1104 results for author: Ashlee Schmidt
Finding Grace on Mother’s Day
I was fourteen weeks pregnant. It was Mother’s Day weekend, and we had gathered with my husband’s extended family for a reunion. There was a buzz of excitement from everyone because my first ultrasound appointment was scheduled for the next day. All afternoon there were hands gently caressing my belly and guesses as to the gender of this newest addition to the family.
I was radiating with joy as we left to drive home later that evening. This sweet babe was already so loved, and it was an incredible blessing to be surrounded by so many people who were anticipating this little one’s arrival nearly as much as I was. I couldn’t wait ...
Sharing His Love on Mother’s Day
The weightiness of Mother’s Day was lost on me until I lost my son. I never considered how hard the day could be for those that longed for a child but experienced infertility. I never gave thought to how those that no longer had their child to hold might feel forgotten. The first Mother’s Day after my son passed away was incredibly heavy. It had only been two weeks since we had laid him to rest, and I was emotionally and physically exhausted.
From the moment the sun began to shine through my windows that morning, I wanted the day to be over. I felt like a shell of a mother, and the last thing I wanted to do was surround myself with others ...
Drawing Near on Mother’s Day
May 8, 2011.
My first Mother’s Day as a Hope Mom.
I had survived my birthday, Thanksgiving, Christmas, and Valentines without Gwendolyn. And “survival” is an appropriate word—these first holidays were what I call the “little deaths”; the barely-holding-back-sobs (or escaping to another room) to let out all the sadness that can’t help but be expended through tears. But Mother’s Day loomed so large, obscuring the rest of what is typically a lovely month out of the year. Thinking of all I had stored up in hope for Mother’s Day—homemade cards, sticky sweet kisses, coffee in bed, children earnestly doing ...
Unspeakable Joy on Mother’s Day
“May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust Him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.”
Romans 15:13
Joy—unspeakable joy—is one of the many emotions I experience each year as Mother’s Day makes its appearance. Joy that is intermingled with pain, happiness, grief, hope, anger, and thankfulness. Mother’s Day is a sweet reminder of the blessings the Lord has bestowed upon me and my family, but it is also a day that is shadowed by loss.
I have five beautiful children that are earth-side with me, and I have one beautiful little girl on the other side of glory. This will be my fourth ...
In the Word: Reviving My Soul
Welcome to Hope Mommies’ In the Word devotionals. Over the next several weeks, we will be studying Psalm 19:7-11 together.The grieving heart will often grasp at anything that seems to offer even the smallest glimmer of comfort. But every attempt to be comforted apart from God and His Word will only end in greater disappointment. In this series, we will be examining the richness of the Word, and discover how we, as Hope Moms, can find true and lasting comfort in Scripture.
REVIVING MY SOUL
"The law of the Lord is perfect, reviving the soul."
Psalm 19:7
"You who have made me see many troubles and calamities will revive me ...
He Will Finish the Work He Began in You
God’s Word is filled with rich promises for His children. How do these “precious and very great promises” inform and direct your grief? How does keeping your eyes fixed on these truths anchor your hope in the Lord? In this series, we write about how God, through the promises in His Word, comforts and strengthens us in our sorrow.
After my son Max died, I struggled to perform even the most basic of daily tasks. I couldn’t clean my house or cook. I had no interest in putting on makeup or doing my hair. I couldn’t imagine sitting in my office attempting to do anything productive at work ever again. I felt like I was moving in slow ...
Anna Joy, Forever Held
We may have only carried our babies on this side of eternity for a short while, but they are forever held in our hearts. In this series, Hope Moms share how they have held their precious babies throughout the months and years following their home going. What has remembering your hope baby looked like for you? We would love to have you write about the traditions you have started to represent your hope baby in your holiday celebrations, family photos, home, etc., or how you celebrate their birthday or heaven day. Find out how you can share your story HERE.
When I was growing up, my parents told me about my sister who was stillborn at around 21 ...
He Will Draw Near to You
God’s Word is filled with rich promises for His children. How do these “precious and very great promises” inform and direct your grief? How does keeping your eyes fixed on these truths anchor your hope in the Lord? In this series, we write about how God, through the promises in His Word, comforts and strengthens us in our sorrow.
I walked down the hall as tears began to form in the corners of my eyes. It had been just a few days since I had learned that the babe I was carrying in my womb was already gone from me. Another still heart. Another journey through grief and loss.
Moments earlier I had been talking with a friend at ...
20 Truths to Know about Jesus’ Triumph
In “One Unique Death Proclaimed,” posted on Good Friday, I write that Jesus does not brush past me in grief or scurry my wounds to patched-up, peripheral healing. Rather, Jesus addresses the core of my pain. Today, on Easter Sunday, I want to expound via twenty truths about Jesus’ triumph over sin and death:
Death affects all mankind, so we are wise to study in Scripture how it originated, what implications it has upon this present life, and what happens following it: “It is better to go to the house of mourning than to go to the house of feasting, for this is the end of all mankind, and the living will lay it to heart&#...
