II Corinthians 4:17, tells us: “For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all.”  Praise God our trials are only temporary and when we stand strong in our faith during these times of adversity, we are achieving eternal glory.  When we look to and trust Jesus, we pass the test and blessings will flow.  You see, our faith sets the course of our life and our attitude determines how much the boat is going to rock when the seas get rough.  With Jesus on our side, all He has to say is, “Ocean, be still” and it will become smooth as glass and not a care in the world will bother us.

It is hard to imagine that Sydney is 6 days old, especially when you factor in that God created the heavens and the earth in 6 days.  In the scope of things and the fact that a day to the Lord is like 1000 and 1000 days are like one!  Knowing this, what we are walking through with Sydney is such a minute blip on the radar and in the scope of God’s master plan, it is a small part, but one in which He is accomplishing much in my life, Sydney’s and all the lives of the people who we are coming in contact with.  I’ve found when I can relate to people who also have their children in the NICU, they feel less alone and want to know why I don’t.  I explain that I can simply cast all my cares and concerns to Jesus.  I tell them that children are a gift from God and that He forms and knits them together in their mother’s womb.  In fact, I tell them, the kingdom of heaven belongs to the children and that God has set them apart.

I let them know that even in the face of fear, adversity, and disaster myself included, we must never give up.  Even when on the outside it may look and feel like things are falling apart, on the inside God is making all things new by pouring His Spirit and blessings out.  God makes new life by pouring out His mercy and grace that transcends all understanding.  The hard times we walk through pale in comparison to the good times we have coming, since as followers of Christ and children of God, we will get to share in eternity with our heavenly Father.  Things we are walking through now will be gone tomorrow, but the things we can’t see will last forever, so if you want to dwell on something, dwell on the thought of spending eternity with Christ and trust in Him whose mercy and grace are new every morning!

Psalm 23:4 says, “Though I walk through the valley of shadow of death, I will fear no evil; for you are with me.”  What we are currently walking through with Sydney fighting for her life in the NICU, I would classify as the valley of the shadow of death.  What I find encouraging about this scripture is that is says: Though I walk…  In spite of our recent, unexpected, and traumatic events, it would be so easy to get discouraged but God’s word says, “Do not be afraid” because one of His greatest and most frequent promises is, “I am with you.”

In our church, we have a philosophy that no one fights alone; this coupled with the promise that my God is walking this out right beside me is so comforting during this scary and highly stressful time.  I know that what we are walking through is only temporary and that the Lord is at work as the Great Physician and that He is working in countless other ways I cannot even begin to fathom.  What I can do is have faith that His ways are so much higher than my own and that He has mine and Sydney’s best interest at heart.

Fear has a way of paralyzing us so that we won’t act or when we do, we choose to act poorly, but God has set us up for victory when we trust in Him alone.  Right now, I know that He is giving me the strength I need and He is lining the right people up to help us and Sydney make it through this struggle for her life.

Last night I was having the hardest time sleeping because I kept seeing Sydney hooked up to all the machines and it just made me feel so sad, but then I began to envision all the sweet things I would be able to do with my princess like dancing, tucking her in, teaching her about her heavenly Father and a peace just came over me.  Our God is faithful and every step we take in victory brings us one step closer to the other side.  It is in times like this that we have the opportunity to exhibit our faith in our Savior who is mighty to save.  “Trust God” is easy to say, but actually doing it can be one of the hardest things to actually do.  The amazing thing is that the more we trust and believe in Him, the more He rewards us by pouring His blessings out upon us.  What I find amazing is that the closer I have grown to the Lord, the more I have been able to trust Him in all things.  I’m learning that when things don’t work out the way I would have wanted, there is a greater plan in the future.   In Isaiah 26:3 we read, “God will keep in perfect peace all who trust in Him, all whose thoughts are fixed on Him.”  Not only do we have to trust Him, we have to remember that “God causes everything to work together for the good of those who love God and are called according to his purpose for them” (Romans 8:28).

