Intended for Life

One night this week Joe started telling me about a conversation he had with a co-worker. What she said to him infuriated me. He was telling one woman about Liam and another woman was listening. She asked Joe if I'd had an amniocentesis. Joe told her no because it would not change anything for us if we'd found out there was something wrong with the baby. The co-worker said to him, "Isn't that socially irresponsible?"

WHAT!?!?!?!

If I'd been there I'm pretty sure I would have said a lot of not nice things and someone may have had to hold me back because the urge to slap her across the face would have been hard to resist. Who does she think she is implying that for Liam to have life is in some way harmful to society? That is my son she's talking about. My son.

What gives any of us the right to determine who should or should not have life? Most fertilized eggs are not viable pregnancies. And of those, it is believed that most of them have a genetic disorder. Of those genetic disorders, it is thought the majority could be sex chromosome disorders. The odds that I carried Liam through a healthy, full-term pregnancy are pretty low. He is miraculous. So I think that in order for him to have survived the natural way God created to ensure most children are born healthy, must mean he is here for a reason. He is no accident. My body didn't screw up by allowing him the chance to enter the world. No, the Creator intended him for Life. His hand is in all creation, I believe no child is created without Him.

"For from Him and through Him and to Him are all things. To Him be the glory forever. Amen."

Romans 11:36

This semester I am only taking one class. Old Testament. And the last two weeks we have been talking about CREATION. I was shocked this past week to find that our discussion made me emotional. I cannot help but wonder how Liam fits into the order.

I don't know why God allows little blips in our genetics. I have always assumed that it is a result of the Fall. But is it? Are genetic disorders the same as pain, sickness, and disease? I don't know the answer to these questions but I do know that God made Liam and that his existence is not an accident and therefore he is an indispensable part of the body of Christ.

The last 6 months have been unlike any other time in my life. They feel like a blur that I can barely remember but at the same time they have impacted me deeply and permanently.

Liam. I am so proud of everything he has accomplished. He is a hard worker and very determined. My little man is a tiny guy. He weighs in at a whopping 12 pounds (Sophie Grace weighed 12 pounds at 2 months). He has great head control but still gets tired and loses it after a while. He cannot push himself up with his arms when he is on his tummy. But he can lift that head up to 90 degrees. He is no where close to sitting up. But he has worked so hard to do what he is capable of. He finally coos and babbles. He is eating rice cereal but just a tiny amount and the adjustment to food is going to be a slow process. He will gain all of these abilities eventually. But sometimes it is hard to accept that Liam is unique. There's just no comparison to other babies and it is much better to not compare him.

I am so thankful that we found out about Liam when he was only 1 week old. If we hadn't I would be freaking out right now that something is wrong with my son and we probably wouldn't have had a genetic test yet. There is an untold component to Liam's story. This untold was by far the worst part of what we have experienced with him and it is the reason we know. We aren't quite ready to tell the untold story. One day I know I have to because it will help me, but not yet.

For now, we have peace. Peace and joy in the son God blessed us with. Peace in knowing he is just who God made him to be. And peace in knowing that Liam is Intended for Life. So don't ever try to make me think that his life and our choice to give him the chance to have life is socially irresponsible.

October Prayer/Newsletter

FRASERS BY THE BAY

October 2 @ North Metro Baptist Church in Atlanta at our North American Mission Board Commissioning Service. This is the group of collegiate evangelism missionaries who were commissioned.

Commissioned to Serve

Prayer Requests - housing as we look to move off

seminary housing and into San

Francisco - pray a big, bold prayer with us

that by the end of Oct. we will be at 60% of our financial need.

- a follow-up visit to the cardiologist with Liam

- partners to join us on the field in our ministry at SFSU

Connect with us! Want to become a financial partner? Contact us by email: joeandmeganfraser@yahoo.com

Our address: 7 Judson Ln. Apt.A Mill Valley, CA 94941

Megan’s blog: myquestforjoy.blogspot.com

“Frasers in SF” on facebook

Sunday, October 2 was an important and exciting day for us. We were commissioned with 67 other North American Mission Board missionaries at North Metro Baptist Church in Lawrenceville, GA. We were a part of a group of 14 other collegiate missionaries. We spent a total of 10 days in Georgia developing prayer and financial partners for our ministry and preparing for our ministry at our commissioning training and service. Praise the Lord, we are at 37% of our financial need! We are so thankful to all of you for getting us this far and ask for your prayers as we continue on to reach 100%. We were cautioned while at our training sessions in Atlanta to raise 100% of our funds before

stepping on campus to begin our ministry. With this in mind we are going to be putting even more into our efforts to develop our financial partnership. Joe will continue prayer walking the campus as we do this. Once we start our ministry on campus we want to do so without any extra worries or stressors. We are so grateful for your support and prayers! We spent 3 days in training sessions in Atlanta leading up to our commissioning service. This was a great time of encouragement, learning, and being challenged as we go out to make disciples. We both left with a passion to share Christ with students who do not know Him. We are so excited to see God draw souls to Himself into

His kingdom! We also realize that we cannot do this alone and really need partners to serve with us on campus. Please pray that God would raise up a couple to join us in this ministry.

This also made us think about the last few months we have on this side of the Golden Gate Bridge. We really want to take this time to end the relationships that have been built over the last 4 years with Joeʼs co-workers who do not know Christ. Please pray for us to have boldness in sharing the Good News with the employees of Arch Rival Shoe Store.

We are so excited about the work we know God is going do and cannot wait to share with you next month!

Harvest

"The harvest is plentiful, but the workers are few.

Therefore beseech the Lord of the harvest

to send out workers into His harvest."

Matthew 9:37-38

As I sat meditating on this verse this morning, I felt this blog post brewing. I had to share this because it has challenged me and I want to send out the challenge to those willing to hear it.

Has God called only a few to work his harvest? Are the workers limited to those serving on the mission field or church staff?

I don't think so.

I believe that God has called every Christian to work the harvest. In Matthew 28:19-20 Jesus gives the command to go and make disciples. That command is not conditional or limited to only a few, it is an all inclusive COMMAND.

As Christians, you and I are called to work the harvest. That means sharing Christ daily with the people we encounter. So many of us are scared of evangelism (I will be honest and confess that I am definitely here). But it really is not an option to keep the gospel to yourself.

Jesus talked a lot about bearing fruit. He also talked about what happens if we don't bear fruit. I think that many of us are more than willing to pray for the workers of the harvest on behalf of all the missionaries we know serving around the globe. And I feel challenged to pray that prayer.

But be warned...

I believe that if we are genuinely praying for the Lord of the harvest to call more workers, we will absolutely find ourselves unable to escape the work. We are not all called to remote villages in other countries or to urban poor ministry in a U.S. city, but you have absolutely been called to serve right where you are.

So pray for the harvest and be prepared to work.