8 months with my little miracle

Last Wednesday my chubby little boy turned 8 months! 

It seems like just yesterday when I was holding him in my arms for the first time.

Every moment with him is beautiful. We enjoy every smile and every new thing that he learns.

I go back in time and remember how my other two pregnancies were, and the fear I had when I became pregnant with Caleb. One doctor told us “Don’t get your hopes up about having babies… maybe you will get pregnant, but it’s better if you don’t get excited about it.” When I got pregnant, I just prayed to God that He would take care of this baby. I remember when I pleaded with God, asking Him to knit each part of this baby’s body, to take care of him, to protect him, and if it was His will, allow us to have a living child.

After one of my first check-ups, Robert and I were walking and we stopped at a Christian bookstore that we didn’t know about. Without trying it, I started reading some of the verses that were on the walls, and every single one of them said “Trust in God.” God was telling me, “Don't worry dear daughter. Trust. Everything will turn out okay.” And He was right.

God took care of Caleb throughout the whole pregnancy, and He continues to take care of him in each and every moment. Nothing is impossible for God; He gave us our “little miracle” and we are very thankful to Him for that.

He always has the best for us in His timing. We just have to trust in Him, and He will do it.

New Facebook

Without trying it, I switched to the new Facebook profile. Seriously I didn’t want to do it, because I liked how my profile looked before, but while I was looking at my friend’s profile, without trying it I switched to the new profile and now I can’t go back to the old one.

So, since I had the new profile, I took a little time to explore it and the truth is that I like this one better than the old one! Hahaha. How we act sometimes… we are so afraid of new things and we just don’t want to do them, or we complain about something without really exploring it before we make a judgement or act on it.

I think that as women, we like to “think a lot,” and we imagine thousands of “scenarios” of the ways things could turn out. The truth is that I don’t know exactly how my life will be in Tarapoto. I know that we are going there because God has called us, and thank goodness, God has everything planned.

Since I don’t have all the answers to the questions that come to my mind, I think the wisest thing to do is to not “think” as much hahaha. Namely, trying to live every day following God’s direction. As a good girlfriend once told me, “Try to see the positive things, and focus on them.” 

I encourage you to do the same. Don’t be afraid of new things that come into your life, and remember that every thing that we’re living is inside God’s plan and “in all things God works for the good of those who love Him” (Romans 8:28). Before we are afraid, complain, or judge; let’s go through every situation seeing the “positive things,” and we will realize the beauty in what God puts in our lives.

I was looking through Facebook 2 days ago and suddenly saw this picture:

(My trust is in God)

I don’t think there is a better explanation for how I’m feeling about my life right now.

We are so close to moving to Tarapoto; really, in about a month we should be moving everything there.

We are very excited to go to the place that God has for us, but at the same time, we have fears and questions, and are a little sad to leave our family, brothers in Christ, and coworkers in ministry.

Yesterday, while we were at the camp, Robert and I were talking about how much we are going to miss our friends here. Every time we go to the camp we are so happy to see our friends, and knowing that we aren't going to see them as much is really hard.

At the same time we know that we will meet new people in Tarapoto, and God will give us new friends. In December we met Pennies for Peru volunteers there and really started to love them.

My mind is racing with so many things to think about, and we have A LOT of things that we want to do this month, like training in certain areas of ministry, getting together with people, and starting to pack everything. So much to do in so little time, and I know the time will pass very quickly. I can only close my eyes and put myself in God’s arms.

Please pray for us: for our hearts, that we would be sensitive to God’s calling; for this time of change, that we would be able to manage our time well and take advantage of this month as best we can; and also for God’s provision for travel and moving costs.

God bless you!

A New Year

2011 has come and gone, and with it many memories and experiences that God has allowed me to have. 

One thing that I will always be thankful for is the birth of my little Caleb! After losing two babies and being told by some that I may never have children, we prayed a lot that God would allow us to have a child. God was so good to us in giving us little Caleb. I still remember holding him for the first time, so tiny and fragile. Now he is almost 8 months old, and thanks to God he is a very happy and healthy baby. I pray that God allows us to be good parents and that we would raise him in the way of the Lord.

God also gave us a very nice home. As the time came for Caleb to be born and we didn’t know where we were going to live, God granted us a small place to live. I love my house and I am very thankful to God for letting us live here this year.

We also had difficult times; my grandfather became sick and was hospitalized most of the month. We were praying a lot for him, and thanks to God he is now better although his health is still not completely back to normal.

This year God took away some dear friends and brothers: our dear sister Alicia Zapata and our beloved pastor Samuel Heim. It was hard to say goodbye, but we rejoice in knowing that they left us to take the lead. 

God also showed us His perfect plan for us, showing us that He wants us to serve Him in Tarapoto (the jungle of Peru), a great challenge and blessing in our lives.

And He gave us another year with our family. My parents are helping out in a church and are very happy. My brother is helping out in his church and the papers for my little brother are almost finished.

I can say that it has been an excellent year, and I know that this next year will also be incredible, full of challenges and new things God has for us.