Watching people come and then go home with their newborns has been very hard and now having to leave the hospital without my daughter has been even harder.  No parent should ever have to leave the hospital without their child.  It is so hard not to have a feeling of distance between us because of the isolation, separation, and visiting hours.  Add to that our fear, anxiousness, nervousness and you have an emotional hot mess.

As parents, we want to be loving and nurturing Sydney, not subjecting her to painful tests.  Having Sydney in NICU was not part of the dream I had envisioned, but I trust that God will even use the pain and torment I am feeling to better His kingdom.  I have already been taking this opportunity to minister to other people who have children in the NICU.  Some families have had their children in there since October and had birth weights of two pounds or less.  There is such a mix of emotions I am feeling because I feel guilty there is nothing else I can do but make decisions that will hopefully help Sydney get better.  Signing the consent to do the spinal tap was the saddest thing I have ever had to do and it was impossible to keep the tears from running down my face.  This entire ordeal has created such a bond between us that is hard to even begin to describe.  She is mine and I am hers and I would do anything for her and not being able to make her get better is such a powerless feeling.

As long as I stay focused on my God who is mighty to save, I keep it together, but when I don’t, my guilt turns into panic, anxiety, fear, denial, apathy, and loneliness.  In these times, I must remind myself that at my weakest and most vulnerable, my Savior is at His strongest.  It has definitely been an emotional roller coaster and I am doing the best I can to keep it together and to stay well informed on what is going on with her condition, while doing everything I can for my wife.  It is an enormous burden to bear, but I know with Christ all things are possible and I trust in Him alone and I know He has an awesome future for this little angel filled with hope and blessings and this is just part of His master plan!

Sydney is still having a hard time breathing, so we are boldly praying that the Spirit, Breath, and Wind of God enter her body and that it not only sustain her life, but that it completely heals and transforms her.  My little angel is already a miracle and I am believing God to do something amazing in her life that brings glory and honor to His name.  We are claiming two scriptures over her life and I ask that you stand in agreement with me: “The Spirit of God has made me; the breath of the almighty gives me life.” (Job 33:4) & “I will put breath in you and you will come to life. Then you will know that I am the Lord.” (Ezekiel 37:6b)

I am praying that the Spirit of the Lord be poured out on Sydney and that it encompasses, hovers, and rests upon her very being.  The Hebrew word for Spirit is “Ruach” and it literally means “air in motion” and it’s the same word used to represent breath and life.  I marvel that we are created in the image of God and the breath He used to create all things flows through us.  The Holy Spirit and the breath of God are the air we breathe and when we literally breathe in His presence, our breath fills us with His Spirit.

It pains me to know my baby is in distress, but I find solace and comfort in God’s word and His promises.  I know He somehow loves her even more than I do and even in this, He has a purpose.  Psalm 150 says, “Let everything that has breath praise the Lord” and my prayer is that Sydney will have that chance to worship and praise her maker and that I will have the chance to show her a glimpse of the love her heavenly Father has for her.  In all things I will praise the Lord, through Whom all blessings flow.

Today will be a day I will never forget as a new chapter of our lives begins as parents.  Sydney Paige Davis came into this world on January 19th, 2012 at 12:25 am and she weighed 6 lbs. 11 oz.  Hearing her cry and seeing her for the first time is something I don’t think it is possible to prepare for.  Emotionally, I didn’t think it was possible to love someone so much, so quick, but that is exactly what I felt for her.  Laying my eyes on her the first time was like opening a present on Christmas morning only to find out it was exactly what you always wanted.  The coolest thing is that every day of her life we will get to open that same present as we see her life unfold and see exactly how God made her.

Our role in raising her will be training her in the nurture and admonition of the Lord while encouraging her God-given unique characteristics to bear fruit.  It is hard to believe that the love I feel for Sydney pales in comparison to the love that our heavenly Father has for us.  Even though Sydney does not know the Lord yet, He knows everything about her because He knit her together in her mother’s womb.  She was fearfully and wonderfully made and the Lord knows the exact number of hairs on her head, which have caused some major heartburn!  God knew her before she was even conceived and He prepared Kristen’s body and He determined the exact time she would enter this world.  His plan for her future is one filled with promises of hope and blessings.  He is the perfect Father and while I am sure to fail, His love never will.  He promises to neither leave nor forsake her because her name is written on the palm of His hand.  His death was the ultimate expression of His love for her and I can only pray that we as parents will bring honor and glory to His name as we raise this precious child of God.

