Joel's Testimony to God's Truth

Our little Joel was a testimony to God’s truth in his birth, in his life, and in his final battle.
Joel was a testimony to God’s truth that children are a blessing. Joel was the 11th child of 13 to date. Joel was a twin and he was born at home with the assistance of 3 midwives. The scripture teaches us that children are a blessing and they are to be welcomed as gifts from the Father. God’s word teaches us that He opens the womb and He closes the womb. He was truly a blessing in his birth along with his twin brother, Josiah.
Joel was a blessing in his life. He was such a joy to have around. He brought such love and rejoicing to his parents and brothers and sisters. He had a special little smile that we called his ‘bally’ smile. He was constantly posing for pictures for his big sister, Anna.
After he became sick, he was a testimony to God’s truth of endurance. He endured losing his strength and not being able to walk very well. He endured all the medicine that his mother sought to give him to cure his ills. She would have all kinds of natural pills and he would take them one by one with a grunt and a cry, but he would get them down.
When he was diagnosed with neuroblastoma, he endured all the tests and shots and so forth with great endurance for a little three year old boy. He endured his hospital stay and then the shots and medicine that he had to take when he got home. He was truly a testimony to God’s truth of enduring the trials that come our way.
In his last battle, he was a testimony to God’s truth of the sanctity of life. After he had his seizure in the hospital just after midnight on January 4, he continued to live and be a blessing to others. Of course, the doctors gave up on him on January 5, but he defied their death sentence and continued to live as a testimony to the sanctity of life. As he lay in that coma, he had an influence all over the world. He had an impact all the way to Iraq and in other parts of the world, as well as all over the United States.
He particularly impacted his aunt who lost her little boy many years ago. She came up from Texas and spent time with her nephew, and held his little warm hand. He touched her life in a most powerful way. His life was being used by the Lord to minister even in his suffering. He had an influence on others in our family, his great aunt and uncle, and many others, all while he lay in his little hospital bed.
He had an impact on his father, who counted it a privilege to care for his needs constantly and to fight for his life in the hospital and in the courtroom as the doctor tried to pull all life support and care. His life was precious and sacred, all the way to January 23 when the Lord chose to take him home. He no longer moved his arm or foot or had warm little hands. He was truly gone home, but until then he was alive and was a testimony to the sanctity of life from beginning to end. Praise God for the privilege to have had Joel for three years, four months and ten days.

My dad wrote this and also delivered it at Joel's funeral.