Live Outside the Box

By Laura Riviezzo Taggart

Do you believe anything is possible with God? 

I do. I believe in miracles too! Not just the walk on water or making blind men see, but those small incidental miracles that happen every day. The nearly missed car accident, someone who crosses your path by providence, the patient who tells you, "God sent you here today," or th

• Language: English
• Publisher: Trilogy Christian Publishing
• Release date: Jan 20, 2021
• ISBN: 9781647734992

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Live Outside

the Box

Laura Riviezzo-Taggart

Trilogy Christian Publishers

TUSTIN, CA

Trilogy Christian Publishers

A Wholly Owned Subsidiary of Trinity Broadcasting Network

2442 Michelle Drive

Tustin, CA 92780

Copyright © 2020 by Laura Riviezzo-Taggart

All Scripture quotations, unless otherwise noted, taken from THE HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION®, NIV® Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.

Scripture quotations marked (KJV) taken from The Holy Bible, King James Version. Cambridge Edition: 1769.

All rights reserved, including the right to reproduce this book or portions thereof in any form whatsoever.

For information, address Trilogy Christian Publishing

Rights Department, 2442 Michelle Drive, Tustin, Ca 92780.

Trilogy Christian Publishing/ TBN and colophon are trademarks of Trinity Broadcasting Network.

For information about special discounts for bulk purchases, please contact Trilogy Christian Publishing.

Manufactured in the United States of America

Trilogy Disclaimer: The views and content expressed in this book are those of the author and may not necessarily reflect the views and doctrine of Trilogy Christian Publishing or the Trinity Broadcasting Network.

10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data is available.

ISBN 978-1-64773-498-5

ISBN 978-1-64773-499-2 (ebook)

Contents

Dedication v

Acknowledgements vii

Preface ix

Introduction xi

Chapter 1. Beautifully Broken 1

Chapter 2. Answered Prayers 21

Chapter 3. God Incidents 40

Chapter 4. Super Heroes 65

Chapter 5. Desert Storm 93

Chapter 6. He Speaks 120

Chapter 7. Miracles Abound 151

Chapter 8. Christmas Joy 184

Chapter 9. Love One Another 209

Chapter 10. The End? 237

Epilogue 248

References 254

About the Author 268

Dedication

I dedicate this book to my two sons, Ronnie and Jonathan.

They have been my rock throughout my endeavors. Without their support and assistance, this book could not have come to fruition.

I love them both so much more than any words could express.

Acknowledgements

I want to thank all my patients whose names have been deleted or changed for anonymity. Only those who’ve given me permission to use their names did I use. I want to thank all my family and friends, and acquaintances for whom, without you, this book would not have been possible. A special thanks to my son Ronnie, the computer whiz who helped me get this book on Microsoft word and placed on a USB flash drive. A special thanks to my son, Jonathan, for giving me Amazon dot, so I could listen to The Message as I wrote, and thanks to both of them for their photographs and support.

Special thanks to my friends, Renuka, Loretta, Raeann, Rose, Judy, Richard, Amber, Tee, and my sister Christine for their stories and encouragement throughout this endeavor. I also want to thank everyone at both my bible groups of past and present for providing me the opportunity to study the Word. I want to thank everyone at TBN and EWTN for their inspiration and confirmation during the writing of this book. And I want to express gratitude to the Holy Spirit for giving me the wisdom, knowledge, and courage to write His book.

I want to thank the Shrine of Our Lady of the Island in Manorville, New York, for the peace I’ve always found there and for the pictures I’ve taken from there.

Preface

The American Psychiatric Nurses Association (APNA), of whom I am a member, made a statement that implied that the psychiatric mental health nurse must think outside the box in caring for our mentally ill. And I thought that while this is true… Why can’t we all Live outside the box (outside the norms of this world) because, with God, all things are possible.

All things are possible for one who believes.

(Mark 9:23 ESV)

Dare to live outside the conformity

of this world…

Dream a dream… with the grace of God

It will be fulfilled, according to His plan…

Surrender your life to God and…

Watch what He can do with it;

You will be surprised.

DARE to…

Live Outside the Box.

Introduction

This book has been written for you—All of you. This book has been written not only for believers but for nonbelievers as well.

This book was not written to offend any one religion, nor any attempt to sway one from their faith into another. This book was written for Christians, Catholics, Born-agains, Baptists, Lutherans, Pentecostals, Jews, Hindus, Muslims, Buddhists, Agnostics, and Atheists.

I believe in evangelization, and this is my testament. We all have a story to tell if we just listen. We all need to spread the Good News, the gospel to the ends of the earth. This has always been our command. This book has been my way.

While some parts you may believe and others not so much, all incidents are true and are accounts of the people and places as I’ve encountered them along my journey called… Life. So, take what you will and believe what you may. May God bless you.

