Thank you to each and every one for your love, sympathy, and compassion. Melanie and I have been blessed over and over again as we’ve read your blog comments, the Scripture you left, the poems, the hymns . . . the Lord has used each word to comfort us. Our Father has surrounded us with His care expressed by not only Himself, but others as well. We are amazed at how many people have suffered losses similar to ours. Thank you for loving Susannah.
The Lord has granted strength for each step. Things I thought would be impossible I’ve been able to do. This is not my strength or wisdom but God’s graciousness.
Tomorrow evening is the public visitation. Please pray both for this, and the family graveside service on Friday. We desire for God to be glorified in all areas. This is so out of our realm and comfort zone, yet our heart’s desire is to trust and honor Him. We want people to meet our little Susannah. We desire that God would use her life and death for His purposes in hearts.
We’re preparing a photo slide-show of our precious days with Susannah that we’ll post in the next day or so. Many of you have loved her and will hopefully be blessed by seeing some more of her. We delight in the four days we had with our SusieQ.
Job 1:20-22 has been very significant to us. My pastor shared this with us, and we have been meditating on it since. My mom memorized it while holding Susannah her last night with us, she quoted it out loud many times and thought Susannah probably learned it before she did. Job, after being told of the loss of his children and possessions, got up from where he was, tore his rob, shaved his head, fell to the ground and worshiped. David, (2 Samuel 12:20) after being told of the death of his first son by Bathsheba, arose from where he was, washed, and went into the house of the Lord where he worshiped. Melanie and I are desiring a response to Susannah’s home going that involves heart-felt worship while prostrate before our Lord.
Melanie sang the first verse and chorus of Trusting Jesus to Susannah frequently. I will close with it.
Simply trusting ev’ry day,
Trusting thro’ a stormy way;
Even when my faith is small,
Trusting Jesus, that is all.
Refrain:
Trusting as the moments fly,
Trusting as the days go by;
Trusting Him whate’er befall,
Trusting Jesus, that is all.
(Edgar Page Stites)
Nathan
I am so blessed by the wonderful things you allow our Lord and Savior to do through you. You and your beautiful wife are precious in the sight of God. may his peace, joy, love, and grace engulf all the areas of this time you are going through. blessings to you,
The Lacayo family
Thanks for posting. We have continued to pray for you guys, and will continue to do so.
Dear Nathan and Melanie,
I’m praying for the peace of God which passes all understanding to keep your hearts and minds in the days ahead. Know that you have been and will continue to be lifted up by so many more people that you will never even hear from, because, like me, they don’t know you personally. But we are brothers and sisters in Christ and weep with you as you weep and hold you up continually before the throne of grace that you might find grace to help you in this time.
Your faith in the Lord during this time of unimaginable suffering has been such an inspiration to me. What a beautiful testament you and Melanie are for Jesus. My children are still very small, but it my heart’s desire to raise them to be true followers of Christ. You and Melanie inspire me to continue with my mission, because the fruit will be so sweet, as I’m sure it is for your parents and Melanie’s parents. I will continue to pray for you, as I know there are dark days ahead. Much love to you both, and to baby Susannah.
What precious memories you have to cherish of Susannah. Praying for you in the coming days. I pray that God will be glorified even in the midst of your pain and that you will find joy and peace. I pray that many will be drawn closer to the Lord through this time. Prayers and love to you all!!!
What a beautiful, sweet picture of the moments you shared with your precious little girl. Praise God for the memories you will have of her, short though they may have been.
Thank you for sharing.
Praying with and for you, Melanie, as you recover. May God make it as quick and gentle as possible.
