Delilah - Dear D

I was driving home and laughing about your barn story. It's a story only a horse person may fully appreciate—as some days on the farm are just crazy.

Here's my story tonight. I am driving home from the barn where we train and show horses. It's "horsin' around week" at the barn. That's where I have the kids come out and experience a work day at the barn in exchange for riding. Needless to say I am exhausted—mucking stalls, sweeping, cobwebs, painting fences, pulling weeds, planting, turn-out, feeding, lessons and riding—but was happy to have many helpful hands with the projects. On my way home while driving into town I decide I am too tired to cook so I get a vegetarian style taco salad for dinner. I stop to snap a picture of my latest project, a painted horse statue. In my town there is a downtown display of 82 painted foal size fiberglass statues and artists were selected from all over to design and paint them. All the proceeds are going to a local charity called SMILES, a hippothery program that provides therapy thru horseback riding to the handicapped. As I was snapping my photo, my 120 pound dog "Roc Z" sat on my taco salad. That actually made me laugh even more, my day at the barn is now complete. Roc Z and I opted to eat ice cream for dinner tonight.

P.S. Attached is a picture of my painted horse statue. It is covered in handprints of children with words of love and inspiration towards horses and riding placed inside the handprints.

Wow, what a great story!!! I can just picture your dog sitting his big bum on the salad after an exhausting day! Are these horse statues being auctioned off to people in other cities? If so, I would love to bid on yours!

I spent the entire afternoon in my barn and on my horses yesterday, and it was a joyful day. One of my newly adopted daughters, Angel, has fallen in love with the horses so I am starting her out in the round pen. She has a natural connection to animals and I believe she will enjoy a lifetime of bonding with horses. She grew up in a refugee camp and had never even seen a real horse before, and now she is riding them and handling them as if she was born around them!

I'm an avid listener to your show, 7 p.m. till.... You had a lady on Sunday night 8:10 p.m. that was brought to the USA by her mother twenty-some years ago and throughout her discussion with you, all she could do was thank her mother for her upbringing and becoming a professional, etc.... Not once did she thank the United States of America, hard working citizens or possibly the vet's that provided the conditions for her to have a great, prosperous life. Just a little something that got under my thick hide. Still a dedicated listener.

Every night when I go to bed I thank the Lord for my blessings. For my children and their good hearts. For my family, my friends, my home, my career, my health, my faith. Do I remember to praise Him for the men and women who fought that I might live without fear in this wonderful land? Do I remember to thank Him for those brave young men and women who are putting their lives on the line today, fighting in wars around the globe, so that others might live a better life? Do I thank Him for my grandfather who served many years ago, patrolling the coastline for submarines? Do I thank Him for the leaders, the volunteers, the wives and children and husbands and parents who are at home, praying for their loved one who is serving?

I am ashamed to admit, most times I don't. But because of your note, I will tonight. And hopefully tomorrow night, and the nights that follow. Thank you for caring for me, a complete stranger, when you enlisted years ago.

While listening, I was thinking of a time about a year ago when I was serving jail time on work release for an alcohol offense. While spending my time at "summer camp" as I called it, I had a small radio and always closed the night by reading a BIG blue book, said some prayers of thanks, and listened to your program for comfort and to quiet the noise around me.

It was a long summer, but by the grace of God, support from family and friends, and a new program that I am working on, I got through it. I always wanted you to know how much I found comfort in your program, your words of encouragement and your soothing voice. Thank you for sharing from your heart and bringing some serenity into my life.

Tonight I heard a mother call in about her son asking you to play "Somewhere Out There" and she was hoping her son will seek help for his addictions. It brought me back to last summer and how thankful I am for all the gifts God has blessed me with after turning to Him through a wonderful program, and to the people that perform His will. Tonight I stop for a moment to say a prayer for the still suffering such as the young man and his mother, and for those people, including you who have helped me become the person I am becoming in His grace.

Thank the Lord you found "summer camp" and the big book! I was just reading some of my devotions from "One Day at a Time" and was reminded that I don't have to know the solutions; I just have to know the God who has the solutions!!

I'm glad my voice was there to comfort and give you strength. I hope a multitude of others who are struggling with their addictions will find their way to quiet nights and that same blue book. Our nation is plagued by addictions, and I always hope and pray people will realize that life without drugs, alcohol, behavioral addictions and such is a much more exciting, fun-filled life!

I see photos of famous singers and performers who are dying from their addictions and I want to reach out to them and hold them and tell them they are precious to God, and they have so much worth and value, that they can live life fully without their addictions. But for now I will reach out with my words and my music via the airwaves, and rejoice that God has allowed me to be here.

Hi,

First off, I love your show!!! Last night, you mentioned a profound book that touched you so much you went and bought your friends' copies and I am curious as to the name and author of the book. It was "The Spark" or "The Shark" or "The Star" or probably nothing like that knowing me. HELP!!! I'm always up for inspirational reading. I highly recommend Denise Jackson's (wife of country singer Alan Jackson) book "It's All About Him."

