Treasured Up All These Things

Prayer Warriors,

Lindsey convinced me to fill our quiet, plan-free evening with a trip to the park. We were out on the playground as the sun was setting over the Rockies; Simon made a mess of those chow mien noodles we brought to eat at the park’s shelter. We had the place to ourselves for a while; I caught myself grumbling when the after-dinner-rush of kids showed up. They come with those random shouts and exaggerated screams as they go about their play. All of which can startle Anna. By God’s grace, I focused instead on our play, we jumped right in and got busy having fun. Simon was delighting so much he even let out a couple of squeals of laughter brimming over. Lindsey and I took turns rolling Anna around in circles, over the bridges, and down the corridors of the play structures.

There were these two boys maybe 7 years old that stopped to tell Lindsey something as they observed her running around with Anna. Sweet Anna pie couldn’t hide her smiles, drool, and her very unique sounds of laughter. Those boys told Lindsey: “I can tell she’s having fun!” That comment made a good night golden as we treasured it up into our hearts.

Those were kind words, words of perspective to us parents that try so often to please and comfort our daughter. We are often tempted to think either that our efforts are never enough, or that our efforts are too much. But those kids let us know that that night everything was just right.

There are many lessons and guides in the Bible about parenting. One that is most dear to me is a simple detail in Jesus’ birth narrative about a parent’s heart. In Luke 2:18 and similarly again in verse 51, Mary is “Treasuring all these things in her heart and meditating on them.” Contextually in verse 18 Mary was treasuring comments that the Shepherds made when they ran from the hillside after seeing the heavenly hosts of angels announcing the Savior’s birth and how “the glory of the Lord shone”. In verse 51 what Mary was treasuring up in her heart is a bit broader. Like the experience of parenting itself was of great worth to recall and to store in her heart. I read a comment about this verse speculating that Luke may not only have been inspired by the Holy Spirit to write it, but that he may have gotten the chance to talk to Mary and hear her account. So potentially those were Mary’s words to describe her rich joy through her Son. Phew, what gracious and challenging point of view to see your kid from.

So what am I treasuring up in my heart about Anna? It is when people speak life about her, when people offer a godly perspective about her condition, or perhaps a prophetic word, or a benediction. Or in this case its two young boys saying “I can tell she’s having fun.”  This aspect of parenting has become a vital source of joy overriding many hardships.

Please Pray:

-Tomorrow, (Wednesday) Anna has her sleep study. We have never done this before because she used to sleep through the night. Two of her specialists anticipate seeing sleep apnea. Regardless its no surprise to God who we trust in and lean on. We ask God for an accurate test, for good health going into the test, for Lindsey to aid Anna to rest. Anna will sleep in a room hooked up to a bunch of monitors. 

-We had a pre-surgery meeting with the GI surgeon to talk about the Nissin Fundoplication surgery. It reminds us of our stem cells crossroads. The door is open, but is it what God wants for her. We have found a huge reduction in reflux by doing continuous feeds into the intestine. But that means she is hooked up all day. It seems to be a quality of life thing, but the side effects of the surgery still spook. We are waiting, and need guidance and wisdom. 

-We have been looking into ramp vans that can anchor Anna in her wheel chair. They are complicated and more expensive. This is not an immediate need but it could make things so much easier in winter.  We are trying to decide what is the best for our family. It is a huge financial mountain as we still want to keep ourselves from debt. Please pray for creative solutions and a plan.  

  

-Pray for Anna’s schooling. We have decided to take her out of her school because of her persistent illnesses. We can reenroll anytime. The school will send a teacher once a week to our home. We enrolled Anna in a communication device program through Children’s hospital also to replace some of what she was doing at the school. We are looking for more social stuff too. We are shifting from a vision priority to a speech/communication priority in her learning.

Thankful to God for you! Y’all are MVP’s in the spirit world!

Nic, Lindsey, Anna, and Simon