It was the Fourth of July and Andrea 's neighbor Candy was having a cookout . She invited about ten people . Andrea was helping her set up the picnic table and chairs . " It is a gorgeous day . It is supposed to go up to 80 degrees today . With the nice breeze we have , it will not be too hot . What time is everybody supposed to be here ? " Candy was cleaning off the grill . " I told everyone to come around 1 : 00 this afternoon . " It was 11 : 30 and everything was just about set up . The soda and the beer were on ice in the coolers . The hamburgers were made into patties and the hot dogs were on a plate in the refrigerator . Five different salads were prepared : toss salad , coleslaw , macaroni and potato salad and the three - bean salad . There also was watermelon cooling in the refrigerator . Andrea said , " I made the baked beans last night . All the condiments are ready to put on the table . " The food was going to be set up buffet style on the picnic table . " We will bring the food out after everyone is here . Thank you so much for helping . " Candy looked at Andrea and broke the news . " Oh , Andrea , by the way , Sam is bringing his friend for you to meet . " " Yes , but remember I have a four year old son . Not many guys want to be strapped down with a ready - made family . Here I am , twenty - six years old and still living with my parents . " " There is nothing wrong with that . You are saving your money to get a place of your own , " Candy reassured Andrea . " I think you are smart for doing that . " Andrea was curious . " What is his name and how old is he ? " Andrea smiled and said , " Well , he won 't hang out with me for long after he finds out about David . " Candy surprised Andrea when she said , " Sam already told Alan about you and your son . He did not have a problem with that . " With apprehension Andrea said , " Okay , I agree to meet him . " " Great ! They 'll be here in about half an hour . Sam and I thought it would be better if you meet him before the others showed up . " " Thank you , that was thoughtful , but you sure waited until the last minute to tell me . " " Well , I didn 't think you would come if you knew ahead of time . " " Okay , you win . Everything is ready . " Andrea was so nervous to meet a new guy . " Candy , I 'm going home for a minute , I 'll be back . " Chapter 2 Candy had to change her clothes and fix her hair . Andrea walked across the road to her parent 's red brick , ranch style , and three - bedroom home . She loved growing up in this house . " Mom , " Andrea called through the hallway , " Candy is going to introduce me to her boyfriend 's buddy at the cook out . " " Good for you Andrea . Are you going to bring David over with you ? He is out back with Grandpa . " " Not right away . I want to meet Alan first . Then I 'll bring him over when it is time to eat . " Andrea was getting nervous again . Andrea went into her bedroom to find something nice to wear . She looked through all her short outfits . Nothing seemed to look right . She finally picked out a blue and white flowered sundress and a cute pair of white sandals . She touched up her make - up and took her straight long brown hair down from a ponytail , brushed it really quick and decided to leave it down instead of putting back up . " Okay , thanks Mom . " Now Andrea 's stomach was really nervous and it was doing flip - flops . She took a deep breath and walked to the front door . Andrea looked out the screen to try to get a glimpse of Alan . Candy saw her and waved her over . As Andrea walked across the road everyone was smiling at her . She looked at Alan and smiled at him . Andrea 's first impression that she had of him was how handsome he was - tall , dark tan , dirty blonde , short hair . He had long blue jean shorts and a red polo shirt on . Candy introduced Andrea to Alan . They smiled at each other and shook hands . She started to relax . Sam was the first to break the ice by asking Alan if he wanted a beer . Candy brought each one of them a beer . Andrea does not usually like beer but she thought she might as well have one to relax . There was a lot of small talk . Then people started arriving . Candy and Andrea put all the food on the table , except the hamburgers and hot dogs . We put them on a plate near the grill . Alan went over to Andrea 's parents ' house with her to bring David to the cookout . Alan wanted to meet Andrea 's parents . They seemed to like him . Most of all David and Alan took no time at all to connect . David had all the food he could eat and he had a soda . After he ate his watermelon Alan and David started playing kick ball . David got tired and Andrea took him home and put him down for a little nap . Everyone left around 5 : 00 . There was a lot of soda left so Andrea grabbed a Coke , Alan grabbed a Mountain Dew , Candy and Sam picked