WELCOME ELIJAH NATHANAEL JERDON!

Elijah Nathanael Jerdon Born: August 4, 2010 @ 7:39a.m. Wt: 7lbs 13oz Ht: 20.5in Birthed in a water birth setting at Lakeland Hospital in Niles, Michigan

Elijah's Story
I came in the world gently into the water my mommy was sitting in and at the last push out I came into her loving arms with my daddy close by. What joy my mommy had as she praised the L-rd and and kept kissing me and rubbing my back to help me breathe on my own. When the nurses took me to check me out I let them know something wasn't right with my breathing. I was having a very hard time to get the oxygen I needed. They took some tests and found out that I had a case of pnuemothorax. They say it's quite common in infants at birth and don't know when or why it happens. One of my lungs collapsed and the air released and pushed everything over towards my heart. It was quite a case so the doctor had me transferred to Memorial Hospital in S. Bend, MI. A medical team came and picked me up and begin to take care of me in the NICU. Mommy and Daddy were told that while I was in the oxygen bubble/bowl I was recovering quickly and my x-rays show that by day two my lung was fully inflated and my heart was back in the position it needed to be in. Yay! My first hurdle I leapt over with great bounds! On my x-rays the radiologist said there was a white shadow above my heart. They took an ultra sound of my heart and it sounded perfect! So they took another view from x-ray and found the shadow was round and ruled out it being any kind of solid mass. Yesterday the shadow begin to go away so in one week Mommy and Daddy will take me back to the radiologist for an out patient visit to see my progress and hopefully to see the shadow gone. Yay! Now I'm at home with my Daddy, Mommy, Big Sister, Grandpa, and Grandma. I'm getting lots of love, diapers changed, feeding time, kisses from big sis (she's so happy I'm here and I love her! Sometimes I like to look her way and figure out where that silly laugh is coming from and nose kisses xx!) Mommy says lots of family and friends have been praying for me... so thank you so much for your love and prayers that have changed things for me. Bless my Father in Heaven for He is great and greatly to be praised. Mommy posted more pictures and a video of my arrival home. I love you, Elijah. xo


Neat thing that happened the day of my birth: the Aurora Borialis (Northern Lights) shown it's brightest between the third and fourth of August and it was so bright it could be seen to the southern most part of Michigan... that's where I live!

Day 1 at Lakeland Hospital in the oxygen bowl.

Elijah trying to lick his way out of the bowl. :-)

Day 1 - Leaving to Memorial Hospital and saying bye bye to family.

Day 3 - After car seat check and discharge.

Ready to take Elijah home!

Bye bye Memorial Thanks for everything!

Discharge nurse rolling Elijah to his get-away-car!

Big Sis - Elisha holding baby brother for the first time.

Elisha enjoying her new art station desk in her big girl room. (She was singing: chicken nuggets over and over again...funny girl.)

Peek - A

-Boo I see you!

video in progress of coming...check your facebooks. :-) <3 Leslie

Michigan, It's a Boy... and more!

SUMMER IS HERE, IT'S A BOY!, and... Mommy look grass!

It's been quite awhile since our last post. Much has changed for our little nuclear family and much to be excited about! Brad, Elisha, and I; along with baby in the tum, have moved to Michigan officially as of June this summer! Brad and I both miss the kids and Nancy from the Bible Study, along with some of our other friends we made down there. We hope to see them all in the future. For now we're here for rest, reinforcement, our baby that's soon coming, and whatever else Jesus has planned for us.

Since being here it's been rejuvenating and restful for all of us. We've caught up with family members and have really enjoyed watching Elisha play with all her little cousins. This past weekend Brad's cousin Kari was married to her boyfriend of 3 years! It was a beautiful reception, we missed the wedding part unfortunately. We know that it was a wonderful ceremony from everyone's comments who attended. It was so much fun watching all the little children run around, dance, and play at the reception. The Bride was gorgeous and the groom was beaming with the light of love in his eyes for his new bride! I enjoyed catching up with family, the food, and the cake, but I have to say the real party players were the children. It brought so much joy to everyone! :-)

We celebrated my birthday on July 13th and Beth Ann's on July 18th. We ate ice cream cakes in lieu of both occasions. We promised ice cream cake to Beth around Christmas time when she comes up for a visit this year! Yum!

