1104 results for author: Ashlee Schmidt

Hannah’s Story

My husband and I were driving in the car, talking about how we wanted to have another baby.  As we talked, the name Gideon Andrew came to our mind. We looked up the meaning of the name, because it was one we had never even thought of before. We cried when we later looked up Gideon’s story in the Bible. We knew that Gideon was the name we would use if God granted us a son. One day, after we had began trying to become pregnant I prayed, “Lord, I don’t think I can handle not becoming pregnant. I want a baby so badly. Please be merciful with me. Please, if it’s your will, let me have another child.” Three days later I was home alone while ...

Be Devoted to One Another: Her Story

“Love must be sincere. Hate what is evil; cling to what is good. Be devoted to one another in love. Honor one another above yourselves. Never be lacking in zeal, but keep your spiritual fervor, serving the Lord. Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer.” -Romans 12:9-12 The goodness that was present in my relationship with my husband in grief was owed all to the Lord’s work in our hearts. We had made the confession of our sins before our holy God; gained the forgiveness and righteousness made possible for us in Jesus Christ alone; awed at the gracious, full acceptance we both received before the just, good, almighty, caring ...

Be Devoted to One Another: His Story

“Love must be sincere. Hate what is evil; cling to what is good. Be devoted to one another in love. Honor one another above yourselves. Never be lacking in zeal, but keep your spiritual fervor, serving the Lord. Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer.” -Romans 12:9-12 Romans 12 is really a remarkable chapter. It encourages us to use our differing gifts to build one another up (vv. 3-8). It goes on to define the love we are called to have for each other; one that is sincere, dedicated to goodness, devoted, self-sacrificing, and zealously serving to God’s glory (vv. 9-11). Finally, Paul describes the outworking of this ...

The Last Enemy

Welcome to Hope Mommies In the Word devotionals. Over the past several weeks, we have been narrowing in on specific truths of the gospel to learn how they direct and inform us in our grief. As we study these truths together, we’d love you to use the comments as a place to dialogue with us about what you are learning and share your answers to the questions below. We pray that you hearts will be encouraged as you dig into God's Word each week with us!  Then comes the end, when he delivers the kingdom to God the Father after destroying every rule and every authority and power. For he must reign until he has put all his enemies under his feet. ...

The Lord Is My Portion

Growing up as an only child, I never had to worry about who was going to get the biggest or the best portion.  Who got the chocolate chip cookie with the most chips? Me.  Who always got to sit in the front seat on the way home from school? Me again.  Who got all of my parents' attention? Yep, that would be me.  As I got older though, I began to see that the portion I wanted, the portion I envisioned myself having, didn't always go to me.  That other girl got the lead in the school play.  That boy didn't want me as his girlfriend.  That family got to take their baby girl home from the hospital.  There were many times when I felt like my ...

Living Hope: 2023 Retreat

The pain of losing a baby is very real and can make us feel so alone, but no tear or prayer has gone unnoticed by God. In our brokenness, we need to be reminded that we have a Father who cares deeply for us, His daughters, and that we have a Savior who rescues us from death and gives us hope for a future beyond this broken world. But along with hope for tomorrow, we also need hope for today, and our God is a God who does this! I’ve seen Him do it in great measure in my own life, and in the lives of women cared for and loved by Hope Mommies.   Do you need to be reminded of this hope that is yours in Christ? Will you consider joining us at the ...

Kristen’s Story

Shortly after our oldest son, Kason, turned a year old, my husband and I began planning to expand our little family. After struggling with unexplained infertility with Kason, we did not know if it would take months or years to become pregnant again. But in May of 2014, I became pregnant with our daughter. My pregnancy was perfect! It wasn’t until a week before our due date that any worry invaded my mind. It was a Friday when I noticed that I was not feeling her move as I normally did. I kept trying to convince myself that all was fine and that there was nothing to worry about. I thought maybe she was just running out of room and didn’t have ...

Honor One Another: Her Story

“The Lord is my portion,” says my soul, “therefore I will hope in Him.” -Lamentations 3:24 2006 started off as a year filled with promise. Wondering if the Lord may choose to add a fifth baby to our growing family, and desiring to be open to Him and His blessing in our lives, we pressed on in anticipation that this year would be a year filled with hope. His answer seemed to come quickly as almost instantly we discovered that we would be welcoming a new little one in the fall.  My previous pregnancies had been mostly uneventful, with some complicated deliveries. For the most part our experiences hadn’t proven too difficult. There was no ...

Honor One Another: His Story

It was a startling wake up I wasn’t expecting. “Ken, I think I lost the baby!” Quickly our plans for this Easter day faded and the new plan included a trip to the hospital.   The celebration of Easter or Resurrection Day is about life—Christ risen to life after a cruel death, and new life for all who believe because Christ rose from the grave. Easter 2006 was a celebration of life but not in the way we had expected. After having four children without major pregnancy complications, and currently at 16 weeks without any issues, a miscarriage was not even on our radar. But God had different plans for this Resurrection morning. Waiting for my ...

Betrayal and Peace

Welcome to Hope Mommies In the Word devotionals. Over the next several weeks, we will be narrowing in on specific truths of the gospel to learn how they direct and inform us in our grief. As we study these truths together, we’d love you to use the comments as a place to dialogue with us about what you are learning and share your answers to the questions below. We pray that you hearts will be encouraged as you dig into God's Word each week with us!  "But behold, the hand of him who betrays me is with me on the table." Luke 22:21 READ: Jesus was betrayed by Judas, exposing Jesus to His enemies and ultimately to death on a cross. Yet, ...