"The Lord is my strength and shield. I trust Him with all my heart. He helps me, and my heart is filled with joy. I burst out in songs of thanksgiving." Psalm 28:7
The Archer family is coming off a very busy, but blessed Thanksgiving weekend. Not only did we have some yummy food and time with family and friends, but we have been extra thankful for the news we received at our last OSU visit on the 18th. The visit before last, we saw the fluid level almost double on one side of Zoe's brain and we felt a bit discouraged. This visit we left rejoicing in the news that the fluid levels were stable and had not grown. We were told at the last visit as well that we would probably be delivering her at 36 weeks, which is the week after Christmas. With this latest news, we will now be waiting until closer to her original due date, January 17th. Considering she is going to be a baby who will undergo surgery probably a day after she is born, this is good news. The longer she can grow and become stronger helps her longtime prognosis. We still do not know what the future holds, but every little bit of news like this strengthens our faith and our hope that all will ok. Of course we know that all will be ok - no matter what....because we believe God made our little girl and has wonderful plan and purpose for her life. Our next visit to OSU is Friday, December 9th and I will probably get a concrete c-section date that we can start counting down to. We also are praying that the fluid continues to be stable and not grow. We of course, always pray and believe that the fluid can still go away. God has sustained us and been so faithful and we trust Him even more as we wind down this part of the journey and begin another part after she is born.
Words cannot express how thankful we are first to God, who has been our comfort and strength through this and will continue to give us what we need in the future. Without Him, we are nothing and can do nothing. I was reminded of this when I read this passage in Acts 17:24-28 this morning....
“The God who made the world and everything in it is the Lord of heaven and earth and does not live in temples built by human hands. And he is not served by human hands, as if he needed anything. Rather, he himself gives everyone life and breath and everything else. From one man he made all the nations, that they should inhabit the whole earth; and he marked out their appointed times in history and the boundaries of their lands. God did this so that they would seek him and perhaps reach out for him and find him, though he is not far from any one of us. For in him we live and move and have our being."
We are also thankful for all our family, church family and friends for their love, support and prayers. We are truly blessed!
Emma continues to be super excited about her Baby Zoe coming and she is looking forward to Christmas! She is singing lots of Christmas songs and of course, telling us all of things she wants Santa to bring her. We put up our tree this weekend and did some shopping, so we are officially in Christmas mode and counting down! I'm also looking forward to seeing if my Bobcats can win the MAC Championship on Friday, December 2nd.
In the midst of uncertainty, there is so much life to live and love to give. In the meantime, I'm reminded in 1Thessalonians 5:16-18 what God's will is for my life....
"Rejoice always, pray continually, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus. "
So in the end, Thanksgiving should be a way a life and not just a holiday or a season. Thanksgiving is living a life of worship and submission to God, who is worthy of our everything. It is a life of rejoicing, prayer, and thanksgiving in the hard times.
We are heading back to school tomorrow after some much needed rest and time at home. We appreciate all of your prayers as we head into the remainder of this pregnancy and delivery of our daughter. God is faithful!
Faithful by Chris Tomlin
Monday, November 28, 2011
Saturday, November 5, 2011
And if our God is for us.....
Chris Tomlin's song "Our God" has been Emma's favorite song now for many weeks. Everyday we play it during our morning drive into Preschool or to Dee's house (our friend and sitter). She really can rock out to it...it's great. She sings really loud and gets her head bobbing in a good groove "And if our God is for us,then who could ever stop us. And if our God is with us, then what could stand against?" It is really awesome. It has been awesome for me as well, to get that truth into spirit every morning that my God is greater than anything...He is healer, He is stronger, He is higher than any other, and He is AWESOME IN POWER!
It usually takes a song like this to set me straight when I've been off course or not thinking right. The past few weeks have been extremely busy and extremely trying on my soul and my mind.
