Luke's Testimony

Luke's Testimony

I was raised in a Christian Home and attended church every Sunday, Sunday night, and Wednesday night. I would have considered myself generally a "good boy" and a Christian. I went through all the outward motions of being a Christian, but never really turned from my sins and toward God, never placed my trust in Christ as my Savior. As I got older it became more and more evident that I was not living to please God but to please myself, my relationship with God was non-existent. In my first year of college I began experimenting with drugs and getting drunk with my friends. Eventually I was doing drugs at least every weekend and showed little restraint in denying myself whatever I wanted. I dropped out of college after my second year and was not sure what I wanted to do with my life. I was lost, alone, and often times depressed.
But thank God for his incredible mercy. It was at this low point that I believe God started drawing me to himself. One nightI had a dream where I saw myself hammering nails into the wrists of Jesus on the cross. I remember the dread of what I was doing, all the time trying to stop hammering but unable to. That dream never left my mind – it was firmly imprinted. I was so afraid that I dug out the Bible my mom had given me years ago and began reading in Romans. As I read I was convicted of my sin and the wrath that I deserved– Romans 1:18-20 says:
“The wrath of God is being revealed from heaven against all the godlessness and wickedness of men who suppress the truth by their wickedness, since what may be known about God is plain to them, because God has made it plain to them. For since the creation of the world God's invisible qualities—his eternal power and divine nature—have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, so that men are without excuse.

As I continued to read the Savior and his sacrifice for my sin were revealed. Romans 3:24-25 says:
“[All] are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus. God presented him as a sacrifice of atonement, through faith in his blood.”

Over the next several weeks I would cry out to God for mercy and forgiveness. I repented of my many sins and turned away from my sinful lifestyle and began trusting in Christ as the sacrifice for my sins. That was nearly 8 years ago, since then God has graciously blessed me with a beautiful and loving wife who was so instrumental in helping to build my faith immediately following my conversion. Kriscinda and I have been blessed with three wonderful children, one of whom awaits us in Heaven. How grateful I am for eternal life found in Him.

As a recipient of amazing grace, I am grateful now for the opportunity to be baptized and publicly proclaim Jesus as my Lord and Savior.

Being Baptised

Luke is being baptised this Sunday (the second service 11:30) and possibly sharing his testimony =). He was baptised as a child but believes he wasn't saved until later. So Sunday he will be making a public profession of his faith before the church, friends, fam and community. So this week he'll be sharing his testimony with you! More to come....

Many Milestones

Well we now completed our 1st week of home schooling! I can't believe my baby's in kindergarten already! And not only did he start school last week but he lost his first tooth! He was so very excited. It happened on the way home from the beach as he was eating a breakfast cookie (I knew he had a loose tooth- but I thought it had quite some time before it fell out) so he started to chew when all of a sudden he bit down on something hard which he said he thought was a nut so he spit it out. It was then that he realized he lost his first tooth which was now somewhere in the back seat. With shouts of hurray and, "Praise the Lord, this is such a blessing!" coming from the back seat and a huge grin, I snapped a pic and hopped in the back to search for the tooth. (yes I did find it!) Later that night we told Braet that he could put the tooth under his pillow and mommy & daddy would bring him something special in exchange for his tooth. The next morning he proudly presented his goodie bag and said, Thanks Mom, I really like what you and Dad gave me. What a fun mile stone to celebrate together!

School has been going well. I am so pleased with what he is learning and our interactions thus far. We have had a few "Are we going to do school every day?" or "Are we done yet?" But all in all it is going great! We are both working on doing whatever we do for God's glory (even school & laundry =) and of course patience.

A few weeks before school started we told Braet that once he learned all his letters and their sounds we would take him to Toys R Us and let him pick out a special prize. Well with a little hard work and some help from the Leap Frog DVD (FYI, those are great!) that trip was last night!! The prize was a light saber (I'm sure you could have guessed that!) -those new ones that light up and spring out. His next goal is counting to 100. Oh yeah and you can pray for us with handwriting, by far his least fav!

This morning before school Braet grabbed some water and stuck an orange silly straw into the cup, I called him to the tabel and then noticed the teary eyes.The orange straw had reminded him of his brother. "What is it buddy," I asked? "Micah, Micah, I miss my Micah. I want to go to him right now." The ABC were put on hold as Braet climbed into my lap and CC into his! What a time we were able to have together recalling the fun the things the boys had done together, reminding Braet what a good big brother he was to Micah and how the Lord has each one of Braeton's days numbered too and for now he has things for Braet to accomplish, one day soon we will go to him too. Let's live for Jesus, Braet, run the race. It was good to be together. We prayed, we cried, we thanked God that Micah isn't in any pain anymore and asked for comfort for our hearts. "Blessed our those who mourn for they shall be comforted" It was more than academics this morning. A tender moment, I am thankful to have had.

