Dear Friends and Family,
When we packed up our life almost seven years ago and headed a hundred and fifty miles East of everything we knew, we put our faith into practice. We learned firsthand that following God usually means leaving behind your own ideas of what you think you NEED or WANT.
We have always believed firmly that God put us on this path. And although He didn't see fit to reveal the details of this journey to us in advance, we have leaned on His promises for protection over our family.
I have heard it said so many times that you don't need to attend a church to worship God or to establish a deep relationship with Christ. And although that logic may be true I can't help but feel saddened for those that are missing out on some of the most amazing benefits of being a Christian. The love and support that comes from a church family cannot be measured, which is why for us our first priority after relocating was to find a new church.
We had already experienced this kind of love by the amazing church we were leaving behind, a church family that has continued to support us throughout the years. The idea of finding a new place to worship was difficult. It seemed impossible that we would find that same kind of love again... yet we did!
We said good-bye to everything and everyone that was familiar to us. It was quite an adjustment and took some getting use to the anonymity that came with moving to a place where we knew NO ONE,so imagine our surprise when...
One Sunday morning we decided to visit a church that was associated with our old church. But something happened when we walked inside, a miracle of sorts, definitely something that we could have never predicted. We were greeted by the Pastor with a wonderful welcome...
"You must be the Bramlee Family."
To say we were shocked would be an understatement, we thought we would be slipping into a room full of people who had never even heard our name before. How could this be? How did they know us? We hadn't told anyone we were going to be visiting this church, in fact up until a few minutes before we left that morning we had planned on visiting another one. Todd and I had been praying diligently that God would clearly reveal to us which church He wanted us to call our new "Family."
The two of us looked at each other and instantly knew that we were, "home."
From that day on we have received strength, comfort, and support from this new family that God saw fit give us.
Now, here is the part that is most difficult to share, simply because it infringes upon my pride and stretches my humility, however, it is crucial in illustrating God's amazing handy work.
All throughout medical school God used our church, family, and friends to not only sustain us spiritually but also financially, with mysterious monetary gifts that would pop up just when we needed it the most. It has been hard to admit that there were times when things would get that tough but there were, and God provided each and every time.
We knew when we accepted this calling we would be required to make sacrifices. We were prepared to trust God when things got difficult but what we didn't expect was the amazing ways in which He would provide for us.... continuously!
We were told that medical school loans couldn't financially meet the needs of a family our size. So what does God do to prove His mighty power... He shows off by sustaining us with not only the three children we started with but then gives us two more little blessings just to prove His point.
When that wasn't enough of a show He demonstrated His power by: providing a brand new home for us, giving us new friends that would act as family in times of need and provided for our kid's medical challenges by putting just the right people in our path when we needed them the most.
There was an instance when we didn't have enough money to make it to our next pay check. I went to the mailbox with a tongue in cheek attitude and said, "Okay God, how about a miracle in the mailbox." And to no surprise to those of faith guess what I pulled out... a check for a hundred dollars. He put that plan in the works before we even knew we needed it, nor did the sender know that there was a desperate need for it. I have seen God act in so many amazing ways.
Throughout our journey we not only experienced many peeks but many valleys as well. I have been heartbroken at times, watched my kids physically suffer, gone without many things I would have "liked" to have had, but never once did we ever go without daily provisions that were needed and never once did we ever loose our JOY.
In the midst of our trials we have also seen many miracles... from neighbors offering to buy our house before we had a chance to list it for sale, medical bills being wiped away because of a "mistake on their part", to exact amounts of money surprisingly appearing when it was needed, I could go on for days with more examples.
These blessing didn't come to us because we are any more worthy than anyone else but simply because we were willing to completely surrender everything to God's control (which is not an easy task for this control freak).
So many family and friends have supported us during this journey with their prayers, financial gifts, child care assistance and encouragement. There will never be a way to convey the true depths of our gratitude for every blessing that we have received.
To all of you that have reached out to us in anyway, whether it was a much needed meal, or a note of encouragement, please know...
You were part of a promise that God had made to us before we walked through the threshold of our journey.
You have been used to fulfill the blessings that came with obeying a plan that never made earthly sense.
You gave us the courage and support we needed to commit ourselves to His will...
How can we ever thank you enough!
Please accept our deepest love and appreciation for your selfless gift of support to our humble family.
All Our Love,
The Bramlee Family
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