I believe that this book has been the Holy Spirit inspired and directed. He confirmed His book at every turn with confirmations. I’d just finish a chapter when no sooner a priest or pastor would come on TV, saying what I had just written. Sometimes in Bible group, the same passage would be reiterated that I just wrote. Without Him, it would not have been written. It was written by Him for You.

I am nothing; I am but an instrument, a tiny pencil in the hands of the Lord with which He writes what He likes. However imperfect we are, He writes beautifully.

—Mother Teresa¹

It is a testimony of God, alive and well in this world.

Just as the light always overcomes the darkness, good always triumphs over Evil.

CHAPTER 1

Beautifully Broken

Lord, I come to you broken and shattered

like glass on the ground in so many pieces, but then…

The Sunlight shines through each broken piece illuminating radiant light and sparkle into so many different colors and directions, all emanating from the same broken glass.

Thank you, Jesus, for showing us light in our brokenness, equating it to hope. Like the lighthouse, a Beacon of Hope shining the light amidst the darkness,

Hope Anchors the Soul.

(Hebrews 6:19)

If you look closely at an anchor, it resembles a J for Jesus, (our hope) on the cross, the anchor to our Soul.

Beautifully Broken is also the name of a lovely song sung by Plumb.² It describes it perfectly. And let’s face it, we’re all somewhat broken. Nobody has it all together. By brokenness, I mean something tangible or intangible that has happened to you and has shaken you to your very core. Something that feels awry on the inside, deep down in the inner depths of our heart and soul, even though you could look totally together on the outside. It could be a divorce, an abandonment, an emotional or physical loss of some kind, a victim of violence or abuse, an addiction, some sort of trauma, or depression. Whatever you have been through or are going through, there is no such place that God cannot reach in and pull you out of.

Do not think that you or I are too insignificant or broken to be used by God to do His work on this earth. We are all God’s children! And the good news is that we are loved by an awesome God. We may not all be saints, but we are all sinners. We must know that God loves us anyway. He sent His son Jesus Christ to die for our sins, and He did so willingly. He spared Abraham from sacrificing his only son Isaac and rewarded him with descendants as many as the stars in the sky (Genesis 20:11, 17). St. Paul (Saul, as he was then called) sought out Christians to kill them. He literally Saw the Light when he was knocked off his horse and blinded! (Acts 9:3–8). God got his attention! He then went on to write approximately two-thirds of the New Testament. St. Peter, who denied Jesus not once, but three times was forgiven, and he was given the Keys to the Kingdom (Luke 22:61; Matthew16:19). Even the Son of God, Jesus Christ, was betrayed by one of His friends, Judas, to die (Luke 22:48). The loneliness in which He must have felt! Because at the foot of the cross, standing there was only His favorite friend, John, His mother, and two others (John 19:25). He chose to die anyway, for us, for our sinfulness and brokenness.

Have you ever felt like you don’t measure up or that you’re just not good enough? Have you ever felt bad because someone did something mean to you or just left you out? Most of us have felt down and out about something, sometime in our lives. Listening to Pastor Charles Stanley’s sermon, I interpreted that, Brokenness is where God finds us and chooses us for His maximum usefulness.³

God chooses the unqualified, the sinners, the lost, the forgotten to lead the so-called qualified people. God usually uses the average Joe to do his work, not famous athletes, movie actors or actresses, kings, or queens. Just regular people, like you and me. There are many examples of this in the Bible: Moses had a speech impediment and was a murderer, but God used him anyway to ask Pharaoh to let his people go. Moses did lead his people, the Israelites, out of Egypt.⁴ David, a mere shepherd boy, killed a giant named Goliath, with just his faith and a slingshot. Later he went on to be king. But even King David was not perfect. He not only had an affair with a married woman but also had her husband killed.⁵ Then there was Joseph, who was sold into slavery by his own brothers. Talk about broken. Then he was imprisoned for something he did not even do before he became second in charge only to Pharaoh. While he was in power, instead of punishing his brothers, he forgave them.⁶ Then there was Jonah, who was told by God to go to Nineveh, a place he didn’t want to go to or was afraid to go to, but went in the opposite direction! (Jonah 1:2). Could you imagine God telling you to do something and you refuse? It’s no wonder he found himself in the belly of a giant fish for three days! (Jonah 2:1).

Everyone has a story to tell. No matter how great or humble, you can find goodness in everyone. You just have to look hard and long enough to see it.

Everyone has a story of their own… If we only take the time to listen…

I, myself, am a beautifully broken, divorced, single mother of two. I was not saintly before my marriage at age thirty-one years of age. Let’s be honest. I wasn’t living the godly life back then either. In the ’70s and ’80s, it was still the Love the one you’re with mentality of the world. It was sinful. Also, living with your spouse before marriage was called living in sin. I was very broken when in 2005, my husband left me for another woman.

