Category: Heaven

Holy Cow, I Did It!

by C.C. Hasty, posted in Blessed, God Is Good, Heaven, Prayer, Uncategorized, Wheelchair

I received the official paperback copy of my book today. I had seen the digital proof before approving it, of course. But I had not actually held the book in my hands until today.

As I opened the package, I couldn’t breathe. My hands shook, and when I pulled my book out of the cardboard package, I wasn’t prepared when the water works began.

I knew the book was officially published, so that wasn’t it. I also knew that I had put myself and my family out there for the world to see. I had shared private moments of our family that until now, no one ever knew. I had poured my heart and soul into this book and was as raw and honest as a person could absolutely be. And now, everyone who read it would know my deepest secrets. I had already had a “come to Jesus” (literally) about sharing myself with perfect strangers, yet decided to risk it all and trust in God. I was no longer afraid for people to learn the real me, so that wasn’t it either.

It was the countless nights of staying up late writing. The hundreds of hours spent laboriously typing word after word. All of the second guessing I did. Prayer after prayer, trying to convince God that I wasn’t the right person for this job, all the while Him assuring me that I was. The emotions came from all of the battles I had to face to finally hold this book, my book, in my hands. I had done it. Despite everything, I had actually made it to the finish line, just like God said I would.

Love & blessings,

C.C. Hasty Andrews

Stay In the Fight

by C.C. Hasty, posted in Blessed, Brothers, God Is Good, Heaven, Mom, Prayer, Uncategorized, Wheelchair

June 9, 2015 (Facebook Post)

On Sunday as we hiked to Machine Falls, this guy helped us along the way. When we finally arrived at the falls, I noticed him reading a book. But it wasn’t just any book, it was the Bible. He hiked all the way there by himself to have fellowship with God. The very next day, my son Alex and I had a conversation about how important it is to have a relationship with the Lord, and going to church every Sunday is not a requirement to do so. I have always taught my boys that church is everywhere and anywhere you are. Even if you don’t go to church on Sunday’s, you can still love worship God. A girl told my son in school recently that he would go to hell if he didn’t go to church on Sunday’s. She really believes this. Don’t get me wrong, a church with fellow believers is an awesome thing to be a part of, but don’t let the devil make you believe this lie. Talk to God, wherever you are and whenever you want, because that is the most important relationship you will ever have!

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I wrote this post on Facebook just 2 months before the accident that would forever change our lives. As I read that post on my Facebook memories, two things stood out to me.

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First, that summer was one of the best summers our family had ever had. We did so much that summer that involved physical activity and being together. Hiking was just one of the things our family had recently learned that we loved. That summer we went to Universal Studios, visited the beach, and anything that involved being active. I believe God was preparing us for what was to come. I will never forget helping Jackson climb up a very steep hill while hiking and glaring at his father the entire time because I was afraid Jackson would fall. I will always have the memory of writing mine and Jackson’s names in the sand with our toes. Seeing him jumping in the waves at the beach with his brothers. And carrying his shoes in my hands because he got blisters on his little feet at Universal Studios. I believe God gave us these memories to carry in our hearts. Not to remind us of what Jackson lost, but to give us sweet memories and the hope that someday we would see Jackson do those things again.

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This post made so long ago also reminded me that although I don’t believe you have to go to church to believe in God or to be saved, having a church family is also a wonderful thing to be a part of. Our family had recently found a church that we all loved that summer before the accident. Until then, my husband and I could never agree on a church home for our family. We had also recently started nightly devotions with the boys. They loved that time together as a family and would listen to every word of the devotion. They wouldn’t let me forget the nightly devotion because every night they would remind me that it was devotion time! This too I believe is not a coincidence. The devil comes to kill, steal and destroy. The devil decided that our family was a threat and decided to test our faith in the most absolute way possible. You see, we were finally doing everything right.

If things seem hard in your life right now and you feel as if everything that could go wrong has, it may just be that you are actually doing everything right too. God doesn’t promise us that life will be without trials. In fact, the opposite is true. He tells us that there will be trials to face, but He assures us that we won’t be alone. And from the moment I received the call at 4:09 pm that our boys were trapped in a car and all were critical injuried, He never left my side. I can tell you without any hesitation that God will always be there for you too. Press forward. Push on. When all seems hopeless and lost, remember that you are going to win the fight, because God is there fighting this battle with you.

Sometimes, You Just Have to Bail

by C.C. Hasty, posted in Blessed, Dreams, God Is Good, Graduation, Heaven, Mom, Prayer, Uncategorized, Wheelchair

As we sat in the waiting room at Williamson County Medical Center, I looked back on the years that had lead us there. While playing football during Alex’s sophomore year, he tore his labrum. We also learned that he suffered from hip impingement. We always planned to have this surgery after he graduated high school so that he could continue to play sports. We just didn’t know at that point in time that he would end up having a wreck his senior year that would require multiple surgeries and alter the course of his life forever. There would never be any more sports for Alex.

And here we were, fixing to undertake another surgery that would take at least 6 months to heal. I couldn’t help but think that Alex had just now finally healed from all the other surgeries and hadn’t had any time to just be a normal teenage kid. I didn’t feel good about it, but he is 19-years-old. It is his body and his decision. I was ready to do whatever I needed to do to help him heal from this surgery.

All the way to the hospital Alex was extremely anxious. I knew that something was wrong, but like any other teenager, he would share it only when he was ready. This wasn’t his first time having surgery, but any other surgery he was absolutely ready. This time was different.

As we sat in the waiting room to go back to pre-op, patient after patient was taken back. Still, we waited. Alex grew more and more anxious. Finally, he looked at me and said, “What do you think about just leaving?” I had spent weeks trying to convince him to hold off on surgery and here he was suggesting leaving? I thought he was joking at first. When I realized he was serious, my heart jumped with hope. He explained that he didn’t feel going through with surgery was a good decision. God was telling him not to do it. That was all I needed to hear! We told the nursing staff that Alex had changed his mind and we bailed! We both left feeling like we had lost 100 pounds of weight off our shoulders.

I knew in my heart that this surgery wasn’t a good idea. Everything that had led up to this day had pointed towards not doing it. Scheduling it had been difficult to begin with. We had left message after message for the scheduler and it took weeks before she returned the message. The day before surgery, the surgeon’s office realized they didn’t have the referral from the correct doctor and we spent hours trying to fix it. We finally received the referral only 30 minutes before it was too late. Then, we had to wait while watching patient after patient being taking back for surgery, each time leaving us alone in the waiting area. These hurdles were God giving Alex more time to listen to Him.

I am so proud that I have a son who listens to his heart and what God is telling him. I don’t know what would have happened if Alex had the surgery. But, I know in my heart it was something that God didn’t want us to do, and I am so thankful that Alex listened. I am praying that Alex has the best summer he has ever had this year!

Love & blessings,

C.C. Andrews