"Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of heavenly lights." James 1:9
Last Saturday was an extremely joyous day in the Palka family. Not only was it a beautiful and crisp fall day, but it was also my grandson's first birthday! Every birthday party is a joyous event, but for this little guy, his birthday cake just seemed to taste a little sweeter this year as we reminisced how his journey began.
A few complications during his delivery caused his entrance into the world to be a little traumatic, and, as a result, he spent his first three days in the Neonatal ICU unit at Mott Children's Hospital.
During the thirty-one years that I have been a parent, I've noticed that my mother's heart breaks every time my children go through difficulties.
I pray for God to guide them through their challenges and ask for Him to give me the right words of hope and spiritual encouragement. However, this particular situation was probably the most painful that I have ever prayed my son and daughter-in-law through.
After visiting Max in the ICU during his first night, I went home to put his two-year-old sister to bed. Afterwards, as I was downstairs listening to her on the baby monitor, Emilia concluded this challenging day by providing significant spiritual care to our entire family. As she was falling asleep, I could hear her singing, "Jesus loves me this I know, for the Bible tells me so. Little one to Him belong, they are weak but He is strong. Yes, Jesus loves Palka (that's how she used to referred to herself); the Bible tells me so."
Emilia was reminding all of us that regardless of the difficulties and challenges, God is still at work in our lives and worthy of all praise. What a sweet reminder to hear that little voice profess that Jesus loves us, He is strong, and He is the one in control of all, despite anything that happens during our day.
And to make things even sweeter, last Friday, Max "graduated" from his physical therapy program!
This school year, our theme is "There Is No Impossible With You", based on the Scripture verse found in Matthew 19:26 "With God, all things are possible." What a great comfort it is to know that no matter what challenges may come our way, these problems will never be too big for our God to handle, and with His help, we will get through all of it!
Have a great week knowing that He's got you!
In His Love,
Mrs. Palka