We had a wonderful Saturday Oct. 15th at Ohio University for Homecoming. OU is my home away from home. My mom was an alum and started taking me down there for visits when I was very little. There was really no question where I wanted to go to college when the time came to make a decision. It was 4 years of great memories and good friends, and also a place that started a passion in my heart for teaching and sharing my faith when I joined Campus Crusade for Christ. I really love Athens in the fall and there have been very few years where I have not returned in October for Homecoming. It is now such a huge blessing to share this with Troy and Emma and next year little Zoe. I sometimes fear that Emma will be horribly confused about Ohio teams between Troy and I and our Buckeyes and Bobcats :-) She was really scarred when OU played OSU last year and Rufus the Bobcat attacked Brutus the Buckeye. She would tell us that Rufus was really mean....but she left Athens that Saturday with a Rufus doll that she now cherishes and sleeps with so I guess...all is forgiven:-) I always think of my mom when we are down in Athens....she loved OU so much and would cry everytime the Marching 110 took the field. Now I usually cry and can understand why she did now :-) I sure do miss her and will always have a hole in my heart until I see her again.
Later in the week we went for another check up at OSU and did not have good news. Zoe's fluid levels on the right side continue to grow. One side of her head measures 19 and the other 42. You can imagine the disappointment and fear that grows when you hear this information. It is the same question we all have when things don't go the way we want them to....we are praying for healing...it's not coming right now....we are praying that things will be ok...we don't have that answer right now. It really messed with my head and then we had to start answering questions that we haven't really thought about up until this point. How early will we have to deliver? How long will Zoe be in the hospital? What are we going to do about Emma during this time? How am going to shop for Christmas, get the house ready for Zoe, and prepare for a long term sub at school? How will Zoe's brain develop after the fluid goes away? Will she have severe disabilities? It just kinda felt like everything was closing in around me and to be honest.....I went there and just kinda felt sorry for myself for a while. I prayed, but felt no relief...I just couldn't get my head straight. But what is truly awesome is that even during this short period of time, God was listening and ready to answer and provide.
Last week, we got to visit Children's Hospital in Columbus and met some pretty amazing people. We got to mee our neurosurgeon, Dr. Graundon, who will be putting a shunt in to relieve the fluid in Zoe's brain shortly after she is born. He was a very kind, gentle man who answered as many of our questions as he could right now. Shunting is actually a pretty common procedure for people like him, about 40% of his job, so that made us feel better. We also got to meet a wonderful team of nurses and counselors who will lead us through this journey after Zoe is born. We got to tour the NICU and see all the wonderful services that will be available to us while we are there. I was overwhelmed with love and hope....an answer to prayer and a little bit of heaven on earth in the midst of so many worries. We still don't know what is going to happen to Zoe after her shunt is put in, but we feel so much better about the care and love she will receive. I'm so thankful for God's provision for us here on earth. We go back to OSU for another checkup on November 18th and Dr. Landon will probably schedule my csection at that point. We were told that they will probably take her around 36 weeks due to the growing fluid. That puts us to either the week after Christmas or week after New Year's...we will keep you updated.
In the meantime, we are still believing and still praying for God's healing upon our little Zoe. We still believe that the fluid can dissipate and we still believe that Zoe will have a normal life and normal abilities. We know that God is FOR US...no matter what we see with our eyes or what we are tempted to believe.
"He who did not spare his own Son, but gave him up for us all—how will he not also, along with him, graciously give us all things?" Romans 8:32
Every question I have ever had about God's love and intention for me has been answered at the cross and I leave my mind, my worries, and my fears there and let God do the rest. So a big lesson I have learned from my daughter these past few weeks is to be excited about our God and who He is and the He is FOR US. There is another song on the CD called "I Lift My Hands". Our dance ministry at church did this song for our 20th Anniversary celebration and it's another song that Emma can't get enough of right now. This song has also reminded me that through these trying times I need to run to God instead of retreating into my own mind where I try to figure things out and solve all my problems. This leads to nothing but discouragement and defeat, which is not a place I want to live in. There is a line in the song that speaks it all...."as I pour out my heart these things I remember...You are faith God forever".
