"Trey Tuesday" - November 24, 2015

Ponder lately?

We live in such a fast paced culture, we rarely have/make/take time to look back on the events of our lives.  Summer vacations come and go so quickly!  Weddings, graduations, birthdays - poof! - over!

My phone has such a small memory I am constantly going through my photos, pondering/considering which photos are "worthy" of keeping and which get deleted.  It is fun to scroll back through and remember people, places and events which have quickly vanished from my mind as soon as I turned the calendar page.

Thanksgiving is a good time to ponder.  Ponder the many blessings we have.  Ponder the way God has provided when there seemed to be no other way.  Consider the people who have entered your life this year, those you never could have imagined knowing so well.

Before you leave this post, take a quick moment to ponder your day today.  God is so very faithfully weaving together a journey to show you His love.  Jay is always so good at sharing ponderings of God working through our Young Warrior.  What do your ponderings reveal?

"Give thanks to the Lord, for He is good; His love endures forever.
Let the redeemed of the Lord tell their story— and ponder the loving deeds of the Lord."Psalm 107:1,2,43

"Trey Tuesday" - November 17, 2015

Storytelling Social Media style

Facebook, Twitter and the rest of social media can most definitely have a bad reputation.  At just the click of a key, news can spread faster than any old fashioned gossip chain!  Yes, bad news travels fast on social media. Weird news seems to travel even faster!  Imagine the potential impact we have via sites like YouTube!  In 5 days, GoPro dad has clocked 5,464,517 views of his 4:17 video.  This equals over 23 million minutes = Almost 48 years!!!

I hope you stop to consider though, the many good aspects of being connected with "friends" and family around the world!   What power we have in 2015 to share GOOD NEWS!  :)  God calls us to remember His provision and faithfulness and to praise Him!  Psalm 105:1 "Give praise to the LORD, proclaim His name; make known among the nations what He has done."

As he mentioned in his latest website post, http://jaymitlo.com/still-dealing-with-death-and-life/, Jay would like his family to participate in some storytelling about "Trey week" - the many experiences and testimonies we encountered during the most difficult time after Trey's passing.  Will you please pray for us as this unfolds in the very near future?

Here is a sneak peak into the many ways God sustained us:

Trey Tuesday for November 11, 2014:

God's Faithfulness....

We must remember.
We must remember.
We must remember.

God has shown His faithfulness over and over and over again throughout Trey's life.
And God has shown His faithfulness over and over and over again throughout Trey's death.
And now each one of us must trust God's faithfulness as we reenter into the everyday...

We MUST remember God's faithfulness!

"Let us hold unswervingly to the hope we profess, for He who promised is faithful."
Hebrews 10:23

I had the most blessed opportunity to spend the past week with Joe and Bella (and Jay and Rachel and many, many other Mitlos!)  :)  It was Bella who began our week long journal which is entitled:  MIRACLES ABOUND!  It started when Bella spotted a rainbow in the sky on Thursday afternoon.  Just one day after losing her brother, this precious princess gasps and shrieks, "A rainbow!" with the most innocent joy!  J-O-Y!?!?  Yes, joy!  :)

Joe's first miracle came in the shape of boy's size 14 slim pants that fit perfectly, found within 2 minutes of shopping!  M-I-R-A-C-L-E!  (Joe said his clip on tie was the perfect size, too!)  :)  Joe and I spent a few minutes in the arcade at the mall.  Can you believe that a teenager approached Joe as Joe was counting the tickets he had earned, handed Joe a huge stack of tickets and said, "Here, you can have these."  Joe looked at me as if he had just hit the lottery, "Miracles Abound, Aunt Cathy!"  :)

Countless, literally countless other miracles abound, but I must at least mention a few miracles of love like the lines of Team Mitlo One friends waiting to pay their respects, the endless trail of tears, the desperate embraces, the powerful leadership and preaching of Jay, the ever so beautiful and strong Rachel, Joe and Bella's friends supporting and distracting them, the humble and thoughtful accommodations of Hebron Church, the intimately embracing Faith Community Church, and even 60 degree sunny skies as we journeyed to the cemetery and then later for my trip (with a full tank of gas!) to return home.

 

 I am building my Ebenezer.  The photos and stories of this past week will forever be a testimony of God's faithfulness, a lasting gift from our Young Warrior....."Thus far the LORD has helped us."

"Then Samuel took a stone and set it up between Mizpah and Shen. He named it Ebenezer, saying, "Thus far the LORD has helped us."  I Samuel 7:12

"Trey Tuesday" - November 10, 2015

Cheerleaders

Have you ever been to a sporting event and seen 1 cheerleader working the crowd?  Of course not!  Not only is it impossible to form a pyramid with only 1 cheerleader, it is pretty difficult to keep the positive momentum of the whole stadium going all by yourself.  When the other team is winning, it takes a whole crew of cheerleaders to boost the morale, support the special teams and shout out encouragement until everyone is hoarse!  And it takes 2 people (or more!) to catch the cheerleader that was twirled through the air!

This "Trey Tuesday" is for you, the Mitlo family cheerleaders:  Team Mitlo One!  :)

Thank you to each and every one of you - family, friend, neighbor, coworker, church member, and friend of a friend of a friend!  Thank you for your extraordinary love and support, cheering on Jay and Rachel and Joe and Bella through your prayers, your comforting and encouraging words, cards, favors and everything else - this past week, this past year, and every step of Trey's life!!  :)

We pray for YOU this week!

"Finally, brothers and sisters, rejoice! Strive for full restoration, encourage one another, be of one mind, live in peace. And the God of love and peace will be with you."  2 Corinthians 13:11

"Trey Tuesday" - November 3, 2015

Jay

The father of our Young Warrior.  What would his t-shirt say? 

"Care for the flock that God has entrusted to you. Watch over it willingly, not grudgingly--not for what you will get out of it, but because you are eager to serve God."  I Peter 5:2

This passage follows the heading in the Bible: Instructions to Elders.  God calls elders to oversee their people.  God has called Jay to oversee his family.  This became true the day that Jay married Rachel.  Before God, Jay promised to love and care for Rachel.  And then Joe came along.  Jay's dedication to his first born son was quickly seen.  Jay is a hands on kind of dad!  Bella's birth increased the flock and the responsibility.  Jay would now be seen through the eyes of Daddy's little girl!  The birth of Trey increased the family, the sound level (!) and the joy!  :)

Christmas Eve, 2010, Jay accepted fatherhood at an unconscionable level.  Jay's dedication to his family became a devotion.  He vowed to love and protect Rachel as she cared for Trey.  He devoted himself to caring for Joe and Bella and their physical, spiritual and emotional needs, at any cost.  Jay, the Elder Warrior, devoted himself and his family to the Lord for the battle before them.

Devotion, you know, isn't a temporary or part time job.  To devote something is serious business:"The Hebrew term (for devotion) refers to the irrevocable giving over of things or persons to the Lord."   Jay devoted himself to God...to be and do all that God called him to do...no turning back...no wimping out...no calling in a sub...

Thank you, God, for raising up Jay to be a devoted father and husband, a man relying on You as he chooses to love his family in word and in deed.  Please encourage him with Your Truths as he perseveres through these difficult days. Heal his deepest pain. Surround and protect his family as they continue to love You and serve You with devotion.

"Be devoted to one another in love."  Romans 12:10