United States of America
God helped me through a hard time when I got pregnant at 14 and had no one in my corner to help me. I didn’t have my mom, my dad, not a baby father, just me, a group home, and the four walls. I felt so alone, and I was going through the worst pregnancy symptoms. I threw up everything – water, all my food, and all my fluids in my body. I was so sick that I had to be placed in the hospital so they could put fluids back into my body.
Going through all those emotions left me not wanting my baby. I had multiple conversations about adoption and abortion. I just wanted to give up on life. But once I got to my three months, I just felt that God wanted me to have my baby girl, so that I would have someone who loves me forever. That was the best thing I ever did! I am amazed at how much I love her. Thank you, Jesus.
United States of America
After several relocations during our marriage, we finally landed in Austin in 2005 – we had two young daughters, and I was seven months pregnant with our third. Being in Texas meant we would FINALLY be closer to family and grandparents – a huge dream for us. Then, in 2008, the market crashed, and my husband lost his job. After almost 14 months of job searching, Chris found a job in Los Angeles, CA. He was relieved, but I was devastated.
During those months of job searching, my mother was diagnosed with aggressive breast cancer, and I wanted to be near to help her (she lived in Houston, about three hours from Austin). It took everything I had to keep my sanity – I was torn between the needs of my immediate family and helping my mom during treatment. How was I going to be of any use living so far away? My mom was a very faithful woman – in fact, I credit her for my faith because she was never shy about sharing her love for God and Jesus. Growing up, she regularly took me to church, even though sleeping in on a Sunday morning after working long hours all week as a single mom would’ve given her much-needed rest.
Although she was incredibly sad to see us leave, she unselfishly supported us every step of the way. I was terrified about the move. I couldn’t understand why God would move me away from my mom, who needed me and my group of dear friends. I didn’t know a single person in Los Angeles, plus my daughters needed me to be strong to help them adjust.
We moved to LA in January 2010. Thankfully, I found a small prayer group in my new neighborhood that anchored me during those early months. My husband worked more hours than he anticipated, so it was up to me to manage our daughter’s lives, the household, the pets, and my freelancing work. But I remembered my mom’s advice: put God first – always. Pray. Tell God everything on my mind and watch Him go to work. So, I did things I never would’ve made time for before, like listening to Christian podcasts, reading my Bible after dropping the kids off at school, and surrounding myself with people who shared my values. As a matter of fact, some of my best friends to this day are the ones I met at my lowest, which is an unexpected blessing.
My mom’s disease progressed while we were living in California. But visiting us gave her soul a reprieve. California reminded her of Cyprus, the little island where she grew up in the Mediterranean Sea.
I remember the prayer I prayed the minute we moved to Los Angeles: Lord, please help! And, please get us back to Texas if it’s in Your will. By early 2012, it was clear that my mom wasn’t going to make it. I continued to fly back and forth from LA to Houston to be with her as much as possible.
Then, in October 2012, Chris got a call out of the blue about a job in Austin. My mother passed away four months later, in February 2013, and we finally sold our house and moved back to Austin in July 2013.
Maybe it looks like my prayers weren’t answered, but here’s what I hope you see:
- I prayed that we wouldn’t have to move away, but we did. I had to lean on God – there was no other choice. During those years, my faith grew in ways I NEVER thought possible for my daughters to witness. God was faithful.
- I was terrified of leaving the safety of my friends and family in Austin. I prayed for support, and God put me in a neighborhood with a prayer group that welcomed me like an old friend. He gave me some of my best friends who have stood the test of time and distance, and I can’t imagine my life without them. God was faithful.
- I prayed we would move back to Texas before my mom passed away. We didn’t make it in time, but knowing that we were coming back gave my mom tremendous peace before she died. God was faithful.
- We were in Los Angeles for about 3.5 years. Looking back, I needed that time to lean on God completely, without the distractions of my former busy life in Austin. He created a beautiful life for us. We had a yard with blooming roses, citrus trees, climbing wisteria flowers, and stunning surroundings that took my mom back to her childhood. She was happiest when she was there during her final months. That’s something she would’ve missed had we not been there. God was faithful.
