Blessings In the Middle of Tragedy
It is hard to believe that blessings can happen while tragedy is striking. That is what happened to my little family in the spring of 2007. My husband was in the midst of his third deployment to the Middle East. I was seven months pregnant with our miracle baby. Before he deployed, I truly believed that all of our loss and hardships with carrying a child had a purpose, even if we would never understand. When we found out we were pregnant the third time, we were so scared to lose again. We had prayed for so long to be parents. When it became clear that this baby was here to stay, we finally allowed ourselves to feel the full joy of God’s blessing. Our excitement was quickly dampened when my husband was notified of his 15-month deployment to Iraq. He left when I was seven months pregnant, and now our prayers were consumed by joy and worry once again. I prayed nonstop for my husband’s safety, as well as the health of our little girl.
Our daughter, Faith, was due in May of 2007. In March of 2007, the fighting in Iraq had become so unstable that we feared he wouldn’t make it home for the delivery. My c-section was scheduled for April, and by the sheer grace of God, my husband made it home just in time. He spent nine days with our girl and had to go back to Iraq. We thought nothing could stop our happiness. A few months after he returned to Iraq, another miracle happened. In August of 2007, he boarded a helicopter for a mission. He was strapped in with 13 other soldiers and was called off the helicopter at the last minute. Another soldier took his place. Shortly after take-off, the helicopter was shot down, with no survivors. My husband’s life had been saved by God.
I struggled for so long with my overwhelming gratitude for his safety, knowing how completely devastating this had been for him. All these years later, I still thank God every day for allowing my husband to have the gift of life and for allowing him to be the best husband and father for our little family. It has taken almost 15 years for my husband to embrace the blessing of his safety, and during this time he has grown so much closer to Jesus by allowing himself forgiveness for being a survivor. My husband has changed many lives in the last 15 years with his love for the Lord and his appreciation for life. I have watched God working and moving in my husband. Every day, I am in awe of God’s love and mercy.