Blessings and prayers, Jacque
I have spent a lot of time over the last few days thinking about what it must be like to lose a child. My husband and I are not parents, but my heart breaks for what it must be like to lose your precious child. A family friend (a 22-year-old girl) was murdered from an act of senseless, random gun violence on this past Saturday, and to see how her parents grieve is heart-wrenching. Whether you have a child for 22 years or only days, I know that it must be incredibly painful. One thing, though, that does come to mind is how much potential we have on Earth (no matter how long or short our stay) to touch lives and bring God’s love and grace to others. Your little girl did that in her short time, I know that she graced your lives with the same. May you find comfort and peace with one another as God holds you tightly. Much love as prayers continue…
For you Nathan and Melanie: I wrote earlier but wanted to take some time to share with you. I love you with the love of Christ! This is an attempt to write a song (My first song ever so if it is pretty amatuer that is why. I just felt really led to put it together for you as an encouragement) for you based on the scriptures you talked about in your last post:
Above It All:
I cannot bear the warrior’s armour
Nor can I see clearly through the tears
I want to cry and then bow to defeat
But it is the knowledge of how HE sees
How his glory is seen above it all.
Chorus:
Above it all, He is there
Above it all, His glory is seen
Above it all, I will worship always
Above it all is Jesus
Shadows come in the form of doubt
Unpredictable are the times
Darkness of sorrow all but encompasses me
But is the knowledge of how HE guides
And how His glory seen above it all
Chorus
Prostrate before the Lord I fall
Not in recognition of what I give
For to worship Jesus is what I do
But it is the knowledge of what HE gave
And how His Glory seen above it all.
Bridge: You carry me. You hold my heart. Molding me to be like you. You wrap your warmth around my wound. Precious Jesus, you help me see above it all. I see You.
So when Satan and his foes threaten
When humanity proclaims all the answers
Memories accuse and remind
Remember is is the knowledge of Jesus
And His glory will see you through above it all.
Chorus
Melanie-We met your parents, when we were pregnant with our 18 year old son. Emily, our little girl who died when I was 6months pregnant would of been a year older then him. Your parents were very kind and gave us good advise that eventually led us to HS. They gave us the book “Better Late than Early” by the Moores.
Nathan and Melanie: My husband crafted a casket for our dear one and used fabric to cover it from my wedding dress. He then gave it to the mortician to use. We had a graveside service. Both sides of our family as well as friends traveled 150 miles to the service. A real testimate to the life of a baby. I was wondering if you were having a service and I am glad you are. It will celebrate Susannah’s life which is worth allot no matter how short and bring closure for you.
Make sure you both, especially you Melanie, get plenty of rest. Don’t just try to get back to normal as quickly as possible. Your physical bodies have been through quite a trama, even you Nathan. Give yourself time to read the word, eat nourishing food and talk allot with those closest to you so you can process your feelings. It will be tempting not to do devotions because quite frankly your relationship with God will be a little different and uncomfortable. But do devotions draw close and embrace this new relationship you have with Him. He loves you and has a plan for you as individuals, as a couple and your role as parents. Lastly, cry together, talk together and be honest together. May this experience bring you closer in your marriage not distance. His Glory will see you through, above it all.
Marilyn
I continue to be amazed by the testament of your faith. My family and I will be praying for you as you try and get through these next few days. Hold on tight to Jesus, to eachother, and to the knowledge that you will be with your little SusieQ again someday. She will be there to greet you at Heaven’s gates with open arms and a smile on her face…what a joyous reunion that will be!
May the Lord shower you with peace and love during this difficult time.
In His Love,
Michelle
Be still, and know that I am God
Hello Nathan and Melanie:
We wanted you to know that we are praying for you and know that in the days ahead, the LORD will draw you so close and comfort you. He did this to us when our baby went to live in heaven with Him two years ago. Cling to Jesus…. We know that your hearts are broken but with the LORD carrying you — you will go forward. There will be such a wonderful reunion at the Marriage Supper of the Lamb!!! God bless you.
We will be worshipping the Lord with you tomorrow… although physcially far away. Our own hearts are comforted in the Hope that you have in Christ Jesus…. Through your weakness, He has made you strong… and as a result, given others power to believe on His name because we have seen the reality of God your sweet submission to His will. This is what being a light in this world is all about… you through death of your own dreams and desires and the love of your heart… have spread life to many throughout the world. Thank you for being willing to be a minister of Christ to all of us… yes indeed, Nathan and Melanie… little Susannah Joy has brought more of Christ in her few short days here on this earth, than many believers do in a life time. though it is hard to see now… It will be worth it all… when we see Jesus….
We love you dearly,
Your friends from Alaska
You’re an inspiration. I’m praying for you. Bless you.