Life’s seasons can easily overwhelm us and we can often be tempted into dwelling on how bad things are.  When we walk or sometimes drag ourselves through these times, the mistake we often make is blowing things out of proportion.  This of course, is the last thing you want to hear when you are walking through one of these seasons, but it is also the truth.  Even when we can’t see how a situation could possibly work out, God does and where there seems to be no way, He has already made a way.  Our challenge is to keep a healthy perspective, stop trying to rationalize everything and to keep looking ahead knowing that this too shall pass.  Even when it feels like you can stand no more on your own, you must know that you can simply fall on Jesus.

God is still on the throne and He has brought us this far and He is not about to abandon us. He promises us in His Word that no weapon formed against us shall prosper and even though times of trouble are inevitable, our discouragement is optional.  The power of our faith is what pulls us through our physical and emotional pain.  In our times of crisis, we must remember that there are no surprises to God.  The Lord knows the end from the beginning; He isn’t running around trying to keep ahead of our mistakes.  God wastes no experience and even now, He has us in the palm of His hand.  He does not allow anything to come into our life without a divine purpose.  I had to experience extreme pain and humbling before I would act justly, walk humbly, and love mercifully.  I forced the Lord’s hand by making choices that did not line up with His holiness.  That being said, even now, He is turning my time of testing and despair into testimony because when I hit rock bottom, I found out just how much He loved me as He reached into my life and healed my brokenness.  When we walk through a crisis, His purpose is not only to show His faithfulness and power to us, but also to those around us.  He will take things meant to destroy us and will use them for our greatness.  Someone recently told me that I had the worst luck given my recent accidents, but the more I began to dwell and pray about that statement, the more I began to realize that it really meant I had the greatest potential to be a positive example by trusting in God completely.  I know first-hand how easy it is to get down on yourself when you feel like you are doing everything right, but bad things keep happening to you.  If this is you, let me speak some truth into your life: often, you will have times of trouble, not because you are doing something wrong, but because you are doing something right.  It’s because you are a threat to the enemy and he wouldn’t be bothering with you if God didn’t have amazing plans for you.  The enemy wants nothing more than for you to remain bitter, discouraged, and blaming God to keep you from your God-given destiny and to keep you from helping people who are walking through the exact thing you are.  When we chose to do the right thing, even when bad things keep happening to us, we take one step closer to victory.  Remember, the greatest legacy is not the things we leave for people, it is what we leave in people.  I encourage you to reach out to those around you who are walking through tough times and to pray about areas the Lord might be calling you to help His children and better His kingdom. To Him be the glory, now and forever!

Despite how far I’ve come and how bright I know my future in Christ is, I still find myself discouraged from time-to-time.  Life has a way of beating and wearing us down and regardless of past successes, there will come a time that our happiness and joy will be tested.  Often, when I feel discouraged, it is accompanied by a sense of feeling lost and sometimes hopeless.  Little by little, I feel myself being worn down, and then spread too thin, ultimately being pulled in too many directions, and then burned out. 

It is during these times I must remind myself: there are greater victories in my future than I have experienced in my past and when I can’t see past my setbacks, I end up settling for less than God’s best. In trying times, we must remember that where we are is not where God intends us to stay.  Discouragements are just part of seasons we walk through and when we rise above our despair, we will pass the test, even when it feels like God is a million miles away.  I’ve learned that even when God seems to be silent in my trials, He has never left my side and His arm is outstretched waiting for me to grab hold of Him.  You see, when we don’t allow the enemy to discourage us, one of his greatest weapons has been lost.  He wants us to feel hopeless and not worth saving, but God created us to have life and to have it abundantly.  God’s presence with us is one of His greatest presents to us.