It's so good to have Brad here with us, he arrived here at the last part of June and visited our very good friends in Wyoming along with our friend Steve. They had a wonderful time of fellowship and it made my heart glad to know it was if nothing ever changed and they picked up right where they left off. :-) He came home around the 9th or 10th of this month and we're so glad too. We had missed him a lot. He's doing great and has some side work he's doing that has definitely come in when we needed it! Praise the L-rd.

Our little beaming light of sunshine brings so much joy to everyone here. Elisha is starting to put bigger words she's learned into the right context. She's starting to play a lot better on her own and loves to dance and tell stories. She loves to paint and draw on big paper and make all kinds of things. She's so imaginative and humorous. One of her favorite things to say right now is: "SURPRISE, HAPPY BIRTHDAY..." I think she really enjoys the expression on our faces when she says it. She's ready for baby to come and often says, "Baby brother is coming!" She says it so joyfully, I'm excited because I know she'll be a great big sister!

This past Friday I had my weekly check up and I was 1/2 a centimeter dilated! I've had some contractions but nothing consistent. I believe I'll know I'm in full swing labor when my water breaks. :-) Today I'm 38 weeks and 5 days. Only 9 more days to go! I can wait and then again I can't. I keep thinking about holding our newborn son in our arms and how different it will be for us. I am praying constantly that our hearts will be ready to receive him and the new change that he will bring to us. In just days from now we will be welcoming Elijah Nathanael Jerdon! We have the room we're in ready and are almost done with the children's room! I put the bassinet together with in the last two days and have my hospital bag packed and ready.
Elijah is moving quite a bit and often lets me know he's not sleepy and wants to play. I keep telling him soon you'll be out of my tummy and we can play with you!
I'm so thankful for all the family and friends who've helped us out with clothes, diapers, blankets, and the like. It was a wonderful gift to receive and we bless the L-rd for his provision through them.

Enjoy some pictures below. We love you all and will update you soon! Jesus bless you and yours!

Pool Time.

Aunt Mary blessed Elisha with a pink cowgirl hat.
(Elisha now get's on her hobby horse and cowgirl hat on and says,
"Yee Haw, Yee Haw, horsey! Howdy Pardner.")

Jumping on trampoline at Caitie's grad party!

Safe in Grandma's arms

Siwwy in Grandpa's arms.

Celebrating my birthday with my little helper.

Cute and....

Silly.

To Save A Life and more...

(pictures coming soon.)

Larry and Betty came down to Indiana to celebrate Elisha and Larry's birthdays! They got a hotel room and Brad, Elisha, and I stayed with them! It was nice to be with them and see Elisha have so much fun. She's so full of life. I enjoyed the big queen bed and so did Brad. It was quite a blessing to have breakfast prepared for you to eat in the morning! I made Elisha a birthday cake and we went to Mr. Gatti's to celebrate! It was a small intimate party with Brad, his parents, myself, the birthday girl, Nancy, Chris, & our dear friend Calli. Elisha dug her fingers into the cake before she could blow the candle out. LOL After eating and opening a few gifts we went back into Gatti Land and played some neat games. My favorite of course is; Skeet Ball. Elisha loves the basketball games and she liked sitting on Daddy's lap to play an arcade game of car racing.

The next day, Monday, we all got up and headed back to Nancy's house and decided to take a walk. It was an absolute perfect sunshiny day! Elisha played in the park as we talked plans of Elisha and I going up to Michigan to visit for a few weeks. Now here we are and I'm so glad we're here. Elisha is really enjoying her grandparents, and of course missing her daddy, and so am I... that is my husband.

Brad and I had a date night and saw To Save A Life. It's about this young white teenager who had a best friend growing up who was black and saved his life. They were playing "trick or treat" in the middle of July (as most boys do) and the one boy wasn't paying attention as his young black friend pushed him out of harms way from a vehicle. The young black man was injured to the point of being crippled. He cheered his friend on as he played in all kinds of sports. Later in Freshmen year of High School the young white teen was a basketball star and gained a lot of attention and decided to ditch his friend who saved his life for popularity and a girlfriend. The story goes on and one day the young black teen commits suicide. The young white teen's life, a senior then, is changed forever... and at that you'll have to see the movie for yourself to find out what happens and how many lives are changed.
Official movie website: http://tosavealifemovie.com/index.php

I will tell you during the movie I was weeping and being broken. I was being broken because the L-rd was showing me faces of people I knew as a single woman and married to Brad that had been touched and were changed b/c we chose Jesus instead of ourselves and it saved a life (lives). That's what it is all about. You can't have true revival until you take G-d to the people. I believe that the body of Christ is outside of four walls and that she will become united and more powerful to touch others when she reaches out to the hurting world around her. To the dirty, needy, poor, and most wretched, to the loners, the cutters, the ones left aside who feel so alone. G-d wants to use you and me, my family and yours through prayers and intercession, through the works of love and faith to change lives. If we don't love the convict, if we don't love the kid messed up on drugs or alcohol, the lonely girl who cuts herself, the girl who clings to any boy, the guy who walks alone crooked and mocked at who will?

