On the Eve of Mother's Day...

I am rejoicing that tomorrow I will be celebrating Mother's Day with Hannah Beth here in my arms.

But this is not my first Mother's Day. I consider it my third.
Last year at this holiday, sweet Hannah Elizabeth was growing in my womb. The 3 1/2 months until I would hold her couldn't come soon enough.

Two years ago I would have loved to forget the day altogether...I remembering wanting to skip from Saturday right to Monday and pretend it never existed. But that wasn't possible. I had to face it. And that was very very hard.

God gave me the grace and strength to go to church that Sunday. During the service when our pastor asked the mothers to stand up that morning, I weakly rose to my feet. Tears coming down...heart and arms aching to hold my would-be 3 month old. But knowing in my heart that even without my baby with me here on earth, I was still truly a mother...and blessed to be able to call myself the mother of Alethia Joy.

My mind wanders back to the relief I felt when the guest speaker (one of Tony's best friends) didn't even really focus his sermon on mothers much at all...but rather on 2 Corinthians 9:15, "Thanks be to God for his indescribable gift!" (the Lord Jesus Christ!)

Those of you who may be reading this who have had to say good-bye to one (or more) of your children... whether it was a recent loss or many years past...whether it was a baby at 4 or 40 weeks gestation...whether it was an infant, toddler, child, teenager, or adult. No matter what or when, it hurts. And you will never forget your child.
I am praying for you tonight---for comfort, for God's grace to face the day tomorrow, and for what may seem almost impossible--to even be able to enjoy it...to depend on God's strength.

He is faithful.

Lamentations 3:21-23 (NIV)
"Yet this I call to mind and therefore I have hope: Because of the LORD’s great love we are not consumed, for his compassions never fail. They are new every morning; great is your faithfulness."

(The Message)
"I'll never forget the trouble, the utter lostness, the taste of ashes, the poison I've swallowed. I remember it all—oh, how well I remember—the feeling of hitting the bottom. But there's one other thing I remember, and remembering, I keep a grip on hope: God's loyal love couldn't have run out, his merciful love couldn't have dried up. They're created new every morning. How great your faithfulness! I'm sticking with God (I say it over and over). He's all I've got left. " (emphasis mine)