the last of the beer . Candy and Andrea cleaned up while the guys relaxed in the living room . By the time they were done , Sam and Alan were sleeping . Candy and Andrea laughed out loudly and it woke them up . Candy and Sam sat on the couch and Alan and Andrea sat on the two comfortable chairs . All four of them enjoyed each other 's company for a long time . Then they decided to go to the field day fair and watch the fireworks . It was after David 's bedtime , so he did not get to go . They played games for a while . Alan and Sam won a stuffed animal for each of them . Alan won Andrea a stuffed dog and Sam won Candy a stuffed teddy bear . They had fun . The four of them went on the Ferris wheel . Candy and Sam went ahead of Andrea and Alan . So they got to watch them kiss . Alan and she smiled at each other and held hands . Alan asked Andrea if she would like to go on a date sometime . She told him that she would like to see him again . The fireworks were beautiful , all the brilliant greens and blues and pinks and sizzlers , and the booms were loud . By the time Sam drove us back to Candy 's it was midnight . Andrea gave Alan her phone number . She thanked Sam for introducing them . She thanked Alan for a fun day and that it was nice meeting him . He said the same . Then the guys left . " Thank you Candy , for a wonderful day . I like Alan . I hope that he calls me . Well , it is late , good - night . " She walked home . Her parents and David were sound asleep . Andrea fell asleep as soon as her head hit the pillow . The next morning David came in her room and jumped on the bed . " Mommy , I liked Alan . He was so nice to me . He even played kickball with me . " " Yes , he was very nice , David . He sure liked you a lot . " " Will we get to see Alan again , Mommy ? " " We will see David . I gave him our phone number so we will see if he calls . " Three weeks later Alan finally called . He said he was not sure if he was ready to date . He had just broken up two months ago with his girlfriend . He had been dating her for three years . After that they saw each other just about every day after work and all weekends . They did a lot with David . They all went to the beach and parks , drive - in movies , and amusement parks . They had a lot of great times . David was getting very attached to Alan . Alan seemed to be very fond of David , too . Chapter 5 After Alan and Andrea dated for six months she told him that she thought she was falling in love with him . It took him a little longer . He said , " I do not want to ever get married . " Alan said , " Maybe we should stop seeing each other . I do not want to hurt you . I don 't know if I can love anyone right now . I thought I was in love with my ex - girlfriend , but she started seeing another fellow and she broke it off . I do not want to be hurt either . " " That is the risk everyone takes . Why don 't we take it slowly ? I will not say I love you again . I did not know I would get this reaction . I thought you had feelings for me . " " I do a lot , and it scares me . " They were in the middle of a hiking trail . " Alan , I would like to go back to the car so you can take me home . " Andrea was on the verge of crying . It took about twenty minutes to get to the car . It was a very long , quiet , and tense walk back to the car . Andrea was upset that they couldn 't finish the trail because at the end of the trail was a beautiful , rushing waterfall . Andrea loved waterfalls and was looking forward to seeing this one . He took her home . It was a very long hour ride . At least the scenery was nice . They just listened to the radio . When they got to her house , he reached for her hand and said , " I did not want to hurt you , Andrea . I hope you can forgive me for ruining our time together . I 'll call you . It will probably be a couple weeks . I care about you , Andrea . " Andrea went over to Candy 's house and told her what happened . " Andrea , don 't take it to heart . He needs time to get over his ex - girlfriend . He is still hurting . Give him time . " " Candy , I was so wrong to tell him I was falling in love with him . But I am . I didn 't mean to fall so fast and hard . He told me he never wants to get married . Maybe I should not see him anymore . I do not know what to do . " " Thanks Candy . I have got to go home and take a shower . I amgoing to do something fun with David . I will not tell him Alan might not call again . " He finally called a month later . " Andrea , I 've thought about a lot of things and I realized how much I care about you . Would you mind if I drove over ? " Andrea walked out into the living room . " Hi , Alan it is so good to see you . " David came running out of his bedroom . " Alan , you came back ! " " Hi Buddy ! It 's good to see you . I missed you . " They went to the ice cream place near the