What a gift we have as parents that the Lord would bless each of us with such tender moments of our children touching our hearts and us touching theirs. I so want to continue to be on the lookout for ways to enter my little boys world. I know the days can be crazy but truly our children are gifts from the Lord.Oh to seize the moments!

Thanks Cougars!!!

Below is an email we just recently received and wanted to share it. We are so touched. What an honor. Luke started reading this email to me as we were shopping for souvenirs in OC. Of course I couldn't make it through without tears. It is just so kind!!! And so very special to us. It has been even harder for me lately, we just miss him so- can't tell you how much this means to us. Much, Much Thanks Cougars and all the best to you in this new season!!!

If you would continue to pray for us, we would so appreciate it. We are doing well yet this is by far the hardest trial we have ever known and we are still deeply grieved. Our Pastors, Care Group, close friends and family are caring for us on a daily basis and seeking to walk with us but we would so petition your prayers for continued strength, comfort and joy. Thanks! Much Love, the Davis

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Hi Luke and Kriscinda,
Below is an e-mail that I sent out to Covenant Life School's Men'sVarsity Soccer Team. I hope that you find it encouraging.

Blessings,Bob B.
~~~

Good morning Cougars.
If you've worn your new t-shirt this weekend,you undoubtedly have been reminded of the "3 C's" of our program.Character is always a focus and at the varsity level, Competition grows to be a most important aspect of our work together. Community,the last of the C's, might be my favorite because it allows us to build together as a team and impact Covenant Life School and Covenant Life Church.As a Community, we should seek to build up one another and always seek to give honor where it is due. We will be taking a new step this year to give honor to a very special part of our greater community.Many of you may have heard of the Davis family. Some of you may have had Mr. Miller as your Bible teacher several years ago. For those who do not know these dear friends of mine, their story is one of God's faithfulness during times of trial. The Davis' (Luke and Kriscinda)recently lost their son, Micah, after a long battle with a rare form of brain tumor. Micah, though only three years old, has been a source of encouragement to many in our church and around the world.If you have ever seen a picture of the Davis', you would most likely notice Micah's now famous orange Crocs. This year, and in the years to come we will honor the Davis family by issuing a new, orange Captain's band to the player who is characterized by a "joyful tenacity" on the field. The player chosen to wear this will be a warrior on the field while simultaneously exhibiting exemplary sportsmanship.This new symbol of Community will be debuted at our match tomorrow versus Grace Brethren Waldorf.

Blessings,Coach Buchanan

We're Back!!

It has been a while now since we've posted anything. We've been gone but now we're Back!

First we took our annual camping trip (Labor Day weekend) and this year we camped at Kings Dominion. It was great fun with our family, aunts and uncles, cousins, brothers and mom & dad. CC & Braet both loved the rides! I have soooo many pics to download! The tickets were gifts from Give Kids the World, from our Micah. It was a ton of fun just to be together!

We got home and started to wash everything because of course when you camp you come home and each item you packed smells of smores and smoke!
So next we get a call about a beach house... Luke's boss sent him home that very afternoon (THANKS!) And before I knew it we were packing again and heading to OC. What a special time and place this was to us. Our little Micah had his very first vacation there at 3 months old. The memories of him there were as vivid as yesterday. There was much laughter and for me many tears. Yet it was a wonderful time of refreshing! Time to play and relax together, to talk, think and pray. Luke & I also celebrated our 7th Anniversary at the beach on the Sun., the 9th! What a blessing, isn't the Lord good!! The trip was truly a breath of fresh air, oh so wonderfully refreshing!!!

Brandon also took some fabulous picture for us. We had a lil family photo shoot on Sun. Here are a few. I think I'll be catching up on posts and pics for some time now!

More to come..... =)

Updates

Hi Friends!

Lots of things have been happening here and I wanted to give you the low down and ask for your prayers.

Here's some big and exciting things.... In just a few weeks Braeton is going to begin kindergarden!!! And to boot I'm homeschooling him! Talk about exciting and a lil scary. Most of you may not know this but I have wanted to home school my children since I was about 13! And I know it is not for everyone but I'm am so excited about this opportunity! For me this is a dream come true. We have joined Covenant Life School’s home school program called FSP . They will provide oversight and the Adventure Academy where Braet will be able to take classes one afternoon a week with other students. He is signed up for a special art class and we are working on Soccer with some friends for the fall. I am excited about spending our mornings together learning to read, count, doing art projects, learning God's word and just being together, getting to know Braet better! But as for all home school moms I'm sure there will be new temptations as well, like more patience for the teacher, covering the material, neatness in hand writing, scheduling and paying attention for both of us =) So I would love you prayers as we venture into this journey of home education, that as the year goes by we will be closer as a fam, Braet would be understand his books well and our faith would be built together.

