jones ministry update - fall 2014

3
 FALL 2014 THE  Jones  MINISTRY UPDATE Through it all, You carry me... During the rst weekend of September , I began to experie nce pain in my lower abdomen. At the beginning of the weekend, the pain was short in duration and would only occur once or twice a day. By Sunday night, the pain was severe enough to have me slumped over, holding onto a chair. After talking to one of our friends who is a nurse, Chris decided it was best to take me to the Emergency Room for fear that I had appendicitis. The diagnosis we received completely oored us: we are pregnant! While I could tell the nurse was excited, there was a look of concern in her eyes that made my heart rate go up. After much blood work and an ultrasound, I was sent home and instructed to immediately seek attention from an obstetrician. After the 36-hour wait we endured until the appointment and more blood work, the doctor conrmed the same concern as those in the ER: an ectopic pregnancy that would result in us losing the baby. The next step in the process: waiting for a follow-up the next week. Until the next appointment, my blood would be tested to track the hormone levels. We needed the number to double every couple of days. The week of waiting was one of the hardest weeks of my l ife, but yet contains some of the sweetest moments I have experienced with the Heavenly Father. During this week of waiting, m y emotions were all over the place, as if they were on a roller c oaster: High with excitement, and then low with fear of what could happen next. Not only were my emotions all over the place, but a war was waging in my thoughts. I could put my faith in the chaos of the roller coaster of emotions, or I could put my faith in my constant, loving, and good Father, who had promised me on the ride to the ER that He has my back. Driving down the road later that week, I heard a song on the radio by Moriah Peters titled “Y ou Carry Me” and the chorus resonated truth within my heart: Every moment of my life God, You never left my side Every valley, every storm You were there , You were there I don’t need to know what’s next You ’ll be with me ever y step Through it all, through it all I can see You carry me.  Just as the song pr oclaimed, through every moment of my life, God has always been with me carrying me through each season. Therefore, my hope is not found in wishing I could know what is next in the season, but rather my hope is in the One who knows the next step and who will carry me through it. As I set my mind on the Father as my hope who carries me, I began to experience a peace that passes all understanding as the day for the follow-up appointment drew near. I knew that no matter the results, God would still be good and that His love and comfort would carry me through. During these moments, God taught me an important parenting lesson: surrender. He taught me that this child is His and to place him/her in His arms. The only way I could wholeheartedly surrender my child to the Lord, and can continue to do so, is if I rest in Him as my hope who will carry me through what is best for me and my child. Maybe you have recently experienced a valley or storm in your life . My pra yer for you is that the Lord will reveal to you how His strong, loving, and comforting arms carried you through that s eason, so that you can rejoice in His ever-loving embrace. I also pray that God will remind you, as well as Chris and me, that His arms will always hold us, no matter how threatening the storms in life appear at the moment. On the other hand, however, maybe you are currently experiencing the struggles of a storm or valley. May you today experience the embrace of the Father as He is holding you right now with arms of grace and comfort. Rather than walking in fear of what is next, ma y you rest in the peace, comfort, goodness, and love the Father is offering you right now, for He alone is our hope. With love, Lori

Upload: loribjones

Post on 02-Jun-2018

217 views

Category:

Documents


0 download

TRANSCRIPT

Page 1: Jones Ministry Update - Fall 2014

8/10/2019 Jones Ministry Update - Fall 2014

http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/jones-ministry-update-fall-2014 1/2

  F A L L 2 0 1 4 

THE Jones  MINISTRY UPDATE

Through it all, You carry me...During the first weekend of

September, I began to experience pain in

my lower abdomen. At the beginning of

the weekend, the pain was short in

duration and would only occur once or

twice a day. By Sunday night, the pain was

severe enough to have me slumped over,

holding onto a chair. After talking to oneof our friends who is a nurse, Chris

decided it was best to take me to the

Emergency Room for fear that I had

appendicitis. The diagnosis we received

completely floored us: we are pregnant!

While I could tell the nurse was excited,

there was a look of concern in her eyes

that made my heart rate go up.

After much blood work and an

ultrasound, I was sent home and

instructed to immediately seek attention

from an obstetrician. After the 36-hour

wait we endured until the appointment

and more blood work, the doctor

confirmed the same concern as those in

the ER: an ectopic pregnancy that would

result in us losing the baby. The next step

in the process: waiting for a follow-up the

next week. Until the next appointment,

my blood would be tested to track the

hormone levels. We needed the number

to double every couple of days.