small lake , then to the park . David and Alan played ball while Andrea sat there thinking about her and Alan . Will we get serious now or will he just leave again if it starts getting serious again ? I better go easy and slow . I do not want to scare him off again . Oh , never mind just go with the flow . " I am so glad to see you , I missed you very much . Do you still want to see me steadily ? Have you forgiven me , Andrea ? " They dated for five years . David was nine years old . Alan and Andrea were deeply in love . Andrea accidentally became pregnant . They were so careful . She didn 't understand what had happened . All through the years they dated , Alan would say , " I will never get married . " She would always laugh because she thought he was kidding and would outgrow it . So when she got pregnant he told her he wanted to do the right thing and marry her . Andrea was so surprised , and of course she said , " Yes . " They got married on the Fourth of July because it landed on a Saturday . They had met on the Fourth of July . Neither of them went to church so they didn 't know a pastor to marry them . They got married by a Justice of the Peace . Their parents , brothers and sister and David were there , plus Tom , Alan 's friend who took the pictures . It was at a nice restaurant in the privacy of the upstairs banquet room . They also had their little reception there . Everyone drank to a toast , except David and Andrea . No one knew that she was three months pregnant . Alan and Andrea didn 't have a honeymoon . They had found an apartment the month before they were married . Alan lived there until their wedding . David and Andrea moved in with him after . Her Mom and Dad took David for the weekend . She was happy to be married . Alan was so good with David . He was a happy little boy . He joined a summer baseball team . They went to watch all his practices and games . So did Andrea 's Dad . He missed seeing David every day . He was so used to having David living with him . Andrew Alexander was born on January 5th . He was such a good - natured baby . Everyone loved him so much . Alan 's Mom got really attached to him . They lived about five minutes away from Alan 's parents . Her Mom and Dad lived about forty - five minutes away . They came as often as they could . Dad was always holding him when they came . He loved his grandsons , David and Andrew . My mom was always taking Andrew away from Dad . It was so cute to watch them fight over him . They saw him about once a week . David loved Andrew . He loved having a baby brother . He would sleep with him in the playpen . Andrew loved him , too . He would smile whenever he saw David . David could not get enough of him . They were hardly apart . Andrea got so many pictures of them together . Chapter 9 On May 10th Andrea got a phone call at work from a State Trooper . He asked her to meet him at the hospital . He said he had already called her husband . Andrea thought , " Oh no , I hope Andrew didn 't get mauled by the babysitter 's big dog . " She was so upset she could hardly breathe . Andrea arrived at the hospital first and the State Trooper met her at the emergency entrance door . Andrea asked to see Andrew , but he said , " Not until your husband arrives . " She was extra upset now . When Alan finally got there ten minutes later , the State Trooper brought them into a small room and told them that Andrew was dead . " He died at the babysitter 's home . The babysitter put him down for a nap . Twenty minutes later she went to check on him . He was face down on the waterbed . She went to pick him up and he was not breathing . " Then the State Trooper started to interrogate them , asking if they had shaken him or thrown him or bumped his head . Of course , Andrea said , " No " and Alan said , " No , why are you asking us these questions . " It was so upsetting . It sure was not the right time for the questioning . The State Trooper took them in to see Andrew Alexander . It was the worst thing they ever went through . Andrea went hysterical and went to hug and pick Andrew up . All Alan could do was stare straight at him . Andrea thought that Alan was in shock . She knew she was . She went to hold Alan and he walked away from her . They drove their separate cars home . She didn 't even remember driving . When they got home she regretfully called her Mom and Dad , then his parents . David was at Alan 's parents ' home . Alan 's Mom picked David up after school every day until they were home from work . Alan 's parents arrived with David first . Right away David asked where Andrew was . Alan and she just stared at his parents and started crying . David went over and hugged Andrea and she told him Andrew was in heaven now . It was pouring outside and David said , " Look Mommy , God is crying , too . " Everyone was crying when Andrea 