Tuesday, March 27, 2007

THANK YOU PRAYER

> This was sent to me with good thoughts by a friend - so I'm sending it on
to
> you all....
>
>
> DEAR GOD,
> I want to thank You for what you have already done. I am not going to wait
> until I see results or receive rewards; I am thanking you right now.
>
> I am not going to wait until I feel better or things look better; I am
thanking
> you right now.
> I am not going to wait until people say they are sorry or until they stop
> talking about me; I am thanking you right now.
>
> I am not going to wait until the pain in my body disappears; I am thanking
you
> right now.
> I am not going to wait until my financial situation improves; I am going
to
> thank you right now.
> I am not going to wait until the children are asleep and the house is
quiet; I
> am going to thank you right now.
>
> I am not going to wait until I get promoted at work or until I get the
job; I
> am going to thank you right now.
>
> I am not going to wait until I understand every experience in my life that
has
> caused me pain or grief; I am thanking you right now.
>
> I am not going to wait until the journey gets easier or the challenges are
> removed; I am thanking you right now.
>
> I am thanking you because I am alive. I am thanking you because I made it
> through the day's difficulties. I am thanking you because I have walked
around
> the obstacles.
>
> I am thanking you because I have the ability and the opportunity to do
more AND
> do better.
>
> I'm thanking you because FATHER, YOU haven't given up on me.
>
>
>
>

Sunday, March 25, 2007

PLEASE PRAY FOR DYLAN

PLEASE PRAY FOR MY SON, DYLAN. WE HAD TO TAKE HIM TO THE E.R. LAST NIGHT BECAUSE HE WAS COMPLAINING OF A SEVERE SORE THROAT AND HAD A HIGH FEVER, THEN HE STARTED VOMITING. SO WHEN WE TOOK HIM TO THE E.R. THEY SAID HE HAD STREP THROAT. THEY GAVE HIM ONE DOSE OF ANTIBIOTICS AND WE GOT THE REST FILLED TODAY. HE IS IN A LOT OF PAIN AND STILL RUNNING A HIGH FEVER. SO YOUR PRAYERS WOULD BE GREATLY APPRECIATED. THANKS SO MUCH AND GOD BLESS.

Love,
Stephanie

Thursday, March 22, 2007

Please Pray For My Mother

My mother has been having some serious problems with her stomach and has been undergoing a lot of tests and trials of different medicines for about 8 or 9 weeks now. The doctors finally did a blood test to check for H. Pylori bacteria and it came back positive. H. Pylori is a bacteria that comes from food, drink, or contaminated utensils (in other words she probably picked it up by just having a meal at a restaurant). H. Pylori can remain undetected in the body for an undetermined amount of time until you start having symptoms for other conditions brought on by the H. Pylori, such as peptic ulcers, gastroenteritis, gastritis, dyspepsia, etc. If left untreated, it can result in all the afformentioned conditions and possibly death, so it is quite serious. They have now put her on two different antibiotics to try to fight the H. Pylori as well as a few stomach medicines to try to control the symptoms of the gastritis and ulcers that she has developed as a result of this bacteria.

I would really appreciate your prayers for my mother. She desperately needs a healing touch from God. Medicine is good, but we all know that true healing comes from above. So please keep her in your prayers (her name is Geraldine Collins) and I will keep you updated on her condition.Thanks so much! I have total faith that God will hear and answer prayers! And I am claiming my mother's healing as if it were already done!God bless you all! I love you!

Love,
Stephanie

Monday, March 19, 2007

Vote for my friend's baby!!

My friend Terra has entered her son, Corey in the Great American Photo Contest and she needs your votes to help him win!!  Just go to http://www.greatamericanphotocontest.com/BabyContest/Home.aspx?category=Search&viewType=LargeImage&img=28772&sBabyName=corey&sCaption=&sState=NC
 
and vote for Corey's pictures.  You will have to register, but they do not send you any spam email.  If that link doesn't work, just go to http://www.greatamericanphotocontest.com and click where it says "search" and do a search for "Corey" in North Carolina and it will bring up all of his pictures.  Please pass this on so all of your friends can vote too!!  Thanks and God bless.
 
