Jonathan turned 5 months on 7/24/2011. It's amazing how much he has changed in such a short amount of time. Above left is a picture of him in his hospital bed at just 1 day old, and to the right is a shot of him at just a couple of days shy of 5-months. He looked so much like his dad at birth, but now, he sometimes looks very much like my father and his mom (and I guess me to a certain degree). His looks morph, depending on the angle - he can be very much Ivey at certain angles and very much Oladeji at others. As mentioned in my initial blog about Jonathan, he is a perfect mixture of both families.
I guess you can see that he still has his hair - and then some! The Lord is so gracious to me. I hoped that if I had a boy, he would end up having one of those cool fros that Black babies are sometimes blessed with - and he indeed has one. And he's so good about getting his hair washed and combed out. The fro typically doesn't last all day - since my baby is so energetic and active: rolling, bouncing, climbing, jumping! He wears Nana out! But it's so becoming, and I would say that it's his crown of glory...that it gives him supernatural strength, not unlike Samson. I had plans to cut it after his first birthday, but now I'm thinking I might try to keep it a little longer. Of course, I'll have to see how Jonathan feels about that:-).
It's funny, I wrote Samson's name and it made me think about the origins of this OT character and the promise that was set upon his life. An Angel of the Lord (I believe the pre-incarnate Christ) visited Samson's parents and told them of this child that would be conceived, even though Samson's mom had been barren for many years. He was to be raised as a Nazarene, i.e., never to drink alcohol and his hair to never be cut...fully consecrated to the Lord. His parents were immensely grateful and I'm sure were overjoyed to see this prophecy come to pass. Their promised child was soon in their arms and they took it upon themselves, with great joy and pride, to raise him as instructed. And yet Samson still managed, in his pride and rebellion, to go his own way - over and over again - until it was ultimately his downfall.
I talk about Jonathan's hair being his strength in the same way that Samson's hair was. However, unlike Samson, I long for Jonathan to live the kind of consecrated life that Samson was created to live, but was unable to truly fulfill. I believe in my heart that Jonathan was birthed under similar cirucmstances (I was for all purposes a 'barren' woman) and under a similar promise.
Several years before getting pregnant, when I was still dreaming about being a mother, while at the same time a bit unsure that I was capable of the job - or sure that I really wanted it (longing - aversion, a constant merry-go-round in my head), I felt strongly in my heart that I would bear a child in my 44th year. I documented it in my journal at the time. And then in March of 2010, while doing my morning devotion, I was reading the passages in Genesis regarding the promise of a child to Abram and Sarai. I felt that the Lord was telling me that I too, at that time next year , would have a child (further confirmation about what I believed would happen in my 44th year of life). Later that day, I received an email devotion on the same passage in Genesis that I had read earlier. It gave me goosebumps. I cut it out and placed it in my journal, believing that what was spoken to my spirit would come to pass.
Of course I interpreted all this as a promise from the Lord that he'd soon be sending me a Godly husband. We'd have a fast courtship, be married by July, I'd get pregnant fast, and voila - my "this time next year" child would arrive! Clearly, the Lord had other plans. My promised child surely did arrive by "this time next year", but the Lord worked it out in a way that I can do nothing but give Him all the glory, honor and praise. Jonathan was sent to my life in a way that I would never have scripted. Praise God for his grace and soverign power over our lives!
I've already discussed the aftershocks of Jonathan's conception and birth; no need to continue with that here. I just wanted to provide some background regarding my strong belief that Jonathan is a child of promise...a child of the spirit, not of the flesh - similar to Samson, Isaac, even Samuel -all children that the Lord deemed necessary to come to this earth, for a specific work, that is above and beyond what the average person accomplishes. I believe this for Jonathan. I continue to declare that he will be an example of Godliness to his generation. A man after God's own heart. A man thirsty and hungry for the things of God...dutiful, kind, servant-hearted, walking in the fruit of the spirit - not perfect, but endeavoring to live unto the Father, and repentent and quick to turn when he does not.
It's funny, I wrote Samson's name and it made me think about the origins of this OT character and the promise that was set upon his life. An Angel of the Lord (I believe the pre-incarnate Christ) visited Samson's parents and told them of this child that would be conceived, even though Samson's mom had been barren for many years. He was to be raised as a Nazarene, i.e., never to drink alcohol and his hair to never be cut...fully consecrated to the Lord. His parents were immensely grateful and I'm sure were overjoyed to see this prophecy come to pass. Their promised child was soon in their arms and they took it upon themselves, with great joy and pride, to raise him as instructed. And yet Samson still managed, in his pride and rebellion, to go his own way - over and over again - until it was ultimately his downfall.