's parents arrived . Then they told them about Andrew . They could not believe that that beautiful , vibrant baby was dead . He was too alive to think of him any other way . They held each other then went over to Andrea and hugged each other and cried . Later that evening Andrea called the babysitter and asked her to come over to their apartment . The babysitter , Barbara , explained what happened . They all started to cry and Barbara and Andrea hugged each other . She said she wasn 't going to continue babysitting the other children . She was watching five other children at her home as a day care . Alan thought that was a good idea for her not to baby sit again . He didn 't think she should be around children again . He was so upset . Barbara wanted to be helpful so she said she knew someone who could do the funeral . She knew Andrea and Alan didn 't go to church . " I have a wonderful Pastor at the Christian church I go to . Here is Pastor Brown 's number . Call him ; he will be pleased to meet with you . Andrea called Pastor Brown the next day because she had no one else . She told him how they never had Andrew Alexander baptized . Pastor Brown said that it was okay because Andrew Alexander was with Jesus . Andrea was relieved , then surprised . " When I was a little girl I remember the Priest saying that babies had to be baptized or they wouldn 't go to heaven because it was a Holy Sacrament . " Pastor Brown reassured her that Andrew Alexander was in a better place now , and in the presence of the Lord . I told him I hadn 't been to a church for over fifteen years . He said it was all right and they asked her if she wanted to know more about Jesus . She said , " Yes , after the funeral is over , sometime next week . " They had Andrew cremated . Alan wanted the ashes to remain in their home after the funeral , until they found the perfect place to release them . Andrew 's ashes were placed in a beautiful black marble box . Alan 's Dad paid for it . The funeral was comforting . Pastor Brown said how Andrew 's soul was with Jesus in heaven now . He wasn 't of age to be accountable for anything . He did not need to be baptized . He said God knows where his body was , no matter if it was in ashes . The only people at the funeral were David , my parents , Alan 's parents and his brother , Andrea 's brother and sister - in - law , and Andrea 's favorite Aunt and Uncle . They were going to Aunt Peggy and Uncle Ernie 's home afterward . That is where their relatives would meet with them . Pastor Brown would come , too . Andrea and Pastor Brown made an appointment to get together the following week to talk about Jesus . Andrea was ready to learn about Jesus . She knew about Him , but never knew him as a personal Savior . She knew God was His Father . Andrea met with Pastor Brown . He told her how to invite Jesus into her life so He could be her Personal Savior . It took Andrea two weeks to come to the decision of asking Jesus to become Lord of her life . David and Andrea started going to church every Sunday after that . Alan did not want anything to do with church . Andrea could not make him . She did not know why he was so adamant . Then Andrea was baptized in June . People at church watched while she made her public confession of making Jesus the Lord of her life . She felt so new . Alan did not care about her baptism and never acknowledged it . Alan kept growing farther away from her . He started going to the bars more often by himself . She used to go with him before she was baptized , not often , but once in awhile . Andrea waited up for him . Sometimes he wouldn 't get home until 2 : 00 a . m . She needed him so much to ease her pain . Andrea started praying every night - something she hadn 't done since she was a little girl . Jesus became real to her and she started talking to the Lord in her mind most of the day . She needed His strength to get her through minute by minute . Andrea did not go to work for a month . She took a leave of absence . Her boss was so understandable that she needed time after Andrew 's death . She was glad because she had time to read the New International Version Bible that Pastor Brown gave her . Alan drifted farther away from Andrea . She became closer to Jesus . Andrea put him first in her life and Alan second . David started to understand about Jesus more and more , but he did not make the decision . She could not push him into it because it had to be his decision to ask Jesus into his heart . Andrea 's life with Alan didn 't change , but her own life was changing . She still cried over Andrew . Andrea was comforted knowing he was in heaven with Jesus . She started going to bed instead of waiting up for Alan to come home , or worrying about him . Andrea had as special peace , even though things were falling apart in their marriage . Andrea knew