Love,
Stephanie
 
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Stephanie Cates
Certified Beauty Advisor
Independent Sales Representative
AVON
To Buy or Sell: 

Friday, March 16, 2007

Becoming Illegal

> > Becoming Illegal
> >
> >
> > (Actual letter from an Iowa resident and sent to his senator)
> >
> > The Honorable Tom Harkin
> > 731 Hart Senate Office Building
> > Phone (202) 224 3254
> > Washington DC 20510
> >
> > Dear Senator Harkin:
> >
> > As a native Iowan and excellent customer of the Internal
Revenue
> > Service, I am writing to ask for your assistance. I have contacted
> > the Department of Homeland Security in an effort to determine the
> > process for becoming an illegal alien and they referred me to you.
> >
> > My primary reason for wishing to change my status from US
Citizen
> > to illegal alien stems from the bill which was recently passed by
the
> > Senate and for which you voted. If my understanding of this bill's
> > provisions is accurate, as an illegal alien who has been in the
> > United States for five years, all I need to do to become a citizen
is
> > to pay a $2,000 fine and income taxes for three of the last five
> > years. I know a good deal when I see one and I am anxious to get
the
> > process started before everyone figures it out.
> >
> >
> > Simply put, those of us who have been here legally have had to
> > pay taxes every year so I'm excited about the prospect of avoiding
> > two years of taxes in return for paying a $2,000 fine. Is there any
> > way that I can apply to be illegal retroactively? This would yield
an
> > excellent result for me and my family because we paid heavy taxes
in
> > 2004 and 2005.
> >
> > Additionally, as an illegal alien I could begin using the local
> > emergency room as my primary health care provider. Once I have
> > stopped paying premiums for medical insurance, my accountant
figures
> > I could save almost $10,000 a year.
> >
> > Another benefit in gaining illegal status would be that my
> > daughter would receive preferential treatment relative to her law
> > school applications, as well as "instate" tuition rates for many
> > colleges throughout the United States for my son.
> >
> > Lastly, I understand that illegal status would relieve me of
the
> > burden of renewing my driver's license and making those burdensome
> > car insurance premiums. This is very important to me given that I
> > still have college age children driving my car.
> >
> > If you would provide me with an outline of the process to
become
> > illegal (retroactively if possible) and copies of the necessary
> > forms, I would be most appreciative.
> >
> >
> > Thank you for your assistance.
> >
> > Your Loyal Constituent,
> > Donald Ruppert
> >
> >
> > Burlington, IA
> >
> >
> > Get your Forms (NOW)!! Call your Internal Revenue Service
> > 1-800-289-1040.
> >
> > Please pass this onto your friends so they can save on this great
> > offer!!!!

Fw: Everyone has been issued a special job by our Lord.

 
 
  God Bless you one and all.
Where ever you are you have a job to do there.
 
A teacher in New York decided to honor each of her seniors in High School by
telling them the difference each of them had made. She called each student
to the front of the class, one at a time.  First, she told each of them how
they had made a difference to her, and the class. Then she presented each of them with a blue ribbon, imprinted with gold letters, which read, "Who I Am Makes a Difference."

Afterwards, the teacher decided to do a class project, to see what kind of
impact recognition would have on a Community. She gave each of the students
three more blue ribbons, and instructed them to go out and spread this
acknowledgment ceremony.  Then they were to follow up on the results, see
who honored whom, and report to the class in about a week.

One of the boys in the class went to a junior executive in a nearby Company,
and honored him for helping him with his career planning. He gave him a blue
ribbon, and put it on his shirt.  Then he gave him two extra ribbons and
said, "We're doing a class project on recognition, and we'd like for you to go out, find somebody to honor, give them a blue ribbon, then give them the extra blue ribbon so they can acknowledge a third person, to keep this acknowledgment ceremony going. Then please report back to me and tell me what happened."

Later that day, the junior executive went in to see his boss, who had been
noted, by the way, as being kind of a grouchy fellow. He sat his boss down,
and he told him that he deeply admired him for being a creative genius. The
boss seemed very surprised. The junior executive asked him if he would
accept the gift of the blue ribbon, and would he give him permission to put
it on him. His surprised boss said, "Well, sure." The junior executive took
the blue ribbon and placed it right on his boss's jacket, above his heart.
As he gave him the last extra ribbon, he said, "Would you take this extra
ribbon, and pass it on by honoring somebody else. The young boy who first
gave me the ribbons is doing a project in school, and we want to keep this
recognition ceremony going and find out how it affects people."