Bindyxxxxxxxx
Bless your hearts. I can only hope and pray that we have such love and faith in the Lord some day. We are remembering you often in prayer. It is so evident that God is carrying you through and He IS being glorified through you and your beautiful godly family. I think so often of Job and his response to the suffering God allowed in His life.
You remain in our hearts and prayers.
Much love in Christ,
Tina and family
My eyes long to see you
Now you behold Him
My arms ache for you
Now you know perfect love.
My ears yearn for your voice
Now you sing His praises.
I desire to feed you
Now you will never know hunger.
I anticipated the pitter-patter of your feet
Now you play at His pierced ones.
I dreamed of years of love and laughter
Now you will never know pain.
I longed to watch you grow and develop
Now you are perfect.
This isn’t how I planned
but I know He loves you
and me.
Monique Stam
(This poem was posted on the MOMYS Digest)
The Lord’s grace is sufficient and we will continue to pray that He carry you through these next difficult days and that He grant you a heart of worship in the midst of unimaginable grief. May the Lord wrap you in His loving arms and comfort you both!
you are in our thoughts and prayers at this time.
Praying for you & think of you often. Thanks for sharing. God has so wonderously upheld you, thus far, and He will continue to do so. The days ahead will not be easy, but the Lord will give you the strength & grace to get through. What a multitude of praying people you have!
What a ministry you have been given to give to others through your precious daughter’s short life. Only eternity will reveal how great an impact she had on the lives of those around her, far & near.
We don’t know the “why’s” of why God allows such things to happen, but when we can be submissive to His will, can share w/ others His love, can minister to others through our losses, what honor & glory He must be given!
I look forward to seeing your slide-show of Susannah. We treasure the very few photos we have of our son, and also a very special gift that the delivery nurse made for us ~ a mold of his tiny, precious feet!
Often, when I think of Reuben (our stillborn son) & the many other children I know who have gone on before us, I can’t help but be awestruck w/ the thought of the magnitude of the angelic choir of children’s voices singing in heaven! What that must be like we can only imagine!
“Suffer little children to come unto Me, and forbid them not: for of such is the kingdom of God.” (Luke 18:16)
Continually thinking of you in Michigan,
Laura
I continue to pray for your family and rejoice to see your faith and trust in Him. Just six weeks ago, dear friends of ours lost a child at 18 weeks along in their pregnancy. It was, I believe, the 3rd time, that they’d lost a child in the 2nd trimester of pregnancy; they do have 5 living children. Their faith in God was also a blessing to see, and they testify that they and their children have been drawn closer to Him through each loss. I pray the same for you.
Dear Melanie & Nathan & Maxwell family
I will be praying for you all. GOD bless, comfort and give you peace. Thank you very much for all the updates.
We are still praying for you. We know that the Lord will comfort and sustain you through this time. God is the best parent a child could have. What a day it will be when we are reunited with the ones we love who have gone on before us.
Nathan and Melanie,
Our family is praying for you and crying with you. We’ve passed along to our friends here in Vermont your story and all are praying for God’s grace to be sufficient. “But unto every one of us is given grace according to the measure of the gift of Christ.” May He measure out his grace to you today as you need it.
Greg M. family
I was awakened at 4:30 this morning and burdened to pray for your dear family.
I am praying that He will draw you closer to him and to each other during this time of grief………praying that He will let the healing balm of His love flow down upon you and into your wounded hearts…
much love,
Diane
We are continuing to pray for you both and your families. May the Lord CONTINUE to be glorified through this, may the hearts of those who attend the events be prepared to hear Him glorified throughth is precious but short life lived here. I too was drawn to the Book of Job and pray that He will bless you ubundently (Nathan and Melanie) as He did Job for his faithfulness.
In Him,
Toni
Beautiful- it is simply beautiful to see your faith and trust, and your desire to worship the Lord. I think that is the perfect response. May the comfort of the Lord and His Glory come to you as you worship Him.
We have lost two of our babies to miscarriage. The first loss was heartbreaking and depressing. I was not praising the Lord, or content- mainly about other things in my life such as an unwanted move, etc. I was not leaning on the Lord. With the second miscarriage, I was leaning on the Lord, and He carried me through in an amazing way.
