Taken For Granted

Have you ever thought about the things you take for granted in your life? I thought about some of those things today. I live my life everyday doing much the same things each one of those days and most of the time I barely give a nod to the bigger-than-me miracles that are the wallpaper of my life.

For instance, since today is voting day, I realized how often I forget what a privilege it is to be free. It's not really a right. Someone set me free, both in nationality and spiritually. But I go in and out of my world, demanding my way in parking lots and customer service calls and the like ignoring the fact that I can speak out loud at all.

Then, I realized how much I take for granted that my daughter is mine-no one is going to take her away from me or lay claim to her. Only five years out from the best day of my life when a judge declared her ours, I barely remember the the time when I held my breath round the clock day in and out praying with all I was to have her be mine forever.

And finally, I realized today how much I take the tangible presence of Holy Spirit for granted. Sitting in a court room today, overcome with anxiety that I thought would swallow me, I called out to Him pleading to feel Him there with me, to know that I wasn't alone. At that moment I looked up at the American and Texas flags that flanked the judge's bench. On the top perched two golden eagles. I was immediately reminded about the eagle's story my dear friend Mindy had shared with me many times. Eagles, Mindy says, aren't like any other creature in nature. When a storm comes, instead of turning for shelter away from it, the eagle will go toward the storm, pressing through the storm clouds until the winds lift their wings high above the clouds where they can soar.  They use the storm to their benefit to get to the high place and then watch it from above, relaxing in their natural flight.  Those golden eagles on the flag poles were Holy Spirit's sign He was with me, giving me strength to press above the storm and soar in His peace.  How do I ever take such a gift for granted?

I don't want to take the power of prayer for granted either.  Prayer changes things, this I believe with my whole heart.  Over and over in the Word, God instructs us to pray and petition Him for the things on our heart.  He is not a Father who doesn't hear or care and just like the "petition" of my children, wanting something, we are to plead with Him, bringing our requests to Him regularly.  If you would join us in these petitions, here are the things we are pleading before the Lord right now:

• The He would permanently establish our M&M baby in this family.
• That He would give us His peace and sustain us through this roller coaster of emotions we face each day.
• That He would use this time to grow us in His likeness, teaching us how to give Him glory and praise in all things.
• That He would work miraculously in the hearts and minds of birth families, judges, attorneys and case workers that are involved in this case to do His will for the glory of His name.
• That our M&M baby would be consecrated to Him all the days of her life, no matter which home she grows in and that she would love Him and live her life for His glory.
• That our precious Raylen would be guarded and protected from the emotional ups and downs as we navigate this road.

Thank you for partnering with us.  We are grateful for you and don't take for granted the support and friendship that we are covered in during this time.