Thursday, March 08, 2007

Jehovah Jireh::The Lord will Provide

Since learning of Isaac's heart condition at 20 weeks of pregnancy, our minds have raced with a million questions. Our faith has been stretched & grown immensely as we've trusted so much in God's hands, waiting to see what He had in store. Isaac's HLHS requires three open-heart surgeries in order to survive with extensive stays in the ICU with each round. Needless to say, the medical bills for such care & procedures surpass anything we ever imagined we'd be asked to carry. Anxiety often looms at the door, seeking to cause worry & desperation as we had no idea how we would afford this large sum. Just as in the Genesis 22 account, we had no idea where the lamb for the offering would come from. We certainly did not have it! All we could do was place that burden in God's hands, remembering His name - Jehovah Jireh - the Lord will provide.

Last night, our church, Cleveland Community Church (C3), had its First Wednesday service. Held on the first Wednesday of every month, we have extended worship, baptisms, communion, & dynamic teaching from Pastor Matt Fry. The service is always one of the major highlights of each month. As Minister of Music & Communications, Jordan leads the worship band & serves as one of the worship leaders for our church. With Isaac's recovery going smoothly so far, he was able to play & lead in last night's service. The night was powerful with over 700 people in attendance & passion for Jesus filling the worship center. Neither of us had been at C3 since Isaac's birth, so the evening was incredibly refreshing for him. Towards the end of service, Pastor Matt & Martha called Jordan to the front of the stage. They gave an update on Isaac's status - the first surgery had gone well with two more to follow. What happened next caught us by complete surprise & will fill us with overwhelming emotion at it remembrance for the rest of our lives. Pastor Matt announced that they desired to take up a spontaneous love offering for us!!! Adequate words do not exist to express our sheer amazement & deep gratitude to our church for their generosity & to our great God for His provision. As Jordan recounted to me later, he was in total shock & completely overwhelmed with our church's love for us & our sweet son whom they've not even met yet!

After the service, several people gave Jordan cards containing financial gifts & Ken Stephenson, our Executive Pastor & dear friend, presented Jordan with the love offering check. This offering far surpassed anything we could have even imagined! God is truly amazing... In totaling the love offering with the other gifts we've received from the staff & other church members, we were brought to tears with what we found. Before Isaac was born, we were given a cost quote of what the surgeries would cost us after insurance and the number was quite great to say the least.

After the tithe, the total of these gifts will completely cover the quoted amount of Isaac's medical bills!!!!!

God is our Jehovah Jireh! He does provide! We had not told anyone what this cost for Isaac's surgeries would be other than the Lord & He worked through His church to provide for this huge need! All we could do was cry & praise God for His faithfulness & love. How can we ever thank Him & everyone involved in providing for our son?! Even now, we are moved to the point of tears in knowing how deeply Isaac is loved. Just as Abraham did not know where the offering would come from in Genesis 22, so we did not know where the provision of Isaac's surgeries would come from. God is the Alpha & Omega. He is the same yesterday, today, & forever. The same God who spared Abraham's son by providing the ram is also the God who spared our son by providing the means for these necessary surgeries! Lord, You are good & Your mercy endures forever!

Thank you, C3, for your faithfulness to the Lord & your obedience to His call. He has used you to help save the life of a sweet little boy & to minister in deep ways to his parents. We are so honored to be part of this great journey with you & to serve our Lord together! For those of you who are not familiar with this life-giving church, please check it out! www.c3church.org.

C3, we love you all & can't imagine being anywhere else than beside you serving our great God! And again, with the deepest sincerity, thank you. Your faithfulness & compassion has touched our family forever!

29 comments:

Unknown said...

Your strength and faith have given all of us more than you will ever know! God bless the three of you always.
We love you!
Lynn & Ronnie

Anonymous said...

No,Thank you!

You have blessed each of our lives by sharing with us the talents that God had bestowed on you both!

Your love and faith in our Lord and Savior has been a testament and an inspiration to all of us at C3 and through out the world.

We love you guys!
We miss you!

Jordan, you ROCKED last night! :)

Anonymous said...

Praise God for all these reports I'm hearing. Even though we are so far away I'm so thankful for technology because I feel like I've been going through this journey right along with you guys. You are an amazing person and since you've been pregnant you have overwhelmed me in the way that your faith is so strong.

love you,
Fernanda & Patrick Veloso

Anonymous said...