The verse He impressed on our hearts (as He did for you) was Job 1:21…such a magnificent verse, and such a comfort. Truly, the Lord is leading you through the valley of the shadow of death. Although you may not be able to see out of the valley right now, He will faithfuly lead, and you will have joy in the midst of mourning…for the joy of the Lord is our strength. This is not the joy which the world speaks of, but joy in Him and His strength and goodness.
I will be praying for you as you have the visitation and graveside service. May God be glorified in all, and may He use Susannah Joy’s life, and her impact on all of you, for His glory.
We look forward to the photos/slideshow of Susannah. Thank you for sharing them.
Blessings in the Lord,
Sarah, for all in the family
Nathan and Melanie,
Thank you so much for sharing this with us. Our hearts go out to you both. I will be praying for you all for both the viewing and the graveside service. Thank for sharing little Susannah with us.
Kim H.
Dear Nathan and Melanie,
I am so very sorry for your loss.
God used, and is continuing to use the Job verses you referenced in us too. We lost our little boy after 41 weeks in the womb almost 4 months ago. We sang (or cried through) the following song at his funeral.
” Blessed be your name
In the land that is plentiful
Where the streams of abundance flow
Blessed be your name
Blessed be your name
When I’m found in the desert place
Though I walk through the wilderness
Blessed be your name
Every blessing you pour out,
I turn back to praise
When the darkness closes in, Lord
Still I will say…
Blessed be the name of the Lord
Blessed be your name
Blessed be the name of the Lord
Blessed be your glorious name
Blessed be your name
When the sun’s shining down on me
When the world’s all as it should be
Blessed be your name
Blessed be your name
On the road marked with suffering
Though there’s pain in the offering
Blessed be your name
Every blessing you pour out,
I turn back to praise
When the darkness closes in, Lord
Still I will say…
Blessed be the name of the Lord
Blessed be your name
Blessed be the name of the Lord
Blessed be your glorious name
You give and take away
You give and take away
My heart will choose to say
Lord, Blessed be your name”
I will be praying for you.
I continue to pray for you all. Everyday at different times of the day, you will pop into my mind and I pray.
I am looking forward to the slideshow of your precious daughter.
Nathan (and Melanie!) I am so blessed to see this update. You are still in our prayers, and our thoughts. Your Susannah blessed my family, and I wish I were close enough to come hug you myself. Instead, I will have to lift you up to our Father, and believe that He is hugging you close. Many prayers for the coming days. I have placed the picture of the three of you on my computer desktop. It reminds me of how precious life is, all life, and it reminds me to pray for you thoughout the day.
In His Grace,
Sheri
Dear Nathan and Melanie,
God bless you two as you walk through the days this week, the coming weeks, and as you celebrate Susannah’s life with your family and friends this week. It’s neat that you are marking her life in this way. I look forward to seeing the slide show of more pictures of her!
As an aside, we have friends who have been married for 12 years, have lost four babies (each one at least halfway through the pregnancy), and I found out a few weeks ago that they have a 15 month old son now! This one was born early, too, but he lived and is doing well. I was so excited to hear it, I called my friend right away, even though I hadn’t talked with her in a few years. They are just thrilled. I hesitated to share this story with you, but I hope it encourages you somehow.
Melanie, may God continue to bless you as you go through the birth recovery process as well. (((Melanie)))
Colleen
A butterfly lights beside us
like a sunbeam,
and for a brief moment,
it’s glory and beauty belong to our world
But then it must fly again.
And though we hate to see it go,
We feel so blessed to have seen it.
—Author Unknown—
This poem was sent to us by a dear lady on the old Mom’s Board after we lost our son, Caleb, getting to spend only 14 days with him. We too cherished every moment. We tried not to have a “funeral” but a Celebtration of Life service. We even had an alter call for any lost friends and family who might have been present. We use this poem even now as our butterfly flew away to heaven. A copy of it sits with his pictures and is on his memorial at the cemetary.
I pray that through our Saviour’s Love that it will bring you some confort also.
