Exciting News for the New Year

I'm just going to jump right in. On New Year's Eve we were sitting at the table, having dinner as a family. Jase had already finished and headed upstairs to take a shower and put pjs on. Allyson was still working on her dinner {as usual}, eating avocado, and we were talking about the Lord. She was asking questions about the Lord and salvation and needing to be saved. We have these conversations frequently with them, but this time it was different with her. The Lord was laying it on her heart to be saved. It was the sweetest thing. So unscripted and pure and honest. It was perfect, it was a miracle. I held her hand and she said her own prayer to Lord, confessing that she is a sinner and that she needed Him to save her. She said whatever the Lord laid upon her heart, I didn't guide her. By the time she finished, I was in tears. "Why are you crying, Mommy?" she asked. Shawn saw me crying, so he started tearing up, and he answered her "they are tears of joy."

She wanted to call a few people, so we FaceTimed them. She was super excited. She told people that it was her "Born Again Birthday," she was a "Christian now", and that "the Holy Spirit came into her heart." Every time she spoke, we just cried and cried some more! The thing is, you want what is best for your kids. Yes, you want them to marry the right person, be an honest person, have good friends, get good schooling, get a good job, but at the end of the day, Shawn and I's greatest desire for them is to know the Lord. And as much as we want it for them, it is out of our control. Yes, we plant seeds in their life, but it is ultimately the Lord who lays it upon their heart to be saved. (2 Timothy 1:9) So when this happened, we thanked the Lord for touching her and using broken vessels like us.

Allyson also wanted to go outside and tell her neighbors. Her boldness. I love it! You can watch that here or below. Shawn and I cried the entire time.

When she came back in, she told us "cry all you want!" We busted out laughing!! It was such a sweet evening. We celebrated her salvation and the coming of a new year. What a way to end 2015. Such a blessing.

The boys couldn't hang until the new year, and Shawn and I even dozed off before midnight, but little Allyson was wide awake!