Believe in your heart that today is a new day and regardless what life throws at you, that you are believing God to birth hope, comfort, and peace in you to combat any despair or discouragement.  When we trust Him to be our rock and refuge, He will put a new song in our heart and He will lift us out of any pit of despair we are trapped in.  One of my favorite scriptures in Isaiah 40:31: “but those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint.”  One of the coolest things about eagles is their ability to fly higher than any adversary.  God gives us this same ability when we put our faith and trust in Him to soar above any attack from the enemy.  When we put our faith and trust in the Lord, we will fly higher than anything meant to harm or destroy us, so trust Him to turn even your discouragement and despair into hope and happiness; His Word promises it!  To Him be the glory, now and forever.

To receive God’s best requires that we have to do things God’s way.  Being a stubborn person, this was a hard lesson for me to learn, but it was one in which I learned that through our failures, His love and forgiveness are unconditional.  I also learned that it is through our obedience that we open the door to His abundant blessings and it is when we submit to God’s authority over our lives that we see first-hand what the land of more than enough looks like.  When we choose to follow Him, He leads us to the land of blessings, a place where we shall not want.

In I Thess. 5:16-18, we read, “Be joyful always, pray continually, and give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.”  This scripture is very important because for us to be obedient, it says that God’s will for us is to remain joyful, even in our most difficult circumstances.  When we remain joyful, even when the sky seems to be falling, we are showing others that despite what is going on around us; our faith and trust are in God.  When it seems that all hope is lost, if we will remain joyful and turn to the Lord, He will blanket us with His supernatural peace, comfort, and strength allowing us to persevere where others would be hopelessly lost in despair.  When we are able to look past our problems and declare that despite what is going on, we believe that God has plan, even when we can’t see one, He will see you through.  He will guide you when you need wisdom, He will support you when you need help, and He will carry you when you can go no further on your own.

We cannot begin to understand why things happen in our lives; the moment we think we know, we are only fooling ourselves.  What we can do is make the most out of our circumstances.  What we have walked through is our testimony and God wastes no experience, no pain, and no tear.  His ways are so much higher than our own and His best is so much better than our best.  To receive His best, all we must do is remain joyful, prayerfully seek His will in our lives, and give thanks in all our circumstances.  We often fool ourselves into thinking that other people have it better and how much better our life would be if we could switch places with someone, but I heard a funny saying that sums this erroneous mentality up: “If the grass looks greener on the other side, it’s probably because they are living on a septic tank.”  Even when things looks great or when it seems someone has it all together; just remember no one’s best is better than God’s best.  We all have baggage and drama in our lives; the difference is we have Jesus Christ who abides in us.  He gives us the strength to walk through life and when we trust in Him, He will either fight our battles for us or through us.  All he asks of us is to remain joyful, be thankful, and to trust in Him.  I encourage you to take a step of faith and reach out to someone who is walking through a difficult circumstance; become a mentor to someone younger than you, speak life into someone’s life that needs a friend.  Remember, we were all lost at one time and as followers of Christ, we are all called to reach this lost and hurting world. To Him be the glory, now and forever!

When God works in us, it is normally from the inside out and the transformation that occurs is in our heart.  What we must realize is everyone’s heart is thirsty for something, so we must guard what and who we thirst for.   To do this, we must maintain a repentant heart and I find it very interesting that our first experience with Christ comes through a repentant heart.  We often think of repentance as a turning point or a turning away from former things, but a key component we often fail to include is turning towards something that is good and pure.  Sin has a vicious way of rearing itself in many forms, so we must constantly be on guard in all areas of our lives by staying connected to the vine, to the true living source, to Jesus Christ, our Savior and Lord.  You see, it is through our repentance that our failures become conquered and God is able to give us new life, filled with purpose and belonging.

