Update 10/29/2009

Dear Friends, There is so much on my mind that I want to share with you. Unfortunately, there really isn't any new news to share with you about the baby's condition. I do have an appointment on Monday, November 2, 2009 at 1:30 p.m. with a high risk pregnancy specialist. As for naming this baby...do you know how hard it is to name a baby you don't know the sex of? Hopefully we will come to a decision soon...or maybe Monday we will at least have the answer to this mysterious question of what the sex of the baby is. Thank you again to everyone who is praying for us. I can not explain the peace and joy we are feeling at this time. Honestly, if it wasn’t for your prayers, we would not be where we are right now. I can honestly tell you that I haven’t felt as good about this pregnancy as I do right now. God is going to do something HUGE and we can't wait to see what that is. It may be that someone who doesn't know Christ comes to know Him as their personal Savior...that's a miracle! And it may be that God gives my baby 20 week and 2 day old functioning kidney's, bladder, stomach, the right amount of amniotic fluid and to repair any and all damage that the lack of these organs and fluids have caused. If my God is big enough to create this world and everything in and around it, then providing these things for my baby is easy for Him to do. Last night at small group we are studying the series Experiencing God. We just finished chapter 5. (Honestly, I didn't do the weekly study this week...I'm a slacker). During the discussion the following caught my eye: What happens when you pray? The Holy Spirit knows what God has in store for you. It is already there. The Holy Spirit's task is to get you to want it-to get you to ask for it. What will happen when you ask for things God already wants to give or do? You will always receive it. Why? Because you have asked according to the will of God. When God answers your prayer, He gets the glory and your faith is increased. ...You must decide, however, that you only want His Will. You must dismiss any selfish or fleshly desires of your own. Then, as you start to pray, the Spirit of God starts to touch your heart and cause you to pray in the direction of God's will. (Phil. 2:13). Deny self first. In all honesty with yourself and before God, come to the place where you are sure that your only desire is to know God's will alone. Then check to see what the Holy Spirit is say in other ways. Ask yourself: What is He saying to me in His Word? What is He saying to me in prayer? Is He confirming it through circumstances? Is He confirming it through the counsel of other believers? I shared this with Jon, and we honestly with all of our hearts want God's will to be done with this situation. Ever since we found out we were pregnant with this little one we've been praying for it and telling God, this child is His. As we journal daily/weekly to our baby we are telling it how much we love him/her and how important it is that he/she has a personal relationship with Christ. Our desire for this child is to be a Christ follow and just to love the Lord with all of his/her heart. As we continued talking about prayer and praying for God's will with this baby, we just started naming off Biblical truths and promises that God has given us. God is the GIVER of Life and ALL things. He is allowing us to go through this, but death and sickness is not apart of His plan...it's a result of sin. God raised Christ from the dead...God can heal my baby! He is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine. He has NO LIMITS! God is an ever present help in a time of trouble...my baby is in trouble and needs His help and He promises to be there. God is the Great Physician. He's the maker and giver of life. He gave my baby life and He can heal my baby! He has healed so many...those we read about in the Bible (the man who was blind, the hemorrhaging woman, the demon possessed, those with leprosy), he brought Lazarus back from the dead, and I know that you know people who have been sick and have been told that their is no hope suddenly are healed. This is how God works...this is His plan for us all. I could go on and on, but this is how we have to be praying...petitioning to God that His will be done with this situation. All that matters is that God is given ALL the glory and those who have little faith will grow in their faith and trust God more, for those who are lost and don't know Him come to accept Him and have a personal relationship with Him, for those who are hurting, be healed by and through His precious name. If my baby has to loose his/her life so that others may grow and accept Him, then this all is worth it. But if my baby can live, and I can hold him/her in my/our arms and raise him/her to be a God fearing, loving responsible person and still all of the above stuff still be accomplished through my baby's life, then I want this too. I'm not willing to settle praying just for God to spare my baby's life, I want my baby healed completely so that when everyone sees him/her they know that this baby is a miracle and that there really is a God who loves and cares about each one of us. Regardless of the outcome, my baby will be completely and fully healed. Keep praying and pray specifically for the healing we know that God can do. We love you and appreciate everyone of you. Love, Jon and Kristin