The week of waiting was one of thehardest weeks of my life, but yet contains

some of the sweetest moments I have

experienced with the Heavenly Father.

During this week of waiting, my emotions

were all over the place, as if they were on

a roller coaster: High with excitement,

and then low with fear of what could

happen next. Not only were my emotions

all over the place, but a war was waging in

my thoughts. I could put my faith in the

chaos of the roller coaster of emotions,

or I could put my faith in my constant,

loving, and good Father, who had

promised me on the ride to the ER that

He has my back.

Driving down the road later that

week, I heard a song on the radio by

Moriah Peters titled “You Carry Me” andthe chorus resonated truth within my

heart:

Every moment of my life

God, You never left my side

Every valley, every storm

You were there, You were there

I don’t need to know what’s next

You’ll be with me every step

Through it all, through it all 

I can see You carry me.

 Just as the song proclaimed, through

every moment of my life, God has always

been with me carrying me through each

season. Therefore, my hope is not found in

wishing I could know what is next in the

season, but rather my hope is in the One

who knows the next step and who will

carry me through it.

As I set my mind on the Father as my

hope who carries me, I began to

experience a peace that passes allunderstanding as the day for the follow-up

appointment drew near. I knew that no

matter the results, God would still be

good and that His love and comfort

would carry me through. During these

moments, God taught me an important

parenting lesson: surrender. He taught me

that this child is His and to place him/her

in His arms. The only way I could

wholeheartedly surrender my child to the

Lord, and can continue to do so, is if I rest

in Him as my hope who will carry me

through what is best for me and my child.

Maybe you have recently experienced

a valley or storm in your life . My prayer

for you is that the Lord will reveal to you

how His strong, loving, and comforting

arms carried you through that season, sothat you can rejoice in His ever-loving

embrace. I also pray that God will remind

you, as well as Chris and me, that His

arms will always hold us, no matter how

threatening the storms in life appear at

the moment.

On the other hand, however, maybe

you are currently experiencing the

struggles of a storm or valley. May you

today experience the embrace of the

Father as He is holding you right now

with arms of grace and comfort. Rather

than walking in fear of what is next, may

you rest in the peace, comfort, goodness,

and love the Father is offering you right

now, for He alone is our hope.

With love,

Lori

Page 2: Jones Ministry Update - Fall 2014

8/10/2019 Jones Ministry Update - Fall 2014

http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/jones-ministry-update-fall-2014 2/2

A TESTAMENT OF GOD’S

FAITHFULNESS

THROUGH OUR

PARTNERSHIP

It is with excitement that I am able to share with

you today a story of how God has demonstrated

His faithfulness through our partnership at

Christian Families Today. This testimony comes

from an adolescent girl, who i will call “Sarah,”

who struggled with the hurt of her father’s

abandonment.

Thank you for partnering with me financially and

in prayer to plant the seeds of truth into

families. Together, we are making a difference in

the Kingdom of God! Praise the Lord!

 Ms. Lori ,

Thank  you so much  f or  the ama zin g 

e x perience doin g counselin g  wi

 th  you. Y ou 

 were an a wesome counselor and

 I  thank 

 the Lord  f or  you. Sin

ce I le f  t , I ha ve  f el t 

more in  tune  wi th God  than I e ver had 

be f ore. I t  was like I could hear 

Him clearer 

and I could sense  the lies  f rom

  the enem y. 

For gi vin g m y dad has hel ped m

e so much 

and I  thank  you  f or  guidin g me in  tha t 

area.

I miss  you and ho pe  to see  you a g

ain soon.

Sarah

Thank  you!!

THE LATEST ULTRASOUND (9 WEEKS)

Prayer is a powerful tool we have toconnect to the Father. If we can join youin prayer for anything, please let us know!

Email: [email protected]

Phone: (770) 502-8050

Ministry: The children and teens I meet with willknow and experience the love of theFather.

The parents of the children I meet withwill experience and walk in the love ofthe Father.

 Personal: Healthy growth and development of ourprecious little one due in May of 2015.

Chris and I as we walk through this newseason of life.

A job for Chris.

UPDATE ON B ABY JONES

 Prayer Requests: 

  Through an ultrasound,

our doctor has ruled outan ectopic pregnancy and

says that we have a babythat is developmentally

right on track. Praise theLord! Our prec iousbundle of joy will grace us

with his/her presence in

May of 2015.

THANK YOU WINKS PHOTOGRAPHY FOR TAKING PICTURES OF US!