Relationship With Christ

A few weeks ago in our Miracle of Life Change, one of the At Home challenges was to take a half an hour to meditate on these three words, Relationship with Christ. It seemed daunting to meditate on 3 words for 1/2 hour. We had one week to do this in, and of course I did not find, or I should say Make, the time until the morning of Tuesday(class was that night). I started by thinking about each individual word. I also journaled. If you get frisky, take the challenge, you might be surprised what God will reveal to you and that the time will not seem so long. Especially if you go in a quiet room without any distractions and no clock. Just sit in silence and think. Here is what I journaled(this is word for word and unedited).

Relationship with Christ. What does that phrase mean to me? A relationship, is a two way street, an interaction between myself and Christ. Where He HAS and IS doing His part, now I must do mine. A relationship must be built on trust, have I learned that? There has to be sacrifice, which I need to do more sacrifice than just sex, alcohol, smoking and cable.

There needs to be communication(pray)open- and more than 5-15 minutes a day. I should desire to tell Christ everything at anytime. There needs to be a level of wanting to share with others, to not be ashamed but happy and proud of who I am in/with Christ. Of Course, there needs to be feelings of love. Putting the other first and honoring the wants, desires and wishes, fulfilling the others hearts desire.

With- means you are alongside, doing this together. I am not alone. It is the opposite of against. The word gives me a level of intimacy, hope and security.

Then on top of all that Christ is added and I have the complete assurance of everything Christ is, was and will ever be, is Mine! What Christ stood for and against so do, and must, I. His life, His attitude, His death, His resurrection, His promises, His joy, sadness, pain, suffering, blessings, powers, victory. His life teachings and more.

Everything about Him I must accept in order to be in a relationship with Christ.

I have a responsibility, am I taking it seriously?

But it is a comforting thought, a phrase of peace, hope and joy.

Am I doing my part, keeping up my end, living a life worthy of that relationship. I desire to and want to and must.

Please, Jesus, I want to get to know you better, have a deeper intimacy with less sin and separation.

To have a Relationship With Christ is an honor. A direct contact with God. And it is so awesome that God has done this for us and allowed me the easy, simple opportunity. All's I must do is to choose to say yes to Him and He is waiting for me to open the door so we can talk and have a relationship. He not only saved me but wants to get to know me, as I want to get to know Him better. Thank you Jesus, Thank you God that I have the privalege of a relationship with Christ. Halleleuah. Praise God Amen!

Pregnancy Update- 18 Weeks

This is from an email I sent out 2 weeks ago. Since this email Sherry felt the baby move 4th of July Weekend! 4 1/2 months time is going fast for me, but slow for her. Here is the email:

For those of you who are interested and may not yet know, I wanted to give you an update on our pregnancy. This past Wednesday, Sherry had her 16 week checkup with an ultrasound. The baby is doing great, heartbeat has been consistently around 144-145 bpm. And measured 17-18 weeks and 6 ounces. The morning sickness has subsided, and the tiredness is not as much. The ultrasounds are just plain cool, seeing our little one move around, wave its hands, and just a little person already, and so small! We were able to see the four-chamber heart, the abdomen was measured, as well as the brain, it's just wow!

Here are answers to common questions.

When is your Due Date? Decmeber 15th
Are you going to find out the Sex? No, we want to be surprised
Do you have names picked out? Yes, we will tell you if you ask.
Do you have a preference on male or female? No, we will be extatic with whichever
Is Jamaica off? Not necessarily, we will keep all options open until doors are closed.
Will bottle or breastfeed? Breastfeeding
How long will Sherry work? As long as she can without complications, and take at least 6 weeks off

We still don't have a pediatrician picked out, childcare, nursery hasn't even begun to be decorated, etc.

We feel so blessed to have this awesome gift. We had been trying for the last 6 years without any results and had given up on having our own without going the fertility route. We were considering adoption and foster parenting for a while, but had faith that if God wanted us to conceive He could do it. We left it in His hands and prayed. We had resigned ourselves to the fact it may not happen. We did not want to spend the money on infertility treatments with no gaurantees, and big possibility of multiples. And thankfully he honored our faith in Him.

We need more Fear of God

Out of Fear of God
Comes Reverence
From Reverence
Comes Respect
From Respect
Comes Humbleness
From Humbleness
Comes Gentleness
From Gentleness
Comes Patience
With Patience
Comes Love
With Love
Comes Security
With Security
You are free to confidently Give without Fear
And Fear is the beginning of understanding
A great circle of emotion and action.

Just something that kept me up late one night in bed.