it was the peace Jesus gave her . She kept getting stronger every day even though the pain was still there . Andrea went back to work and everyone was walking on seashells around her . She guessed they didn 't know what to say . Eventually they started coming around again . July fourth came and went . Alan didn 't even remember . I said Happy Fourth of July and Happy Anniversary . He just said , " It has been a year already . Yes , it 's our first anniversary . I 've got to go out for a little while . See you in a couple hours . Bye . " Andrea drove up to her parents ' home and wanted to be with David . He loved being there for the summer . In October , Alan and Andrea thought they would try to get back in sync with each other . They planned an overnight trip to a nice to place where the waterfalls had a beautiful light show . Andrea had wanted to see these waterfalls for a long time . She was excited . On the way , they had a car accident . The car ahead of them did not have a blinker on , so Alan did not know he was turning left . Alan was going to pass him and the driver ahead turned right into us . Andrea was in the passenger side where the car hit . The accident totaled Andrea 's car . Andrea couldn 't move . The ambulance came about fifteen minutes later . They took them to the hospital . Andrea ended up having a broken pelvis in three places . Alan was fine . The other man had some scratches on his face and arm . Andrea 's parents came to be with her . They took Alan home . Andrea 's parents came every day . Her parents were both retired so they were able to drive two hours every day . Alan had to work and didn 't come see her . Her parents were able to bring her home on the fourth day . Chapter 14 She was laid up for three months . Her boss said that Andrea 's job would still be there when she came back . What a relief . All that time off is definitely a hardship because it was without pay . Ladies from church brought them hot meals . Andrea had a lawyer to help her get a settlement . The other man 's insurance company tried to give her a settlement , which was way too low . And because it was not their fault and it was Andrea 's car , she was to get the settlement because she is the one who was hurt . Andrea received the money in April . She thought maybe they could finally have their honeymoon . She asked Alan where he would like to go . They agreed on the Bahamas . Andrea had a travel agency set it up . The travel agent got them a fantastic deal . They were to go in May for nine nights and ten days . This was two months before their second anniversary . They had a wonderful time . They did a lot of swimming . They even went to a casino one night . Andrea played the slot machines . She won and then put all the quarters back into another machine . It was exciting . Alan played the roulette wheel and lost , but had fun . Andrea thought they were going to have a better marriage . She felt like it was improving . Alan was talking to her more and was not going to bars as often . He was even more intimate . Chapter 15 It was a beautiful sunny Saturday morning in June . Andrea was sitting on the couch watching a cooking show . Alan came out of the bedroom carrying a big box . I am moving out , Andrea . I cannot stay married any longer . You were pregnant when we got married and our baby died . There is no reason to stay married any longer . Tom is here with his truck to help me . I will be moving in with him until I can find a place of my own . " " It is not my fault Andrew died , Alan . He died of Sudden Infant Syndrome . It is no one 's fault . " They had only been married one year and eleven months . So much had happened during their marriage , it seemed like there was so much against them . How could they not fail ? Alan defensively said , " You have got your Lord and church people now . You are not alone . You 've changed . You do not drink with me anymore . You do not seem to have any emotions about Andrew . You are always reading that Bible , and you do not care about me . " " That sounds like you , Alan . You are the one who has no feelings about me and you do not show your feelings about Andrew . Just because I told you I put Jesus first in my life and made Him Lord of my life does not mean I do not love you so very , very much . I thought we were going to make it . Things seemed to be getting better . You were not going to the bars as much . I know you are hurting about Andrew , too . But you never talked to me about it or showed me your pain . I want you to stay . " Andrea , you know I do not talk about my feelings . I 'm so numb . I do not have any feelings . I do not love you . " Andrea tried not to cry but she started crying out loud anyway . " It has only been one year and eleven months - next month is our second year anniversary . How can you break our vows and