When I was seven months pregnant with my oldest daughter, my PC (Prince Charming) was laid off from work. What should have been a stressful situation actually became a blessing in disguise when our baby girl was delivered by emergency c-sestion four weeks early. PC went back to work after she was born, and life was good.
Fast forward three years. PC and I were happily preparing for our second baby girl–even though the pregnancy was wrought with complications. Seven months into pregnancy, I had already been on bed rest twice. PC came home with news that his company was closing its doors. He was out of a job–again.
Shortly thereafter, I was put on hospital bed rest where I stayed until our second baby girl was delivered by emergency c-section nearly six weeks early. My sweet PC was there for every moment and then some. Our baby was taken to the NICU while doctors struggled to regulate my blood pressure. It was a frightening experience.
On the day our second daughter was born, PC received a phone call with a job offer. The position was one he had inquired about months before, but he had heard nothing since submitting his resume. He started his new job three weeks after our baby girl was born and just shortly after we brought her home from the NICU.
After our second baby girl, PC and I agreed we were never getting pregnant again. 😉 He will celebrate his ninth anniversary with his firm this spring. Out of those scary storms, God gave us two incredible blessings.
In the midst of raging storms, life felt so desolate. We worried from month-to-month how we would make it. We prayed and prayed that God would provide an opportunity for my husband. Yet, each month there was no job offer and still the money we needed would somehow be there. One month, our insurance company’s profit sharing check was to the penny what we needed to pay our utility bill. God was faithful.
Even though we couldn’t see it at the time, God’s timing was so perfect. Both pregnancies were full of complications–even more so with our second baby girl. God knew PC was needed at home. Neither of the jobs he had when I was expecting would have allowed him the time off to be present in the way we needed him. God was faithful.
During that time, Jeremiah 29:11 became my mantra. I prayed it constantly and faithfully–for PC, for my family, for myself.
“For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.”
Yet, when we aren’t in the midst of one of life’s many unpredictable storms, it’s easy to forget, isn’t it? I am a planner, friends. My world is a shiny, happy place when I know exactly what is coming down the pipeline. How frequently does life throw a wrench in our plans?
I’ve realized there are benefits to getting older. Sigh. It pains me to say, but it’s true. With experience, we gain wisdom. But lifetimes upon lifetimes of experience and wisdom can’t compare to the infinite wisdom of our Father in Heaven. He is the ultimate master planner.
As parents, we delight in our children. We want to grant them their greatest desires and help them realize their biggest dreams. However, what our children want and what may be in their best interest aren’t always the same thing. As parents, we choose what is in their best interest–even if that means our children are temporarily unhappy. After a time, our children may come to see that our choices where made out of love.
The Bible tells us in Zephaniah 3:17, “The LORD your God is with you, the Mighty Warrior who saves. He will take great delight in you; in his love he will no longer rebuke you, but will rejoice over you with singing.”
The Lord, our God, takes delight in us! You and me! Isn’t there such comfort knowing that we have a loving Father who watches so carefully over His little flock?
Today, if you are feeling frustrated or worried about the storms raging in your life, take heart. Pray the two verses above over your family and know that God takes great delight in you. The Lord our God is with us, the Mighty Warrior who saves.