That night, the boss came home to his 14-year-old son, and sat him down. He
said, "The most incredible thing happened to me today. I was in my office,
and one of the junior executives came in and told me he admired me, and gave
me a blue ribbon for being a creative genius. Imagine! He thinks I am a
creative genius! Then he put a blue ribbon that says, "Who I Am Makes a
Difference", on my jacket above my heart. He gave me an extra ribbon and
asked me to find somebody else to honor. As I was driving home tonight, I started thinking about whom I would honor with this ribbon, and I thought about you. I want to honor you. My days are hectic and when I come home, I do not pay a lot of attention to you. Sometimes I scream at you for not getting good enough grades in school, and for your bedroom being a mess. Somehow, tonight, I just wanted to sit here and, well, just let you know that you do make a difference to me. Besides your mother, you are the most important person in my life. You're a great kid, and I love you!"

The startled boy started to sob and sob, and he could not stop crying His
whole body shook. He looked up at his father and said through his tears,
"Dad, earlier tonight I sat in my room and wrote a letter to you and Mom,
explaining why I had took my life, and I asked you to forgive me. I was going to commit suicide tonight after you were asleep. I just did not think that you cared at all. The letter is upstairs. I don't think I need it after all." His father walked upstairs and found a heartfelt letter full of anguish and pain.

The boss went back to work a changed man. He was no longer a grouch, but
made sure to let all of his employees know that they made a difference.

The junior executive helped several other young people with career planning,
and never forgot to let them know that they made a difference in his
life...one being the boss' son. In addition, the young boy and his
classmates learned a valuable lesson,

"Who you are DOES make a difference".


Smile and know that I think that you are important, or you would not
have received this in the first place. Who you are does make a difference,
and I wanted you to know that.

Isn't this a wonderful story? I'm passing the blue ribbon to you, for who
YOU are does make a difference, too.

May GOD BLESS YOU. Have an awesome day, and know that someone has thought
about you today!



A prayer for today:

Lord, Thank you for my friends and family who really do make a difference to
me.

AMEN
 
 
 
 
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Stephanie Cates
Certified Beauty Advisor
Independent Sales Representative
AVON
To Buy or Sell: 
stef326@hotmail.com
http://www.youravon.com/scates
http://www.myspace.com/avonladystephanie

Summer Lytle dies from child abuse - murderous stepmom has MySpace profile

Girl endured 'torture'
4-year-old's mother located; medical inquiry in abuse case to continue
Jody Lawrence-turner And Amy Cannata
Staff writers
March 14, 2007


Summer Lytle was killed by "homicidal violence," Spokane County's medical examiner said Tuesday.

Dr. Sally Aiken said she will continue to examine the body of the 4-year-old girl to pinpoint the exact cause of her death Saturday.

In other developments Tuesday:

•Summer's mother was finally located, so she can be informed of her daughter's death. The woman's identity has not been released, but police said she lives in Poulsbo, in Western Washington.

•The Washington Department of Social and Health Services released a statement saying that despite the agency's previous contact with Summer's father and stepmother, abuse was not apparent to workers.

..>
..> "What is very unfortunate about this case is that we did not receive any referrals alleging the severe abuse outlined in the court documents released yesterday," said Martin Butkovich, Spokane regional administrator for children's services. "It appears that the family did its best to hide the abuse from people who might have seen something and reported it to us."

•A veteran Spokane police detective compared the apparent abuse endured by the girl at the hands of her father and stepmother to that of a prisoner of war.

"Shock treatments, sleep deprivation, use of water as torture, beatings … there is no other way to describe it but torture," Spokane police Sgt. Joe Peterson said Tuesday. "This is the worst case of just systematic abuse."

Summer was pronounced dead late Saturday in the emergency room at Deaconess Medical Center.

Charged with homicide by abuse are Jonathan D. Lytle, 28, and 32-year-old Adriana L. Lytle. Each is in the Spokane County Jail on a $500,000 bond.

Investigators said the girl was found not breathing in a bathtub, where her father and stepmother had left her for several hours. The couple tried to revive her, they said in a court document, using their hands and feet to perform CPR. Jonathan Lytle took Summer to the hospital after resuscitation failed.

The case is the 12th child death involving abuse that Spokane police have investigated since 2000.

"In all the cases, you feel horrible," Peterson said. "The nightmare of what the children must go through not physically, but mentally, is something that I can't even conceive of."

According to court records, Summer's death ended a regimen of abuse that included a dog's shock collar, burns to her face, a bite mark and extensive bruising. Torn-out clumps of the girl's red hair were found in the apartment and in a nearby trash bin.

