For the past 2 days I've been sharing about how to find peace when you've received news no one wants to hear.
Today is the 3rd and final installment.
Read When You Receive Crushing News here.
Read When You Need a Miracle Pt. 1 here.
Yesterday I shared 4 things I learned during a time of crisis in my life.
Today I'll share the rest.
5. Receive God's encouragement.
Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Matthew 11:28
Today is the 3rd and final installment.
Read When You Receive Crushing News here.
Read When You Need a Miracle Pt. 1 here.
Yesterday I shared 4 things I learned during a time of crisis in my life.
Today I'll share the rest.
5. Receive God's encouragement.
Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Matthew 11:28
God used many things and people to encourage us during our time of fighting for the life of our baby. Songs, a word someone said, something we'd see on tv, the list goes on. He used it and we knew it was for us and our situation because we felt it. It made sense. Some may call those things “coincidence”, but we knew that they were God-planned.
Those things brought peace in the midst of it all and it always came when we were about to get weary.
These encouragements helped us to know that we were on the right path. They helped us to know that God was with us in our situation and that He cared enough to remind us.
These encouragements helped us to know that we were on the right path. They helped us to know that God was with us in our situation and that He cared enough to remind us.
Many people told my husband and I that they were praying and would share what God had shown them. Strangers would come over to us when we were out and speak God’s word over me and the baby. I remember one lady, who I'd never seen before, came over and said my baby would speak to nations.
God used my 3 year-old, Ethan, quite a few times to speak words of encouragement to me.
One time that stands out...
I was laying on the couch after a long day and feeling worn out emotionally. Ethan was playing blocks on the floor, in his own little world. Then suddenly, he got up, came over to me and said,
Don't worry Mommy, Baby Safe is okay, Jesus is holding him and touching him and healing him right now.
Whoa!
Ethan didn't know what I was thinking at that moment and the encouragement I needed.
But God did.
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| Jean Keaton |
Whoa!
Ethan didn't know what I was thinking at that moment and the encouragement I needed.
But God did.
I have found that if you are facing a tough road, you don't travel alone. God is always there with you, sustaining you and encouraging you along the way. Just keep your eyes and ears open to recognize Him and receive His gifts.
6. Trust Him by recounting things He’s already done.
Trust in the Lord with all your heart,
and do not lean on your own understanding. Proverbs 3:5
Trust in the Lord with all your heart,
and do not lean on your own understanding. Proverbs 3:5
When faced with temptation to look at the crisis and believe that God wouldn't come through for us, it helped to remember and give thanks for all the times that He had already in our lives.
So, I recalled how He healed our sons Ethan and Elijah. He’d done amazing healing in our marriage.
Not to mention all that He had done in the Bible.
There was lots to draw on to remember that God was for us and that He could be trusted.
So, I recalled how He healed our sons Ethan and Elijah. He’d done amazing healing in our marriage.
Not to mention all that He had done in the Bible.
There was lots to draw on to remember that God was for us and that He could be trusted.
7. Praise Him like crazy when you’re holding your promise.
Oh, give thanks to the LORD, for He is good!
For His love endures forever. Psalm 107:1
The day our baby was born, I was induced. He was 8 days late, so the doctor felt better about inducing. We had peace about it. We went in that hospital room with our cd player and all of our music. We prayed and began to worship God and thank Him in advance for all He had done.
Then a few hours later, surrounded by countless numbers of doctors, nurses and interns we gave birth to our baby Samuel. He was perfectly healthy and beautiful!
He still had the cleft lip and palate that we saw on that ultrasound at 14 weeks.
But that was no biggie in our book!
Oh, give thanks to the LORD, for He is good!
For His love endures forever. Psalm 107:1
The day our baby was born, I was induced. He was 8 days late, so the doctor felt better about inducing. We had peace about it. We went in that hospital room with our cd player and all of our music. We prayed and began to worship God and thank Him in advance for all He had done.
Then a few hours later, surrounded by countless numbers of doctors, nurses and interns we gave birth to our baby Samuel. He was perfectly healthy and beautiful!
He still had the cleft lip and palate that we saw on that ultrasound at 14 weeks.
But that was no biggie in our book!
The room was crowded with hospital personnel because they were expecting the worst.
But not us.
We knew.
God gave us such a peace, like the bible says, that surpasses all understanding, during those past several months.
We trusted that he would be born and that he would live.
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| For this child, I have prayed. 1 Samuel 1:27 |
8. Continue to do all the things you did to get here so that doubt and fear have no place and cannot steal the victory.
...and let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us. Hebrews 12:1
We were so thankful for the victory that our baby was born with no trace of Trisomy 18.
But, we still had a challenging road ahead, into new territory for us. Because of the cleft lip and palate we saw specialists quite often. Samuel had 2 major surgeries before he was 10 months old. We needed to rely on all that we had learned during the months he was in the womb. We continued to be diligent in prayer and in seeking God's wisdom. And He saw us through, again. He made the rough road easier, even on a 4 month-old baby going through surgery. God's peace was so evident in Samuel during those surgeries.
He was star patient!
Thank you for allowing me to share our journey with our Samuel.
Here is one of my most favorite pictures of him so far in all of his 5 years.
In writing all of this, I can't help but to think of those out there hurting because they've lost babies or have been having trouble getting pregnant.
I have been there.
I don't understand why those things happen.
I can only offer that God is still there for you.
He can comfort you.
He can bring you wisdom.
He can bring you healing.
He can bring you a longed-for miracle.
Somewhere in the bible it says that God is no respecter of persons. That what He'll do for one He can do for another.
I've grabbed on to that.
So, use this testimony to remind God that He did a great thing here for someone no more deserving than you.
And then, watch and see what He can do in your situation.
My heart is for you.
And I am praying.
And Seeking Peace along with you.
Many Blessings!
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But, we still had a challenging road ahead, into new territory for us. Because of the cleft lip and palate we saw specialists quite often. Samuel had 2 major surgeries before he was 10 months old. We needed to rely on all that we had learned during the months he was in the womb. We continued to be diligent in prayer and in seeking God's wisdom. And He saw us through, again. He made the rough road easier, even on a 4 month-old baby going through surgery. God's peace was so evident in Samuel during those surgeries.
He was star patient!
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| in recovery after lip surgery...4 months old |
 |
| in waiting room before palate surgery...9 months old |
 |
| in recovery with mommy...9 months old |
Thank you for allowing me to share our journey with our Samuel.
Here is one of my most favorite pictures of him so far in all of his 5 years.
 |
| full of life |
In writing all of this, I can't help but to think of those out there hurting because they've lost babies or have been having trouble getting pregnant.
I have been there.
I don't understand why those things happen.
I can only offer that God is still there for you.
He can comfort you.
He can bring you wisdom.
He can bring you healing.
He can bring you a longed-for miracle.
Somewhere in the bible it says that God is no respecter of persons. That what He'll do for one He can do for another.
I've grabbed on to that.
So, use this testimony to remind God that He did a great thing here for someone no more deserving than you.
And then, watch and see what He can do in your situation.
My heart is for you.
And I am praying.
And Seeking Peace along with you.
Many Blessings!
Have you missed a day in reading 31 Days of Seeking Peace in the Midst of the Mess ?
There are over 700 bloggers taking the challenge, along with me, to write about one topic for 31 days.
You can check them out here.
1 comments:
Aw Maureen, Samuel is precious. What a great testimony of God's Love and Faithfulness. I didn't know all that happened before and during Ethan and Elijah's pregnancies. Maybe I vaguely recall but there was something different about seeing it typed out. Thanks for sharing once again. Love, H
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