leave like this ? You feel like that because you miss Andrew Alexander . Let 's go to a counselor . " " I don 't want to try anymore . I only married you because you were pregnant . Andrew was the reason I married you , now he is gone . I cannot handle this . Every time I look at you I see your pain . " Alan said without any feeling . " Oh , Alan , you do not mean that . Please think about what you are doing . We should be working out our pain together . We have gone through so much together . We 've gone separate directions . " Alan did not say anything and continued taking boxes of his stuff out to the car . All Andrea could do was sit there and silently cry with tears pouring down her face . Alan never looked at her once . She started praying , " Oh , Father , I am so scared , what am I going to do ? Thank you for being with me . I need your strength . Please be with Alan . May he change his mind ? Please , help me understand him and why he is leaving . I love you , Father . In Jesus name I pray . " Alan took his stereo equipment . He left the furniture except his favorite chair , plus all his music - albums and C / D 's ; all his clothes and personal belongings , too . It was so devastating . When he was at the door with his last box , he turned around and said , " Good - bye , Andrea . " And he just walked out . Andrea called her Mother and told her everything . She said , " We will be right there . " Mom and Dad lived forty - five minutes away . Andrea thought she cried it all out before they got to her apartment , but she didn 't . She started crying all over again when they arrived thirty minutes later . David was with them and he cried with me . He missed Andrew , too . They comforted her and prayed with her . Andrea 's Mom prepared a meal for Andrea before they left . They stayed for a couple hours and left when Andrea had calmed down . Andrea went to the food , put it on the plate and picked at the potatoes and pork steak , ate the corn and went to bed . Chapter 16 It was a very hot summer . David was staying at her parents ' home . Alan and Andrea had met when David was four years old . He left them He left Andrea when she was thirty - two . She felt old . Andrea worked , went home , ate , and went to bed . She was so depressed . She tried to snap out of it , but even praying did not help her . She talked to David everyday on the phone ; he was so upset about Alan leaving . He did not want to come home to me . Andrea 's Mom and Dad were worried about her . They brought David up to see her , hoping it would cheer her up . It would while they were there . She didn 't want to show them how depressed she was . It wasn 't easy . She loved David so much but didn 't know how to be a Mom to him at this time . The depression was getting worse . One month had passed and Alan didn 't call Andrea . It was August now . Today was her birthday . She called his Mom and asked for Tom 's phone number . His mom didn 't keep in touch with her and David . Alan 's mom thought Andrew Alexander 's death was her fault and she thought Alan left because Andrea didn 't take care of him . So there was not any support there . Thank God for her parents support . They helped David and Andrea . David stayed at her parents ' house all summer . He 'll have to come home the end of this month for when school starts . She called him everyday . She called Alan and he answered . He seemed happy to hear from her . After they talked for about ten minutes he remembered it was her birthday , and asked her if she wanted to go for a birthday dinner . Of course she said , " Yes . " Andrea thought that was a good sign . She thought maybe he wanted to come back home . Andrea was so happy to see him . They hugged each other for a second . They were talking small talk and she finally brought up , " Are you coming home ? " Alan said , " No , but I want to stay friends . I do not hate you . " Andrea said she did not hate him either and that she would never stop loving him . She said desperately , " I cannot live without you , Alan . I want you home . " He said , " You will always have a piece of my heart , but I do not want to stay married . I have been to a divorce lawyer , and he is working on the paperwork . " " Alan , you are not even giving us a chance . I know we could make it . What can I do to make you want to come back ? " He did not answer her question . " Andrea , it 's time that I bring you home . I 'll keep in touch . The divorce papers will be delivered in about two months or so . " After Alan dropped her off , all she could do was cry . She remembered the pain pills she saved from her accident and drank them down with some whiskey . She thought this was the answer now that he left her for good . " Why not end it . She took them . She felt sick , she closed her eyes , and everything went black . God must