I talk about Jonathan's hair being his strength in the same way that Samson's hair was. However, unlike Samson, I long for Jonathan to live the kind of consecrated life that Samson was created to live, but was unable to truly fulfill. I believe in my heart that Jonathan was birthed under similar cirucmstances (I was for all purposes a 'barren' woman) and under a similar promise.
Several years before getting pregnant, when I was still dreaming about being a mother, while at the same time a bit unsure that I was capable of the job - or sure that I really wanted it (longing - aversion, a constant merry-go-round in my head), I felt strongly in my heart that I would bear a child in my 44th year. I documented it in my journal at the time. And then in March of 2010, while doing my morning devotion, I was reading the passages in Genesis regarding the promise of a child to Abram and Sarai. I felt that the Lord was telling me that I too, at that time next year , would have a child (further confirmation about what I believed would happen in my 44th year of life). Later that day, I received an email devotion on the same passage in Genesis that I had read earlier. It gave me goosebumps. I cut it out and placed it in my journal, believing that what was spoken to my spirit would come to pass.
Of course I interpreted all this as a promise from the Lord that he'd soon be sending me a Godly husband. We'd have a fast courtship, be married by July, I'd get pregnant fast, and voila - my "this time next year" child would arrive! Clearly, the Lord had other plans. My promised child surely did arrive by "this time next year", but the Lord worked it out in a way that I can do nothing but give Him all the glory, honor and praise. Jonathan was sent to my life in a way that I would never have scripted. Praise God for his grace and soverign power over our lives!
I've already discussed the aftershocks of Jonathan's conception and birth; no need to continue with that here. I just wanted to provide some background regarding my strong belief that Jonathan is a child of promise...a child of the spirit, not of the flesh - similar to Samson, Isaac, even Samuel -all children that the Lord deemed necessary to come to this earth, for a specific work, that is above and beyond what the average person accomplishes. I believe this for Jonathan. I continue to declare that he will be an example of Godliness to his generation. A man after God's own heart. A man thirsty and hungry for the things of God...dutiful, kind, servant-hearted, walking in the fruit of the spirit - not perfect, but endeavoring to live unto the Father, and repentent and quick to turn when he does not.
For this to come to pass, I believe that, from an early age, he needs to know one thing and know it like he knows his name:
GOD LOVES HIM!
Yes, our Father loves him. Our father in heaven pursues him, loves and adores him, knew him before the foundations of the earth, hand-selected him to be born when he was born and into the family that he was born into, will use him for great things...that the Lord loves him unconditionally - regardless of what he does or does not do, accomplishes or does not accomplish - God loves him - and I love him, too. I want Jonathan to be awashed of this love, his heart and mind flooded with it -- for him to NEVER doubt that the Lord is near and will never leave or forsake him. I long for the Lord to enable me -to work through me - to convey these truths to Jonathan - somehow, someway, every day that I'm blessed to do so.
I don't know if there is anything more foundational to Jonathan becoming the man that i believe he'll become. To even enjoy childhood in the way that I hope he does - with rapt curiosity, energy, wisdom, joy and fun! There is freedom when you KNOW-- I mean, really KNOW that you are loved.
I don't know if there is anything more foundational to Jonathan becoming the man that i believe he'll become. To even enjoy childhood in the way that I hope he does - with rapt curiosity, energy, wisdom, joy and fun! There is freedom when you KNOW-- I mean, really KNOW that you are loved.
Oh, Lord God, enable me to shower Jonathan with kisses, to seek his forgiveness when I am wrong, to hug him till he can hardly breathe, to discipline him with love, to speak to him kindly, to pour out your wisdom, imparted through me, to him...to have fun with him, to laugh with him till it hurts, to cry with him when tears are the only answer to his pain, to pray with him about ALL things, to be still and quiet with him - to enjoy him - and to be blessed to see him walking IN that purpose that you have created for him. Lord, work this out for us, even in the feebleness of my sin-scarred life - through my poor decisions at times, my pride, my selfishness, my self-centerdness - all my weakness, use me to be that morsel of blessing in his life so that he walks into the world, as a grown man, knowing that I did ALL that I could, through the wonderworking love and power of Jesus Christ.
Lord, LOVE on Jonathan. Love him to bits - and make sure He knows it - always...
Lord, LOVE on Jonathan. Love him to bits - and make sure He knows it - always...
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