"There's no justice that could ever be done," Peterson said.

After the birth of Summer's stepbrother – Adriana and Jonathan Lytle's son Jon – about eight months ago, the DSHS Children's Administration provided parenting help to the Lytles through the First Steps program, officials said. Workers discontinued contact with the family in October.

"The Spokane family was not brought to our attention again until Sunday when Summer was pronounced dead at Deaconess Medical Center," said DSHS spokeswoman Kathy Spears. "The case will be reviewed and that information – when completed – will be publicly available."

Adriana Lytle seems to present a mixed public face on a MySpace page apparently maintained by her and last updated a day before Summer's death.

A woman calling herself angeleyes0921 confesses to illegal behavior, including drug use and shoplifting. Pictures of angeleyes0921 on the site are of the woman seen in court on Monday.

Although there are a few portraits of baby Jon Lytle, no individual pictures of Summer are posted.

Two group shots posted in December, however, show a small, red-headed girl with an impish smile. In one, Summer poses with her father and baby brother. In the other, captioned "Merry Christmas from the Lytle Family," all four pose with Santa as Adriana holds onto Summer's hand.

According to the probable cause affidavit for her arrest, Adriana Lytle called Summer a "pig" in interviews with Spokane police. A year earlier she wrote on her MySpace page that Summer "is the sweetest little girl."

In a March 9 blog entry, angeleyes0921 writes about her happiness at her one-year anniversary. "Time flies when you are having fun."

A day later, Summer was dead.

Here is the stepMONSTER's profile: www.myspace.com/angeleyes0921

Thursday, March 15, 2007

Campaign 7 - order now!!!!

Just a note to let you all know that I am now taking orders for AVON Campaign 7.  You can drop me a message if you would like to see a catalog or you can view online by going to my AVON website at http://www.youravon.com/scates .  All orders are due by Wednesday, March 28, 2007.  Don't forget that Easter is coming up soon so check out all the neat gifts in the current AVON catalog!  Happy shopping, everyone!
 
 
Stephanie Cates
Certified Beauty Advisor
Independent Sales Representative
AVON
To Buy or Sell: 

Read these 3 news stories and tell me we aren't living in a sick, sick world!!

Story #1 (March 15, 2007):


BRUNSWICK, Ga. — The body of missing 6-year-old Christopher Barrios has been found, the Georgia Bureau of Investigation confirmed to FOX News on Thursday.

GBI spokesman John Bankhead told FOX News he heard the news shortly after 4 p.m. EDT.

Christopher had been missing since last Thursday.

A reporter from local FOX affiliate WAGA who was on the scene said officials have put up crime scene tape in an area around the Brunswick, Ga., airport, less than 1 mile away from the child's home.

WAGA reported that a Department of Natural Resources officer found the body lying on the ground covered with something, although officials would not say what the covering was.

Police earlier found several shovels around the homes of a convicted sex offender and his associates during their search for the missing boy, according to local reports.

One shovel was found late Monday night in the home of the prime suspect in the case, George Edenfield, and three more were found Wednesday night around the home of another person of interest now in police custody, Glynn County Police Chief Matt Doering told local FOX affiliate WAWS.


Edenfield, a 32-year-old convicted sex offender who lives across the street from the Barrios family, has been named a suspect in the case. His father, mother, and a family friend, had been providing people with false information and leads for several days as to Christopher's whereabouts.

"My hopes jumped back up that he's alive and that we're gonna find our baby alive and he's gonna come back home," Christopher's grandmother, Sue Rodriguez, told FOX News just hours before the news of her grandson's death surfaced.

"They haven't found no baby's body and as along as that's not so, I'm gonna continue to hope and pray that he's alive and that he's coming home."

George Edenfield's mother, Peggy, and his father, David, as well as family friend Donald Dale were arrested this week and charged with obstructing an officer, providing false information and concealing the death of another — meaning they gave leads to police about where Christopher's body was that never panned out.

Asked whether she believed the Edenfields and Dale knew where Christopher was, Rodriguez earlier said she thinks the four are "playing like they're crazy" in leading frustrated police around to different spots only to come up empty in their search.

"I've begun thinking they are a little bit off but I think there's a lot playin' and this ain't no game," she said.

Investigators on Thursday searched another pond for the boy. Searchers had been combing the same general 5-square-mile area for a week in their search for Christopher.

"We hope we find him," Glynn County Police Capt. Jim Nazzrie told FOXNews.com Thursday before the news of Christopher's death. "I'm very hopeful we're going to find him alive ... you always have that hope that someone will be found alive."

