A Rich Heritage

Here is Joshua lying in his bed....one with a lot of history. As it turns out, this bed was made for Joshua's Daddy (that's me, Jonathan) by my grandfather many years ago. I slept in in when I was Joshua's age. It has stayed in the family and is part of the legacy of woodworking that comes from both sides of the family. It is part of our HERITAGE.

As I was worshipping in church this morning, holding Joshua in my arms, I thought about the incredible heritage that we have - both family heritage and our heritage in the Lord Jesus. On the family side, we have been blessed with so much. Great education. Wonderful experiences. Loving, caring homes from birth. And so much more... That blessing continues to this day. It seems that each day we have received a package of sorts with gifts for Joshua, from friends and also from extended family. What a blessing to feel so loved and cared for.

What struck me, though, this morning during worship, is how God has given us a heritage as well. The Bible says that HE has adopted us into HIS family as sons, simply because we believe in His Son, Jesus Christ. Joshua will grow up knowing that he is adopted. Not only because we look different than him, but also because we are going to tell him the wonderful story. He didn't chose us, but rather we are the ones who are delighted to have him as part of the family. Some day Joshua will have the same sentiment, I believe, but for the time being he is just "happy as a clam" (as I like to tell Kendra) to be in his daddy's arms... and chew on my forearm, I might add. =)

In Ephesians it says:
"Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in the heavenly realms with every spiritual blessing in Christ. For he chose us in him before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless in his sight. In love he predestined us to be adopted as his sons through Jesus Christ, in accordance with his pleasure and will— to the praise of his glorious grace, which he has freely given us in the One he loves."

Thank you, Lord, for loving us so much and for giving us such a rich heritage. May we pass along this heritage to our son, Joshua Kento Kohl, in your power and strength. Amen.

Humbled by God's Grace Through Friends

Yesterday we were surprised and humbled by the grace shown us through some friends. A colleague of mine at work and his family came over in the evening and brought dinner that they had prepared for us. Understandably we have been out of a regular routine over the last three weeks, so this was a very, very nice gift. Delicious chicken bruschetta, a salad and some bread. Awesome!

(Although Kendra has been cooking and juggling all these other amazing things during this transition, it was such a joy to not have to worry about dinner for a few nights.)

What was even more humbling was that they also came bearing gifts for us and Joshua. Lavish, generous, special gifts. I was blown away. As I spent the evening pondering their brief "drive-by blessing" (they didn't want to stay too long since they were leaving for a vacation today) I thought about how good our God is. He continues to do EXCEEDINGLY ABUNDANTLY MORE THAN WE CAN ASK OR EVEN IMAGINE. He loves to give good gifts, directly and through others.

Thank you Lord.....and thank you John and Andrea!!

A Week Full of Wonder

God is amazing...isn't He! To know what we need and when we need it.

We have absolutely enjoyed this week with Joshua in our home. It's hard to believe that it's already been a week, but it has. It's been challenging (e.g sleeping) and exhilarating at the same time. He is such a wonderful baby and so cute and sweet. He already sleeps through the night - although his mother and I need to learn to do the same. =) He eats well and enjoys playing with us.

Our week was chaotic, to say the least, given that we weren't expecting such a fast arrival of Joshua, but we make do and re-prioritized as needed. On Monday afternoon I came home from work to be with Joshua, and Kendra went out to host a "Baby Welcome Tea" for a friend of ours who is having her second child any day.

Thanks for all the prayer coverage, well wishes and encouragement. We appreciate it so much! We will likely be slow to respond as we are still getting our "parenting feet" under us, but know that we are so grateful.

Here are some pictures for you to enjoy of Joshua! We love him so much already, and know that you will too.

with joy and gratitude to God our Provider,

Jonathan