All the Heart he Needs

Justin is only a day old, but he's not wasting time when it comes to making an impact on other people's lives. Like every baby, he overflows with the newness and simplicity and beauty that brings out smiles and the softer, gentler side of grown-ups. Unlike most babies, Justin suffers from a severe congenital heart defect and will have to undergo surgery in the first days of his life.

It's not clear what the future holds for him -- how much he will suffer, how much he will overcome, how much he will accomplish -- and that's hard to think about. I don't claim to really understand why some of us are chosen to endure hardships that others of us will never face, but I do believe it all somehow figures into a plan that is much larger than our limited perspectives. I don't understand, but I am grateful for the way this little gift of God has already challenged my thinking and allowed me to glimpse God's faithfulness in and through circumstances we would not have chosen for ourselves and those we love.

If you pray, please pray for Justin and his family. They keep a blog here, updated as often as is practical. I would invite you to visit it to see Justin's picture and read more about his situation. His family has bravely chosen to make their very personal struggle public in hopes that it will encourage or help others whose loved ones are born with serious challenges like Justin's.

While medical science tells us that Justin's heart is imperfect, the truth is that he is a perfect creation of God with all the heart he needs to be an inspiration and a joy to others.