In the Word: The Throne of Grace
Welcome to Hope Mommies In the Word devotionals. Over the next few weeks, we will be meditating on themes of God's mercy. 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!
"Let us then with confidence draw near to the throne of grace,
that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need."
Hebrews 4:16
READ:
As I grow to have a higher ...
I Know Why I Weep
There she stood, outside of Jesus’ tomb. Stooping to look inside, her weeping formed a river of anguish. She did not yet know that her Lord was risen.
Instead of Jesus’ body within that tomb, Mary Magdalene beheld two angels. Sitting, dressed in white. They knew that Jesus had risen.
So they asked Mary, “Woman, why are you weeping?”
Why was she weeping in that tomb-garden? As I read of her answer recorded in the Gospel of John (chapter 20), I think that her reason is at the root of all tears of sorrow, in a sense.
“They have taken away my Lord…” ...
Receiving More of the Lord
As I look back over the years since I first experienced the devastating loss of two my babies, I can see how I have experienced more of Jesus than I would have been ready to embrace had I not walked through this valley of grief. Because this valley has led me straight to the heart of God, and it has been because of this sorrow that I have been able to, in some small way, identify with Christ’s sorrow.
These years have pushed me further and deeper into the embrace of my loving God, and into a position of deep security and peace in the arms of the One who knows what it ...
Abigail’s Story
My husband and I were at the hospital for a routine 20-week ultrasound for our second daughter. She had a strong heartbeat and was very active, but the exam took longer than it should have, and anxiety started to creep in. When the doctor told us that all was not well with our baby, the bottom fell out of my heart.
“Unfortunately, this baby has some things wrong with her.”
Those words will forever echo in my memory.
The doctor went on to explain that our baby had multiple serious physical defects, and more testing was needed to determine the exact nature of her ...
To Be Known
My daughter was born with her eyes closed. When I recall that painful day sitting in the hospital, counting her precious fingers and toes over and over again while I held her tiny frame in my hands, I wonder what color those little eyes were.
I never even got to see my first baby that was born into heaven.
There are so many details about my babies that my heart aches to know. I wish I knew what makes them laugh, what their favorite colors are, or if they have dimples when they smile. I wish I knew if they were left-handed like me, or right-handed like their daddy.
When ...
Honest and Humble Words
It was a Friday night, exactly thirteen days since Chance’s funeral. I was home alone with the girls while Brandon was at a baseball game with friends. This was the first night since we’d lost Chance that I would be alone for a significant amount of time. Being alone is not something that has ever bothered me, and quite frankly, I enjoy moments to myself, but during that time, as I was grieving the loss of my son, I craved faces and people and bodies.
I knew I was taking a risk. I was putting myself in a vulnerable situation, but kept telling myself it would be good ...
In the Word: God’s Mysterious Providence
Welcome to Hope Mommies In the Word devotionals. Over the next few weeks, we will be meditating on themes of God's mercy. 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!
"For as the heavens are higher than the earth,
so are my ways higher than your ways
and my thoughts than your thoughts."
Isaiah 55:9
READ:
From the pits of ...
Sing Hannah’s Song Through Worship
“...And he worshiped the Lord there. Then Hannah prayed and said, ‘My heart exults in the LORD; My horn is exalted in the LORD. My mouth derides my enemies, because I rejoice in Your salvation. There is none holy like the LORD: for there is none besides You; there is no rock like our God.”
1 Samuel 1:28-2:2
What are we really asking in our pain and tears, when life doesn’t go the way we think it should or thought is would?
“God, are You good?”
“God, are You trustworthy?”
“God, will I continue to surrender my life to You?”
In Hannah’s ...
Dear Paige: A Letter to My Hope Baby
Baby Girl,
My arms still ache to hold you. My ears long to hear your sweet giggles. My hands yearn to brush your hair. My lips want to kiss your cheeks. My heart breaks because I can’t see you growing up. I can’t read to you, or sing lullabies to you, or make you pancakes in the shape of numbers on your birthday.
There is always someone missing from the breakfast table and the family photos. There is a room that never got the chance to be yours. Your sweet brothers talk about you and take flowers to your grave. And those brothers of yours are everything ...
Emily’s Story
I found out I was pregnant in May of 2017. When I told my husband, we celebrated together, full of joy and excitement. Before we knew if we were having a boy or a girl, we were trying to pick our top names. I thought of Audrey, and instantly fell in love with the name. I knew that if we had a girl that would be her name. The meaning of Audrey is “noble strength.” We wanted to give our child a first name that had a strong meaning, and to me, Audrey was perfect. When I was 20 weeks, we were getting ready to find out the sex of the baby, and were both almost certain that ...
