Please Pray for my cousin Esther (yesterday's update)

Please check out this website www.helpsaveesther.com

Esther is in the hospital. PLEASE PRAY.

Dear friends and family,

Thank you for your sincere prayers and loving encouragement for our Esther and our family.

Esther has been hospitalized this evening due to complications from the chemotherapy she received last week.
Despite her already fragile state, Esther received her second round of chemotherapy early last week. Her white blood cells and platelet counts have dropped to dangerously low levels, therefore having no way to fight infections on her own.

Unfortunately, she has caught something and is having high fever (called Neutropenic fever), lots of coughing and fluid retention in the lungs. She is also having a drug reaction which is giving her very bad, sensitive rashes all over her body.

Please pray for God’s favor to bring her out of this. We do not have information on her room number yet. Once we get it, we will inform you. However, we strongly encourage you to keep these few days at a distance from Esther since she is extremely susceptible to catching any cold or bug- until she is out of this dangerous neutropenic state.

We will keep you updated, but please pray for Esther and our family. Above all, God knows her body the best better than any other doctor. He knows what is going on and He is promising the best for her life.

God describes this life on earth like a flower in a field. In the morning it beautifully blooms towards the sun, and in the evening it is gone. Putting all of our hopes in this short life alone is a wasted effort, it indeed will come to an end in the blink of an eye. Most of the time, we live like this life is all we have; always pushing away the thought that we could ever die, muchless before old age. Our lives are often routine, mundane, and without focus. Do we really believe this life is short? If we knew we had only a few days to live, wouldn’t our priorities change? Wouldn’t we want to accomplish things with focus, take risks, throw out superficiality and say how we really feel, work hard to make resolution in relationships? What clarity in life we would have! The only thing that matters in this “preview” life is living in such a way that will make an impact for the Real life that is yet to come.

Death is more universal than life; everyone dies but not everyone lives. -Alan Sachs

When we die and move to the Real life, little of what we enjoy today will transfer over. Our money is not coming with us, our car, nor our career and degree. The only thing that will come from this earthly life to the next life with God is other people. We want to live to make an impact here on this short earth life that will transfer into eternity. Genuinely loving people and leading them to enjoy the Real life with the Creator. That is the satisfaction of this short preview life.

April 27th, 2009

Ignite

My brother, Sameer, is in a band called FLYLEAF and they are playing at Ignite Passion Compassion in Burleson, Texas on May 2nd!! That's this coming Saturday!!

You should come and check out Flyleaf and see their passion for God expressed through their music. Their hearts passion is for others to experience true freedom found in Christ alone and for Him alone to be glorified.



The event is May 2nd at Burleson Field - Burleson, TX US
The doors open 1:00 PM

I want to encourage everyone to come and check out this event. Bands like David Crowder, Chris Tomlin, and Sanctus Real will be there. The speakers will be Kirk Cameron and Francis Chan.

Click HERE for ticket information.

Tim and I hope to see you guys there!

Great Advice!!

I found this website from my friend Faith's blog. It's filled with fun ideas and creative ways to love your husband and to encourage him.

The below advice was a great reminder for me to pray for Tim and especially during this crazy, busy time in our lives. Tim is finishing up his last semester of seminary (by this coming Monday! Ahh!! :) ), we are having a baby, moving at the end of May to Austin, sort of looking for a job, and helping start a church.

Tim needs me to be lifting him up to the Lord, encouraging him along, and respecting his decision-making.

Lord, help me to be a generous wife!

Below is a little advice from the website.
Sunday April 26, 2009

Pray for your husband's level of busyness. There are always so many things to do. Pray that he would be able to look at his priorities, simplify his life, and keep his life at a reasonable pace.

The ability to simplify means to eliminate the unnecessary so that the necessary may speak.
Hans Hofmann

My students are so funny!

One of the activities we use in the classroom during playtime is a cottage. The cottage is a glorified dollhouse boys and girls can play with. The cottage looks like a little house with acessories such as wooden furniture, cloth blankets and pillows, little people, and one little baby. When the students play with the baby, they always put the baby under the girl's shirt to show she is pregnant. It's hiliarious!! They are so intrigued by the fact that I am pregnant and have a baby in my tummy. They ask millions of questions a day about the baby's growth, personality, or habits. the answers I have given them to these questions, are the sayings they use when having pretend with converstation with the dolls. It is just a joy to watch!

Another aspect of my life my students are intrigued by is my marriage. There is not a day that goes by that someone does not ask a question about relationships, marriage, or just about "Mr. Birdwell" (aka Tim). Mr. Birdwell is a daily topic. :) I love that God lets me be a part of sharing with them what a godly relationship and marriage look like. I share with them when you love someone with God's love you desire to serve them, use kind words with them, and respect them. One day one student asked me "How do you know what type of food Mr. Birdwell likes?" I told them when you love someone you learn that person's likes and dislikes. This question actually make me sad because this is not what this student sees at home. A funny question a student asked one day was, "What do you call Mr. Birdwell at home?" I knew what they were getting at so I said "Honey". Of course they giggled and moved on. Later that day during our free time when they were playing with the cottage, the "pregnant doll" (girl with baby under her shirt) and the man doll were calling each other "Honey".



I love the influence I have on these students but also feel the weight of responsibility I have to present a clear understanding of who God is and who He is in my life. They are watching my every action, listening to my every word, and finding security in knowing I love them regardless of their behavior or any circumstance. They desire to be loved just as they are.

God has really used this time with these students to teach me about parenting, discipling in love, how to share Christ's saving grace with children, and how to break down scripture for them. I know it's ultimately the Holy Spirit who changes their hearts, but it's awesome to be a vessel and to be a part of God's plan in these childrens' lives.

As the day approaches for Tim and I to have our little girl in our arms, I am thankful for how God has been preparing us for this bundle of joy. In 2 1/2 weeks she will be entrusted to us from the Lord for a short time. I pray we continually rely upon His grace and truth to guide us as we raise our own child in understanding the Lord and the world around her.

Ft. Worth Baby Shower

I have the best college friends ever!! I am the first of our "little group of ladies" to be pregnant so it's been a fun experience to go through this special time together. They did a great job of planning and making me feel so loved and special. I love these girls and I am going to miss them when I move to Austin.



My favorite flower, an oriental lilly.





This blanket was knit by my friend Bethany, we work at West Dallas Community School together. She spent 2 months of her life knitting our baby girl a Cowboys blanket. So thoughtful!


These were the hostesses for the day! They did a fabulous job with everything!



Here is a group pic of all the ladies!



My sister in-law Shelly came too! She is so loving and supportive. I was so touched that she was there.


My friend Faith flew in from Virgina for the shower!! So sweet! It was so great to see her and spend time catching up.


Diana sang me a song about being pregnant for the first time and the experience of being a mom. It was so sweet, I couldn't help by cry my eyes out. I love this girl! :)


This is a picture of my friend Lisa who drove in from Nacogdoches for the shower. She is such a sweet, amazing lady! You should definitely get to know this girl!


This is a group picture of my sweet college friends!

Our baby girl is loved and cherished already and has many hugs and kisses coming her way!
Thank you for your love and support.

Austin Dog Fair

So our new church in Austin put on a dog fair... and while you may not have attended in person, you can do so now in spirit, or... maybe you can just watch the video below ;)