"Trust in him at all times, you people; pour out your hearts to him, for God is our refuge"
Psalm 62:8
"Let Faith Arise"
Our God
I Lift My Hands
It usually takes a song like this to set me straight when I've been off course or not thinking right. The past few weeks have been extremely busy and extremely trying on my soul and my mind.
We had a wonderful Saturday Oct. 15th at Ohio University for Homecoming. OU is my home away from home. My mom was an alum and started taking me down there for visits when I was very little. There was really no question where I wanted to go to college when the time came to make a decision. It was 4 years of great memories and good friends, and also a place that started a passion in my heart for teaching and sharing my faith when I joined Campus Crusade for Christ. I really love Athens in the fall and there have been very few years where I have not returned in October for Homecoming. It is now such a huge blessing to share this with Troy and Emma and next year little Zoe. I sometimes fear that Emma will be horribly confused about Ohio teams between Troy and I and our Buckeyes and Bobcats :-) She was really scarred when OU played OSU last year and Rufus the Bobcat attacked Brutus the Buckeye. She would tell us that Rufus was really mean....but she left Athens that Saturday with a Rufus doll that she now cherishes and sleeps with so I guess...all is forgiven:-) I always think of my mom when we are down in Athens....she loved OU so much and would cry everytime the Marching 110 took the field. Now I usually cry and can understand why she did now :-) I sure do miss her and will always have a hole in my heart until I see her again.
Last week, we got to visit Children's Hospital in Columbus and met some pretty amazing people. We got to mee our neurosurgeon, Dr. Graundon, who will be putting a shunt in to relieve the fluid in Zoe's brain shortly after she is born. He was a very kind, gentle man who answered as many of our questions as he could right now. Shunting is actually a pretty common procedure for people like him, about 40% of his job, so that made us feel better. We also got to meet a wonderful team of nurses and counselors who will lead us through this journey after Zoe is born. We got to tour the NICU and see all the wonderful services that will be available to us while we are there. I was overwhelmed with love and hope....an answer to prayer and a little bit of heaven on earth in the midst of so many worries. We still don't know what is going to happen to Zoe after her shunt is put in, but we feel so much better about the care and love she will receive. I'm so thankful for God's provision for us here on earth. We go back to OSU for another checkup on November 18th and Dr. Landon will probably schedule my csection at that point. We were told that they will probably take her around 36 weeks due to the growing fluid. That puts us to either the week after Christmas or week after New Year's...we will keep you updated.
In the meantime, we are still believing and still praying for God's healing upon our little Zoe. We still believe that the fluid can dissipate and we still believe that Zoe will have a normal life and normal abilities. We know that God is FOR US...no matter what we see with our eyes or what we are tempted to believe.
"He who did not spare his own Son, but gave him up for us all—how will he not also, along with him, graciously give us all things?" Romans 8:32
Every question I have ever had about God's love and intention for me has been answered at the cross and I leave my mind, my worries, and my fears there and let God do the rest. So a big lesson I have learned from my daughter these past few weeks is to be excited about our God and who He is and the He is FOR US. There is another song on the CD called "I Lift My Hands". Our dance ministry at church did this song for our 20th Anniversary celebration and it's another song that Emma can't get enough of right now. This song has also reminded me that through these trying times I need to run to God instead of retreating into my own mind where I try to figure things out and solve all my problems. This leads to nothing but discouragement and defeat, which is not a place I want to live in. There is a line in the song that speaks it all...."as I pour out my heart these things I remember...You are faith God forever".
"Trust in him at all times, you people; pour out your hearts to him, for God is our refuge"
Psalm 62:8
Pouring out my heart to Him and remembering all that He has done through my life brings so much comfort and builds my faith for what is to come...no matter what
"Let Faith Arise" Zoe at 25 weeks
Our God
I Lift My Hands
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