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Joey is Home now. At 9:15 this morning he reached out and took His precious Savior's hand with hands now covered in new skin (no more burns) . His Mom, his wife, and precious nurse, Ashley, were all with him. His Mom, Debbie, promised to take care of his wife, Brandy, and Brandy promised to take care of his Mom. At that moment, Ashley began calling for a doctor because she couldn't get a heartbeat. It was that peaceful. Once he knew "his girls" were taken care of, he took his last breath. Now he is in the beautiful presence of His Savior with no more burns and tons of rejoicing! Can you imagine what it's like to sit at Jesus' feet and rejoice in His presence! Wow! I'm sure Granny is on the welcoming committee now and she was there to give him a special hug from all of us.

The family will try to keep his site updated: http://www.caringbridge.org/visit/josephwilliams

Please begin praying for his family's strength to get through these next days. Please also pray for his boys as they find out today that their daddy is now in Heaven. Their oldest son has epilepsy and stress lowers seizure threshold. So, please lift all of them up as often as you possibly can...

Thank you, prayer warriors!

Our Heavenly Dwelling

1Now we know that if the earthly tent we live in is destroyed, we have a building from God, an eternal house in heaven, not built by human hands. 2Meanwhile we groan, longing to be clothed with our heavenly dwelling, 3because when we are clothed, we will not be found naked. 4For while we are in this tent, we groan and are burdened, because we do not wish to be unclothed but to be clothed with our heavenly dwelling, so that what is mortal may be swallowed up by life. 5Now it is God who has made us for this very purpose and has given us the Spirit as a deposit, guaranteeing what is to come.

6Therefore we are always confident and know that as long as we are at home in the body we are away from the Lord. 7We live by faith, not by sight. 8We are confident, I say, and would prefer to be away from the body and at home with the Lord. 9So we make it our goal to please him, whether we are at home in the body or away from it. 10For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, that each one may receive what is due him for the things done while in the body, whether good or bad.

The Ministry of Reconciliation

11Since, then, we know what it is to fear the Lord, we try to persuade men. What we are is plain to God, and I hope it is also plain to your conscience. 12We are not trying to commend ourselves to you again, but are giving you an opportunity to take pride in us, so that you can answer those who take pride in what is seen rather than in what is in the heart. 13If we are out of our mind, it is for the sake of God; if we are in our right mind, it is for you. 14For Christ's love compels us, because we are convinced that one died for all, and therefore all died. 15And he died for all, that those who live should no longer live for themselves but for him who died for them and was raised again.

16So from now on we regard no one from a worldly point of view. Though we once regarded Christ in this way, we do so no longer. 17Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come! 18All this is from God, who reconciled us to himself through Christ and gave us the ministry of reconciliation: 19that God was reconciling the world to himself in Christ, not counting men's sins against them. And he has committed to us the message of reconciliation. 20We are therefore Christ's ambassadors, as though God were making his appeal through us. We implore you on Christ's behalf: Be reconciled to God. 21God made him who had no sin to be sin^[a] for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.

2 Corinthians 5

20But our citizenship is in heaven. And we eagerly await a Savior from there, the Lord Jesus Christ, 21who, by the power that enables him to bring everything under his control, will transform our lowly bodies so that they will be like his glorious body. 1Therefore, my brothers, you whom I love and long for, my joy and crown, that is how you should stand firm in the Lord, dear friends!

Phil.3:20-4:1