We’re in uncharted territory. Baby #3 was due on Wednesday, and here we are on Friday afternoon, still waiting!

Maddy (top two photos) and Sam (bottom two photos) both arrived early!

Sam and Madeleine both arrived early (Maddy was almost a week early!) so this is new for us. We’ve actually been prepared since late June so we’ve been in this state of hyper awareness for almost three weeks now.

I’m super attentive to my cell phone (jumpy, even) at work. We are maintaining a fairly tight radius around the house (the last two labors were fast so we don’t want to stray too far from the hospital!) And everyone – the kids, family and friends here and around the world – is just…waiting.

It’s hard not to be anxious. Hard not to be frustrated. Passing the 40 week mark for the first time has brought into sharper focus what has always been true of this pregnancy (and all of life) – God is in control, and we are not!

And that’s where sleep comes in. It’s hard to sleep! Both of us have had our share of fitful nights (Melanie’s “share” is greater than mine, for obvious reasons!)

So my mind goes to two of my favorite Psalms that say some very important things about sleep. Psalm 127 calls our efforts to assert control in life “eating the bread of anxious toil” and reminds us that God “gives to his beloved sleep.” (A verse I share regularly with my children!)

The words of Psalm 121:1-2 in Spanish at ILE, where we will study Spanish in Costa Rica

We can receive the gift of sleep when we know the God of Psalm 121. He will keep us from evil, He will keep our lives, He will keep our “going out and coming in from this time forth and forevermore.”

We can be confident in YAHWEH, our Keeper, because He does not slumber! The Psalmist emphasizes the point – He will “neither slumber nor sleep.”

So pray for us – as we pray for you – that we will know the peace of trusting in God. Accepting His gift of sleep, knowing He will keep us, and we can depend on Him.