Uh oh! I thought I posted this on Sunday but apparently it never uploaded!

It has been two whole weeks since my last update and when I went to upload photos from those 14 days I realized I don’t really have any! I snapped one of Levi tonight so it seems like it will make a good springboard into this entry.

Tonight we had our annual Christmas party with the youth group. This year is an extra significant one, as we are stepping down from our role as youth directors at the church after the new year. This decision was made after months of prayer and seeking God’s will; dissecting what God wants from us and separating it out from our well intentioned or even fleshly reasons to stay. This opportunity to lead the youth over the last 12 years has been such a blessing to us as individuals, as a couple, and as a family in so many ways.

It is hard to step out and serve the Lord when you have medically complex children, but God orchestrated opportunities for us to be able to disciple these teens and that is a gift we treasure. This role challenged us to be glued into the Word and focus our eyes on God, bearing the responsibility and accountability of leading others in truth.

I can remember the day we made the decision to apply for the position back in 2012. Jake and I had been married for 4 years and were a young, carefree and child-free couple who could take the teens on grand adventures!

A few months later God blessed us with Malachi. Here are a few photos of pregnant Leah on early youth outings. Remember that I had him at 24 weeks (4 months premature) so there isn’t much of a baby bump in that belly, but I still cherish these rare photos!

Malachi joined our youth group and oh the fun he had with the teenagers. And the love he received from them.

Then in 2017 little Levi was born and began his own adventures with the teens.

My boys have grown up surrounded by some pretty amazing teenagers. Since 2019, at least 1-2 times each month we open the house up and serve a big meal for them, most times having 30+ of them crammed in the house. They are like siblings to my children and I have treasured the blessing it has been to intertwine their lives into ours.

Last year Levi was in the high school yearbook more than most students, just from the sheer number of selfies he took with the “big kids” as he calls them. He talks about them daily, making plans for them to visit him and Malachi “when they move out into a house together” 🙂

We didn’t always treat this ministry opportunity “right”. We have made so many mistakes, focusing on people pleasing instead of honoring God. Trying to find ways to entertain the teens rather than prioritizing teaching them. We have had moments where we lost sight of the purpose of our ministry and had to repent over those lapses. And God has refined and pruned so many things in our personal life throughout the last 12 years. God also used this role to grow our faith in mighty ways, and taught us to listen. We learned what it means to be a mouthpiece, watching Him provide lessons and words that the teens in the room needed to hear.

Change has always been hard for me, and this situation is no exception. But the sting of change has been removed with a peace from the Lord- and we are trusting that if God is calling us away from something that He has already planned and prepared the next thing to call us to…and that may mean that we spend some time simply resting in Him. So now we enter a season of quietly listening and allowing ourselves to be guided by Him.

This week I was reading through Luke 2 with Levi and when I read verse 14 I couldn’t stop thinking about the peace of God.

“Glory to God in the highest heaven, and on earth peace to those on whom His favor rests.”

Oftentimes we treat peace like it is a feeling or an emotion. And while it brings about feelings and emotions, peace is an extension of the Father. It is something we experience when we rest in the arms of God. It is HIS peace that we are feeling. So many times when I reflect on my most unsettled times it is when I have wandered away from the arms of God.

This verse reflects that truth so well:

Isaiah 32:17 “And the fruit of righteousness will be peace, its effect will be quietness and confidence forever.”

Tonight as I looked at our youth group I was overwhelmed with God’s peace. I see Him working in the lives of these teens and watching Him write their God story is beautiful. I am thankful for the small part we were afforded to grow alongside of them in faith.

And I am thankful for peace from the Lord as we step forward in faith.

Isaiah 26:3 “You will keep in perfect peace those whose minds are steadfast, because they trust in you.”

Isaiah 26:12 “Lord. You establish peace for us; all that we have accomplished you have done for us.”

Other life updates…

December is a pretty big month for us as we hit our 3 month and 6 month regular appointments. This week we will travel to Nashville to meet with Malachi’s orthopedic and spine surgeons. And next week I am scheduled to have an overnight sleep study with Levi, which is assuredly going to be a nightmare. In the days in-between we have wheelchair repairs, specialist appointments, and other various medical trips.

Our insurance battle is still pending. We continue to have weekly meetings with various state departments as we try to find a backup plan. It is still a part time job right now, navigating the phone calls and the many many many hoops we are being asked to jump through. We are still waiting on our court hearing date. If it is possible to maintain insurance through the new year, that will definitely help us avoid some of the big bills that will be coming through our appointments/imaging/bloodwork/etc over the next month.

As stressful as the insurance situation continues to be, God has been so good to our family lately reminding us that He is our Jehovah Jireh, “the Lord will provide.” And while it is difficult it is also proving to be an opportunity to grow and build our faith.

Malachi’s seizures have been on a new trajectory, growing in intensity and duration. They are becoming very loud so we are planning differently when we go into public, making sure we can make a quick exit should one start. There is a lot of thinking that goes into what we can and can’t do these days, making sure we are being respectful of others but also giving him as much quality of life as we can!

But that smile! I will never tire of hearing his belly laughs and seeing the joy written all over his face.

A quick Malachi story that will make you laugh…last week I had a zoom meeting with someone from the state. They were going through a questionnaire that had some of the most ridiculous questions on it, very particular ones about behaviors.

She asked “Has Malachi ever been involved in criminal behaviors like robbing a bank?” And Malachi put on a tough face and signed YES. His humor these days is so fun.

Please join us in praying for a season of health over our family. This is notoriously the time that respiratory illnesses hits the area and we would love to be home for Christmas this year!

Thank you for taking the time to check in on our family.

Love,

Leah