Hurry Up and Wait.

"Faith does not operate in the realm of the possible. There is no glory for God in that which is humanly possible. Faith begins where man's power ends."

- George Muller

This quote was part of the sermon on Sunday at church. Patrick and I were really struck by its meaning and felt like God was using our pastor to speak to us, particularly as we face uncertainty in the coming weeks. We have received pretty much all of the test results, and they're all negative. The good news is that Herbie's fluid is not caused by something the doctors thought might require her immediate delivery and would involve some complicated treatment. The bad news is we don't know exactly what's causing the fluid. The doctors continue to think its a lymphatic draining issue that can be fixed once she's born. For now, we just wait . . . and monitor . . . and pray . . . that she continues to stay strong and function well in her little environment. I'll be monitored twice a week by the doctors (once at week at maternal/fetal specialist and once a week at my regular ob/gyn), and once they notice she's not doing as well, we will need to decide whether its time to deliver. There is no way to predict when this time will come, and its pretty scary knowing that what we are waiting for is for Herbie to become LESS healthy or for it to become more difficult for her to function with the fluid in her stomach. For now, her heart, lungs and brain are all functioning very well, and each little kick in my side is a reminder of God's love for us.

So, basically, we are at the point where man's power ends. We don't have a certain diagnosis, and the "treatment" for now is in God's hands. He knows when its time for Herbie to come out, and each day is a blessing as it provides more time for our baby to develop. During this interim time, we pray that our faith does not waiver and that we continue to trust in the Lord that all things will work together for his glory. We are so grateful for all the prayers for Herbie's continued growth physically and our continued growth spiritually - keep them up! We also appreciate the continued encouragement you provide by sending us Bible verses. We have a lot to be thankful for this Thanksgiving, including our friends, family, and faith in the Lord. Handling this without Him would be impossible.