I remember that night like it was yesterday. He did not want to make love. I asked, What’s wrong?

He replied, I don’t love you anymore.

I said, What? You just don’t wake up one day and say, I don’t love you anymore. I then instinctively asked, Who is she?

He said, Someone I met at one of my truck stops.

I asked him if he slept with her, and he said with a smile on his face, Well, we’ve done stuff in my truck (the new Chevy Silverado.)

I wanted to get this straight. So… making love to me would be cheating on her? I said, You need to leave.

He left that night but returned for a couple of weeks and slept on the couch until he could find a place. The devastation, the loss, the sense of betrayal, and the grief were overwhelming. He left two days before Valentine’s Day, and I was hurt beyond all imagination. I told my sons that Daddy had a heart attack (which he did), and sometimes people need some time to process it and their life’s priorities. I could not bring it to myself to tell them the truth. Later, my twelve-year-old said, I heard him talking on the phone saying, I love you to someone, and I knew it wasn’t you.

In shock and disbelief, I just looked at my son. What words could I say? He knew the truth. Kids always do. He also knew the hurting I was going through. Even at just twelve years old… he came and kept me company some nights because neither he nor I wanted to believe what happened or to feel alone.

I worked as many hours as I could to make ends meet. My ex was not forthcoming with the child support payments. It was a very tough time, both financially and emotionally. I endured a deep depression as I worked many overtime shifts to provide for the needs of my children, including paying the mortgage payments and keeping them in Catholic high school. Three years later, I met a man, a drummer in a band where sex, drugs, and rock-n-roll came into play. Again, holding on to a shred of faith, living the unclean sinful life, it took a catastrophe to happen to awaken me from that way of life.

It was November 1, 2008. My oldest son was away in another state in college when at three a.m., I received his phone call. Apparently, he had gotten into some trouble with some kids at school. I immediately got on the nine a.m. ferry to get to him. I prayed and cried the whole way.

Fast forward, heading home hysterically crying, I called one of my best friends, Judy, who said she knew of a good lawyer in that state, the best. I called him, and he took the case for $2,500, of which I had to borrow $2,000 from my youngest brother. For two years, we had numerous court dates with hotel and ferry expenditures and court cancellations. I prayed every night to God and the blessed virgin to spare my son from this nightmare. I asked our Blessed Mother, I know you loved your son, Jesus Christ, as much if not more than I love my nineteen-year-old son. Please pray to keep him safe in this situation. She heard my prayers, and although it was a rough two years of not knowing, just praying and hoping and believing for the best! The lawyers’ office waited for five years until I could pay him the last $2,500 I owed them, without once sending me a bill! My prayers were answered above and beyond what I could have ever imagined or asked for.

In the midst of all this turmoil, God knew I needed a time out, I’ll call it. I went on a leave of absence from my job. My sister Christine came to stay with us for a time. Between the stress and demands of running a Psychiatric Emergency Room, going through menopause, my son’s problem at college, a break-up with the boyfriend, financial difficulties, balancing work, and home life, I was physically, mentally, emotionally, and spiritually exhausted.

I needed some time away from the demands and stresses of all of it. I now knew that with Him and the prayers of many, that is what would see me through. I returned to church and began reading and meditating on His Word. It was a wake-up call that slapped me in the face telling me, Time for A Change from God Himself. It took the love of my family and a handful of praying friends and the Lord to get me back on my feet again. I returned to work five months later, after much prayer, visits to the Shrine of Our Lady, confessions, repentance, mercy, and grace. God is always faithful.

With much trepidation, I returned to work as a supervisor of the Psychiatric Emergency Room of a large hospital. As with anywhere you work, there were the ones who couldn’t wait to see me fail, and those who were my prayer warriors. I said the Serenity Prayer every morning:

Lord, grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change, the courage to change the things I can and the wisdom to know the difference.⁷

I would have a conversation with God every morning on my way to work in the forty-five-minute car ride asking for wisdom and to be able to provide the best care to both my patients and staff. This time, I knew I had Him as my backup. This gave me hope and strength to get through each day as with the support of my nurse manager and the director of nurses. All things are possible with God! (Matthew 19:26).

So, God put the pieces of the glass back together… one at a time, one day at a time. I am one of the beautifully broken people God continued to use for His glory. I retired one and a half years later. Eight months after I retired from the hospital, I obtained a job as a psychiatric nurse for a home healthcare agency. I continued to bring faith and hope to those who felt broken into their own homes and love them just as Jesus would have.

Who knew better than me what real depression is? I knew all too well what it felt like, looked like, and acted like. Who better than I could relate, empathize, and understand, having gone through it myself? I now knew what the words, And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose, really means (Romans 8:28