I Love You, Amen: April 2009

Once upon a time in a sunny valley, there lived a little lamb named Joshua. He was white with black spots, black feet, and ...sad eyes. Josh felt sad when he saw the other lambs with snow-white wool and no spots. He felt sad when he saw the other sheep with their moms and dads because he didn't have a mom or dad. But he felt saddest when he saw the other lambs running and jumping, because he couldn't. Josh had been born with one leg that didn't work right. He was crippled. (The Crippled Lamb, Max Lucado)

This is one of my all time favorite Christmas stories, because even though it is a fiction tale, it is packed with a wonderful message. The story continues with Joshua and his best friend, the old cow Abigail. Even with his good friend Abigail, though, Josh continued to feel sad. That's when Abigail would turn to him and say, 'Don't be sad, little Joshua. God has a special place for those who feel left out." When the shepherd led all of the flock to a new place, Joshua had to stay behind because he was crippled, but he soon found out why he had to stay. For you see, the stable that he was sleeping in that night, became the birthplace of our Lord Jesus.

Joshua looked down at the baby. Somehow he knew this was a special child, and this was a special moment. He also understood why he had been born with a crippled leg. Had be been like the other sheep, he would have been in the valley. But since he was different, he was in the stable, among the first to welcome Jesus into the world. ... He layed beside the King, and kept him warm with his soft white-with-black-spots wool. Josh then, looked at his friend Abigail and said, You were right...God does have a special place for me.

This past weekend, God had a special place for a friend of mine. And God knew that the life (and death) of her son was meant to touch the hearts of many in a special place.

I shared a wonderful weekend at the Beth Moore Conference in New Orleans, with two of my best friends and a group of wonderful women from my church. Leading up to this weekend, I was very excited to see Beth, but also prayerful for my friend Faith, because her precious son Aaron went to be with the Lord a year ago, on this day, April 8.

My dear friend Christi sent an email a few days leading up to this asking for people to be in prayer for Faith. She wrote, "This weekend, Faith and I are going to meet Amber (one of my dearest friends from 2nd grade who has become a friend of Faith’s) and we are going to the Beth Moore Conference in New Orleans. I pray that God will speak through her in so many ways that will be encouraging to Faith as she is going through this tough time." What Christi didn't mention in her email, was that leading up to this conference, she felt led by God to write a letter to Beth Moore explaining that Faith would be at the event and how she had lost her sweet Aaron almost a year ago to the date of the event.

The conference was absolutely wonderful. I haven't experienced a time like this in such a long time. The praise team was wonderful and we lifted our voices in praise to the MOST HIGH!!! And her message was right on...but it wasn't until the very end, that the "bow on the package was neatly wrapped", something Beth had prayed God would do before she began her Saturday message.

While we were sitting there, as the time was drawing near for the end of the event, Beth said that there was a mom there whose friend had written a letter to her telling of how her precious 7 week old son had gone to be with the Lord a year ago. As Beth continued it was apparent that she was speaking of our dear friend Faith. She continued and read to more than 6000 women attending the conference the post that Faith had written on her Caring Bridge site, a year ago today...

Our Aaron is at home with the angels held tightly by our Lord. We got to hold him and rock him as he left this earth for a much better place. One of our doctors even rocked him with us and several cried with us. No more pain and suffering. We had not held him in 3 weeks, so we were thankful for this last opportunity on this earth. He only knew 2 weeks away from the hospital and we are thankful for each minute we had him.
We came here with Aaron to get a "new" heart for him. On Friday, he got this heart after 2 open heart surgeries and 2 heart caths. Some time between Saturday and yesterday morning, Aaron sustained a massive brain injury. No one knows the cause except our Lord. All the doctors are baffled and said it was not a clot or bleed, but severe swelling. The swelling was too much for Aaron to handle.
We can't begin to express our gratitude for all your prayers. We know our Father heard each one and they gave us comfort. Aaron felt peace from them as well. Even though we did not get a miracle healing of our son, we were blessed to have him with us for just over 7 weeks. Maybe that was our miracle.

