Birthdays

Next week Michaelyn and Michael will both be celebrating a birthday. February 3rd and 7th, respectively. During this separation, these special days are difficult to maneuver. We are excited to be celebrating these lives that are so precious to us, but it highlights our sorrow of being apart.

Eight years aqo... we welcomed our first child into the world. God opened our womb and bestowed the blessing and responsibility of a human life. She is a delight. We have been so personally challenged by this task. God calls us to give up our lives for our children. We realize these truths usually after a few difficult lessons. Thanks be to God that he makes first born children so resilient! She has been patient with her first time parents.

Michaelyn is a delightful daughter. This year she has shown maturity (appropriate for her age) in the development of her responsibilities and as a helpful and devoted big sister. She knows that God has made her the oldest and she embraces the benefits and usually the trials that come with her position. We are all learning as a family that God knows what is best in our family structure and order within our home. We all function best when we show our faith in God by submitting to his loving commands. Thank you God for this blessing of experiencing your Grace in our family through these wonderful relationships. Please strengthen us to resists the temptation to put ourselves first, and trust you to love our neighbor (or our sister) as our self.

We surely miss Daddy at the house. The Bible teaches that an evidence of new birth in Christ is that our affections change. We no longer desire (simply) to fulfill the lusts of our flesh, we desire to serve and to please and to glorify Jesus Christ. Although missing Daddy is very painful, it is an evidence of a great love that God has birthed in our hearts. He has given us the ability to love. We are thankful that God has done this work in us. We miss Michael's leadership and his affection (he is rather snuggley). We miss Daddy's light-heartedness and his spirit. Michael always does whatever he is doing with Passion! We miss his passionate presence at home. Dear Father, please comfort Daddy's heart as he is away from home on his birthday. Let him enjoy deep fellowship with You. May he know you as his Daddy, and as Your beloved son.

A few updates:

Discharge - As of this week, the paperwork for the discharge was recommended by the Battalion Commander (Woo hoo! God changed his heart! The Battalion Commander had originally been unfavorable to our request) and passed the packet on to Brigade. It is still waiting at Brigade.

Michael's health - The cat scan was completed last Thursday and Michael will meet with the Pulmonary Specialist on February 11th. Michael is very tired and has recently been administered many immunizations. Please pray for his body to be strengthened and healed and that he will be protected from adverse side-effects.

On the home front - My laptop is fritzing out. A friend's techie geek husband (I can't mention his name because I just called him a techie geek) is working on a solution. I am hoping for an inexpensive and quick solution. I appreciate my laptop's many practical and impractical benefits.

By God's Grace we are hanging in there. Some days feel like we are steeped in the riches of His Grace and some days feels more like a slow leak. Our current focus is showing our Love for God by loving one another. I think we will probably not ever master this. We would all be greatly rejoicing when Momma gets a working grasp of the eleventh commandment. (No this is not a "weird new legalistic pseudo spiritual rule") Jesus said, a new commandment I give you. Love one another. (Ten plus one equals eleven. My homeschool math is really paying off!)