I am thrilled to report that the Lord has answered our prayers for a good ultrasound report today. One baby gained 8 oz in two weeks to weigh in at 1 lb 15 oz and the other gained 11 oz in two weeks to weigh in at 2 lbs 4 oz. So although we’re not quite to the “chunky” baby stage, we’re making progress! The doctor also noted that the 11% discordance between the girls’ weights is in the normal range (anything below 20% is acceptable).
So, yes, I will be merrily continuing my diet of hamburgers and milkshakes, but more importantly, I am honored to thank the Lord for this good news and for His continued kindness toward us. Not only did He offer us eternal salvation through the death and resurrection of his beloved Son, He has provided for the ongoing health of our dear daughters. The Lord would be just as good and just as kind if He had chosen a different course of action, perhaps one that would not have been as pleasing to us, but we are humbled by His gracious decision to allow our pregnancy to continue just a little bit longer.
Jim brought the following Scripture verses before us this afternoon, and I am struck by their relevance to our current situation:
“And he said unto his disciples, ‘Therefore I say unto you, Take no thought for your life, what ye shall eat; neither for the body, what ye shall put on. The life is more than meat, and the body [is more] than raiment. Consider the ravens: for they neither sow nor reap; which neither have storehouse nor barn; and God feedeth them: how much more are ye better than the fowls? And which of you with taking thought can add to his stature one cubit? If ye then be not able to do that thing which is least, why take ye thought for the rest? Consider the lilies how they grow: they toil not, they spin not; and yet I say unto you, that Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these. If then God so clothe the grass, which is to day in the field, and to morrow is cast into the oven; how much more [will he clothe] you, O ye of little faith? And seek not ye what ye shall eat, or what ye shall drink, neither be ye of doubtful mind. For all these things do the nations of the world seek after: and your Father knoweth that ye have need of these things. But rather seek ye the
Our best efforts cannot add a “cubit” to our stature, a minute to our lives, or an ounce to our daughters’ frames, if it is not in accordance with the Will of the Lord. And worrying about what is not in my control is at best unproductive, and at worst, counterproductive, as it denies the Lord the Glory that He is due. Perhaps this is the lesson that I most need to learn: The Lord is ultimately in control, and although He allows me the freedom to exercise my will (and the freedom to worry), His Will shall be done and He is working out all things for His Glory. And that’s just the way I want it.
Praise God!