Other Big & Exciting news...We are looking to move!!! We have pretty much out grown our town home and are now looking to try and sell and move into something bigger. Specific prayer for this would be:-that we would be content and joyful for no matter how long we live in the town home - for God to provide a bigger home that we can afford - for us to be able to sell this home in a timely manner-for us to trust the Lord, I would love a home (I think) on a few acres or even to build our own but in this area that almost seems out of the question. We desire to hold these things loosely and trust the Lord's perfect timing, for the right new home for us.
Update on Mom & Dad Dad has been cleared to drive again. Some of you may remember he had a seizure on April 28th and couldn't drive for the past 3 months. He has been through several tests and all came back clear for seizure activity. His most recent MRI is also clear for any evidence of further tumor regrowth. He will continue on anti-seizure medicine as statistics show that if you have had previous "brain trauma" (the tumor) and experience a seizure, there is an 80% likelihood of a seizure occurring again. Not that we are moved by "statistics" but using wisdom and following the care God has provided through the doctors. Dad will also be looking for a new job. He was going to go to a class to pursue becoming a MD certified home inspector when his seizure occurred. The next class will not take place until the Fall. So, our prayer would be that Dad would know what direction to go and be able to find a good job in this next season. Mom has returned to work full time and continues to recover from her kidney removal in July. The tumor was cancerous but the pathology report shows it was confined to the kidney. For some unknown reason to us at this time, they have graded the tumor higher then the original report. This means mom will be seeing an oncologist in a couple weeks and they will follow her closely every 3 months for the next year. Please pray for her continued trust in the Lord's plan and to take captive the anxious thoughts when they come.

Cameron & Brandon
Cam is starting his 3rd year of college (can you believe it) in Mechanical Engineering. He has been able to work at NRL this summer for an internship. He has really enjoyed it and gotten to apply alot of his text book learning. He hopes to transfer to Maryland soon.
Brandon has been working at the church some on the facilities team as well as working on his Nova. Long story short my poor brother got taken on a eBay "deal" so since his car got totalled a few months ago they are seeking to restore this classic Nova and then sell to recoup losses. I think this one is going to be hard to part with once its done! He is also entering his 2nd year of college in Criminal Justice. How they have grown up so quickly. It is hard to believe they are in college. They have helped us so much in this season. Thanks guys for stepping us and continue to seek to care for us!

1 Month

Saturday the 25th marked 1 month. We have our "M&M’s" (Micah Moments) every now and again.There is not a day that passes that he isn't thought of with fondness. Our Micah Moments come suddenly and at unexpected times. Every once in awhile it hits so very hard as our memory recalls him so vividly. All of a sudden I become filled with a sadness and a peace at the same time. The gas station where Luke would stop and let the boys get "Bug Juice" each trip to Maw & Paws, a meeting at the church building, a park where he played, the toy isle where he'd say, "Look at dat Momma, Look at dat!" His lil fingerprints are everywhere we travel. His cheerful checks and joyful lil heart we miss so. But what a blessing to have so many memories. Our memories are so grand and how wonderful that in the not too distant future our memories of our little man will be reality once again. How our thankfulness continues to grow for our Savior! We love how CC does so many things like Micah, even wanting to wear her crocs to bed! It is so fun for Luke & I to watch, she even sleeps like him on her belly with her arms tucked by her side!

On Saturday we were in DE at Maw & Paws for the weekend visiting and just enjoying being together. It was a wonderful day playing with the kiddos, eating yummy food and hanging out. Braet, Luke & I were in the pool off and on all day. What a joy to play with Braeton and him watch swim, what a lil fish! As I was laying down in a lawn chair thinking about the wonderful day we were enjoying, my thoughts went to Micah. I wonder what my lil man is doing right now? Is he cuddled up in the arms of Jesus, maybe chasing a rainbow to the very end, or having a jam session- he loved to play and sing songs to Jesus, maybe he's singing praises right now. Whatever it is I am sure it is grand. As wonderful as our best days are, his are hundreds of times better because peace, rest, joy, hope, and love are his in perfection as the presence of the Savior is forever his home.

For a day in your courts is better than a thousand elsewhere. Ps 84:10

Thanks for continuing the journey with us. So many have become dear. We have met many new friends and treasured old ones all the more. So grateful for each of you!

FYI
Next week we hope to try and pick out Micah's headstone. Pray for our hearts, our desire is to purchase something special to pay a small tribute to our little man.

pics from Aug 2006-