Reflecting on the most recent Journey....

The journey to parenthood has been long, hard at times, and down right frustrating at other times. But what GREAT JOY there is when the Lord's timing is perfect. It's amazing to think back about where I was with my Savior & where I am now because of this journey I have been on.

Waiting on the Lord is difficult. It calls you to a place within yourself that is uncomfortable & opposite than that of your flesh. It calls you to relinquish the control you believe you have but never really had if you read the scriptures, and into a place of faith- believing a God that you cannot see.

Isaiah 64:4 says " For since the world began, no ear has heard, and no eye has seen a God like you, who works for those who wait on him!"

NOW, I feel that joy of the wait almost being over, but through the wait I was less than a humble and trusting servant of Christ. There were many walls and hurts that he broke down within me during this wait. A tremendous amount of selfishness and pride and that spirit of " I DESERVE THIS".

See what this journey did for me was remind me that I DESERVE NOTHING. There is no sense of entitlement in the family of God. It's all blessing. Blessings poured out on us by a loving God. Blessings that we are called to give back to him to glorify & honor him.

As I see the end of this journey coming in the next few weeks I feel blessed that he would choose to work on me. That my Savior would want nothing more than to strip me of all that held me captive. Galatians 5:1 says " It is for FREEDOM that Christ has set us free. Stand firm then and do not let yourself be burdened again by a yoke of slavery." I was burdened with many yokes of slavery and through the journey I have been able to see the Lord remove the yokes I allowed to hold me captive and I now can walk in the freedom of Matthew 11: 30 knowing his "yoke is easy and his burden is light."Great joy comes from trusting that he has our plans perfected in his timing!

I don't know what you are waiting on. We all seem to wait on something throughout the seasons of life, but trust that there is great joy in the journey of waiting. Especially when we are waiting on HIM!

Such a precious family....

John and I have been blessed with a precious church family. We are so blessed with people who love us and have been an active part of praying for this season of our lives to come to pass. Over the past 34 weeks they have been so excited to celebrate with us.

This past weekend we had a baby shower at church to celebrate the arrival of little John Channing. We were blessed with many of our large gifts & a tremendous amount of everything else that he needs to be comfortable, overly comfortable, as he begins his life.

This picture doesn't do all their gifts justice. It filled the ENTIRE car!

That carload includes our pack & play, highchair, toddler car seat (that is not a typo...seriously we have both car seats now!), a diaper cake, books, pacifiers, bibs, socks, bath toys, childproofing kit, kitchen accessories that help with his stuff, a hand knitted blanket, diaper caddy, sleepers, giftcards for Walmart, Target, Babies R US & CRACKER BARREL for those nights I don't want to cook. We received a precious check for his first deposit into his savings account- how thoughtful & so greatly appreciated!

John could not WAIT to put things together.

Overall lots of families showered us with love & precious fits that would help us transition into this new season of life. Its so nice & so exciting to be loved! Above all, I'm so grateful that God has placed us here for this season. I'm thankful that Channing will be brought into a place where he is loved by so many as their very own. It amazes me how many people seem just as excited as me to see this precious boy. Just another reminder that GOD'S plans are perfect!

Faithful....

Ever just need to be reminded that God is faithful & true, just like he says? I had been in that spot for a few days. After looking at the budget & really seeing what a sacrifice it was going to be for me to stay home with my sweet Channing, I was overwhelmed with anxiousness & doubt. Not a great place to be in at 33 weeks preggo when you have plenty of other things to dwell on. Why is it that it always seems to happen? Over & over we need reminded of God's promises & that they aren't just words but TRUTH.



On Wednesday he reminded me again through precious students, their families & our loving volunteers. I had no idea that the evening was anything more than praising our heavenly father & it was just that & so much more precious to me as my heart sang his praises after seeing this:

That my friends is over 1,200 diapers ( yes, I added it up!), 12 large packs of wipes & a collection of butt cremes, outfits & toys! God was whispering in my ear " See daughter, I have it all under control. I've placed you here for such a time as this."

I love his gentle reminders that everything will be ok & that we his 'dumb sheep' need to just trust him. Thank you FUEL families! We are so grateful!

Psalm 56:10 'For your unfailing love is as high as the heavens. your FAITHFULNESS reaches to the clouds.'