Praying in Jesus Name,
Andrea
Thank you very much for all I am receiving through your faith and attitude. You are really comforters even in the middle of your trials. I do thank the Lord for you all.
Love,
MarÃa
nathan, you and melaine have been in our prayers since we learned of your precious susannah. our prayers continue to be with you.
thank you for posting amd giving an update–i will share with my bible study group tonight how you are doing.
i continue to be awe of you both and your faith. the strength you are showing and trust in god is an inspiration to me personally. my husband is battleing cancer that has returned, and he is not doing well. reading your posts have reignited my own faith.
blessings, mari
Dear Nathan and Melanie,
Thank you for sharing your Susannah Joy to the rest of the world. She surely is a JOY to our Lord Jesus Christ, and brought unspeakable JOY into your lives and hearts to treasure until your time to meet her again. I think about the two of you often, and continue to pray for you. The two of you and your precious daughter have been a blessing to so many lives and hearts.
I attended a funeral this past summer for a baby that lived a few hours after birth. I will keep you both in my prayers. May the Lord heal your hurt and make you both stronger in Jesus’ love. Kim C.
Nathan and Melanie,
I have been praying for you, and so have my daughters. Susannah Joy was a beautiful baby.
I know this is a painful time for you. I have never lost a child, but my younger daughter was a preemie, and was in the NICU. This same daughter had a blood disease three years ago this month. So, my heart does go out to you.
There are really no words that I can say that will comfort your hearts, but I do know the Lord is close to the brokenhearted.
May He give you strength, and comfort today, and in the days ahead.
I have shed tears for you also.
Nathan and Melanie,
Tonight was beautiful. Your pictures were a powerful look into the love you have for your daughter. A doting father and the immeasurable love of a mother were evident in each precious photo. Your momentous were rich in love and faithfulness. God hand picked you to be Susannah’s parents and you’re doing a wonderful job. May you find peace and strength in the days ahead. I will pray for you and your families as you say your heart wreching goodbye tomorrow. Please know you’re never far from our minds and our prayers.
Blessings and love,
Keri, Jim and Bailey
“Don’t be afraid, I’ve redeemed you.
I’ve called you by name. You’re mine.
When you’re in over your head, I’ll be there with you.
When you go through rough waters, you will not go down.
When you’re between a rock and a hard place,
it won’t be a dead end.
Becasue I am God, your personal God,
I paid a huge price for you:
That’s how much I love you!
So don’t be afraid : I’m with you.
Isaiah 42
My heart continues to think of you and pray for you! I am so blessed to hear how the Lord has been giving you strength and grace for each moment. It’s ‘easy’ to testify to His goodness and faithfulness when things are good, but it’s a totally different thing to testify to His goodness and faithfulness when your hearts are breaking and there’s so many unanswered questions. I am so blessed and challenged by your focus on the Lord through this very difficult time. What an amazing testimony to the world of who He is. Not of what strong, wonderful people you are — but that in the midst of a dark, trying time — when you are so weak and ‘human’ — He remains strong, firm, and steadfast — meeting every need.
My heart, my tears, and my prayers will be remaining with you and I, too, will be worshipping His name! May He use every biit of this to bring glory to His Name!
“But I will sing of your strength, in the morning I will sing of your love; for you are my fortress, my refuge in times of trouble.” Psalm 59:16
Oh Dear Ones,
I am so sorry to hear about your loss. I actually came to the website to see how you three were doing, have not been on here since Dec, and my heart sank and tears formed when I read your blog. I just want both of you to know that I will be praying for everyone in the family. May our dear and precious Lord give you strength and comfort! Blessing!
Continuing to lift you both up in prayers and your families as well. May the Lord continue to give you strength and comfort in the days to come.
I have been reading the updates of your family this past year. Truly, I have been blessed greatly with your lives. Mostly in this time of great trial, seeing the wonderous works of our Lord in your lives. May the Lord continue to strengthen you and your family.
And thank you for being willing to lay down your lives so that others might be blessed by it.
Camila
You are heavily on my heart. Our family continues to pray for your family. May the Lord give you peace and comfort, and assure you of His presence and love at all times, in unique ways. You have blessed so many with your testimony of Susannah. Thank you.
