Full on Joy

Now this is some full on Joy for ya -

Our friends Justin and Shelley are in China and TODAY they took their new baby girl, Layla, into their arms. It's a wonderful story - click on the link below to read about this miraculous day. One very cool part of the story - when they were matched with Layla, they found out she has a cleft lip and cleft palette. Justin was also born with a cleft lip and cleft palette. They got the agency to agree to wait to do the surgery until she gets to the US (so she can have the best care.) If you have time, also read the post on here about when their 2 1/2 year old son Henry picked out a teddy bear for Layla (it is so sweet!!)

http://www.bringinglaylahome.blogspot.com/

Ho Ho Ho

On a much more Joyful note, here are some of my favorite holiday photos. There were several, so I put them on a video. Enjoy!

Get it out

Today, I'm glad I have a blog. Why? Because I need to "Get it out." (PS - that is the title of my very good friend Alli's new blog, and I just ripped of her title. Partly as a plug :), partly because that's how I feel right now - I need to get it out.)

For those not in the 'Nati, we've experienced a terrible tragedy. You can read more about it here - http://www.wcpo.com/news/local/story/Xavier-Student-Dies-After-Christmas-Show-Fall/VarSU94WEUi4O737ToCFMg.cspx.

A girl died at our church while performing in the Christmas show. That's not supposed to happen. Understatement. So I'm going to process out loud here a bit. It feels like it will be helpful to me, so that's what I'm going to do.

I realized today that while I still trust God in the future, I don't trust Him for that moment. Does that make sense? For that moment when this happened, I don't trust Him. I can believe in Him for the future, and trust Him again for next time, but I'm not so sure about that moment in the past.

So what does that mean? Well, I guess my next conclusion is, I don't fully believe that God is good. He says He's always good, but I guess I don't believe Him fully. And the root issue is, my definition of good is not the same as His, and I'm deciding my definition is right and His is wrong. Oops. Hold on. Stop. I better repent of that right now. He has to teach me what good is. When God says suffering is good, my flesh disagrees. Flesh, you are wrong. Sorry. God has to teach me what is good, and I have to line up with Him (not the opposite.)

A few more random thoughts in this -

Love looks different in suffering. It's easy to love God when things are good. It's a different, harder, but maybe more pure? type of love in suffering.

I'm interested in / ready for the End Times. I don't even really know what that means, but I'll tell you some of what it means for me. In John 14:12-14, it says the following -

12I tell you the truth, anyone who has faith in me will do what I have been doing. He will do even greater things than these, because I am going to the Father. 13And I will do whatever you ask in my name, so that the Son may bring glory to the Father. 14You may ask me for anything in my name, and I will do it.

The night this happened, there were at least 10 of us who stayed up all night asking God to heal this girl. We asked him to do it in Jesus name. It is within God's character to heal. One of God's names is "Jehovah Repheka" which means The LORD is Healer. So if His name is Healer, I know I can trust Him to heal. But in this case, He didn't. I'm looking forward to the day when John 14:14 happens. I'm ready for that. Now I know that also will mean more suffering, but it also means we're getting closer to paradise. So, bring it.

One last thing (for now anyway) - the day after this happened, Brett told me to go to the church. No reason in particular, just go. A lot of my friends work there, and I thought I could just be there as a support. I ran into one of my friends named Darin. He used to be a brand manager at P&G, and now he is the executive pastor for the church. When I saw him, I asked him what I could do for him and he said, "I want peace. Pray that God will give me peace." Kate was sleeping in her car seat (just as she is pictured below), and he said, "I want THAT kind of peace." So I said, "Touch her hand, she'll impart her peace to you." It seemed weird, but that's what I said. The next day he saw Brett and thanked him for what Kate had given him. Brett looked puzzled, and he explained that Kate had given him peace, the thing he needed most. In the midst of death, it's reassuring to know that Life and Love ultimately will triumph. We're in a war. We know the outcome of the war, but as we lose some battles, it's encouraging to remember the victories.

Viruses

I hate viruses.

My computer has a virus.

I have a virus (well, really just a cold, but virus is the theme.)

What do I do for the computer? I downloaded a free anti-virus thing from Time Warner (per Andrew French, who is awesome!) But now my computer is still running slow. Hence, the lack of posts lately.

Boo hoo.

For a more powerful brain -

Have a baby!

I saw this on Oprah the other day and I thought it was fascinating.

Jennifer, a mom from Wayne, New Jersey, says she began noticing differences in the way her brain worked after giving birth to a baby boy. Dr. Oz says this is a real condition known as "mommy brain." Dr. Oz says Jennifer's son, Benjamin, used up a lot of her omega-3 fats while he was in the womb. "Eighty percent of our brains are fat," he says. "So the baby sucks up a lot of that vital nutrient, sometimes potentially to the detriment of the mother." During pregnancy, Dr. Oz says a woman's brain also shrinks by about 8 percent. "You don't lose cells. The cells get smaller," he says. "It might be because you're focused on one thing, but the good news is after you give birth, your brain begins to rewire quickly. … Your brain actually gets more powerful than before you got pregnant."To combat "mommy brain," Dr. Oz recommends taking omega-3 fatty acids and getting plenty of sleep. "[Omega-3 is] important because we know that it actually allows women to recover from depression faster if they have depression after pregnancy," he says. "It also allows the brain to grow."

Sleep and Omega 3 fatty acids - do it.