The Story of Anthem (Revisited)

Krissy has taken the time to write out the story of our baby girl to come. Here it is, in her own words...

Feb 07 I had a dream which I believed may be a vision. It woke me up out of a dead sleep. In the dream, I had just given birth to a beautiful, healthy little girl. Her name was Anthem.

The next day, Eric said that New Day had told him that all the sales reps’ favorite song on the One compilation worship CD, was the song that I sang. It was called “He’s Always Been Faithful.” I began to sing the song, and I was in shock as I got to verse number 3 (very symbolic.) It says, “This is my anthem, this is my song. The theme of the stories I’ve heard for so long. God has been faithful, He will be again. His lovingkindness, it knows no end.”

May 07 I went out to visit my sister Maribeth in Phoenix. Her mailing address is Phoenix, but when I arrived there, she actually lived closer to a little city called Anthem. I felt amazed again in wonder, as we drove by all the Anthem signs.

December 07 I remember being at our church’s Christmas Eve service on the 24th. I couldn’t believe the number of times the word “anthem” popped up in the Christmas carols. I was tearing up and had goose bumps! Lord, was this You?

March 08 I went to a beautiful prayer service with my friends from church. I felt God touching me in a very deep way that night, healing some emotional scars that I did not know were there. The next morning, I opened my Bible up to this verse: Psalm 27:6 (The Message) “God holds me head and shoulders above all who try to pull me down. I’m headed for his place to offer anthems that will raise the roof (the title of one of my songs as well)! Already I’m singing God-songs; I’m making music to God.”

April 08 Jim Harrison, from church, told me twice within a short amount of time that the Lord was about to give me a new song. Did this mean literally a song, or an anthem?

July 27, 08 Eric was insisting that I was pregnant, and I was only one day late. We were getting ready to go to the airport, and I told him that he would have to go get a test for me if he wanted me to take it. He did, and it was positive!!!! Anthem, is it you?

As I flew up to Michigan for concerts that weekend, these are all verses that I randomly opened up to over the weekend.

Isaiah 54:2-4 …You’re ending up with far more children than all those childbearing women.” God says so! “Clear lots of ground for your tents! Make your tents large. Spread out! Think big! Use plenty of rope, drive the tent pegs deep. You’re going to need lots of elbow room for your growing family…

Isaiah 66:9 Do I open the womb and not deliver the baby? Do I, the One who deliver babies, shut the womb?

Matthew 1:20-23 While he was trying to figure a way out, he had a dream. God’s angel spoke in the dream: “Joseph, son of David, don’t hesitate to get married. Mary’s pregnancy is Spirit-conceived. God’s Holy Spirit has made her pregnant. She will bring a son to birth, and when she does, you, Joseph, will name him Jesus—‘God saves’--- because he will save his people from their sins.

Psalm 92:1-3 What a beautiful thing, God, to give thanks, to sing an anthem to you, the High God! To announce your love each daybreak, sing your faithful presence all through the night, Accompanied by dulcimer and harp, the full-bodied music of strings.

July 30, 08 At a concert I was singing in Michigan, the pastor introduced me as having 3 children even though he didn’t know I was pregnant.

August, 08 I was experiencing lots of cramping. I was very scared. I called the doctor, and he told me, “If you’re going to have a miscarriage, you’re going to have a miscarriage.” I held on to the picture of the healthy baby in my dream, and changed doctors.

More verses I opened up to:

Jeremiah 1:5 “Before I shaped you in the womb, I knew all about you. Before you saw the light of day, I had holy plans for you….”

Psalm 89:5 God! Let the cosmos praise your wonderful ways, the choir of holy angels sing anthems to your faithful ways!

Our good friends Amy and Brett Stewart were praying for us and the baby. As we were praying, Amy found Isaiah 44:1-5 “But for now, dear servant Jacob, listen--- yes, you, Israel my personal choice. God who made you has something to say to you; the God who formed you in the womb wants to help you. Don’t be afraid, dear servant Jacob, Jeshurun, the one I chose. For I will pour water on the thirsty ground and send streams coursing through the parched earth. I will pour my Spirit into your descendants and my blessing on your children. They shall sprout like grass on the prarie, like willows alongside creeks. This one will say, ‘I am God’s,’ and another will go by the name Jacob; That one will write on his hand ‘God’s property’—and be proud to be called Israel.”

