At 13 she gave her life to Christ, determined to live a life to honor God for her whole life. At 23 she met the man of her dreams and married him. He, too, loved Jesus. Within the first five years of their marriage she suffered three miscarriages. At 28 she and her husband adopted a beautiful baby boy and named him David. When David was three years old there was a terrible fire at their home. She was burned over 80% of her body trying to smother the flames the engulfed her beloved son. He did not survive. She spent six weeks in the hospital, refusing the morphine offered her because she didn’t like the way it made her feel. Doctors visited from all over to observe her healing, amazed that she had survived. They told her she was a “miracle'”. She knew that God was with her. Her faith unwavering, her inner resolve and refused to allow her to succumb to her injuries.
Four months after losing their son, they adopted a beautiful baby girl with big brown eyes. Almost two years later, they adopted another baby girl, and it seemed as if life was normalizing, as much as it does after the death of a child.
Three years after adopting their second daughter, her husband was diagnosed with cancer. Unwavering faith, the two of them remained strong in their relationship with one another as well as with God.
After five years in remission, her husbands’ cancer returned with a vengeance, this time taking his life and leaving her to raise two small children.
Undaunted on the outside, the inner strength of this woman taught her daughters that belonging to Jesus does not shield us from bad things happening. Instead, she couldn’t imagine going through these battles without Jesus.
It would have been easy for her to become a victim of any one of the difficult life circumstances, let alone all of them. Undoubtedly there were moments of doubt along the way, but her obligation to her children – to instill in them the faith she clung to – motivated her to show strength.
In some ways, people would argue God didn’t hear her prayers, but she knows that He did. He answered them in ways that He knew would ultimately be best for His purpose.
Copyright Journey-For-Life. 2017. All rights reserved.
Isaiah 54 (the living translation)
Future Glory for Jerusalem
1″Sing, O childless woman,
you who have never given birth!
Break into loud and joyful song, O Jerusalem,
you who have never been in labor.
For the desolate woman now has more children
than the woman who lives with her husband,”
says the LORD.
2″Enlarge your house; build an addition.
Spread out your home, and spare no expense!
3For you will soon be bursting at the seams.
Your descendants will occupy other nations
and resettle the ruined cities.
4″Fear not; you will no longer live in shame.
Don’t be afraid; there is no more disgrace for you.
You will no longer remember the shame of your youth
and the sorrows of widowhood.
5For your Creator will be your husband;
the LORD of Heaven’s Armies is his name!
He is your Redeemer, the Holy One of Israel,
the God of all the earth.
6For the LORD has called you back from your grief–
as though you were a young wife abandoned by her husband,”
says your God.
7″For a brief moment I abandoned you,
but with great compassion I will take you back.
8In a burst of anger I turned my face away for a little while.
But with everlasting love I will have compassion on you,”
says the LORD, your Redeemer.
9″Just as I swore in the time of Noah
that I would never again let a flood cover the earth,
so now I swear
that I will never again be angry and punish you.
10For the mountains may move
and the hills disappear,
but even then my faithful love for you will remain.
My covenant of blessing will never be broken,”
says the LORD, who has mercy on you.
11″O storm-battered city,
troubled and desolate!
I will rebuild you with precious jewels
and make your foundations from lapis lazuli.
12I will make your towers of sparkling rubies,
your gates of shining gems,
and your walls of precious stones.
13I will teach all your children,
and they will enjoy great peace.
14You will be secure under a government that is just and fair.
Your enemies will stay far away.
You will live in peace,
and terror will not come near.
15If any nation comes to fight you,
it is not because I sent them.
Whoever attacks you will go down in defeat.
16″I have created the blacksmith
who fans the coals beneath the forge
and makes the weapons of destruction.
And I have created the armies that destroy.
17But in that coming day
no weapon turned against you will succeed.
You will silence every voice
raised up to accuse you.
These benefits are enjoyed by the servants of the LORD;
their vindication will come from me.
I, the LORD, have spoken!
Journey-For-Life 