have had something in mind for her because she woke up in the hospital . They called her parents because they found a sheet of numbers on a piece of paper that was for emergencies in her purse which was on her kitchen table . The hospital kept her for a month . The behavioral department ward was a blessing . They had mental health counseling classes . The doctor finally let her go home because she was not a danger to herself any longer . She was more in control of her emotions . She put things in perspective . Her son was her first priority , then her job . He had to come home at the end of August . They had to prepare for school . Her boss was letting her come back to work the next day . She was content . Chapter 17 It has been twenty - three years and a piece of her heart was still broken . No matter how much Andrea prayed and tried to get over Alan , she could not and still felt pain whenever she thought of him leaving her . She never took pills again . Instead she would call someone and prayed , or prayed by herself . They had quit staying in touch twenty - five years ago . The last Andrea had heard back then that he had remarried . That really hurt because he said he didn 't want to be married . Andrea thought , " Maybe it was just me that he did not want to be married to . " Eight years later she divorced her new husband because she couldn 't let go of Alan . She still loved Alan and could never give her whole heart to her second husband . He deserved someone who loved him . The best thing from her second marriage was their daughter . Kayla was five years old when they divorced . David was twenty - three . Andrea brought their daughter with her when she left . Her ex - husband saw Kayla once a month . . During all the following years , God was with Andrea . He kept her under His loving shield . He is the only reason why she is still alive . Her depressions were so intense at times . During all the devastating and tragic , painful times in Andrea 's life , God was in control . It did not seem like He was , but he saved her from worse times . God had to let her choose the things she did because He gave people free will . Taking those pills was her choice . But the things that happened afterward were in God 's control . He let her meet the right people to help her . When Andrew died , God made something out of the sorrow . He brought Andrea to Him . Now she is a child of God . Andrew is in heaven with Jesus . Maybe he saved Andrew from a tragedy or some chronic disease . We don 't know why God does what He does , but there always is a reason . We may not find out until we meet Him , but we will know someday . God 's Word comforted her . The Holy Spirit led Andrea to the right verses at the right times for comfort and wisdom . He is in control of her life now . She has a peace about life now and an inner joy because she knows God loves her . He is always with her , especially through the hard times . Andrea also knows that her home is with Him , not on the earth . She knows she will go to heaven when she dies . While she is on earth a piece of her heart will still ache . John 14 : 27 ( NLT ) - " I am leaving you with a gift - peace of mind and heart . And the peace I give isn 't like the peace the world gives . So don 't be troubled or afraid . " I enjoy writing about God . I write poems , magazine articles , bible studies are my favorite articles to teach about God . I 'm a mother of two grown children . I 'm retired and enjoy my computer with sites about waterfalls , recipes , animals and Christ - centered articles , Face - book , and Faithwriters . com . , etc . . . . . . . . . . . Godly Witnesses For ChristFriends of Jesus ChristAs He is . . . so are weSeeking HimKNG MusicSharing Through Life and MusicStephen MattsonInspiration . Faith . Christian Culture . Writing . PROJECT : A Journal for Project ManagementProject is a journal for project managers to express their ideas and share their work through writing , conversation , design and imagedecentchristiantalkA blog and commentary on music . Written by fans for fans . adoptingjamesRead our Mission . Find out how you can help us adopt James . Humanity777 's BlogThe Church of ChristMum C writesPoetry , Short Stories and ArticlesUnshakable Hope " May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing , so that you will abound in hope by the power of the Holy Spirit . " ( Romans 15 : 13 ) Godly Witnesses For ChristFriends of Jesus ChristAs He is . . . so are weSeeking HimKNG MusicSharing Through Life and MusicStephen MattsonInspiration . Faith . Christian Culture . Writing . PROJECT : A Journal for Project ManagementProject is a journal for project managers to express their ideas and share their work through writing , conversation , design and imagedecentchristiantalkA blog and commentary on music . Written by fans for fans .