The day our firstborn child came into our world was amazing. I had the privilege of being in the delivery room for all four of our kids when they were born. But when Josh, our oldest, was born, it was different.
Cindy and I were super excited. A new stage in our lives was about to begin. Both our families were looking forward with great anticipation for this new arrival.
Then reality struck. Josh, our beloved new born was diagnosed with Down Syndrome.
Cindy’s response was immediately to love on him and cherish him as the gift from God that he was.
I too shared her immediate and unconditional love, but to be honest my brain started spinning. Having never encountered Down Syndrome on an up close and personal level—This was all new territory to me. So I dove in to discover just what exactly this diagnosis meant.
There was no Google, and for sure there was no Siri or Alexa, in those days. So off to the library and bookstore I went to find whatever I could on the subject.
After many hours of reviewing everything I could get my hands on, it was almost as if God said out loud—“Just love him and be the very best parents for him you can be and I’ll take care of the rest.”
And now over 32 years later, He has done just that!
Through it all we have been reminded of the biblical truth that God is the Author of life (Genesis 1:26, Psalm 139:13,14) and the Authority over life (Job 14:5, 12:10).
We thank God every day for Josh—Even the tough ones. Josh teaches us more about God and about ourselves than anything else in life.
Today I can say without hesitation or reservation that I am a proud dad of an amazing Son named Josh—Who just so happens to have Down Syndrome.
