Baby Samuel

It is Saturday, so I thought I would share something personal with my fellow Bible studiers. A week before Christmas, we found out that our oldest son, Josh and his wife, Charm, had lost their baby. Charm was four and a half months pregnant with a boy and since they had a daughter, they were so happy about having a son, esp. Josh. Our second son, Caleb and his wife, Katy were also pregnant with a son who would be 2 months older. Josh and Caleb and talked about raising their sons together and coaching them, etc. Needless to say, when I got the text that they had just found out their was no heartbeat and they had lost their son, I was devastated for them and us. We left the next day for Shreveport to be there for the DNC and to comfort them. God reminded me of my prayer the night before. Dave and I were praying and out of my mouth came, "I pray that this Christmas you would bond our hearts together more than they are now." We have always been a close family, so I thought it was a strange prayer, but I had no idea how God would use it to do just that. There is nothing more bonding for a family than to experience loss together in the Lord. It was a bittersweet visit full of thoughtful friends, sweet text messages, and much thankfulness for the children they do have. Josh and Charm decided to name their son Samuel Bruce (Bruce is my husband's middle name), which was not a name they had considered before. Charm came up with it because she said every time she touched her stomach she would call him Sam. My third son, Daniel, has a new girlfriend named Hannah. How appropriate for God to send us a girl who was named Hannah. Hannah in the Bible had prayed and prayed for a son and finally when God granted her request, she gave him to the Lord and he spend his life dedicated to the Lord and serving in the temple. We now have a grandson named Samuel who will spend the rest of his eternity, in the temple ministering to God. Hannah went on to have many other children because she dedicated Samuel to the Lord. The day after Samuel left us I was praying and I felt the Lord say he was going to give them 2 sons. Then he reminded me of a dream I had years ago. I dreamed I was in heaven and I was keeping these 2 twin boys. They were going to be sent to earth. I wonder if these were Josh's boys! God is so good and he does everything decent and in order. We have to trust him. Lord, you alone have the words of life!