I often caution people that have recently been delivered from a life of sin or from some sort of bondage that they must fill that void in their life with things from above.  I don’t say this to freak them out, I say it because so many times I see people have a road to Damascus experience where they are on fire for the Lord, only to let that joy and freedom fizzle out because areas of their life: (people, places, negative influences, etc.) were allowed to slither their way back into their lives.  Satan’s tactics are cunning and deceptive and God’s word in Matthew 12:45 speaks of the importance of replacing sinful lifestyles with things that are holy and pure.  In this passage, we read that once this evil spirit was cast out, it goes and takes with it seven other spirits more wicked than itself, and they return to where the first one was cast out and the final condition of that man is worse than the first.  That illustration sends chills down my spine because I have lived it and praise God I had godly people in my life that staked themselves next to me and refused to surrender my life over to the enemy.  Satan wants nothing more than to drive a wedge between God and whom the Son sets free.  It pains me to know that this warfare was used in my own life very successfully and just as parents don’t want their children to repeat the mistakes of their past, I pray that those who read this will learn from my ignorance and blatant arrogance.  I lived my life blind without a cause or a clue and through the sinful web I allowed Satan to weave around my life, he simply laid in wait to eternally separate me from the Father.

God had different plans for this child of God and He has different plans for all those who will turn from their wicked ways with a repentant heart.  Right now, I pray for the light that shines bright in me to shine bright enough in you for the whole world to see.  I pray that the work God has begun in you only be the beginning of God’s mercy over your life.  I pray that areas of your life that need reshaping be transformed by the miraculous power of our Savior.  I pray that any areas of bondage be broken and where sin is cast out that 7 angelic, holy, righteous and pure lifestyles take its place.  God has a plan for your life and it is one that gives you a hope and a future, and it is one guaranteed to us through the victory at Calvary.  Trust in Him and remember that the conquering power that brings the world to its knees is our faith!  To Him be the glory, now and forever.

Our next step of faith could be the turning point we are looking for and it could break the chains that have held us in bondage for far too long.  I find it very interesting that Paul never prayed for anyone to be delivered from their problems.  He would pray that God would give them the strength needed to persevere with a good attitude.  I think if that happened today, some of us might be inclined to go to the next person in line and have them pray for us…

When we can learn to be happy where we are, God will take us places we could never imagine we would go.  This begins by knowing who we are in Christ, not by listening to what the world or the enemy says about us.  Satan strategically attacks us through a spirit of diminishment.  He wants us to feel as small as possible, so at the precise time he can strike and inflict the most damage.  Because of his strategy, he delights when we indulge in our sinful desires as he just sits by as a meticulous note taker.  He waits and calculates the most opportune time to expose our sin to the world.  As humans, we too use this strategy of diminishment, due to our own insecurity and intimidation.  We try to make others feel small, so that we may feel bigger.  Oftentimes, we feel pressured by the world to fit into a mold of who they want us to be.  We must never let this happen, because when we do, we lose our uniqueness and identity.  God made us different for a reason and the world will always hate or try to change what it does not understand.

I believe some of Satan’s most powerful weapons are our guilt and condemnation; he uses them to drain our strength, energy, enthusiasm, and our closeness to God.  In Isaiah 43:25, we read, “He remembers our sins no more.”  He chooses not to remember our sins, so if God chooses not to remember our sins, then the accusing voice we hear reminding us of all our past failures is most assuredly not God.  Knowing this, we have two choices: we can believe Satan’s lies and allow guilt to keep us from God’s best or we can trust the word of God and believe if God does not condemn me, I am not going to allow Satan’s accusations or my guilt to hinder me from fulfilling my God-given destiny.  Satan desperately wants us to go through life feeling condemned and unworthy, but when we become followers of Christ, God’s mercy trumps any mistakes from our past.  Living in the past will get you nowhere quick, but living your life focused on the bright future you have with Christ will secure your victory over any attack.  Your past is just that: your past, but your future can be whatever you want it to be, when you live to bring glory to the Father.  Don’t let a past failure keep you from the great things God is calling you to accomplish.  Learn from your mistakes and help others not repeat them.  We all have a role in the body of Christ and the sooner we stop listening to the lies of the enemy, the sooner we can become a biblically functioning family dedicated to winning souls for Christ.