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Friday, August 13, 2010

answers

ever ask God something over and over and over again and wonder what the answer was?
i have.
i've asked God why He took Zach from us...and although there are many reasons that i know now, i don't think i'll have a complete perspective until Heaven...
sometimes answers come in the form of a test result...
sometimes they come in a form of answered prayer...
this time, mine was a combination of both!
this week, i got answers to "why aren't you giving me a baby?!"
...and i'm blown away by His sovereignty...
because by NOT answering that prayer the way i wanted,
He DID answer a different prayer of mine!
to protect my future baby.
when i think about the last two years of trying...
when i think about all the disappointment...
all the tears...
all the anger...
all the jealousy...
it's seems kinda silly!
because He knew better to answer the more important prayer.
none of those emotions would compare to the tremendous pain of losing another child,
which is what likely could have happened if i went untreated.
it's a really different feeling to be thankful that i didn't get pregnant the last two years.
after all the different treatments i tried that really should have worked...
they didn't...
and there's a perfectly good reason for it!
now, to fix the root problem!
Thank you, God for your answers...
and for showing me bits and pieces of your plan
even when You don't need to clue me in.
Continue to guide and lead us in our journey.
We put our trust You.

Tuesday, August 10, 2010

i need to get my facts straight.

tomorrow, i take a BIG step...
you may not understand how big a step it is; but for me, it feels huge!
tomorrow, i tell my acupuncturist that i'm "taking a break".
not from her necessarily...but from "trying".
i'm nervous that she's going to try to talk me out of it...
that she's going to think that i'm "burning out"
and that i need some sort of convincing to keep trying....
but here's the thing:
there's a big difference between
GIVING UP and GIVING IN.
i'm making a concious, intentional decision
to actively surrender all the things
i use to trick my mind into thinking
i have some sort of control over having another child.
i know that God controls all things!
He has a plan for me
and knows the best possible scenario for our family.
anyways...
i know that my conviction to step back from acupuncture might not make sense to some...
including my acupuncturist!
i've seen some markable improvements because of my treatments...
and i love my acupuncturist and how she listens and treats me specifically.
but, i know that if i continue, i won't be completely surrendered.
(this post is for me...not for you...but you can read if you'd like :)
i'm just trying to get my facts straight before going in tomorrow.)
first, the last three years of our lives have been extremely stressful
with the loss of our son, Zachary...
the first year after losing him, we dealt with multiple levels of grief, anxiety and depression.
then we jumped right in to having another baby.
closed door.
i exchanged depression because of losing my child
for depression for possibly never being able to have one.
anxiety.
grief.
stress.
all over again.
i say i "exchanged" it but the emotions of losing Zachary
and not being able to have another one are very much intermingled.
sometimes it's necessary to take a step back and nurture the things you DO have...
i get tired of focusing my energy on obtaining something...
i feel it's hard for me to be content,
when i'm always reaching for something else.
i can't hug what i have...
when my hands are still reaching.
i have a hard time distinguishing what has been a physical condition,
and what has been a spiritual lesson.
C.S. Lewis once said,
"you don't have a soul. you are a soul.
you have a body."
no wonder, God uses our bodies to teach us some serious spiritual lessons.
the Bible tells us,
that without faith,
it's impossible to please God.
and then it tells us,
that "the testing of our faith produces steadfastness."
i'm not surprised that God allows certain trials in our lives.
it's hard to understand how a loving God could watch His child hurt;
but when you look at it from a Heavenly perspective....
God allows things to happen in our lives,
to make us steadfast in our faith...
to achieve our number one purpose of living-
to please HIM!
we were created for His pleasure.
He's not some giant puppet master, pulling the strings of our lives...
He's a loving, gentle Father that masterfully designs us
to KNOW HIM.
in the great scheme of things,
it doesn't matter if i have another child...
if i don't have another, i'll have no regrets in Heaven....
that's a Heavenly perspective!
2 Corinthians 4:16-18
"So we do not lose heart.
Though our outer self is wasting away,
our inner self is renewed day by day.
For this light momentary affliction is preparing for us
an eternal weight of glory beyond all comparison,
as we look not to the things that are seen
but to the things that are unseen.
For the things that are seen are transient,
but the things that are unseen are eternal."
it has always been my plan to remain proactive...
of course, my desire for a child will not go away.
God knows that.
He gave me that desire!!
and i think that trusting God
is the most proactive thing i can do!

Thursday, August 5, 2010

wilderness and the promised land

last night at church, pastor made a brief statement about how the Israelites wandered in the wilderness for 40 years before reaching the promised land. he said that they were in this "stuck"/"wandering" condition because of their unbelief and continued to say that many died over the course of that 40 years without ever reaching the land that God promised them.
i couldn't help but relate to those Israelites...
wandering.....stuck....deserted....knowing that
God has something better planned,
but feeling like it's unattainable.
i've been thinking this past week or so that maybe...just maybe...i don't surrender completely to God's plan...maybe i have a belief problem...maybe i have a little bit of difficulty believing God's promises.
how terrifying to think that this waiting period...this wandering...this stuckness...could be a symptom of my disbelief...or even just the fact that i try too hard to control my circumstances.
i need to surrender.
i need to keep my eyes focused on what's promised.
hey! being in the wilderness isn't all bad!!
during the time of their wandering, the Israelites saw miracles happen...
the parting of the red sea
moses striking the rock bringing forth water
manna from heaven
the burning bush
i'm gonna keep my eyes open for those inevitable miracles....but for now, i'm submitting to the fact that God has a plan for me and i'm loosening my grip on the situations i'm trying to control.
i believe that when i surrender....the biggest miracle of all will happen.
the "promised land" looks pretty good from here...
i'll be there soon.