Grace,
Mae in Va
Many, many prayers for both of you in your loss. My heart breaks for you but God will hold you next to His heart through the days ahead. He is ever faithful, even when things make no sense to us. She is such a beautiful baby, your lovely little girl. I am so very, very sorry.
Nathan and Melanie,
Again, I am encouraged and uplifted by your faith as you walk through this valley. Your desire to trust and honor the Lord, even in your darkest hour, is such an inspiration to me. It is our desire to raise our children on a very narrow road, so that they will learn a love for the Lord like the one that you have exemplified to me through this blog. How in awe both of your parents must be of you both! We have been praying for you as a family, and individually as well. I pray that you will embrace the Lord now, when things start to quiet down, and build an even stronger relationship with Him. In my experience, after losing our child, it was difficult to be with the Lord in the way that I had in the past. The relationship had changed, and it made it awkward for me. Please, please, find the Lord in this new place that you will be at with Him, and build your relationship from there. I am also praying that you, and your friends and family, are meeting your physical needs as well. It is so important that you take care of your physical self as well. We will continue to pray. My husband and I have only met your parents (Nathan), years ago, but it would be an absolute honor to meet you both someday. My God bless you, and thank your for blessing us.
Stephanie
I am so sorry. I just learned of your loss this morning, and my heart is broken for you. What a gift Susannah is. Thank you for sharing this with us.
May God bless you as you walk this difficult path with Him. I am praying for you, as are hundreds of others who love you and your family.
My heart understands the pain of losing a child. I am so sorry.
Many hugs and much love,
Julie in Texas
Bless you, Nathan and Melanie and little Susannah. Bless your families. This past 10 days must seem almost surreal to you. May you find peace. May you get some rest. May you get up in the morning and find rejuvenation and hope.
I look forward to seeing the photos you speak about of little Susannah. They must be bittersweet for you, but I know for those of us who weren’t able to meet little Susannah, it would help us to know her.
Rest now.
I am praying for your entire family and especially Nathan and Melanie. You all have been such a blessing to me over the years and I am broken-hearted to know that you must bear such grief. I look forward to someday meeting your precious Susannah in Heaven.
Dear Nathan &Melanie,
I cried today when I read of what you all are going through. This December it was 10 years ago that we said our goodbyes to our Allyssa Hope. She went home to be with the Lord when she was 6 months old. The months that followed her homegoing tested our faith; and brought us to a clearer more perfected love of our Saviour. You will remain in our prayers! Our hearts can trust fully in the Lord and His will for our lives; yet the pain remains. I know that looking back now I view Ally’s homegoing as the biggest blessing God ever brought into our lives. We have had so many opportunities to share Christ with others and to learn of Him through the pain – that I know God blessed us by allowing us to go through that difficult time. We are praying for you all that God’s grace will be evident and your faith increased in the months to come. The words to this song were sung at the close of Ally’s Homegoing service – I thought I would include them here:
God Makes No Mistakes
My Life I give to you oh Lord – use me I pray
May I glorify your precious name – in all I do and say
Let me trust you in the valley dark – as well as in the light
Knowing you will always lead me – your will is always right
I know God makes no mistakes;
He leads in every path I take
Along the way – that’s leading me to home
Though at times my heart would break
There’s a purpose in every change He makes
That others would see my life and know
That God – Makes no Mistakes!
You will remain in our prayers,
Pastor Rob and Martie S.
Kaukauna, WI
We are praying for you. May the Lord give you His grace to make it through the difficult days ahead. We serve a mighty God.
Sorry for your loss. I follow your parents montly mom and dad corner emails. I am praying for your family.
God Bless.
Love & prayers,
Candy and family (from Canada)
Shortly after my nephew Isaac, 27, went home to be with the Lord on March 17th, following a car accident… we heard about little Susannah, and I thought…. I bet Isaac is holding her right now. As we know Heaven is real, we will meet our loved ones again real soon. She will never have to know the hardships of this earth..It is we who sorrow who are left behind. You all are in our thoughts and prayers….Continue Praise and honor to Jesus is what we all need to do, as we look forward to that glorius day of re-uniting !! God Bless you all !!!