Wow!!

The title says it all guys. This week has just been an amazing gift from God. It’s been a little while since I've been able to get on here and put my thoughts into words. Just 6 short days ago, and I do mean short, Jes and I were blessed to meet little Payton Ellen Drago for the first time at 1:04 in the morning on Saturday February 6th. What a miracle I got to witness first hand. I've said before that I wasn't there when He fed 5000 or turned water into wine, but I am so thankful that He allowed me to witness the birth of Payton. The emotions that I was overcome with were indescribable. To hear her cry and look into her deep blue eyes for the first time was just amazing. All you dads out there know what I am talking about and for all you dads-to-be just trust me on this one. I got to find out that my wife is even more amazing than I originally thought. She delivered Payton sunnyside-up without an epidural. Yikes!! That was painful. Her labor progressed fairly quickly and we didn't to really get a chance to decide on having an epidural. The docs and nurses at Scottsdale Osborn Hospital were amazing and after about 40 minutes of pushing out she came smiling at the world.

John 4:48 reads:

48"Unless you people see miraculous signs and wonders," Jesus told him, "you will never believe.

Now I didn't need to see my daughter being born to believe in our one and only almighty God, but seeing that strengthens my faith even more. There is no other way to explain how two people in our own power could create such a beautiful thing. It was miracle created by God and we are just fortunate to get to be a part of it. Jes and I are so blessed to have God work through us to produce this little angel.

1 Timothy 4:4-5

4For everything God created is good, and nothing is to be rejected if it is received with thanksgiving, 5because it is consecrated by the word of God and prayer.

Payton was a gift from God. There is no doubt about it. I only pray that He will continue to give me the love, strength, wisdom, and grace to be the Dad He desires me to be. A daunting task, but one I know I can handle because:

13I can do everything through him who gives me strength.
Philippians 4:13

Speaking of God giving us strength I got to experience this first hand this week. After we left the hospital my angel got jaundice, and we had to go back to the hospital for the night just 3 days after coming home. Pretty scary deal for first time, emotionally drained and sleep deprived parents. It was during that 24 hour period that I got to experience the strength God gives us all when it is needed most. As I was sitting in the hospital room Tuesday night watching my daughter sleep under the blue lights and with my wife sleeping on the window bench I began to choke up a little. I started to wonder how I was going to make this better. I was trying to figure out the next move. I was trying to figure out how the rest of the week was going to go. All I wanted to do was get my two girls home so I could love on them and take care of them. But here I was not even strong enough to hold myself together. I was browsing around facebook to pass the time and I came across a quote a friend of mine had put up.

Meet today's problems with today's strength. Don't start tackling tomorrow problems until tomorrow. You do not have tomorrow's strength yet. You simply have enough for today. God will provide the strength, answers and needs when the time comes.

I read that and it absolutely struck a chord with me. Here I was worrying about the next move. What was I doing? I began to pray and God answered. I realized that I am not equipped to handle this on my own. Heck my wife and I aren't equipped to handle it together by ourselves. But we do understand that by leaning on God He will provide our daily needs in all areas, including strength. There is no need for us to worry about tomorrow. God has it handled and He will faithfully provide for our daily needs.

Isaiah 41:10

10 So do not fear, for I am with you;
do not be dismayed, for I am your God.
I will strengthen you and help you;
I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.

It wasn't long after that that the doctors came in and tested Payton again and her levels had dropped dramatically. We got released later that day and were home by dinner. Thursday we just spent all day loving on that precious little angel. God delivered the strength we needed to handle the adversity we were facing. We realize now that jaundice is fairly common and happens quite frequently to babies that are born a little early. We also are very thankful that jaundice was all that Payton had to deal with. The floor we stayed on that night had many very sick children and it tore at my heart to see some of those little babies who weren't going to be leaving anytime soon. The whole experience was emotionally moving for us and I thank God for it. It made us realize just how much He wants us to lean on Him.

As we move forward now I am so thankful for the experiences of this week and for the weeks to come. Little Payton is just an amazing blessing. I know there are going to be more bumps in the road. Nobody travels a perfectly smooth path. Our paths aren't designed to be smooth and easy, but I do know who I will lean on in all situations. These lyrics from one of my favorite songs say it all:

You are my strong tower
Shelter over me
Beautiful and mighty
Everlasting King
You are my strong tower
Fortress when I'm weak
Your name is true and holy
And Your face is all I seek

Strong Tower – Kutless

God is my strong tower!! I pray that all of you can come to know Him in the same way.