Once I hugged a homeless woman and it was the greatest hug I have ever received and given. I wanted to keep holding her and pouring love in her that she beamed with it. Being on the streets and being empowered by the Holy Spirit in love and the authority of Christ in me is my greatest desire. I wait upon the L-rd as He is doing a mighty work in me and my family to bring us to the most humble place that we can be used in the highest places. Those places are where my future brothers and sisters await. Those places are where we'll see many receive their L-rd and King, be healed, delivered, set free, made whole. Right now that place is Bedford, Indiana. The youth in that town are being so affected by the Love of Christ we're seeing them so transformed they are looking more and more like love and living in it. Many of them have seen the movie and are being moved by the Holy Spirit to do more and to be there "brothers keeper" to love their neighbors as they love themselves.

The greatest lesson Brad and I are learning is: to know nothing except Christ Crucified. A crucified life. I know I've received the revelation of Jesus Christ and who He is but Brad and I are receiving the deeper knowledge of bearing our cross and the true joy that comes out of loving and serving others and denying self and diving into the Glory of our King.

“Rejoice!” So they came and held Him by the feet and worshiped Him." (Matt. 28)

We love all of you and thank you all for your prayers over us and for us. We pray our lives will bless you because of Christ in us the Hope of Glory.

"And I, brethren, when I came to you, did not come with excellence of speech or of wisdom declaring to you the testimony^a]">[a] of God. ² For I determined not to know anything among you except Jesus Christ and Him crucified. ³ I was with you in weakness, in fear, and in much trembling. ⁴ And my speech and my preaching were not with persuasive words of human^b]">[b] wisdom, but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power, ⁵ that your faith should not be in the wisdom of men but in the power of God." (1Corinth. 2:1-5)

Exodus Cry

(At the end I have official websites and a link to the Nefarious Video)

WHAT IS HUMAN TRAFFICKING
Human trafficking is the industry that generates commerce by transporting actual people. While this practice does have legal expressions, mostly it is a term used by advocacy groups to describe the nefarious practice of abduction and bondage that goes hand in hand with Modern-day Slavery. There are tens of billions of dollars generated each year by the illegal transport and sale of human beings, making it is the fastest growing criminal industry in the world. And since this industry thrives by exploiting impoverished people, and is exacerbated by the growing appetite worldwide for human slaves under a variety of names, this problem is fundamentally understood as an economic problem.

Stop here: Question: what's on your mind about rescuing human trafficking victims?
Do you think the church is ready to undertake (invest: time, money, resources, strength, reputation) the actual restoration process of these women and children (mind, body, soul , spirit)?

Let me put it this way: Hypothetical Situation(Headlines of the news today (just imagine) 28 year old woman and her 2 year old daughter go missing! Authorities say they've found them to be sold into slavery, otherwise known as Human Trafficking. It is said that they've been sold into the global sex-slave trade. Family and friends are putting together every effort to find them and free them from this crime.)

I believe out of your love and care us you'd do everything possible to rescue us and get out. Intercession and prayer is the most simplest way to begin the rescue mission of 'millions' of women and children sold into this slavery. Your love and compassion for G*d's people will bring each of us pull together resources of every kind to rescue these impoverished women and children out of their bondage.

Begin to pray with me that G*d will bring justice to these victims. Tear down the strongholds, principalities, and dark/evil powers over their countries. Open the doors for rescue missions to go into action. For people around the world to openeir hearts and homes to restore and reintergrate them into hope and love. To bring their oppressors into the light of true righteous justice.