Our God is an AWESOME God!!!
We love you.

Anonymous said...

No, thank-you for always being there whenever someone needed help. Thank-you for being leaders and inspiring every life that passes you by. We love you guys, you truly are a blessing. It is amazing to see what God is doing in your lives. We love you! To God be the glory

Anonymous said...

and their testimony continues....
Thank You for including us on this awe inspiring, faith renewing, journey your family is on. I will con't to pray for all you need!! You are in my thoughts and prayers daily

Anonymous said...

Praise the Lord! Glory to God! He does provide. . . Thank you for sharing this story and your lives with us. Your testimony through this journey is amazing and glorifying to our Lord. He is well pleased with you.

Thank you for being vessels for the Lord to use to touch so many.

Anonymous said...

Thank you for sharing. I am crying tears of joy that Christ's body, through your "C3" has reached out with His arms to minister in such a real way to your family. By doing so, they are touching all of us as well. Love you,
Nancy

Anonymous said...

We too know what it is like to have a child that is sick. You have been an inspiration and a joy and our hearts cannot contain the respect, love and admiration we feel for you.

First Wednesday was indeed an awesome experience and I am so glad that now you will not have to worry from the financial aspect, and you can concentrate ALL of your energies on your wonderful gift from God. We are praying without ceasing and we love you.

Rodney, Leigh and McKenna

Anonymous said...

You guys always make me cry!!! You are so loved by this house and you have given so much in love to this house. We love you and Isaac and are honored that the Lord would use us to return a small part of the blessing that you have been to us.

Keep the testimonies coming. There is no God like our God! He is truly Amazing and an Awesome Wonder!

Connie

Anonymous said...

Thank you for keeping us posted on all that is going on. We are so happy for you. Your story has been a true inspiration to me as well as many others. Baby Isaac has touched so many hearts!

With Love,
Bryant & Hilary

Anonymous said...

As I looked on stage Wed. night and saw Jordan, I knew we were all about to witness something amazing. God is doing wonderful things through your family @ C3 and I'm just so grateful that we can all be a part of it. You are such an inspiration to my family and a testament to what faith in our Lord really is. As I sit with tears of joy streaming down I must say THANK YOU for sharing your story with all of us. You are all in our thoughts and prayers continually.

Glory be to God!!!!
Steven & Kristina

Anonymous said...

Praise God, Praise God, Praise God, Praise God, Praise God, Praise God, Praise God, Praise God, Praise God, Praise God, and Praise God.

You two are a pillar...praise God for your faith in Him. PRAISE GOD!!!

We love ya!!
ELEVATE Connect Group

Flynn Family Happenings said...

Patience, I have been reading and thinking of you guys almost daily. It's so encouraging to see how peaceful you both are. Please continue to inspire us through your blog! I'll continue to pray for the swift recovery of Isaac.

*Carrie Pankake-Flynn

Anonymous said...

All I can say is thank you! For being strong, for relying on God, for being an example of amazing faithfulness. You are both true Worship Pastors! To have nothing but praise to God through all of this is true leadership. Though the life of little baby Issac only over a week old, He has done amazing things already!
We love you all and are so blessed to being doing life with you!
The Bolducs

Unknown said...

I wanted you to know that I have been receiving MANY emails everyday like this one from around the globe.

Hi Everyone,

My dear friend Lynn sent me a prayer request for this baby. And I'm requesting that our wonderful prayer circle also pray for sweet baby Isaac. His parents are members of Lynn's church in Clayton, North Carolina.

Here is a link that describes the medical situation of Isaac: Baby Leino

Thank you so much for your powerful, beautiful prayers!

Anonymous said...

Our God is Awesome!! Words cannot describe. Thank you guys for sharing this with all of us. What a testimony to how great our God is. God is in complete control over all of our lives. All Praise, All Honor, All Glory to our Lord Most High. You have been a blessing to my family. Thank you for sharing. We will continue praying for you and Isaac. We will continue praising our God together as the Body of Christ is meant to.

We love you guys,
Matt and Michelle Thomas

Anonymous said...

