"A Joyful Mother of Children"

"He maketh the barren woman to keep house, and to be a joyful mother of children. Praise ye the Lord." ~Psalms 113:9

For 4 1/2 years of our marriage, I was not able to have a baby. I still remember those times of yearning, crying and begging God to give me a child, then again surrendering to whatever His plan was for our lives. It was not easy to stay surrendered and sometimes I would fall and question why. Now 3 years later (7 1/2 years of marriage! Wow! I feel old!), God has not only blessed us with 2 beautiful, little girls, but I am also expecting again! Whether or not God allows me to carry this baby full term, only He knows. Our prayer has always been (even before our first daughter, Anna) that the baby not even be born if they would reject Christ. Some may say that is a cruel way of thinking, but I believe it is cruel for a baby to be born only to die and go to hell. I do not believe that this prayer relieves me of my responsibility of training my children, for I feel the need to be more on my knees in prayer for them now then before, but I do believe if you desire more to just "have a baby" then you do for their soul before they are born, there is more of a chance that they will reject Jesus after they are born. I am grateful not only for my babies that He has allowed me to physically see and hold here, but also for my babies waiting for me in heaven. Below are pictures of my two baby girls when they were about 1 week old. Both were born here in Ukraine, at home...Eric actually caught Lydia, as she didn't want to wait for the doctor. :) (He almost delivered Anna too...she was born only about 10 minutes after the doctor arrived.) They both weighed about 6 lbs. If God allows, our third child will also be born here in Ukraine at home with papa and the same doctor, Doctor Larissa.

Anna Kaelyn Curtis (August 13,2007)

Lydia Renee Curtis (November 2, 2008)