While the point of origin of slaves is as diverse as the cities of the world, the grisly practice of abduction is generally uniform. Trafficking victims are usually persons displaced (like refugees), run aways, or the most impoverished people in a region. In some places, the captors are large crime rings, but, more typically, trafficking is conducted by small, specialized venders. Prisoners are lured into slavery with false promises of a better life—be it fame as an actor, or economic opportunities abroad—only to be trafficked to another city or even another country. Captors immediately confiscate passports and any identification of their victims which renders them powerless to escape the country of their final destination. In addition, being trafficked to a foreign country creates a language barrier that helps to discourage escape.
What is important to grasp is that while some countries are better known as destinations, and others are merely transit countries, nearly every country in the earth participates in Human Trafficking as an abduction point as well as a destination, including the United States and other similarly developed countries. Immigrant labor, adoption, and even legalized prostitution many times create a ruse of legal activity that can hide illegal trafficking. While most countries have developed anti-trafficking laws, poor law enforcement and corrupt police forces offer few obstacles to traffickers. Once abducted, victims find themselves forced into a lifestyle of prostitution, child soldiers, forced labor, or some other form of slavery that is impossible to escape. "All things are possible with G*d."

Purity Covenant
The purity covenant is a personal commitment to wholehearted sexual purity. One of the great battles facing our generation is the battle for sexual purity. The Internet has made indescribable acts of immorality openly accessible to people of all ages, gender, and walks of life. Seductive images daily invade our homes and private lives through all forms of media. Satan is waging a war of sexual seduction against this generation. His assault has even breached the ranks of the church: polls taken reveal that more than half of pastors struggle with pornography on a daily basis. To combat this assault we must first contend for our own personal freedom. Sexual sin not only defiles our own spirit, but it directly fuels an industry that enslaves women and children. Every time we engage in licentious sexual activity we come into agreement with Satan and give him legal access into our lives. In addition, our participation releases demonic energy into the realm of the spirit, which is already so widespread the nations are drowning in a torrential sea of lust. As more people rise up and demand that their sexual fantasies be fulfilled, greater and greater numbers of women and children are enslaved. The startling reality is that there are now over 20 million people worldwide in bondage as sex slaves, which is a greater number than the combined populations of the 6 largest cities in the United States. Many of these slaves are the very women and children featured in pornographic movies, magazines, and websites. When Jesus addressed the churches in the book of Revelation He directly confronted the issue of sexual immorality. His indictment against the church of Thyatira is that they “tolerated” sexual compromise. Through the Purity Covenant we are calling this generation of believers to wholeheartedly renounce their toleration of sexual immorality and commit to a fierce allegiance to Jesus through purity and holiness in their personal lives. Human Trafficking is a massive human rights issue facing this generation, but we are powerless to fight it unless we first win the battle raging in our own hearts. If we will turn to the Lord in our weakness He will meet us with tenderness and give us power to resist the seduction of the enemy. The Purity Covenant is a set of 3 simple commitments:
1) Purity
I commit to guard my eyes, ears, and speech from defiling images or conversations.
2) Accountability
I commit to find an accountability partner who agrees with the purity covenant. I will confess to this individual each time I cross a boundary of sexual compromise in any area including: what I look at, say, and listen to.
3) Software
I commit to download software onto my computer that prohibits sexually explicit images from appearing including all pornographic websites. Exodus Cry recommends X3watch and SafeEyes

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NhQTgqZL6_M

Official Nefarious Documentary Website

Official Exodus Cry Website for more information click

Happy 2010!

Just a little update.

Brad got the job at Pizza Hut as Shift Manager and he started training last night 1/19. Please pray for him as he heads into new territory of work. He sounds pretty excited to be working and learning some new things (like how to make Pizza Hut pizzas YUM-YUM)!

Leslie is currently staying home with Elisha and new baby on the way. Please pray for us as we are getting into the 2 year old stage where Elisha wants to do more and mommy wants energy to be there with her! Woo Hoo!

We've been living with our gracious friend Nancy who is in charge of the Bible Study/Ministry. Brad built our room in the front of her house and has helped do other handyman things around the house. We have enjoyed staying with her and her family. Her daughter Andrea comes home today from Afghanastan! Her husband lives there right now to teach there for 2 years (I think). It'll be good to have her here but very hard for her as her husband is so far away. Please pray for them.

I have a few pictures below for you to enjoy.

I seem to have forgotten that some of you haven't received the good news yet! Brad and I are expecting a baby due July 4, 2010! Elisha knows there's a baby in mommy's tummy! It's so cute she'll point to her own tummy and say 'baby' and keep talking about it! :-)PTL!

I have a seperate blog just for the ministry being created and will send your way soon!

G-d is good all the time!