orlando Juarez

Welcome into this place

Welcome into this broken vessel

You desire to abide

In the praises of Your people

So we lift our hands

And we lift our hearts

As we offer up this praise unto Your name

A Scripture of Preparation: Isaiah 40: 3-5, KJV

The voice of him that crieth in the wilderness, Prepare ye the way of the Lord, make straight in the desert a highway for our God. Every valley shall be exalted, and every mountain and hill shall be made low: and the crooked shall be made straight and the rough places plain. And the glory of the Lord shall be revealed, and all flesh shall see it together: for the mouth of the Lord has spoken.

A Prayer for Impartation

Heavenly Father, I invite Your presence to accompany each reader as they journey through this book. May Your voice be heard through the pages! Impart those things that You would have them know and highlight Scriptures that You would have them meditate on.

May the readers be comforted in knowing that they are not alone in their struggles! We all struggle at some point, but with you, we are more than conquerors. Lord, let them know that nothing happens in their own strength, but through You, all things are possible.

Touch lives, God, restore hope, stir up gifts and draw those which are lost back to you. Through the message that You have allowed me to share, bring prodigal sons and daughters home.

Oh Lord, inspire Your people to change while encouraging them not to be intimidated by the challenge of stepping out of their comfort zone. Reveal to each and every individual that a journey with You takes a daily conscious effort—it’s a choice! A relationship with You, Lord, takes work—It takes perseverance!

Give them a heart to invest time in You. Jesus, assure them that just because You don’t operate like a microwave (answer in minutes) to their prayers that you are ever present desiring a deeper relationship with them.

Through this journey, You have taught me that sometimes You take us through a childbearing experience to symbolize our growth. There are times when we have to birth what You have poured into us. We carry ‘the baby’ until it goes through all the developmental stages! We have kicks, morning sickness, swelling, tiredness, weakness… We require supplements and shots of encouragement, and we have to go through the highs and lows until it is time to deliver.

Lord, I pray Your peace upon them that they may know that You are there every step of the way. God, reveal to them that You have prepared the perfect birthplace, and You will hold their hands in the delivery room.

Lord, assure Your sons and daughters that anything beginning, continuing, and ending with You cannot fail. No matter what the journey looks like, no matter how long it takes, no matter how hard it is… Your will for their lives cannot fail with You! May hearts and minds be prepared for You to do a new thing and a perfect work in their lives!

Master, help them to trade in their fears for praise and their frustrations for prayer and plan each day according to Your Word. My Lord and Savior, it is only You who can help us put it all (our lives) in perspective. Though this book is my therapy, it is not about me, my ability, or my inability. It is for Your glory, so may it be a refreshing experience in you. Let the writing, the reading, the interpretation, and the actions that follow bring You glory! In Jesus’s name, Amen.

Be Glorified Jesus!

Lorieen

Acknowledgements

All glory to my Lord and Savior Jesus Christ! You alone complete me! Without You, I am nothing!

Ronnie Henry, you are my coach, my Hero, but above all, you are the love of my life. When God sent you to me, He gave me the best! I appreciate all that you do!

Reagan Henry, my life took on a whole new meaning when you were born. You have brought out the best in me! You are adorable, and I know God has purposed you for many great things.

Mama (Karen M. Jackson), you have been my #1 cheerleader since birth. Thank you for introducing me to Jesus. With that said, I love you for all that you are to me. YOU KNOW… . . . ..

Janelle Stroud (my sister) and Tiffany Sanders (my cousin) – Thank you for always being there (loving, supporting, and encouraging) with your own style. I am proud of the women you have become.

Thank you to my extended family near and far. I love you all!

Bishop Herman & Mother Doris Mitchell, I appreciate your love, encouragement and commitment to the things of God. I’m blessed to be covered by you and to have been under your pastoral care for 3.5 years.

I could not have made it without my core group of friends who pushed, pulled and prayed me through this book journey.

Titania Pepper – Bestie, you were the first along this journey to give me a glimpse of the Proverbs 31 woman. I appreciate your love and support and the countless hours you loaned your ear to my crying.

Gloria Baltrip – Glorifire, your zeal for God is contagious! I appreciate every word spoken into my life and for you sharing your journey with me. I can’t wait to buy your CD!

Verlena Williams – Angel Lena, I appreciate you undergirding me and keeping my name before God. You always knew just what to say and the smile to go with it.

Dr. Jarmese Sherrod-Winsley – PP, as I hit the home stretch, a prayer partner was just what I needed to carry me to the finish line. I appreciate our fellowship! Your words, My Purpose = Impact will forever be a part of my life.

Our friends: Juergen Becker, Terry & Erica Johnson, Roy & Angela Hale and Kyle & Ladonna Montgomery – You guys mean so much to my family.

My Mentors:

Shelia Varnado – Thank you for the countless hours you spent pouring into a young cadet. PRICELESS! You have always been just a phone call or email away, and I am grateful.

Paul Sanders – I appreciate the example you set for me as a young officer. I learned invaluable lessons from your work ethic as well as your compassion.

To the people who have loved, encouraged and supported me for 20 plus years, thank you. The village: Wanda Gatlin, JC & Claudia McDonald, Jack & Gloria Jefferson, Dr. S.E. & Sis. Janice Alexander and the Magnolia M.B. Church Family, Glenda Ball, Joann Weathersby, Dr. Michael Battle, Felisha Hampton, Mary Spicer, and Minnie Spicer.

