This year has been a roller-coaster ride of ups and downs -but mostly ups - and we credit it all to God!
First of all, I (Stephanie) am so thankful that He has used me to volunteer at the Pregnancy Information Center (PIC) to help empower women and men to make life-affirming choices. Doing limited OB ultrasounds has been the highlight for me & I was recently re-certified in this area - something I should be keeping up with every year that I volunteer there to stay competent. I enjoy blessing others, but feel like I am the one who is ultimately blessed because of the godly women that serve there--especially my nurse manager Janna Woodard who is such a testimony to God's faithfulness & love. She has a servant's heart bigger than most & I look up to her a lot.
It's amazing how much Satan seeks to destroy families of those who are trying to serve God, but even more amazing to see God at work! It reminds me of the spiritual warfare seen abundantly in India (missions trip 2007) which really opened my eyes. I also remember someone saying that if you're being attacked by Satan, you must be living for Christ & visa versa! A difficult thing for me to swallow sometimes.... But it make one thankful for the struggles we go through & helps me see how God is ultimately in control. It was from the ladies at PIC that I learned the importance of fasting and prayer and how powerfully God can work when we give Him the first portion of our year by giving up certain desires (whether it be chocolate, sweets, etc). It was after reading through the book "Fasting" by Jentizen Franklin that I felt God calling me (through the Scripture found in the book & the author's testimony) to fast/pray for the first time. I would recommend this book to anyone seeking to know God's will & wanting to grow closer to Him with a better awareness of His reality & presence. I now see why Satan would not want people to fast and pray because of how it opens doors to God's blessings. This year has been filled with many, mainly with our little Gracelyn & Vince's new job (even better than the one he lost - God had it all planned from the beginning!). Also the answer to prayer that my brother Tim's friend turned to Christ this year! This by far is the greatest blessing because it results in a precious soul saved from hell for eternity! Praise the Lord!
These blessings are not because of anything I/we have done, because we certainly do not deserve this goodness - we deserve death (separated from God in hell) because of our sins. It is only because of what Christ has done on the cross that we have eternal life in heaven-- and ABUNDANT life here on earth because of God's love for us. ("We love Him because He first loved us" -1 John 4:19) This does not mean Vince and I haven't had our trials, because we certainly have & will continue to have them as everyone does. Without these trials, I don't believe I would have been drawn to seeking God as I had been. Doesn't it seem like most, if not all, trials are to help draw us to Christ?? But as with most people, when the good times come, it is easy for me to fall into a rut of life's circumstances & forget to spend as much time with God as I should. I am hoping we can start out the New Year with a revived sense of God's presence & grow closer to Him - especially now that we will have a little one who will be looking to us for guidance. I have to remember that before we were pregnant, I prayed the prayer of Hannah & gave our little one to the Lord - so we are instruments to be used of Him to raise Gracelyn. We need to keep these "instruments" tuned & spiritually strong to be godly parents & spouses. We need to trust God to help us do this and for all the rest. Until next year, May God be with you and bless your families! Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!
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