Oh, how I thank you God, that Aaron's life was a miracle. I'd like to share with you a post from Faith on the 6 month anniversary of Aaron's death.

We were planning his recovery and thinking about the days we would have with him when he was well and older. Optimistic in the future. But those days did not come.
I wonder why God chose him for such a short life of suffering. Did his fifty days on this earth matter to anyone? Did it matter that he knew so much pain? Did anything good come of his suffering?
Did it make a difference that we were faithful? That we sought God in prayer? Did it matter that so many people prayed fervently for a healing that did not come? Did this trial draw anyone closer to You? Did it make a difference to anyone at the hospital? Did anyone come to faith from anything we did? Did it matter that we sent thank you notes to doctors and nurses as we sat at home with an empty crib?
It would make Aaron’s suffering and our heartache so much more bearable to know that God used us for something. I pray that one day we will know.

My dear, sweet friend Faith, crippled as the lamb, yet oh, so faithful, I am here to tell you that because of Aaron's crippled heart...

YES...it did matter.

YES...it did make a difference.

YES...someone came to faith.

YES...Aaron's suffering and your heartache was used for something.

YES...Aaron's crippled heart, and your FAITHFUL (yet crippled) spirit, have brought someone's heart to the LORD JESUS CHRIST....

and YES... not just someone was touched, but that an arena of more than 6000 people, came face to face with our Lord Jesus Christ because of your precious son Aaron!

There is your miracle!

Amen, Praise God Almighty, Hallelujah!

Though your suffering is great, I hope that you can begin to see that God had and continues to have a special place for you and Aaron. He has and will continue to use you because of your faith. Praise God! And for all the rest of us, though we feel crippled, left out, or unimportant...we may not know how God will work things for good in the days to come...but I am here to tell you, HE WILL and HE DOES!!! Thank you Jesus! Amen! (Say those last phrases how Beth would say them, because as I typed them, that's how they sounded to me!)

During one of Aaron's surgeries I wrote the following to Faith on her Caring Bridge site...

I can only imagine what I would feel, and it would be awful to hand my newborn over, but as you handed him over, you handed him to the wonderful work that God can do. I am praying for a quick 3 hours, and that time will go by quickly for you. And I pray that you will have your little man in your arms again very soon - with a heart that has been worked on by God!!! How all of our hearts have been worked on (mine especially), by your willingness to share your life with us, has certainly been a blessing!!! Aaron's heart is actually being worked on, but so are the hearts of many, because of your faith and strength. Sending you my love today, and my prayers...Amber Pittman

I am praising God today, that although you wish to have Aaron with you, that God has used him and your faithfulness to GOD in ALL of your circumstances to touch the hearts of many. You handed him over for surgeries and heart caths, but for sure the hardest was when you handed him over to the GREAT PHYSICIAN for the final time.

No longer crippled, Aaron's heart is whole!!! Praise the Lord!

I'd like to end by sharing the verse that your friend Kelley shared, that has become so special to you.

Psalm 73:26 My flesh and my heart may fail, but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever.

For a beautiful video Faith put together to celebrate Aaron's life, please click on the following link. Your hearts will be abundantly blessed if you do. I usually close with a prayer, but today...as you watch the video...please share your own prayers for Faith, Scott, and big brother Levi, and ask the Lord to use you and give you peace. We are all crippled lambs, but we can be assured God has a special place for us all, and it's only through our salvation from the Lord, Jesus Christ, that we, too, can be made WHOLE. I love you, Amen.

(As you click on the following link, scroll to the bottom and pause the songs on her playlist, because there is a wonderful song playing on the video that you don't want to miss!)

As I am writing this, I am not sure if or what Faith will post on her blog, but I am sure that she would welcome any comments you might want to add, that would lift her and her family in prayer! ***Update...she did post today...so please read, beautiful!!!***