My genius friend Cindi McMenamin (see her words of wisdom to me in this post,) has allowed me to give away one of her latest books When Women Walk Alone 30 Day Devotional.
Cindi’s 31 days of encouragement and blessings for women is just the right size to tuck in your purse or glove compartment for an on-the-spot pick-me-up any time of the day. Discover God’s love for you and his abundant grace.
In order to be entered into the drawing, I want you to bless the rest of us. I shared on Monday how God showed up when I was feeling week – I would love for you to share a time when God showed up for you. It could be as simple as a friend calling at just the right time with a word of encouragement, or a new sense of peace in a situation that has been feeling out of control.
Check out Cindi’s website here.
Enter by Friday at 6 PM PST and I will announce the winner on Monday.
Sometimes God shows up in the least expected ways. In 2005, my husband and I lost a baby at 18 weeks into the pregnancy. I was devastated, and didn’t know how I was going to get through it. A friend online sent me an email and told me to name the baby and put his name on a crystal heart or cross. We chose to honor him with a cross. Then my Mom got me a book called We Were Gonna Have a Baby, But We Had an Angel Instead. Looking at the loss in a heavenly way really helped. I still miss our baby angel, but now have 2 beautiful boys as well.
Now… onto how God has really shown up in my life… In 2006, at 20 weeks, we almost lost another pregnancy, and it was only by God’s intervention and my feelings of unease that saved our son Logan. I had emergency surgery the day I went in because I felt there was something wrong. I was almost fully dialated at 20 weeks, and a good portion of the water sack was bulging out. The doctor who did the surgery had to push it back and close my cervix. He and his collegue both told us we had experienced a miracle, and at just one month early (on Christmas Eve), our beautiful baby was born. There were no further complications, and we got to go home on Christmas. 🙂
On January 31st of this year, I had not been feeling well and was having trouble breathing during a pregnancy that seemed to be going VERY well considering my past history. (had surgery at 13 weeks and weekly shots to help this pregnancy’s success). After calling a nurse during off hours on Sunday, they asked me to come in so they could just make sure I was ok. When I got there, they did some quick tests and called my doctor to talk with her and see if she wanted blood work done. They had the blood work done and immediately called my doctor back. I had a severe case of pre-eclampsia, and they were scheduling an emergency c-section to save my life. As I sat there crying, wondering why it was happening, my husband sat there calmly, took my hand and thanked me… saying that with God’s help I had acted on my feelings of unease and had saved both babies and myself. I still cry when I think of that moment. Everything sort of changed in my thinking and I saw that God was there as well, with his love surrounding our family.
It wasn’t until yesterday at a follow-up appointment that I found out exactly how bad I had been. I still have to go back and have the surgery reversed that was done at 13 weeks, but God has helped me to heal, and has given our family another beautiful boy who is doing really well! We have really been blessed with God’s presence in our lives.
When I took my oldest daughter to her dad’s for her first summer away from me, at the tender age of six, I drove the 16 hour return trip alone. Then last August, at the tender age of 12, I took her to live with her dad for the first time since we divorced…another 16 hour trip. I’m not sure how I made either of those trips, driving alone, or how I am still standing today. But I realize I am not walking alone, I am being led and carried through all of this. I did not make either of those lonely drives alone. I was not the one who was able to remove myself from her presence. It took God’s hands to gently lead me away from where she now resides and bring me back to the rest of my family, my beautiful husband and children here.
Very recently, one of my good (young) friends just had a mild stroke. He and his wife purchased and are fixing up a rental home that is due to be available for the tenants April 1st. The day after my friend’s stroke, his wife sent out a desperate email that there were many repair items they were planning to do to the rental house the following weekend. He was not able to do the work, and she had gotten 5 stitches in her thumb the same week, because she gashed her thumb while cutting drywall. So, I went over and spent the next Saturday helping them. It was a pleasure to be able to serve them.
The following day, I was doing my daily bible reading, and I came to Matt. 25:34-46. In this passage Jesus tells his disciples that “whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me.” I’ve read this passage many time, but for the first time I felt like I had served Jesus directly. There was a specialness about the passages and the blessings promised in them. I’ve never felt so good about helping someone in need.
I also realized from that passage that if we don’t ask people for help when we need it, we prevent them from being blessed.
I have baby hope. I got married later in life and after several attemptsat many different ways to get pregnant I was told I was too old. So, my husband and I decided to adopt and took a road trip to clear or minds. Well, we came back to discover I was 7 weeks pregnant. Callie is now six. The second time around I miscarried and that baby was due January 2007. Well, my husband heard about a baby to be born that was going to be put up for adoption through a friend at work. Okay, so as you guessed he is now ours. Jake was born January of 2007. The Lord always has a perfect plan and when life gets me down I just get to look at those two little faces and see the miracle of His handy work.
as a new christian, i tend to feel as though i am alone on my journey with Him. However, i have been praying for the Lord to bring people into my life, to mentor and encourage me. i thought i knew what being a christian meant, i was wrong. thought i had things in control, but his Word, has giving me a new look on life and strength i never new i had. i am excited to share i have been blessed with some new friends that lift my spirits and give me hope when i become confused. i truly know that it is Him letting me know He is here with me forever and that I AM NOT ALONE:)
Just the other day the culmination of my need to see God move in a specific area of my life, both my mothers battling cancer, my husband’s impending neck surgery, his lack of employment and doctor’s orders to change careers, along with several other issues I won’t mention had left me overwhelmed and exhausted. I just wanted to crawl in bed, pull the covers over my head and cry like a baby. I felt like my hope was faltering.
But as I was talking to a friend who was preparing a series of messages to preach, he told me he had asked God for fresh rain this year and as he was sharing his own experience, he said, “You’ve got to ask the Lord for rain…fresh rain.” I felt like the Lord was talking to me through him.
So, I quickly made my way to my office, pulled up biblegateway.com and commenced to read the entire book of Zechariah. Not only did I ask God for fresh rain, I was reminded that I was a prisoner of hope (Zech 9:12). That I couldn’t escape the hope He has instilled in my heart. Like Paul, I may be down, but I’m not out. I may be hard pressed on every side, but not crushed; perplexed, but not in despair; persecuted, but not abandoned; struck down, but not destroyed. I may sometimes feel like life is crashing in around me, but I am a prisoner of hope.
I’m so thankful God uses other people and His Word to bring healing to hurting hearts! 🙂
I’ll never forget the time I was struggling BIG TIME with a friend. She wasn’t a super close friend, but I called her friend nonetheless. One morning, when Satan was speaking big ‘ol fat lies to me about her, I got a phone call. From her. She had NEVER called me before. And she simply called to tell me that she was thinking of me. No joke. I couldn’t believe it. I couldn’t believe how flippin’ awesome God was in that very moment. God is so good. So, so, so good.
Every morning in the car is my time with God, I pray and talk to him as if he was sitting right next to me.
Just recently, I have been able to ask, “How is God going to provide THIS time?”, instead of worrying and trying to figure it out myself first. He is always faithful, when I am, and has never let me down. It is certainly easier to let Him deal with the current economy.
Last year when my husband and I were having problems, God worked in our hearts. Our church had just recently set up a mentoring program and we were able to be counseled by our pastor and set up with a support couple from our church. We are blessed by the support we received!