Well, Whadda Ya Know!

"For a newborn, five hours is about as long as you can expect, since infants need to refuel often" (www.whattoexpect.com). I've also heard that 6 hours is the technical definition of "sleeping through the night" before babies are 4 months or so.

Last Monday Dave prayed that Rolland would sleep through the night "sometime this week." Last night (Sunday) Rolland slept 8 hours in a row. Sounds like an answered prayer to me!

Here's Rolland celebrating his accomplishment in his new diaper cover:

That Was Weird...

That last post was really hard to get up, and even when it did, it covered up a picture of Rolland. How dare it?!? I guess it's better this way, though. Those cheeks should be as close to life-size as possible. All the better for kissing, my dear...

Talk About Your Answered Prayer...

From Erika:

On Monday night Dave came in while I was giving Rolland his bedtime snack to have a family prayer time. He asked me for something tangible to pray for—something that we could look back on at the end of the week and say it had been answered Yes or No. I have a hard time with prayers like that because I hate being disappointed, so why even get my hopes up? Dave, on the other hand, seems to enjoy disappointment and takes every opportunity to get his hopes up. You should hear him talk about his brackets this year.

So Dave came up with prayers for both of us. For himself: that God would open or close the door on an opportunity he had pursued at work. For me: that Rolland would sleep through the night once this week. So, we prayed. And on Tuesday and Wednesday I prayed occasionally for his request (which is always easier than praying for my own). On Wednesday evening Dave walked in the door and said he had good news. In the morning he was told by the vise-principal that the opportunity at work was unavailable, but apparently word got around, and by the afternoon the principal told him he had re-written the budget specifically for Dave. Talk about your answered prayer.

Well. Rolland did not sleep through the night that night, but Dave’s answer changed my reasons for trying to pray that he will. If we hadn’t prayed for God’s clear leading, I would’ve heard Dave’s story with excitement, of course, but with a hint of hesitation in the back of my mind. Is this really from God? How can we be sure? But since we’d already talked to God about it, we can be confident and joyful. We had opened the dialogue about it so when God answered, we knew it was Him.

That makes me want to open the dialogue about Rolland’s sleeping. I honestly don’t have faith to believe that he’ll make it through the night this week, but I’m asking for it. This way, whether he does or doesn’t—or if something totally beyond all I’ve asked or imagined happens— I’ll know who to thank.



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And just for fun...

Ministry Update

There is an old phrase that goes something like this: "It's money in the bank!" I know that banks don't seem like the safest place today, but we are happy to say that a $10,000 match grant has been credited to our account (see our July '08 posting "Birthday Blessing"). Thanks to those of you who are committed to ongoing financial support, your gifts were officially matched!

The Bible teaches us that God owns the cattle on a thousand hills. Since that is true, we're not surprised to see God providing for financial needs in spite of a tough economy. The cool thing about God's "cattle" is that He asks His people to be stewards of the herds. Stewardship multiplies God's blessing. The giver and the receiver can both rejoice in what God is doing and what He will do with those finances.

There is still room for more faithful givers on our team.