Elliana Hope Jordan

Born at 5:37pm on Monday, October 31, 2011
7lbs 2oz  &  19 1/2 inches

Mom and baby (and daddy) are doing very well! 

Elliana  in Hebrew means "The Lord God has responded"

Hope  comes from Romans 8:25 [a very meaningful scripture (v18-25) through our journey]

Thank you so much to all our friends and family who have prayed for us and encouraged us for so long.  We are simply overwhelmed by all the kind words and congratulations we've received from you all.  We consider the friends God has placed in our path to be among the very greatest blessings of God to us.

We are overwhelmingly blessed,
jdj

Read more...

Hope, Tribulation, and Prayer

Romans 12 provides us with one of scripture’s clearest pictures of practical Christ-like living. We see scripture’s exhortation to live a life marked with action. I believe a healthy understanding and practice of these things help us “put to death” the old self and actively “put on” the new self, helps us in the practice of “setting our minds on things above”, helps our transformation by the “renewing of our minds”, helps us to “do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus”.

Here is what scripture teaches us in Romans 12:9-13:
• Allow love to be genuine
• Utterly detest evil and hold on to what is good
• Love the body with brotherly affection
• Excel in showing honor
• Activate zeal and show intensity in spirit in service to God
• Rejoice in hope, patient in tribulation, constant in prayer
• Contribute to the needs of the saints and seek opportunities for hospitality

"...We take this opportunity to break from your previously scheduled programming for this very specific announcement..."  I sorta hear this in my head as I think through the next portion of our study of Romans 12.  As I look over this call to Christ-likeness - to "...rejoice in hope, be patient in tribulation, be constant in prayer" I am brought to the realization that in just a couple of days, one of the greatest moments of my and Jennifer's life will occur - the birth of our sweet little girl!  Thinking about the greatness of this blessing and the journey we've been on to come to this point in our life, I'm humbled by the greatness of God.

Read more...