Police searched a thicket of dense pines Wednesday night where Edenfield's father, David, and Dale told investigators they had buried the boy's body there. They also searched a pond near the mobile home park in which both the Barrios and Edenfields live.

But hours of searching with high-tech gear failed to turn up any sign of the child. The search was suspended for the night around 10 p.m.

Police said Monday night was the last night the people in custody referred to Barrios as a child and not a body, WAWS reported. Investigators also began searching areas outside of Glynn County later this week. They said they also wanted to talk to other persons of interest.

George Edenfield, a convicted sex offender who was taken into custody on unrelated charges of violating his parole and, as of Thursday afternoon, still had no charges against him in Christopher's disappearance, is the main suspect in the investigation.

In one interview, police said he told them he knew where the boy was located, but in another, he said he didn't know anything about his disappearance.

David and Peggy Edenfield and Dale were charged with "concealing the death of another person," a charge based on false statements to police, Nazzrie said.

"All that is under state law, if you told me you buried a body and you took me out there and you couldn't produce the body ... then we charge you with that because you say you have knowledge of it," Nazzrie said. "It probably won't hold up in court but it's still a charge."

The Edenfields and Dale were charged with obstruction of justice and making false statements to investigators about where Christopher may have been, and whether he was alive.

"The father and his friend basically confessed to burying little Christopher," Nazzrie told FOX News on Wednesday. "They took us to the area, several areas … for some reason they want to lie about it, they can't remember where they buried the body or if they did bury the boy," he said.

"[George Edenfield] actually said that he had hurt the boy and his momma and then had moved the boy," Nazzrie said. However, police have "no reason to believe [Christopher] is dead," he added.

The obstruction charges carry a bond of only $235.50 per person, while the giving false statements charges carry a bond of $1,104 per person. No bond was set for the "concealing the death of another person" charges, or for George Edenfield's parole violation.

Christopher was last seen last Thursday night walking on a road not far from the homes of his father and grandmother, who live in a mobile home park about a half-mile from Interstate 95 just outside the port city of Brunswick on the Georgia coast.

On Monday, the Georgia Bureau of Investigation issued a Levi's Call, the state's equivalent of an Amber Alert.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Story #2 (March 15, 2007):

INDIANAPOLIS — A man stabbed his 11-month-old son in the back, threw the boy out the car window with the kitchen knife stuck in his back and then drove away, police said Thursday. His 5-year-old son managed to escape unharmed.

"He was conscious, but the knife was buried all the way to the handle," said Speedway Detective Jim Thiele. The boy, Devin Chandler, was in stable condition at a hospital Thursday.

Officers had found Kevin Chandler's car but were searching for him. Thiele said Chandler is homeless and had been staying with some friends or family.

Police think 31-year-old Chandler and the boy's mother, Angela Limbrock, were arguing as they prepared to leave Limbrock's apartment on the west side of Indianapolis Wednesday night.

Limbrock handed Devin to Chandler so she could retrieve his car seat inside the home. As she left the car, she heard Chandler swear at the boy and turned around to see him throw Devin out of the car window, according to a police report. When Limbrock picked up her son, she saw a knife in his back, the report said.

She ran back to the home, where residents called for an ambulance.

"We're still trying to determine motive here, but at this point I have no reason to believe he did this to get back at the mother or anything," the detective said.

Speedway Police Capt. Charles Upchurch said Thursday that the department will ask prosecutors to issue an arrest warrant if they do not locate Chandler.

"I don't know why anyone would want to harm an 11-month-old baby," Morgan said.

Chandler has been arrested several times for crimes including domestic battery, auto theft and driving while intoxicated, records show. He served time in an Indiana prison for cocaine possession and carrying an unlicensed firearm near school property, records show.

In 2005, police arrested Chandler after he allegedly kicked Limbrock in the head and body.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Story #3 (March 15, 2007):

GRAND JUNCTION, Colo. — A Clifton, Colo., woman was jailed Wednesday on suspicion she had her grandchildren perform sexually explicit acts while a man she met on the Internet watched.

The 49-year-old woman was arrested Tuesday on charges including child abuse and sexual assault on a child. No bond had been set. The Associated Press was not naming the woman because it could provide information that would identify the victims.

Her arrest stemmed from an Immigrations and Customs Enforcement roundup linked to Matthew Hughes, 26, who was arrested in December on Internet child pornography charges in Canada.

