Adoration

What is your favorite Christmas song? This time of the year I have Christmas music on all day long. It brings me comfort listening to songs that bring all the attention onto the Christ child, Jesus. The song that stands out to me the most in my current walk of life is O Come All Ye Faithful.  

O Come All Ye Faithful

O come all ye faithful joyful and triumphant
Oh come ye O come ye to Bethlehem;
come and behold him born the King of angels;
O come let us adore him Christ the Lord.

God of God light of light
Lo he not the virgin's womb;
Very God begotten not created:
O come let us adore him Christ The Lord.

Sing choirs of angels sing in exultation
Sing all ye citizens of heaven above;
Glory to God in the highest:
O come, let us adore him, Christ The Lord

See how the shepherds summoned to his cradle,
leaving their flocks, draw nigh with lowly fear
we too will thither hend our joyful footsteps;
O come, let us adore him, Christ the Lord.

Yea, Lord, we greet thee, born this happy morning;
Jesus, to thee be glory given;
word of the Father, now in flesh appearing:
O come, let us adore him, Christ the Lord

My favorite part of the song is the chorus, “O come let us adore him Christ The Lord.” I never really gave much thought into adoring someone or something until having children. Now that I can look into the eyes of our own babies, I have a glimpse into what Mary and Joseph must have felt when they gazed into the eyes of baby Jesus that starry night in Bethlehem.

While they were there, the time came for the baby to be born, and she gave birth to her firstborn, a son. She wrapped him in cloths and placed him in a manger, because there was no guest room available for them. Luke 2: 6-7

Luke does not mention Mary and Joseph hugging and kissing their newborn; but, I am sure they snuggled their new baby and adored him to pieces. What a beautiful feeling – to hold a new born baby! I can vividly remember holding Grace and Kalei for the first time just like it was yesterday.  

According to Merriam Webster, the number one meaning of adore is “to worship and honor as a deity.” I adore Jesus because He is my King, my Savior, and my Lord. Without Him, I would not be alive. Without Him, I would not have Grace and Kalei to gaze and smile at. WITH Jesus there is so much to celebrate.

This Christmas I celebrate the gift of life: especially in the form of two squirmy, smiley, and snuggly little girls. We are so grateful that God orchestrated our lives to welcome Grace and Kalei into the world.

                              

Amidst the craziness of the holiday season I hope you are able to find time to stop and adore the Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.

For to us a child is born, to us a son is given, and the government will be on his shoulders. And he will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. Isaiah 9:6

Wishing you and your family a very Merry Christmas!

With love,

Cole, Chelsey, Grace, & Kalei

Worth the Wait

 

 

               What is it in your life that you have been waiting in expectation of? Is it a new job? Is it a new home? A spouse? A season in your life to pass? According to Merriam Webster, to wait means ‘to stay in place in expectation of.’

                Waiting has looked vastly different for me as I have grown up. When I was young I eagerly awaited Mom’s chocolate chip cookies to come out of the oven; and I would not sleep the night before going to Adventureland! As a teenager I anxiously awaited getting my driver’s license. In college I expected to meet my husband (and thankfully did!). As a married woman I was excited to try to have children. In all of my life scenarios – my waiting has been unique.

                For me, the expectation of having a child can best be described as climbing up a steep roller coaster and not knowing what is on the other side. I am coming up on the five year anniversary of when our quest to have children originally started. The car of the roller coaster we have been on has been climbing, and climbing, and climbing -  - - - until finally, on May 22, 2013, our car peaked at the top of the track and began descending on a ride we would never forget!

                No one can honestly prepare you for what you will experience once you start descending at the peak of a roller coaster – you have to live it out to appreciate ‘the drop.’ The drop is the best part! And so it goes as a new mommy to Grace and Kalei. I eagerly waited the day the C section would take place at 9:00 A.M. All of the prayers,  happy tears, sad tears, frustrating moments, and difficult conversations were ALL worth it when we heard the cry of our first born, Grace Marie.

 

Tears of joy trickled down my face. Sixty seconds later, Kalei Leena arrived, and the happy tears just kept on rolling.

 

About thirty minutes later I was back in my hospital room HOLDING these precious miracles. It was then, in that moment, that I recognized the meaning behind God’s timing. He wanted us to FULLY appreciate His goodness and His blessings to us –in His time.

  

In my season of expectation of waiting to be pregnant and then waiting to have the twins - a  song that I went to often on my ipod was On and On by Chasen. My favorite lyrics, and the ones that still get me every time are, “But you’re right when you say that you set the time for the plans you make; That in your perfect time your plans and your ways will unfold.”

