A Good Cousin; A Good Friend

I miss my cousin Mark. I hope to write more later, but as for now, I will miss his presence on this earth. I am encouraged to know that the "living hope" he had in Jesus Christ has brought him safely into heaven. Praise the Lord for God's mercy.

Goodbye Mark!

This is a picture someone posted on his memorial blog. It was taken when I graduated from CBC (now CBU) in 1996. Mark is to the left of me and my dad and brother David are to the right.

Still Praying for Mark

Summer before last, Mark played on our soccer team. It was so much fun to get to see him, Angie, and Nolan every week. I pray that by God's mercy he can join us on the soccer field some summer evening when the air is hot, the friendship is warm, and days last long into the night. Godspeed my cousin!

www.prayforthelamberths.com

PLEASE PRAY FOR MARK

My dear cousin Mark has been hurt very badly in a dirt bike accident. Please pray that the Lord will do a miracle to heal him. Please pray for his wife and 6 year old son as well. Most importantly, please pray that the Lord Jesus will be glorified in this time!

I Miss My Grandpa (for the time being)

As many of you have heard, my grandpa died a couple of weeks ago. He was 88 years old. I have such fond memories of visiting him and my grandma in Oregon. I loved my grandma's cooking and my grandpa's tracker rides.

I stumbled across some photos tonight we took when we last visited in Oregon three years ago. It was a lovely Christmas with our family. We assumed this might be our last trip to their home. We were sadly right.

Last year my grandma fell, breaking her hip, and my grandpa began to slowly decline. My mom had to go and care for her and my grandpa for nearly 3 months. My aunt, dad, and mom ended up bringing them to Riverside the day Jackson was born. Little did I know that Jackson's first year of life would be my grandpa's last.

We were in Sacramento last week for his funeral. I spoke about Paul's words in 1 Cor. 15 about how death has no sting for those who hope in Jesus Christ. My grandpa trusted Christ as his savior. His faith wasn't futile. Christ does save sinners. What great comfort there is in these words. And what great hope that one day in eternity I will be worshiping my creator and look over to see my grandpa doing the same thing!

Here are a few precious photos:

The Fastest Year of My Life

Jackson will be one in about 6 hours. This time last year, Melissa had just received her epidural and we were settling into a long night of controlled contractions and passionate pushing. (I don't know if Melissa would quite use the word "settling".) And at about 5:48am on November 7, our little boy was born much to our great joy.

It was one of the most amazing experiences in my life. I will never forget it. Truly it seems like only a few weeks ago now. It's interesting how long those first few weeks felt due to our lack of sleep, and now I'm saying it went so fast.

I've learned a few things this year. Here are four:

1. The Lord gives us kids to teach us how much we need Christ.

2. How absolutely blessed I am to have married Melissa.

3. That coffee can be a man's little helper when the Grim Sleeper won't leave you alone.

4. A little boy's smile and hug can make all the troubles of a day disappear.

Happy Birthday Jackson! May the Lord bless you with many more.