This is basically Jacob in an nutshellI have had a lot of people tell me that Jeff and I look to be doing so well as a family, and it is true. Yes, we still have issues, but, by the grace of God, we are working through them...and that is just it, by the grace of God. I don't know if it is as apparent to any of you reading this blog as it is to us, but all three of our lives are so incredibly changed because of our faith in God, the almighty, sovereign one, and His Son, Christ. The list that I would write to explain to you how many ways my life and our lives have become better, greater, more peaceful, more meaningful,etc. since I placed my faith in Jesus would be almost never-ending. It is ONLY because of Christ and His forgiveness of all that we have done that Jeff, Jacob and I are where we are today.
I say this, because I think that for too long now I've minced words with so many of the people that are close to me, letting them think that maybe it was something we had done to get to this point, but after today's sermon, and looking at our life, and how perfectly God has worked all of our "mess" out, I know that I can't mince words anymore. It is not because of anything Jeff and I have done, it is not because Jacob is such a cute kid (although he is) that he brought us all together, it is not because we finally "settled" into our lifestyle, but it is because God called us to be a family and gave us His strength...so much stronger than our own. Seeing today that God counts ALL children as a blessing is so cool to me, because when I first found out I was pregnant, I couldn't have felt that the baby in me was any farther from a blessing, although, now, it is sometimes hard for me to believe that I ever could have felt that way. I mean, look at how wonderful and precious Jacob is! God turned someone like me with a hard, unbelieving, cynical heart, into someone who can actually believe and see His beauty that He creates. Praise Him that He has brought me and Jeff so far, and praise him for the beautiful blessing of Jacob.
As a special side note...Jeff keeps calling Jacob "Tim Tebow 2.0" because Jacob LOVES football, and at quite an early age. Well, I didn't see the full significance until this morning when the preacher told us a little story that certainly seemed to captivate the congregation! Tim Tebow's parents were evidently told that when his mom was pregnant with their FIFTH child, that because of a gastrointestinal disease, she would likely die if she were to deliver the baby, and thus, the doctors proposed abortion. Well, Tebow's parents prayed about it and just really felt that God was leading them to have the baby even though the doctor's had told them it was essentially her life or the baby's. So they had the baby and that baby was Tim! Tim was such a blessing to his parents, and geez, I mean, the whole gator nation and beyond--and all because his parents had been obedient to the Lord, and trusted Him in making the right decision.
Now, in relation to Jacob, I was never told that having Jacob would potentially threaten my physical life, but in my head I sure thought he was going to threaten other aspects of my life! Even though I was not a believer at the time that Jeff and I made the decision to keep Jacob, I like to think that God was working through Jeff, who was the strong proponent of keeping Jacob and raising him on our own. I also know now that God loves al his children, and He not only wanted Jacob to have a wonderful life, but He allowed me to make the RIGHT decision and bless me in such a tremendous way even before I had become a believer!
Now that's some pretty cool stuff for just another Sunday in church!
