Let’s start with a few snapshots from our week that are pretty self explanatory!

Our season of calm has ended and this week kicks off the go-go-go! Three years ago I received a calling from God to start a Christ-centered children’s soccer league in our small town. Our first year was complete chaos, like trying to herd cats, but was so much fun. Last year was also a refining year as we tried to find out the best balance for each age group.

The league starts up again this week and we have 99 players registered. We have the opportunity to do a Bible lesson with them during the halftime of each practice and game in our six week season, and I have been prayerfully seeking the Lord on what to share with them this year.

Truthfully, I am incredibly excited about this season. It brings back memories of my teaching days, getting to meet all the new children and trying to learn their names quickly. There is always such a buzz of excitement in the air, and the chance to share the gospel is just the cherry on top.

We also have an adult league that began after the new year that will be wrapping up tomorrow with a championship game. And on the same thread, our outdoor high school boys season is about to begin. So throughout the week we end up spending most of our evenings and Saturday mornings coaching soccer. But it is still something we enjoy doing as a family and the kids love tagging along to all of the practices and games.

Today our Malachi is 11 years old. Malachi’s birthday not only marks the celebration of the day he was born, but stands for God’s graciousness in victory over death.

Most of you have been reading for awhile, but just in case you are new…here is a 90 second video of our sweet warrior!

Malachi was born at just 24 weeks gestation due to a placental abruption. I internally bled for a few days, forming a giant blood clot that went undetected and by the time we went to the hospital we were already past emergency status.

They transferred me to a hospital with a higher level NICU and within 20 minutes of arriving Malachi’s heart stopped in my womb. We raced to the operating room and Malachi was born without a heartbeat. They started CPR and continued for 15 minutes before getting a pulse (20 minutes is the protocol limit). He was 1 pound, 12 ounces and had bilateral grade 4 brain bleeds due to his traumatic birth, and the doctors warned us that the prognosis wasn’t good.

But here we are, 11 whole years later, and I am overwhelmed with gratefulness to God for the journey we have been on. My 1 pound 12 ounce fragile son is now looking more and more like a teenager!

Malachi is an amazing boy. He has double portions of so many admirable qualities and he has taught me so much in the last 11 years. In so many ways he has become a role model to me, reflecting so many Jesus qualities.

I read a quote this week and smiled as I thought about it in context of my Malachi. “May my suffering help make Jesus famous.” -Pastor K. Moran

Malachi’s life shows proof of a Creator. You can’t look at his life and not find a God story.

I often say that we are uniquely blessed. Yes, our life is extremely challenging and looks very different than most. But we also get the opportunity to practice serving others on a hourly basis and to experience what pure, unconditional love truly looks like.

I have had a whole lot of experience with conditional love in my life. Rejection when standards aren’t met, and removal of love when it isn’t easy. But Malachi’s love is so unconditional and pure and such an example to me of grace upon grace.

This weekend we celebrated Malachi BIG TIME! On Friday night we made the drive to Atlanta to surprise him with a trip to his favorite Medieval Times castle/show. This was the one he was knighted at last year and when we pulled in and told him where we were he squealed with joy!

He even got a personalized birthday card on a scroll from the queen! His joy that night was genuinely contagious!

This morning was a rough one for Malachi, and it is highly probable that him having some special treats at Medieval Times (lemonade and some chocolate dessert) had something to do with his seizure increases today. He had 4 pretty large seizures before the end of church, wiping out his energy.

After service we went to our favorite local restaurant and when we walked in they all had birthday hats on their head. They had prepared a surprise party for Malachi, complete with Spider-Man decorations, presents for both boys from all of the staff, and so many sweet surprises.

When I saw the efforts they put into the surprise I was overcome with emotion and had to fight back tears. I thought back to those hard conversations that first week of his life, and to see the ripples he has created in this world and the amount of people he has impacted brings me to tears.

We spent the afternoon resting and trying to build Malachi’s energy back up from the hard seizure morning. Then we had a small celebration of our own with a few fun presents for him to open.

It was really difficult to assist Malachi with the whipped cream game and get a photo, but he also took one to the face and loved it. Lately I have been trying to prioritize being “present” for quality moments with Malachi instead of trying to document them.

We ended the night with Crumbl cookies and a movie rental and Malachi still has that sweet smile on his face.

The day that Malachi was born I felt my faith in God grow legs and start running. The words that I had memorized began to connect with very real moments in very real ways. The “knowledge” that I had about God began to truly be seen and known firsthand rather than secondhand.

It was the day that I realized that I am not enough. And I will never be enough. But faith is believing that HE is enough.

We can’t know the mysterious ways of God, and it would be incredibly arrogant to try to figure it out. But as I sit here tonight next to Malachi there a few verses and thoughts that keep popping into my heart.

Ephesians 2:10 For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works that God prepared in advance for us to do.

God has not only created Malachi, but He has created Him with a purpose in mind. And I believe that God is using Malachi as His mouthpiece. “Works” don’t have to look the same from person to person and often the works that God requires of us are immeasurable.

Exodus 4:11-12 The Lord said to him, “Who gave human beings their mouths? Who makes them deaf or mute? Who gives them sight or makes them blind? Is it not I, the Lord? Now go; I will help you speak and will teach you what to say.”

Abilities are not a pre-requisite to do the work of the Lord. Willingness and obedience are. God knows your limitations and will display His glory and power through them. Sometimes we are called to tasks we can’t physically achieve apart from His help, and God does that for a very specific reason!

John 9:3 “Neither this man nor his parents sinned,” said Jesus, “but this happened so that the works of God might be displayed in him.”

Sometimes we have to stop chasing the “why” and accept simply being a vessel, a piece of pottery for the light of Christ to rest in to be put on display. And that is exactly what my Malachi is. I see the light of God shine through Him.

Oh how beautiful are the mysterious ways of the Lord.

Thank you, God, for another year with Malachi. And thank you for the many lessons you continue to teach me through his life and testimony.

Much love,L

Leah