For Virginia

My precious friend, Virginia, is pregnant with twins. She already has 2 beautiful little girls. Virginia was in France when we arrived there in 2000. She understands God's love and redemption in a very special way. She found Christ when she was in college and had lived, up to that point, VERY far from Him.

Yesterday I heard the heartbreaking news that Virginia and John's unborn son has Downs Syndrome and a heart condition. I've read the encouragement of their friends on Facebook and as I've read them I can't help but remember how I felt 15 years ago when Jim and I received similar news about our baby son. The encouragement was priceless, but I also needed someone to acknowledge that this was hard and life-altering. I needed to hear from someone who had been there.

So I started thinking about what I want to say to John and Virginia, and I have to admit that what my heart feels and wants to say is very difficult to express. I'll take a shot at it though, because I love John and Virginia dearly.

I want them to know that among the heartache is hope, amidst the suffering is grace, behind the ambiguity is a divine plan, and inside of their son is an eternal soul created in the image of God.

Yes they are going to find God more faithful than they ever dreamed He could be, but they will also learn that He is more unpredictable than they wish He was. They will discover that His grace indeed is sufficient, but His ways are so much higher than theirs that they cannot even imagine what the next step will look like. Their faith will be tested as they wonder if a good God would place a precious soul inside of a broken body. They will grieve the little boy they lost as they embrace and love the little boy they have. Grief will take them by surprise at different stages in their son's life.

They will discover, as they allow God to give them strength, that God is indeed very good. As they fall more and more in love with their son, they'll understand more and more about God's love for broken and imperfect people. Temporal things will lose value and they will learn what is really important. Their hearts will bust with joy and pride as they see small victories in his life.

They will worry about the sacrifices their other children will make for their brother. Then one day they'll look at their amazing children and realize that they are better for having sacrificed.

They'll appreciate more the fact that in heaven there will be no bad news, no pain, no suffering and no tears.

They will wake up every morning aware of their need for a gracious and loving God. That is the greatest gift of all. We all desperately need Him, we just tend to become self sufficient and forget.

One day they will thank God for who they are because of who their son is and because of all that he has taught them.

It's not a road they would choose, but one day they will look back and they wouldn't trade that road for anything in the world.........

The Lord said to Gideon, "Go in the strength that you have......I will be with you". My advise would be...get out of bed every morning and put one foot in front of the other in the strength that you have. God will be with you every step that you take and His grace and strength will be more than enough!

Press on my dear dear friends!