i need to ask you to do something

My heart is so heavy right now, I'm struggling to find words, so I apologize for this post being a little short. I need to ask you to pray for our friends. Matt and Patrice are an amazing young couple who are a part of my Sunday School class and are also Youth Leaders. We were just beginning to get to know them towards the end of Patrice's first pregnancy when she discovered that her baby boy had passed away in utero. Shawn and I watched them grieve with amazing faith and we quickly came to respect and admire their authenticity and steadfastness. Later, Patrice discovered she was pregnant again, and she gave birth yesterday. A beautiful baby boy was born, but he was born with Epidermolysis Bullosa, a skin condition that leaves much of his skin raw.

I'm not sure if we can explain why exactly, but Shawn and I are shaken to the core by this and our hearts are so heavily burdened. I want to just wrap my arms around Patrice and not let go. I want to take some of their burden and carry it for awhile. I want to touch Jonah's skin and make it not hurt so Patrice can hold her son. My heart literally aches for them.

So please, check out their blog: http://patriceandmattwilliams.blogspot.com/ and more importantly, pray...please pray for their family.