A baby to be born and a brother's life "reborn"

Today I had my (next to last) OB appointment with my MFM family. I left work feeling a little ill, but I think I was just a little hypoglycemic, cause I felt better after I'd had some coke and peanuts on the way. My BP was a little high compared to what it usually is, 112\8? but nothing they were alarmed by. Joey was in the OR so I didn't get to see him today. I got my "letter" to take with me to triage at 5:30 am in the event that Luke gets taken on October 1st, a week from Thursday. We're praying he'll come on his own before then. I want Joey to deliver him and be with us during that special time, but I also want it to just "happen" and not to have this scheduled. You'd think with it always happening in an emergency situation, that I'd want it scheduled, but I guess I want the chance to get to actually call my husband and say, "it's time. I'll meet you at the hospital" and it not be an emergency. I know the Lord will let it happen when it's safest and the best for Luke and me. Dr. Patterson, (one of the only females) saw me today. I've never met her before, but she a lovely, young African American doctor. I though she looked my age! She was super sweet and checked me at my request. She said I was dilated 3.75 cm and very soft, so that's good. We're making progress. She said that there was no problem with us doing "extra activities" that some have said can cause a woman to go into labor, so that's pretty cool. Veronica, my dear sweet nurse that's been with us for the past 8 years, said that she though Luke weighed at least 6 lbs, so I'm anxious to know what he weighs. That's about all for the update. Tomorrow would be a great day since 23's are huge for our family. Here's the reason why:

My mom's birthday is May 23, my dad's is June 23, my brother's is January 23, my brother's wife's is Feb 23. I was suppose to be born on July 25th and my parents thought I might come 2 days early, well I wasn't, but I was born at 1:23 in the AM. My BCBSAL employee number has 23 at the end. My ssn has 23 in it. The first house we bought was at exit 231. The house we live at now has 23 in the address. I was married and had Tobi at 23. Tobi weighed 2 lbs 3 oz, (not a good one, but nevertheless), and again not good, but Layah came at 23 weeks. So, if he came tomorrow, that'd be cool.

Also, Layah's 40 week due date is on the 26th as well as that is the day for when my precious Papa, who Layah's buried next to was born and died, on his 80th birthday. So the 26th would be special. Also, my precious nurse I mentioned, her birthday is the 25th, and Dr. Ramsey, who was with us for 8 years and put the cerclage in, "up to my tonsils", his birthday is September 30th, so that would be awesome if he came then too. We have lots of special days that eh could arrive.

My dear friend Amber, who's had 3 losses, had surgery to remove a cyst, and we are now just praying that this procedure will have cleared the way-literally- for her fertility. I pray that this will be her season of life. My friend Johanna, who lost twins back in march at 18 weeks, is having a medical procedure tomorrow to make sure her reproductive system is clear of any blockage, and I guess tumors or tissue, so I pray the same for her. I know how badly she wants to be a mother.

Today I read this verse,

"2 Corinthians 10:1-5
By the meekness and gentleness of Christ, I appeal to you—I, Paul, who am "timid" when face to face with you, but "bold" when away! I beg you that when I come I may not have to be as bold as I expect to be toward some people who think that we live by the standards of this world. For though we live in the world, we do not wage war as the world does. 4The weapons we fight with are not the weapons of the world. On the contrary, they have divine power to demolish strongholds. 5We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ."


I thought about this verse because it's so true. We followers of Christ do not live by standards of this world. That's obvious by what is considered acceptable in society today which are in direct conflict with God's inspired Word. Just because the world may now consider this to be "tolerant", sin is sin, good is good, evil is evil. At the same time that our society continues to lower the line, or the standard, the enemy is constantly waging war against God's children. We are not fighting a war of flesh and blood, but a war that is invisible to the human eye, but so clear to the receptive spirit a believer may have. While this war does have it share of casualties, as I think Layah is one of many, we have been given "divine power to demolish strong holds", and I interpret that as what the enemy intended for evil, and our destruction, physically, spiritually and relationally, God has given us the power to take hold of that and use it for His glory and our benefit, on earth and in heaven. When life, at many times, feels so out of control, this verse is comforting to me that He has given us power here on earth to direct many parts of our life, as long as we are humble and acknowledge that this divine control is only allowed by Him.

On a seperate topic, my dear brother had a near death drowning yesterday and it really shook him to the core. We've been through a lot, growing up with physical limitations and challenges that kids of divorced parents face, and then all that we've endured as a family with Tobi's early birth and Layah's short life and death. We are very close, and I could tell in my brother's voice over the phone, several hours after the event, that this had changed him. We have always grown up in the "wilderness" with my dad, hiking, biking, canoeing, all of it. My brother had gone down the creek on an intertube behind his house in Trussville many times, but yesterday, alone, and not wearing a life jacket, he quickly became a vulnerable and helpless "object" to the power of the rushing water. He said he was pulled under close to a rock twice and saw his life flash before his eyes. He said of course it felt like forever, but it was just a couple of minutes. He described seeing all of us, his family, having to be notified by a coroner that his body had been found, and also thinking, "I'm too young to die", as well as about his wife and 3 children. He is convinced, as well as I, that the Lord pulled him from the water, and I have no doubt in that. When he got to a rock that he could climb on top of, he screamed and cried out to the Lord, in just thanksgiving for life. I feel that the Lord allows some situations we put ourselves in, in our life, to sometimes be a powerful tool in reminding us how fragile life is, and how quickly it can be gone. My brother knows death very well, as he's a "harvester" for the Alabama Organ Center, and obtains bone and tissue donations when someone dies. He sees death daily, but yet this was the event that was used to give him an awakening. I know that the Lord has already used Derok to share his testimony, his experience with others, with boldness and confidence, knowing it was not luck, nor his physically fitness, or youth, or swimming ability that pulled him from the water. It was God, cleansing Derok in a way from things that may have clouded his mind, and blurred things that God wanted to reveal to Derok that he'd not see without a powerful experience like this. I'm so thankful that he was spared and the Lord has given him a passion and a boldness now, that wasn't there before, to share his faith in a way that simply says what I always come back to as the simple "great commission", I don't know what happened, but once I was blind and now I see." Basically, it just is what it is. Derok had that occurrence. So each of you that read this, be reminded today just how precious your life is, and is to others. It could be gone in the blink of an eye, and what can we leave as a legacy to our families and others?

Faithfully His,

Mika