On and On by Chasen

Awake tonight, I'm breathing the air of the night sky
Listening and wanting an answer to questions you're wondering
I never thought it would ever be possible
To cross the lines we drew that govern what we say and do
But no height and no depth could separate us
[ Lyrics from: http://www.lyricsty.com/chasen-on-and-on-lyrics.html ]
Some say we need a miracle, some say there's no hope at all
But I know that Your love is strong, it goes on and on and on and on
Rise up when it gets us down, it'll be the voice in a blaring crowd
'Cause we know Your love will lead us home
It goes on and on and on and on

I tried my way, it always ends up being a mistake
But You're right when You say
That You set the time for the plans You make
I never thought that I could ever learn to let it go
Somehow it's better when I follow in the paths You show
So I'm here I'm waiting cause I believe

There is no fear of belief
There's just this cold reality
That wants to take me away from You
There is no doubt in my mind
That in Your perfect time
Your plans and Your ways will unfold

 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Rqh9sHTXcAI

 Along with the song, one of my go to verses that encourages me daily is, Psalm 37:4, “Take delight in the Lord, and he will give you the desires of your heart.”

Whatever it is that you are desiring or waiting for, I pray that you will have the perseverance to climb the roller coaster to the top. It just may be worth waiting for. 

 

                                     

*Pay special attention to what is written on their onesies:)

365 Days

When you see ‘365 days’ what comes to mind? Possibly the countdown from one birthday to another; a countdown between an annual family vacation; or it may be the amount of days before you get your promotion.

 

When I think of 365 days it reminds me of the 180 degree turn I have taken in the past year. It was literally a year ago at this time that I miscarried our third child. If you have ever been around me (before being pregnant), you know that I am not overly emotional. Well, I can honestly say that a year ago at this time was the saddest, lowest time in my life. I did not understand why God would grant us a child and then take him/her away from us so quickly. Nothing could replace the child that was/is ours and nothing could make me feel better. Or so I thought. I am confident that the people God placed in my life carried me through that difficult time. The verses I read and the friends and family who surrounded me gave me a glimmer of hope; a hope in God’s promises and His faithfulness. It was that glimmer of hope that gave me the strength to keep carrying on and trusting His timing.

 

I don’t tell you that to make you feel bad or feel sorry for me. I tell you that with an authentic heart, because I know many of you have gone through a similar situation; whether it is the loss of a job, house, spouse, friend, etc. All losses require a special level of trust and understanding. The loss we endured last spring led us to the greatest blessing we have been granted thus far: two growing girls inside of meJ

 

There is a song that I have heard numerous times that triggers my emotions whenever it rings in my ears: Blessings, by Laura Story. It dawned on me recently that the meaning behind this song fits into our four year fertility journey.

 

Blessings by Laura Story

We pray for blessings, we pray for peace
Comfort for family, protection while we sleep
We pray for healing, for prosperity
We pray for Your mighty hand to ease our suffering
And all the while, You hear each spoken need
Yet love us way too much to give us lesser things

I thought he was ‘punishing’ us by not giving us what we wanted. In reality, His LOVE is all I needed.

Psalm 34:18 The Lord is close to the brokenhearted and saves those who are crushed in spirit.

 

'Cause what if your blessings come through rain drops
What if Your healing comes through tears
What if a thousand sleepless nights are what it takes to know You're near
What if trials of this life are Your mercies in disguise

According to dictionary.com, the definition of mercy is an act of kindness, compassion, or favor. Even though it was painful and frustrating to go through the ‘trial of waiting’ he has shown us compassion and favor by blessing us with growing twins!

Psalm 34:4 I sought the Lord, and he answered me; he delivered me from all my fears.

 

We pray for wisdom, Your voice to hear
We cry in anger when we cannot feel You near
We doubt your goodness, we doubt your love
As if every promise from Your word is not enough
And all the while, You hear each desperate plea
And long that we'd have faith to believe

Clinging to His word and those around me helped me realize that I would one day be a mommy.

Psalm 36: 5 Your love, O Lord, reaches to the heavens, your faithfulness to the skies

'Cause what if your blessings come through rain drops
What if Your healing comes through tears
What if a thousand sleepless nights are what it takes to know You're near
What if trials of this life are Your mercies in disguise

When friends betray us
When darkness seems to win
We know that pain reminds this heart
That this is not,
This is not our home
It's not our home

Realizing daily that this life and all the joys and struggles that go along with it are merely a blink of the eye – compared to what awaits forever in eternity with our King.

Psalm 34:8 Taste and see that the Lord is good; blessed is the man who takes refuge in him.

'Cause what if your blessings come through rain drops
What if Your healing comes through tears
What if a thousand sleepless nights are what it takes to know You're near

What if my greatest disappointments or the aching of this life
Is the revealing of a greater thirst this world can't satisfy
What if trials of this life
The rain, the storms, the hardest nights
Are your mercies in disguise

 

So what does your ‘365 days’ look like? What trial or blessing are you living in right now? Have you been shown mercy? In 365 days the Lord took my shaken, scared, and doubtful heart and turned it into a heart of pure joy. Wherever you are today I pray that you can find hope in God’s faithfulness.  

Psalm 5:11-12 But let all who take refuge in you be glad; let them ever sing for joy. Spread your protection over them, that those who love your name may rejoice in you. For surely, O Lord, you bless the righteous; you surround them with your favor as a shield.

 

 

Updated photo of one week of growth! Week 28 to week 29! Truly blessed.