Zachary's Hope

Zachary's Tetralogy of Fallot didn't really scare me too much because he has only mild pulmonary valve stenosis, and surgery should definitely fix him. Then the stinger of news ... Lissencephaly. I can't think of worse news we could have received from his brain MRI. Oh, the pain I feel as a father, and I certainly have had times of groaning.

I think there is something special about a father's love for his sons. On occasion, I'll ask Aaron, "How much does Daddy love Aaron? How much? How much?!!" Aaron responds by taking his arms back as wide as possible to show me just how much. What's funny is I can keep asking him "How much, how much?!!" and he keeps showing me. I cannot wait until the day I can explain to Aaron really how much his daddy loves him that he might understand.

I may never get that chance with Zachary, but I know who will tell him how much he is loved. This is Zachary's hope. That as sin entered the world through one man and things were then subject to decay, Zachary's hope is the redemption of his body and spending eternity with God who loves him more than he can ever know. Through Jesus Christ, we can look ahead to his hope and that is the remedy of my current sorrows. So, we can groan together inwardly as we wait for him to be made whole one day. In the meantime, Zechariah Paul (daddy is the only one allowed to call him this), let your life go on display, pointing to the Gospel and may your parents keep the hope & faith and help you reach your maximum potential in this life.