"A glad heart makes a happy face;" Proverbs 15:13
I wish for you great health, hope, humor, and happiness in the new year. I have much to be thankful for and much to look forward to in 2013.
God Bless!
xoxo
Lisa
Monday, December 31, 2012
Wednesday, December 26, 2012
May God Bless You with an Angel
Whoo hoo! Please check out this link to my debut book about guardian angels!
http://harvesthousepublishers.com/book/may-god-bless-you-with-an-angel-2013/
http://harvesthousepublishers.com/book/may-god-bless-you-with-an-angel-2013/
Saturday, December 22, 2012
"Isn't there anyone out there who can tell me what Christmas is all about?"
Charlie Brown: [shouting in desperation] "Isn't there anyone out there who can tell me what Christmas is all about?"
Linus Van Pelt: "Sure, Charlie Brown, I can tell you. Lights, please."
[a spotlight shines on Linus]
Linus Van Pelt: "And there were in the same country shepherds abiding in the fields, keeping watch over their flocks by night. And lo, the angel of the Lord came upon them, and the glory of the lord shone round about them, and they were afraid. And the angel said unto them, Fear not, for behold, I bring unto you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people. For unto you this day is born in the City of Bethlehem, a Savior, which is Christ the Lord. And this shall be a sign unto you; you shall find the babe wrapped in swaddling clothes and lying in a manger. And suddenly there was with the angel, a multitude of the heavenly host, praising God, and saying, 'Glory to God in the highest, and on Earth peace, good will toward men'. That's what Christmas is all about, Charlie brown.
Lisa M. Bakos: Merry Christmas to my dear friends and family! I am blessed!
Linus Van Pelt: "Sure, Charlie Brown, I can tell you. Lights, please."
[a spotlight shines on Linus]
Linus Van Pelt: "And there were in the same country shepherds abiding in the fields, keeping watch over their flocks by night. And lo, the angel of the Lord came upon them, and the glory of the lord shone round about them, and they were afraid. And the angel said unto them, Fear not, for behold, I bring unto you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people. For unto you this day is born in the City of Bethlehem, a Savior, which is Christ the Lord. And this shall be a sign unto you; you shall find the babe wrapped in swaddling clothes and lying in a manger. And suddenly there was with the angel, a multitude of the heavenly host, praising God, and saying, 'Glory to God in the highest, and on Earth peace, good will toward men'. That's what Christmas is all about, Charlie brown.
Lisa M. Bakos: Merry Christmas to my dear friends and family! I am blessed!
Wednesday, November 21, 2012
Happy Thanksgiving!
"Give thanks to the Lord , for he is good! His faithful love endures forever." (Psalms 107:1 NLT)
What I'm most thankful for...
What I'm most thankful for...
Sunday, November 18, 2012
Guten tag, Bonjour, Good day!
I'm writing this post on the eve of our last day in Paris. Our vacation to Germany and France has been amazing and I've seen everything from the castle of a German king to the palace of a French one, with numerous monuments, museums, and famous landmarks in between.
In Germany, I visited the Nazi concentration camp in Dachau, where I cried in sadness for the victims of such a horrific period in our world's history. I will never be able to understand fully what each soul had to go through in order to survive, nor will I ever be able to forget those who perished in the process.
I also visited the Cathedral of Notre Dame in Paris as it approaches its 850th anniversary in the coming year. I was in awe of those who built this church from the ground up and convinced that but for the grace of God something so beautiful could be built by human hands so long ago yet still exist today.
My take away from this trip is two-fold: 1). I realize how historically young America is in relation to the rest of the world and that I still have so much more to see, and 2). How tenacious humans are in their quest to survive, succeed, hope, create, and thrive.
For me, everything I experienced on this trip was made better by the fact that I had such a difficult and challenging past year. And I know I've said this before, but I can't stress this enough now. I feel blessed that God found me worthy to face such an unthinkable disease such as cancer. He gave me the gift of discovering in myself a deeper faith and inner strength I never realized I had until now. He also gave me new eyes through which to discover and appreciate a new world all around me.
I'm excited to share the details of this trip with my children (whom I miss dearly) and hope to pass on to them a desire to travel or study abroad one day as well. While I wished I'd been to Europe earlier in my life, I can't say I would have necessarily appreciated it as much as I do now.
With that, I give thanks to my husband for planning this trip and taking me, and to God for teaching me what life is really all about.
Enjoy the pictures!
XO
Lisa
In Germany, I visited the Nazi concentration camp in Dachau, where I cried in sadness for the victims of such a horrific period in our world's history. I will never be able to understand fully what each soul had to go through in order to survive, nor will I ever be able to forget those who perished in the process.
I also visited the Cathedral of Notre Dame in Paris as it approaches its 850th anniversary in the coming year. I was in awe of those who built this church from the ground up and convinced that but for the grace of God something so beautiful could be built by human hands so long ago yet still exist today.
