Defining Moment

Dear Petra,
There are times in life when you have a defining moment. I have had many in my life:
1.the day Jesus saved my soul.
2. the day I surrendered my life to Jesus' Lordship in Sanctification, being set apart for His purposes...
3. The day i was filled with the Holy Spirit with the evidence of praying in the Spirit, "tongues".
4. The day i experienced God's special calling on my life, confirming that He was calling me into full time ministry.
5. The day i asked your mommy out and held her hand for the first time, deciding that her spirituality, faith, beliefs, priorities, and friendship was what attracted me and was more important to me, more than the typical stuff boys look for...
6. the day i married your mommy, Dec. 28, 1996. the happiest day of my life.
7. the week i found out we were pregnant with you! I would be an ignorant and immature dad who did not know the full extent of how much i should appreciate the miracle of you and the time i should treasure every second spent with you...
8. the day we became the Pastor of Higher Ground P H Church.
9. June 3rd, Thursday of 2010. when your mommy told me she had taken enough and no longer wanted to be married to me (seperation at this point). This scared my backsliding self to my knees! a wake up call! I saw the Lord high and lifted up, seated on the throne, i cried out for forgiveness from God as a man with unclean lips. I knelt at an alter at Kenly COG campmeeting and God said: "I who have called you Am faithful". Here I am Lord, send me was my response again, finally.

Now Here I am. Rebuilding my life, seeing the Lord, returning to my First Love, Jesus, and seeing things about myself that i never knew and allowing God to change or shape them.
I now treasure you more than any human being on earth! I am determined to be the best Daddy on earth to you! I am learning to receive the reality that God is enough, even if my family is never together again. That I can move on and be annointed blessed, and have a better ministry than ever! God is able! I cant wait being apart of your life and seeing you choose Christ. I have Faith that you will see Him too! Just like mommy and daddy have and your Grandma and granddaddy have and did!
These defining moments have all influenced me for the better and have all been blessings over all, despite some of them coming with great pain. God is able, letting His Grace be sufficeint through all that life brings (even in our own choice failures), He is able to bring us forward, becoming more like Him! Marriage is definitly about holiness more than happiness. please never forget that! God's plan is sovereign, even when we do not get what we want! Trust the Lord, in Him you can not fail overall! He turns even your screw ups into miracles!
Allow your defining moments to always be filled with the knowledge that God is sovereign in them no matter what, so allowing them to take you from Glory to Glory in God! His grace is sufficeint! Dont just see this, or quote this, RECEIVE this!
I love you with all my heart and remember, Petra Sky Bryan, God is always enough.
- Daddy

time with you Petra

Petra, one of the things i have learned in this tormenting time in my life without you and mommy, is that the time i spend with you is so precious and should have always been treasured!
My FAVORITE thing in all the world now, is playing with you! Playing Pirate Pete, Feather Tweet or Tweet Tweet the Feather, playing on a play ground or through tubes like McDonalds or Chuckee Cheese... I love you so much! You are so precious, sweet and beautiful, just like your mommy! I am sorry and always will be sorry for blowing it with you two! but you were only 4 then, so as so many have told me, if with no one else, I can be a healed, stable, and good daddy to you the rest of your precious life, and proove the real me to you! Praise God for the blessings of childhood and forgiveness!
You are my favorite now! i love you Petra!
Your dad,
David Bryan

Durring the Seperation

My sweet Petra Sky Bryan.
You are so precious! You never deserved blame! I am sorry that you ever felt it was your fault that
Daddy was sick. Mommy got daddy some real help and while I was in the hospital mommy decided
to take you and leave me. You and her stayed at grammys house and hired lawyers to use my disease
that had already claimed one family members life (grandaddy McKay), against me. They tried to say
I was unfit to see you, spend time with you, teach you, pray with you, play with you, eat out with you,
take you to church or even to grandma and grandaddys house. It was a very hard time. At first
I was at my lowest when this happened, but then God did a miracle. God opened my eyes to
how I had hurt mommy. He forgave me for the bad things I had done! Even though this has been
the worst times in our life, God has already used it to help me, your daddy, grow up and
be the man I should have been all along.
Now I pray that through this torture of being away from you and mommy, there is going
to rise out of the ashes a stronger family! This is my earnest prayer. For your sake Petra
I hope this all ends real soon with your mommy and daddy back together again just
the way you want it! They can't argue with that, because that is what you always said!
I love you my pumkin head! - daddy