- We moved back to Austin in July of 2013. I prayed that my mom wouldn’t die before I could be closer to her, but she passed away the previous February. I’ll never understand why God timed things the way He did, but I can see how His hand was in everything, including my mom’s death. God was faithful.
What I’ve learned is this: God always answers our prayers, just not always the way we expect. I didn’t know I had best friends waiting for me in LA, who would buoy me during my time there. I didn’t know how much my mom needed a mental reprieve when she visited us. I didn’t know that we would ever move back. I didn’t know what solely leaning on God looked like until I had to.
There were a lot of things that I didn’t know. But He knows, and that’s all I need to know.
France
Jehovah Rapha & Healing Sweet Lindsay.
Sweet Lindsay came early into this world after I fell while running to the train in Paris. Two days later, I met the doctor who told me to go to the hospital. Through much prayer and a five-day hospital stay, sweet Lindsay stayed warm in the womb for a few more weeks. What an amazing little bundle she was that August morning when I saw her sandy hair and azur blues looking at me for the first time.
So small, yet lively from the beginning, and as she grew, the challenges would come. Sleeping, eating, sicknesses, living in Europe, and then moving to Africa gave us pause as sweet Lindsay was in the middle of all the action. Jehovah God was always at our side even if we didn’t see Him.
We knew He would never leave us nor forsake us.
One day, when sweet Lindsay was just a toddler, she lost her appetite and had a little cold. She quickly got worse, and I took her once again to see the doctor. She was diagnosed with cystic fibrosis after many tests. Again, we called for a prayer chain of believers to pray as the prognosis was not good. My sweet Lindsay was in Jehovah Rapha’s hands.
The next month, we returned to the specialist after three weeks of nebulizer treatments and antibiotics. The x-ray doctor took Lindsay to check her lungs. He called me back to show me something.
“Uh, ma’am, I don’t understand the change, this is your daughter Lindsay, correct?” “Yes, sir, and if I understand you correctly, you are saying her lungs are clear. God has healed my sweet Lindsay.
Jo Ellen
United States of America
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.
United States of America
Born Kenyatta Sirena Lowe 11-20-1991. My mom wanted to name me Spring. My mother was a single parent. Who came from a single parent. She raised four kids on her own, with little help. I witnessed what God could do at a young age. We always had what we needed. Living in government housing always felt like an abundance. My mother’s mentality was “greater.” Before I started my 5th-grade year, my mom bought a house in Pooler, GA, on her own. I remember her ranting for years before how she’d buy this house and celebrate by playing Jesse Powell’s song “You” loud on her stereo. In the kitchen of this house, she also married my bonus dad.
In 2008, February 7th, the Imperial Sugar explosion would take her life and take her from us. She suffered four weeks in the Augusta burn unit before succumbing to her injuries. My mother worked 12-16 hours faithfully, and the value of her life was determined by white-collared white men who did not know her.
I would suffer with healing for ten years. In 2013, I married and had my first child in 2015. I filed for divorce in 2016 after I had enough of the abuse. I was pregnant with my second child. Now a mother of one daughter and son, we struggled with stability for one year before moving in with family in October 2017. From 2018-2019, I would work warehouse jobs, barely making ends meet for my kids until finally declaring to God that I’d had enough.
In January 2019, I received a full-time job, and on April 15th, 2020, on my daughter’s 5th birthday, I purchased my second home. I had no money saved because I couldn’t afford to save, but God covered all expenses. I had no money for closing, but I received money back. After a year of being in our home, I had started two businesses while working full-time, and I felt a tug in my heart that led me to leap. I thought of my mother and knew God had called me for more. He wanted more for my family. On June 17th, 2021, I quit my 9-5 to be a full-time business owner. God said it. Jeremiah 29:11