Thank you very much!

Kris

Dear Kris,

The profound book I mentioned is called "The Shack" by William Young. It is truly the most wonderful book I have ever read, outside of the Bible. My friend Sara called me last week from Pennsylvania, and said "I rarely endorse a book, but you HAVE to go get this book and read it. It will change your life."

In order to appreciate that statement, you have to know Sara. She is not a woman who is flowery of speech, she isn't one to hand out compliments in order to win someone over or butter them up. If she speaks a compliment, she means it. If she shares a bit of wisdom or insight, she has learned it the hard way. Her faith is strong, but she isn't "religious," something about her I love and cherish. She loves God with all her heart, but like me she can be a little rough around the edges, not prim and proper nor tries to follow the rules. She is a woman whose opinion I trust because I know her to be a straight shooter.

So when she urged me to go get this book, I responded and got a copy the next day. I read it on Good Friday; stayed up until 2:30 a.m. reading it. I could NOT put it down. It touched my heart, no, it touched my soul. It spoke to the very core of my being.

If you never read any other book in your life, do yourself a favor and get "The Shack." I have no idea who William Young is, but I can tell that he is a man God decided to use to share His love with a multitude of people via this small story. His illustrations are precious, his insights God-breathed. Sara told me she has purchased 25 copies and handed them out to friends and family. So far I've given out 24, and I have another 25 on backorder. I am hoping the copies I shared with people will get passed on to touch even more hearts.

Thanks for listening! God bless,

Delilah

I am a 15-year-old girl that has never met her dad. I feel so incomplete by not knowing him. I live with my wonderful aunt who tries to shield me from the hurt of my mom and dad deciding they didn't want to take care of me and my four other siblings. It is really starting to take a toll on me. What should I do? Should I try to find my dad and tell him how I feel or do I go on with my life pretending I don't have a dad? I am really confused. I know that I have a whole lot of time to think about this but I want answers now. Please help me Delilah.

To pretend you don't have a father is absurd; if you had no father, you would not be alive. You very much have a father, a man who, along with your birth mother, created life through their union. What you don't have is a "dad," a man who is there to raise you and love you and care for you. I have 10 children now, I just adopted two more little girls. I am a single mom, and none of my kids have a "dad," a man who is here day in and day out to love them and care for them. Two of my children have a biological father who sees them once or twice a month, but he does not take them to baseball practice or to Sunday school. He does not interact with them except when it is possible to do so since he lives in a different area.

But what my kids DO have is a mom to love them, care for them, protect them and pray for them. It appears you have that in your aunt, a woman that God has placed in your life to meet the needs of your heart. Instead of longing for what you do not have, I would suggest you thank God for what you DO have and learn to be content with that. Someday your mother and father might realize what a gift they were given in you and your siblings. They might stop doing the destructive things they do that cause them to be unable to care for you, but then again, they might not. Instead of longing for that day, and missing out on all the blessings that God has given you, try to focus on the many good things you have in your life, and thank God for the people who love you and who are there to care for you.

In the end, love is all that matters. And you seem like a very loving young girl, so don't let the mistakes your parents made steal your joy or make you feel unloved. You are very much loved, by your aunt and others I suspect, as well as a loving God!!

You are such a ray of tranquil sunshine for so many people and you really do change moods, lives and spirits for the best. I'm a married mom of four precious young children. Kohlton is 8, Lukas is 7, Erica is 4 and Matolyn is age 2. How is it that God sent me pieces of my own heart as gifts that He calls children? I recognize these blessings and truly do try to appreciate every moment, even in the midst of the chaos we sometimes have with our daily running and keeping up with our lives.

You do manage to slow us down and keep things in perspective, although there is not one night that goes by listening to you that I'm not in tears at some point. (I'm a sappy, hopeless sentimental and the thing is, I'm insanely in love with my children.) They have brought a joy to us that only a loving parent could understand. As you well know, it is beyond words and I'm unable to even articulate it. I can barely see my computer screen through my tears as I think of my love for them. If you come up with a way to freeze them in time so they don't forget all of the special moments they have with us while they're little, please let me know. I think my biggest fear is the loss of this purity, innocence and unconditional love that they have for my husband and I now. It's like being with the love of your life and all the while knowing that someday they will fall out of love with you and the love they once felt will be forgotten. (I really am sane...I promise). I'm just a certifiably sentimental mom.

I just want to preserve it all and so many of the songs you play are just so on target for the feelings and love I harbor for my blessing of a family. For Valentine's evening, we will be listening to you and dancing around our kitchen as we so often do. On behalf of all of your listeners, may God bless you and your family. Thank you for all you do.

