"He has his hands on you..." I still remember the exact moment that I understood, for myself, exactly what that means. It is so easy to sing songs about God's purpose for you, his protection and his grace, but sometimes, you have to experience it for yourself to truly understand the freedom and joy of serving a God who truly has His hand upon your life....
I remember it well, it was the summer of 2010, my husband had just graduated the UCF nursing program, he had several job offers, my eldest daughter at the time was turning three and everything was falling directly into place. When we had our first daughter, things were challenging, my husband was a full time student, I worked full time as a high school teacher, we had a mortgage to pay, bills galore, tuition, etc... I honestly don't know how we made during those first three years, well, I know now...
Since things were different in 2010, me still working as a HS teacher and my husband working as an ICU nurse, we figure that now was the perfect time to expand our family. I planned it perfectly, get pregnant in July, the baby will be due around the end of the school year and I wouldn't have to take much time off of work... Perfect right??? Unfortunately, that wasn't God's plan.
With my first daughter, I got pregnant right away, so I was certain this time would be no different. I remember feeling those early symptoms in July 2010, I was so excited... I didn't confirm it via a test but I knew I was pregnant. I was almost two weeks late, feeling nauseous, feeling like I was pregnant. I went to my nearest drug store to get a pregnancy test and before I could use it, I got mother nature's sign that there was without a doubt no pregnancy, no baby. I was so disappointed, I couldn't explain what was going on but I decided to try again the next month, and the next month, and the next month...every month the exact same thing... Two weeks late but no pregnancy.
Every month became about counting, calculated, and stressing about getting pregnant, I was very sad because I wanted another child so badly. I dreamt about another little girl playing with my eldest daughter and woke up in tears every morning, when I realized I had failed! My body had failed! The hardest part about this time was that I didn't express my feelings to anyone, I kept it all inside, hidden from those who loved me. I put on my best mask and no one knew how hurt I was inside.
Just when I was going to give up, October 2010 came, I was two weeks late again, I didn't want to take a test because I felt like my body was playing another trick on me, yet again. After the third week of being late, I was finally brave enough to take a test and there it was... A positive sign! I was pregnant! I went to sleep that night smiling, sleeping on my back with my hand gently caressing my still flat tummy, protecting our baby, even though it wasn't fully formed. I thought my struggle was over.


Stay tune for Part II of my encouraging and triumphant journey to understanding that God truly has His hand on our lives. If you are feeling discourage, remember that God has a plan for your life. I will leave you with the song that led me to my breakthrough, be encouraged, be blessed!!!
Hugs and Love,
Jeré
Wow, Jere... thank you so much for sharing your story. A lot of times, we as women like to keep things having to do with being a woman and being a mother to ourselves, even when we are suffering with something that is (medically) pretty common. I am so sorry you had to go through this, but I applaud you for coming forward to talk about this difficult topic... I know that you are encouraging other women who may have suffered the loss of a pregnancy or other trying situations. I'm glad that you are using your blog to uplift other young women- we as sisters and Christians need to uplift each other more often by not only sharing our experiences in the toughest times, but also when we have the victory!!! I'm excited to read the rest of your story- I mean, testimony. <3
ReplyDeleteThanks Jody!! :)
DeleteJere, you truly have a testimony for someone that is going through this. You are blessing to someone that has giving up as a women due to having issues with child bearing. I am asking your permission to share this testimony with a family member of mine that she too is having difficulty getting pregnant for the second time. Her son will be 4 years old and she already said if she is not pregnant by this year she is giving up. I am truly honor for you to share you difficult time with others encouraging them on a spiritual level. I pray that your testimony will bring my family member to God. Thank you Jere.
ReplyDeleteThank you so much for reading and for your comment. I'm so happy that my story can potentially help someone else who is going through a similar situation. Please share this with her, and let her know that if she has any questions, concerns, or needs to vent, she can email me at nappturallychic11@gmail.com. Be blessed and thanks again!
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