Internet chat messages indicated Hughes and the grandmother communicated with each other. Investigators traced the woman through her screen name, according to an arrest affidavit.

The woman allegedly told investigators she had her granddaughters touch her at the request of a man who watched via a Web camera, the affidavidt said.

The woman, who is married, told Mesa County sheriff's investigators that she occasionally watches the children when their mother is away.

Investigators who visited her home this week said five children under the age of 15 were at the home, which had feces on the floor and moldy food in almost every room, according to the affidavit.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~


What a sick world we live in. Why do people have to prey on innocent children. It just makes me so mad! We need to pray for all of these families involved. And people please.....PLEASE.....if you have children keep your eyes on them at all times and be careful about who you leave them with!





Stephanie Cates
Certified Beauty Advisor
Independent Sales Representative
AVON
To Buy or Sell:
stef326@hotmail.com
http://www.youravon.com/scates
http://www.myspace.com/avonladystephanie

Tuesday, March 13, 2007

My Beauty Advisor Certificate


A Reminder About AVON Campaign 6

Hello to all my beautiful friends:

Just a reminder that all orders for AVON Campaign 6 are due to me no later than 8pm tomorrow night (Wednesday, 3/14). You can also go online to my personal AVON website and order by going to www.youravon.com/scates . If you live locally, just choose representative delivery and I will deliver your products to you. If you do not live in my immediate area, then choose direct delivery for only $3. And don't forget, those of you that live locally and order $15 or more will get a FREE gift from me whether you order directly from me or online (sorry, but I can only offer this to customers that live in my delivery area)!! So get those orders to me, and I look forward to talking to each of you soon!! Thanks and God bless!!

Stephanie Cates
Certified Beauty Advisor
AVON
stef326@hotmail.com










Monday, March 12, 2007

My AVON business

myspace layouts, myspace codes, glitter graphics


Hi everyone! As some of you already know I have completed my training and I am now a Certified Beauty Advisor for Avon. I finished setting up my website this afternoon, so now you can place your orders directly through the site if you wish. Please go to
www.youravon.com/scates
to view catalogs online and/or place orders. If you have any questions or suggestions, please drop me a line! Thank you all and God bless!!


myspace layouts, myspace codes, glitter graphics


myspace layouts, myspace codes, glitter graphics

Sunday, March 11, 2007

If you're gonna buy....why not buy from your friends!!

We have added several items to our online store.  Please stop by to check it out when you get a chance!!  And don't forget if you need Avon products, I'm your girl for that too!!  ;-)
 
I love you all.  Here's the website link:  http://www.annointedgifts.ecrater.com
 
Love,
Stephanie

Monday, March 05, 2007

Fw: 3 bullets

There once was a man who had nothing for his family to eat. He had an
old rifle and three bullets. So, he decided that he would go out hunting
and kill some wild game for dinner. As he went down the road, he saw a
rabbit. He shot at the rabbit and missed it. The rabbit ran away.

Then he saw a squirrel and fired a shot at the squirrel and missed it.
The squirrel disappeared into a hole in a cottonwood tree. As he went
further, he saw a large wild "Tom" turkey in the tree, but he had only
one bullet remaining. A voice spoke to him and said, "Pray first, aim
high, and stay focused."

However, at the same time, he saw a deer which was a better kill. He
brought the gun down and aimed at the deer.
But, then he saw a rattlesnake between his legs about to bite him, so
he naturally brought the gun down further to shoot the rattlesnake.
Still, the voice said again to him, "I said pray, aim high, and stay
focused." So, the man decided to listen to God's voice. He prayed, then
aimed the gun high up in the tree and shot the wild turkey.
The bullet bounced off the turkey and killed the deer. The handle fell
off the gun and hit the snake in the head and killed it.

And, when the gun had gone off, it knocked him into a pond. When he
stood up to look around, he had fish in all his pockets, a dead deer and
a turkey to eat for his family. The snake (Satan) was dead simply
because the man listened to God.

Moral of the story:
Pray first before you do anything. Aim and shoot high in your goals,
and stay focused on God. Never let others discourage you concerning your
past. The past is exactly that, "the past." Live every day one day at a
time and
Remember that only God knows our future and that He will not put you
through any more than you can bear.
Do not look to man for your blessings, but look to the doors that only
He has prepared in advance for you in your favor. Wait, be still and
patient. Keep God first and everything else will follow.