Thank you for your letter, your words went straight to my heart as I was upstairs earlier, laying on the bed next to my young son who was crying because he had a bad day. I cut his peanut butter and jelly sandwiches with a heart-shaped cookie cutter, and wonder "Will he remember these when he is grown and on his own?"

But unlike you, I have grown children who I talk to often, and they remember...my oldest bio child, the only one I raised from birth, remembers the bedtime stories and the silly words we used to communicate. He remembers the time he was in the car seat and a cop used the bull horn to pull me over, I was speeding and had the music cranked so loud I could not hear his sirens! The "music" was a silly kids song tape that my son made me play over and over and over again..."Itsy Bitsy Spider" blaring from the speakers drowning out the cop!! Funny, that child is a police officer today, and LOVES to remind me of that time, and the TWO tickets I got as a result!

He remembers, and he is a wonderful young man today, in part, because of the love that was poured into him when he was a child. That, combined with God's love in his heart and the goodness God placed in him has created an amazing young man. I pray my young children will have as many precious memories, and will remember the lyrics to the silly songs I write for them and sing off key.

May God bless you and your children this Valentine's day and always. May tragedy never enter your home, may they grow to be strong and wise and true. May you always feel this blessed....

I was listening to your show last night and heard you mention you were looking for stories about how everyday people are helping the environment. I wanted to share my story with you. A couple years ago my friend began work on turning his energy inefficient ranch home into a high performance energy efficient home for him and his family. Throughout the process I helped him do as much work as we could before bringing in the specialist to install solar panels and radiant floors. We planted over 40 trees and 50 shrubs along his property, installed bamboo and cork flooring, and added extra insulation to the home. During this process we did so much research that we wanted to find a way to share with every homeowner how they too could save money while also helping the environment. We decided to create a website to share our knowledge and help others do the same. The website www.greenandsave.com is designed for individuals that want to take baby steps to going green or even jump right in and go hardcore. I hope that you find the site interesting and that you share it with your friends and listeners.

Hello Delilah!

I love your show! I am a faithful listener. Here is my story:

My husband and I separated almost a year ago. We had our problems just like any marriage. The problem is, I bailed out instead of staying to work the problem out. We now talk and see each other from time to time, but I want more!

I have told him how sorry I am for leaving him, but he doesn't know if we can ever be together again as husband and wife. Delilah, I love him so much with all my heart and soul, and would do just about anything to have him back home so we can be a family again. He says he has too much on in his mind to make that kind of decision right now, because I really hurt him when I left. He is the one and only love of my life, and I know I messed up by leaving. You have helped so many people - can you help me?

Your dedicated listener,

Clarissa

Dear Clarissa,

Since I made the same mistake about 16 years ago all I can tell you is to pray. I had a tough marriage to my first husband, and instead of getting help so that we could work it out, I gave him an ultimatum and he left. I was so in love with him it nearly killed me.

I wish I had made different choices, but I learned so much over the years. Now I know that I probably could not have stayed in the marriage because there was active alcoholism, but I wish I had learned about the disease of alcoholism BEFORE I separated from him. I don't know if it would have made a difference, but I should have taken care of myself and gotten my head on straight BEFORE I threw his bags out on the porch.

You have told him how you feel, now take care of you. It isn't his entire fault that the marriage failed, so you need to figure out what your part was in it. And once you figure out your issues, work on it. Find a good counselor, find a support group, take care of YOU and leave the rest in the Lord's hand.

And pray. Pray hard. Pray every day. Ask God to work in this situation, and if it is His will, to bring you two back together.

Delilah

For 41 of my 50 years of life my father and I lived together. My younger years in his home and after my mother passed in 1986 he came to live in my home. My father had such a love for life, for people, animals and mother nature. When you live with someone that long you get so used to each other you really do not realize how special someone is until their time comes.

My father fought under General Patton in WWII. Growing up he never spoke of the tragedies, only the joys of life so we never learned about the war until he got cancer. That is when he opened up and told us the stories of his pride as a soldier and being side by side at times with General Patton. My father was such a strong and proud man, but a lover of all things good, and his emotions showed his love. We were lucky in one way to know his time was near as we helped him accomplish his bucket list. It was a joy to see his eyes light up just like a child again fulfilling his dreams.

My father loved working in the yard and one of his favorite things was my dogwood tree. Every year he had me take a picture of him in front of it when it bloomed. Early last year my father passed away. I remember that dogwood tree did not have one bloom on it last year after his passing. It was not until this year when it was full of blooms again did I realize that tree must have been grieving his loss as he loved and cared for it so much. I attached a picture I took this year of my dogwood tree full of blooms; the only thing missing is my father standing in front of the tree like in the past.

Could you please play my father's favorite song "Wonderful World?" I am sure he is looking down watching over me and his favorite tree since he could not be here to celebrate Father's Day with us this year.

P.S. My father was crazy about you and your show too. Whenever we went someplace behind the wheel he would ask "Where is Delilah?"

Letters to Delilah