Patience, Please know that the church and friends of your grandfather (Floyd)in Annapolis are praying regularly for little Isaac. Our God is a mighty God of miracles -- we know first hand. When we were told that our daughter would not survive a tragic car accident, I clung to these verses, I knew that God would not give us a stone...whatever happened would be bread for us and for her family:

MT 7:9 "Which of you, if his son asks for bread, will give him a stone? 10 Or if he asks for a fish, will give him a snake? 11 If you, then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give good gifts to those who ask him!

I also was sustained by the promises expressed in a devotion I had read in - Grace for the Moment by Max Lucado:
-------------------------------
"I am the Lord, the God of every person on the earth. Nothing is impossible for me." Jeremiah 32:27

"We need to hear that God is still in control. We need to hear that it's not over until he says so. We need to hear that life's mishaps and tragedies are not a reason to bail out. They are simply a reason to sit tight."

Corrie ten Boom used to say, "When the train goes through a tunnel and the world gets dark, do you jump out? Of course not. You sit still and trust the engineer to get you through."
-- Max Lucado

Please know that we continue to lift you all up in our prayers.

Carolyn W

Mary said...

Praise God again & again!!!

Anonymous said...

Wednesday night was awesome with an over-flowing crowd; over-flowing with the love of God and love for the 3 of you. Thank you for your continued updates, we look forward to seeing everyone together at C3 soon.
Sharon & Jimmy Jackson

Anonymous said...

This is all part of Isaac's testimony to a great God. We are here "Doing life together" so He receives the glory.
Jon and Tracy

Anonymous said...

Thank you for being such great servants, we only know you in passing but God uses your music to touch our family week after week. God is truly great! Our family is praying daily for your sweet baby. Praise God for providing the resources you need to take care of him. Your C3 family loves you!

Anonymous said...

Our father is so awesome!!! this is a beautiful testimony of our Lord. Our lord has a burden on His heart - and his Body ,whether they realize it or not, has the same burden also. They pass on His Love to one another which reaches out to the very smallest ones: no one is left out!! Issac ,my little nephew, Our God loves you and has blessed you with the fullness of his riches,He will keep you as His own. The story of your life is beginning , and yet it is filled with pictures of our Lord. May He continue to show Himself to others through your life..
Uncle Brian

Anonymous said...

Dear Isaac,
There is so much on my heart that I wish to express as I think about you, and your life. During the week after you were born, leading up to your heart surgery, so many of us, your family, friends, brothers & sisters in Christ, so many that do not even personally know you or your parents, have been seeking the Lord on your behalf. I am so thankful to the Lord for answering our prayers. During this week, I kept coming back to John 14. It is wonderful to know that we can ask anything of our Lord. That He is that approachable. That He loves us so much. But even more than that, what really struck me, was in verse 23, He says, "We will come to him and make Our abode with him." That He wants to be so close, and intimate with us that we are His home. That we will dwell with the Son, and the Father. That is amazing. So, as I was asking the Lord for healing for your heart, and your ear and your diaphragm, and all that your sweet tiny little body needs, I realized that the Lord has so much more in store for you. Isaac, you were born to know Him. Even now, you are embraced by Him. This is my desire for you, that as you grow, you will be drawn to Him, you will embrace the Lord, and experience a kinship that is so tangible, it overflows. That in your life, He will be glorified.
Love always,
your Aunt Kim

Anonymous said...

God works in mysterious ways and this is just an example. I am so glad the financial burden is lifted off of your shoulders and now all your energy can be focused on Isaac and his recovery.

Cheryl, fellow heart mommy

Anonymous said...

My best friend and her husband attend C3 and informed us of your son's condition. I pray for your family everytime they come to mind (which is quite often as I have a 16mo old son) and am standing in agreement for Isaac's complete restoration to health. Your blog is an encouragment to me to stand in faith and grown my own faith for everyday living. You guys are awesome and God is using you and your son's healing to minister in more ways than you can imagine!
God Bless You!
In His Love
Jenny

Anonymous said...

Patience, you may remember me from Long Hill back in '93 or '94. I happened to come across your blog recently and I just wanted to say that your story is inspiring and has strengthened my own faith. As you have witnessed firsthand, God can do miraculous things when we put our trust in Him. I will pray for you guys.

Anonymous said...

We love you guys, Thank you so much for letting us share in your life.

Anonymous said...

it was great to see you both & grandma tonight. it was awesome to have jordan lead worship. can't wait to have baby isaac so i can hug him & squeeze him, if mommy says it's ok :-)

luv ya....
the figs