My take away from this trip is two-fold: 1). I realize how historically young America is in relation to the rest of the world and that I still have so much more to see, and 2). How tenacious humans are in their quest to survive, succeed, hope, create, and thrive.
For me, everything I experienced on this trip was made better by the fact that I had such a difficult and challenging past year. And I know I've said this before, but I can't stress this enough now. I feel blessed that God found me worthy to face such an unthinkable disease such as cancer. He gave me the gift of discovering in myself a deeper faith and inner strength I never realized I had until now. He also gave me new eyes through which to discover and appreciate a new world all around me.
I'm excited to share the details of this trip with my children (whom I miss dearly) and hope to pass on to them a desire to travel or study abroad one day as well. While I wished I'd been to Europe earlier in my life, I can't say I would have necessarily appreciated it as much as I do now.
With that, I give thanks to my husband for planning this trip and taking me, and to God for teaching me what life is really all about.
Enjoy the pictures!
XO
Lisa
Sunday, November 11, 2012
One for My Bucket List
I'm 48 years old, I've battled and (hopefully) beat cancer...and I've never been to Europe. Seems strange to mash those three facts together in one sentence, but they really are all inter-related.
With my fancy new haircut, suitcase full of boots, sweaters, and hats, Steve is taking me along on his business trip to Munich, followed by a romantic vacation to Paris.
In the throws of chemo and recovering from various surgeries, I never could have imagined a trip like this would ever be possible...but here I am, about to board my Business Class seats - a splurge for us! Yippee!
Admittedly, I'm a little anxious about the long flight, as well as being so far from my kids for so long, but I believe God wouldn't see me through cancer only to land my plane in the Atlantic...tee hee.
I am blessed! Pictures to follow! Bon Jour, Bon Voyage, and LIFE GOES ON!
With my fancy new haircut, suitcase full of boots, sweaters, and hats, Steve is taking me along on his business trip to Munich, followed by a romantic vacation to Paris.
In the throws of chemo and recovering from various surgeries, I never could have imagined a trip like this would ever be possible...but here I am, about to board my Business Class seats - a splurge for us! Yippee!
Admittedly, I'm a little anxious about the long flight, as well as being so far from my kids for so long, but I believe God wouldn't see me through cancer only to land my plane in the Atlantic...tee hee.
I am blessed! Pictures to follow! Bon Jour, Bon Voyage, and LIFE GOES ON!
Wednesday, October 10, 2012
Significant [ sig-nif-i-kuhnt] adjective
1. important; of consequence.
2. of or pertaining to observations that are unlikely to occur by chance and that therefore indicate a systematic cause.
"God often sends us into the hopeless place because it's in the hopeless place that we can see the hope of God. The interrupted life is the significant life." ~ Priscilla Shirer
It's a little strange to emerge from such a tumultuous year and have life seem to drift slowly back to normal...part of me feels like I should get to wear some sort of crown, badge or medal everyday, indicating to everyone I meet just how much I've gone through, and how I survived it. But it seems the "I'm Through With Cancer Store" is fresh out of tiaras.
Instead, I'm trying to live a significant life, have gratitude for God every day, and not take anything or anyone for granted. I'm walking now every day (much to my dogs' delight) working on getting healthy, feeling strong, and enjoying even the simple things such as finally being able to use the blow dryer on my 3/4 inch of hair today - now growing in straight and similarly colored to what I had before. :)
One year ago today, I found out I had cancer. That interruption caused the most significant and life changing events to occur for me, from losing my breasts to gaining a deeper faith in God...and, truth be told, I wouldn't trade it for the world.
Live significantly...I intend to!
2. of or pertaining to observations that are unlikely to occur by chance and that therefore indicate a systematic cause.
"God often sends us into the hopeless place because it's in the hopeless place that we can see the hope of God. The interrupted life is the significant life." ~ Priscilla Shirer
It's a little strange to emerge from such a tumultuous year and have life seem to drift slowly back to normal...part of me feels like I should get to wear some sort of crown, badge or medal everyday, indicating to everyone I meet just how much I've gone through, and how I survived it. But it seems the "I'm Through With Cancer Store" is fresh out of tiaras.
Instead, I'm trying to live a significant life, have gratitude for God every day, and not take anything or anyone for granted. I'm walking now every day (much to my dogs' delight) working on getting healthy, feeling strong, and enjoying even the simple things such as finally being able to use the blow dryer on my 3/4 inch of hair today - now growing in straight and similarly colored to what I had before. :)
One year ago today, I found out I had cancer. That interruption caused the most significant and life changing events to occur for me, from losing my breasts to gaining a deeper faith in God...and, truth be told, I wouldn't trade it for the world.
Live significantly...I intend to!
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