Women who have been instrumental in my life throughout the years: Mary Naugher, Cydney Kastner, Tamika Lewis, Rose Marie Sniffin, Kesha Coleman, Darkeesha Sims, Mary Swinger, Misti Frodyma, Felish Sealy, Katresha Bailey, Shelley Reed, Roshun Steele, Germaine Harris, Kimberly Anderson, Latasha McCullar, Tracia Reed and Pauline Patterson.

This book would not have come together without the wonderful group of professionals that make up the Xlibris Team. Thank you for all the hard work put into making my dream a reality. A special thanks to Mae Gibbs who made me feel secure to entrust my work with the company. And I can’t forget Rhea Villacarlos who kept this project on track from start to finish. Blessings to you all!

Thank you to the cadre of G Company, 244th QM Battalion, Fort Lee, VA (2005-2007) for the best years of my Army career.

Thank you to the faculty, staff and student body of East Flora Elementary, Madison Central High and the University of Southern Mississippi.

I can’t forget to thank the wonderful people of the town of Flora, MS. And I must thank the wonderful people that make up the military communities of Grafenwoehr and Vilseck Germany.

To every man, woman, boy and girl that have ever crossed my path, thank you. And lastly, to everyone who supports this book, I send a heartfelt THANK YOU from my family to yours.

Introduction

How Does This Therapy

Apply to Me?

There Is a Miracle in 21 — God completes is my therapy with God . It is an unorthodox book where I pour my heart, hope, inspiration, and encouragement as the Lord allows. He allowed me to embark upon seven twenty-one-day journeys over nine months and experience the therapy over a twenty-one month period. The journey wasn’t perfect, but it was necessary. It established the foundation for me to get to the next level in Christ Jesus .

This book journey arose from discontentment in my life. It’s not a ‘how to’ book, but it’s how I got through. As I remember crying out to God about not being where I thought I should be, He gave me the title for this book. He didn’t stop there because He also gave me the formula that went along with it. This book can serve as encouragement to anyone doubting their importance in life. As you witness my therapy, you will realize that you too can make a difference right where you are in life. You don’t have to be perfect nor have it all together. But seek ye first the kingdom of God and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you. (Matt. 6: 33, KJV)

With God, you quickly realize the difference in your life and the positive contribution you make to the lives of others. This book exhibits how God can use minimal skills to produce a completed work and in my case, a miracle. You don’t have to fit a mold or covet someone else’s journey. God can take your uniqueness and use it for His glory.

This is definitely not the message I expected to share because it requires me to become transparent. Who really wants to be transparent when you have to shine the light into your own darkness? Let me answer that—not me! However, I share in hopes that God’s message will be amplified through my journey.

With that said, I am quickly reminded that this journey is not about me. It is about ensuring the delivery of the message Jesus wants shared. With moments of transparency, God exposes my frustrations, desperation, and mess during this therapy. In writing… in sharing, God illuminates my path and gives me a better understanding of who I am and what my role is. He teaches me how to operate in His power and might and to understand things through Him. He shared with me, ‘I am seasoned for this season’.

It was no easy feat to write this book. God pushed me so far beyond the surface, and He challenged me in the sharing of my feelings. Honestly, it hurt to write some of these things because it required me to show myself in a not-so-bright light. I had to unmask! However, God equipped me with the strength. Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and you shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you. (Matt. 7: 7, KJV)

The more He flashed the light into my darkness, the more He dealt with me and my mess. All the while, He lavished His love on me and didn’t allow me to self-destruct. Instead, God provided me the outlet of writing to show me that miracles still occur. But not only do they occur, He could turn my mess into a miracle if I dare to believe that he completes!

I will caution you that at times it sounds like different people wrote this book. That’s because I was in therapy! I wrote with the passion by which I was feeling at the time. When I was hurt, I wrote with a chip on my shoulder. When I was angry, I wrote with a feel of fire. And when I felt the anointing of God, I wrote with great perspective. When I was flowing in the Holy Spirit, it sounded like music being tapped out on the computer. I share this with you because when a person is in therapy, what they say doesn’t always come out politically correct. Some thoughts are just put out there to clear the air, my chest, my head, and so forth. Some thoughts and Scriptures are repeated on purpose. And I tell you that I share a piece of my story because God didn’t allow me to release everything to you. There were times I wanted to say much more, but God cut it off and wrapped it up.

I could have held this book for years, writing and rewriting it. (God knows I did drag my feet on getting it to the publisher.) However, sometimes we perfect stuff for so long that it never gets used. I didn’t want to miss this season that God has seasoned me for. Remember this: God challenges us to move out of our comfort zone for His glory. And despite my reluctance at times during the journey and my fear that this work wasn’t good enough, I had to remind myself that God completes!

So I wrote for my life! You will read encouraging stuff, and it may seem as though I’m speaking to you, but I found myself writing in many instances to encourage myself. The writing kept me… it kept me sane… it kept me in His will. So very early on, I want to encourage you to follow God’s lead even when things seem strange, even when you don’t understand them, and when the outcome is like nothing you imagined. Trust him to complete!

This book is heavily laced with scripture, but it has a little bit of everything. Many people read books from cover to cover, but I encourage you to read what you need. After you have made the book work for you, you can always go back and read from cover to cover. Every chapter is designed to give you a timely Word of encouragement.

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