The next day as I was reading this passage again, I read on. This is Isaiah 44:6-8. God, King of Israel, your Redeemer, God-of-the-Angel-Armies, says: “I’m first, I’m last, and everything in between. I’m the only God there is. Who compares with me? Speak up. See if you measure up. From the beginning, who else has always announced what’s coming? So what is coming next? Anybody want to venture a try? Don’t be afraid, and don’t worry: Haven’t I always kept you informed, told you what was going on? You’re my eyewitnesses: Have you ever come across a God, a real God, other than me? There’s no Rock like me that I know of.”

The same day, Amy called. She said she got up at 4:30 in the morning because she was so excited about our news. She decided to read her daily Bible reading. For the Old Testament, her reading for the day was in 2 Chronicles 35:25. It says, “Jeremiah composed an anthem of lament for Josiah. The anthem is still sung by the choirs of Israel to this day. The anthem is written in the Laments.

I had lots of problems with blood pressure and finding the right medication and dosage. I called my new doctor one night, and he told me that I may not want to continue the pregnancy. This followed with continued nausea, urinary tract infections, and kidney stones. Still, I tried to fend off fear by holding on to my dream.

September 08 Our church worship department began writing songs for an upcoming CD. I sent a partial song to our worship leader, Michael Neale. He sent me back a finished song, writing in the email that ‘the chorus ended up sounding like an anthem. God is using this song!’

October 08 I was getting very nervous for the ultrasound coming the next week. I asked God to speak to me. He showed me Psalm 135:3. It says….Shout “Hallelujah!” because God’s so good, sing anthems to his beautiful name.

November 1, 08 The next day, Eric’s Quietime Christmas DVD was delivered. The last verse on the DVD was Luke 2:38 …(Anna) never left the Temple area, worshiping night and day with her fastings and prayers. At the very time Simeon was praying, she showed up, broke into an anthem of praise to God, and talked about the child to all who were waiting expectantly for the freeing of Jerusalem.

November 2, 08 This was the day before the ultrasound, and I was VERY nervous. I wanted to know that all these things were truly from God, and that the baby was safe. God showed me Isaiah 45:9-11 “I, God, generate all this. But doom to you who fight your Maker—you’re a pot at odds with the potter! Does clay talk back to the potter: ‘What are you doing? What clumsy fingers!’ Would a sperm say to a father, ‘Who gave you permission to use me to make a baby?’ Or a fetus to a mother, ‘Why have you cooped me up in this belly?’” Thus God, the Holy of Israel, Israel’s Maker says: “Do you question who or what I’m making? Are you telling me what I can or cannot do? I made earth, and I created man and woman to live on it…” Okay, God, I know I can trust you.

November 3, 08 The day of our ultrasound, and I was still very nervous. The boys came with us and watched it all happen. The nurse spent 20 minutes looking at every possible body part of the baby. The baby looked healthy, and finally it was time to check the gender!! She asked me if I could tell what it was and I responded “Is it a boy?!” – mainly out of fear and family history. And she said right after, “No, it’s not a boy.” And I thought, ‘she said it’s not a boy, does that mean it’s a girl? She didn’t say it was a girl. What if it’s both?!’ Then, I looked at Eric. And he said with tears in his eyes, “It’s a girl.” Right then, the boys smiled the biggest smiles they’ve ever made. I am so glad we were able to share that moment as a family. It is ANTHEM!!!

February 2009: Brett Stewart, our pastor, at Anthem's baby shower with our church family, said wouldn't it be just like God to give us Anthem on the first day of spring?  Well, Krissy is scheduled to be induced on March 20th - the first day of spring. We'll see...

God, you have been amazingly faithful! We love You.