Happy 1st Birthday, Baby Eli!

"And they brought young children to Him, that He should touch them: and His disciples rebuked those that brought them.  But when Jesus saw it, He was much displeased, and said unto them, 'Suffer the little children to come unto Me, and forbid them not: for of such is the kingdom of God.  Verily I say unto you, whosoever shall not receive the kingdom of God as a little child, he shall not enter therein.'  And He took them up in His arms, put His hands upon them, and blessed them."
Mark 10:13-16
(KJV)

Jesus truly has a special place in His heart for little children.
They are beyond precious to Him.
His eyes are upon them from the moment of their conception, and they are on His mind long before they are even conceived.

“Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, and before you were born I consecrated you; I appointed you a prophet to the nations.”
Jeremiah 1:5
(ESV)

"For it was You who formed my inmost being; You knit me together in my mother’s womb."
Psalm 139:13
(Berean Study Bible)

Can you believe one whole year has gone by since my niece, Kristen, gave birth to her precious baby boy, Eli?

I don't know when a year has passed so quickly!

To all of the new subscribers here, I say a hearty "Welcome!" and I would like to explain about Kristen and Eli.

Shortly after finding out she was expecting a baby, Kristen collapsed in the Emergency Room and was found to have a blood clot in her lung.
It was a long, hard road for her, and many of you dear readers helped to pray her through so many times.
We are SO grateful for all of your faithful prayers, and this is the amazing result of God answering them!
Remember this day?

Kristen and Baby Eli, shortly after he was born

What a sweet, precious, little bundle of joy!
A perfectly healthy angel, sent straight from Heaven to bless the lives of everyone around him.
God is so good.

Recently, the little fellow celebrated one full year of life.
Isn't he just adorable?
I know I may be just a bit biased, but even though, he is just a living dollbaby!

Eli on his first birthday!

What a smilestone!
It is just so hard to imagine that he could already be a year old!
He is such a happy, healthy little guy, and is surely a miracle, in so many ways.
Every day I pray that God will bless him and keep him healthy and safe.
He is surely one prayed-for little boy, and I hope one day I can explain to him about all of the precious people who prayed for him even before he was born.

God truly does answer prayer, dear friends.
Eli is living proof!
Whatever you are going through ~ nothing is too hard for Him.
Things could have turned out far different for Kristen and Eli, and I have no doubt in my mind that it was because of the earnest prayers that went up on their behalf that all is well with them today.

Every time I think of little Eli and God's faithfulness to him and our family,
I am reminded once again that no matter how dark things look, God never loses control, and nothing is impossible for Him.

I leave you with five of my favorite Scriptures to cling to in such times of distress and also a special song dedicated to sweet, little Eli.
I hope they will encourage you.
Stay tuned for an upcoming Inner Views interview with none other than Eli's mommy herself sometime in the near future!
I can't wait to share her thoughts with you here!

"Behold, I am the LORD, the God of all flesh: is there anything too hard for Me?"
Jeremiah 32:27
(KJV)

"And Jesus looking upon them said, 'With men, it is impossible, but not with God: for with God all things are possible."
Mark 10:27
(King James 2000 Bible)

"Fear thou not; for I am with thee: be not dismayed; for I am thy God: I will strengthen thee; yea, I will help thee; yea, I will uphold thee with the right hand of my righteousness."
Isaiah 41:10
(KJV)

"Be strong and courageous; do not be afraid or terrified of them, for it is the LORD your God who goes with you; He will never leave you or forsake you."
Deuteronomy 31:6
(Berean Study Bible)

"The LORD is a stronghold for the oppressed, a stronghold in times of trouble."
Psalm 9:9
(ESV)


Thank God for Kids ~ The Oak Ridge Boys

Baby Eli: A Precious One-Month Smilestone!!

"Lo, children are an heritage of the LORD: and the fruit of the womb is His reward."

Psalm 127:3

(KJV)

In my last post, I shared two of the many times God has laid a heaviness upon my heart to pray,

even though I wasn't sure for whom or what I was praying.

One of the times I mentioned was the night before I found out my niece, Kristen,

who was expecting a baby boy, collapsed in the ER from a blood clot in her lung.

Many of you have followed Kristen's journey, and you have fervently prayed for her and her precious baby, and you are already aware that last month, God answered our many prayers!

Little Eli was born, perfectly healthy and beautiful and just amazing,

and his sweet Mommy came through the C-section delivery just fine.

Oh, how we have praised our dear Lord for this amazing answer to prayer!!!

He is SO worthy of all praise, and He has proven, once again, that there is nothing too hard for Him.

Recently, little Eli and his grateful family celebrated his ONE-MONTH BIRTHDAY!!!!

Isn't he just a living doll????
What a little sweetheart!!

Also, MORE GREAT NEWS!!!!
Kristen had a CT Scan yesterday, and guess what, dear friends??
The blood clot in her lung is GONE, praise God,
and she was able to go off the blood-thinning shots!!!!
We cannot praise God enough for the amazing miracles He has performed!!!

Precious Eli and his Mommy, Kristen

Every time I think of all God has brought these two through,
my heart just fills to overflowing with praise to the God Who can do anything!!!!
Praise His wonderful name!!!

Kristen, so graciously gave permission for me to share some photos of the little birthday guy

and their sweet dog, Harley!

Be still, my heart!!

This is SO adorable!

Such a happy, little guy!

Have you ever seen anything so cute??

So many times, I have to break down and cry as I praise the dear Lord for the mercy He has extended to my dear family and me.

How we praise Him for the precious, dear, sweet gift of baby Eli, now one month old!!!

I just wanted to share an update on him for all of you prayer warriors who have helped to 

pray us through!!

So many times, I have come here, so heavy-hearted and desperate for God's help,
and I have asked you, dear friends, to pray.
So many times, in answer to my plea, you have taken our burdens as your own,
and you have bombarded Heaven for my family and loved ones and me,
and you have reached the throne of God and touched His heart on our behalf.

It gives me so much joy to share the results of the prayers YOU have prayed!!!

I want to encourage you today.
Whatever you need can be found in the Source of all of our strength.
God is still alive and well, and He is still listening for the prayers and cries of His children.

"For the eyes of the Lord are over the righteous, and His ears are open unto their prayers..."
I Peter 3:12

I am now working on a post that will be entitled "According to your faith",
where I, once again, delve into the subject of prayer.
I hope to share it with you soon....we have had a lot going on in our family and lives,
and there hasn't been a lot of time for blogging lately.
God knows when the time is right for a particular post,
so, stay tuned!!

May He bless each one of you, meet all of your current needs,
and keep each one of your hearts turned towards Him.

I love and appreciate each one of you,
I cherish each comment you leave here,
and I am praying for every, single person who will ever read these words.