Here is a little story for those of you who are considering something today that doesn’t add up in the pro’s and con’s balance sheet. A job change. A move. A leap at love. Or an artistic endeavor that may never be seen by anyone but you. Maybe you should do it anyway …

I remember how desperately I wanted that fourth baby. The urge hit me about the same time our toddler son left footprints in cornstarch on the kitchen counter before breakfast. It was probably one of the same days I couldn’t figure out how to get his two sisters to pre-school and still operate our home daycare. And, did I mention their father was in the middle of medical school?

My husband, saint though he is, explained that my timing was poor.

One afternoon, I snatched a few minutes for prayer and asked God to please take this desire away from me or show me how to cope with the emotion. Instead, I got one of those strong, clear thoughts that I knew didn’t come from me. These days I’m careful not to label very many things as a “God said”. But, that day, He did. I suddenly understood I wasn’t just experiencing Baby Fever. I was homesick for one of our children the same way I would be if Felicity, Serenity, or Joseph were miles away and I could not reach them.

I can’t remember anything about the conversation Wendell and I had when he came home from school. I’m pretty sure it was short and sweet. All I remember is that I was my typical, whiny self during the pregancy. Toward the last, I ended up in the hospital for a few days and then was ordered to bedrest. We celebrated our anniversary with burgers and fries and three kids on the bed. Friends cleaned our house. And both grandmothers pitched in on a regular basis. All those reasons not to have another baby had been true.

And then, the grandmothers stood in the hallway outside the delivery room while sweet Charity was birthed. And do you know what she did after I begged to conceive her, carried her for nine months and two weeks, and labored for hours to bring her forth? She grinned at her father. A huge, gorgeous, real grin at her dad.

“You’re welcome!” I wanted to yell. But I was grinning, too.

And, I’ve pretty much wanted to say, “You’re welcome” to the world ever since. You’re welcome for this fourth child who came at a time when we could not afford her, when I was too tired to carry her, and when we were too busy to take enough pictures to record her.

Because I’m pretty sure that is what God says to me every day when I thank Him for sending her.

Happy Birthday, Charity.

You are welcome Ryan, Nola, Violet, Roman, Remington, Lifegate Worship, and the Rest of the World.