One of the hardest things in our struggle to conceive again has been facing the fact that God's answer to our prayer at this time seems to be "not now." We cry out to him regularly, asking him to do what only he can do, which is open my womb again. We can't make him answer our prayers in the way that we want any more than we can create life. It's a humbling place to be.
Friday is for Food: Orange Teriyaki Salmon
My sister-in-law sent me this recipe about a month ago and we recently tried it. I've said before that I have had an aversion to fish for almost all of my life, but since Daniel likes it (and it's good for us) I try to include fish recipes into our menu every once in a while. We really liked this recipe! I hope you do too!
A Christian Response to Gay Bullying
It seems the topic of bullying has been in the news a lot more recently. Maybe it's the rise of social media and a variety of avenues for young people to taunt each other, or maybe it's just getting worse. I don't know. But I do know that I've seen a lot of discussion regarding the basis for gay bullying. Often the push for tolerance of homosexuality follows the sad news that another gay student has committed suicide. As Christians, how are we to respond to such claims about tolerance? How are we to love and care for hurting people, regardless of their lifestyle, without abandoning the Bible's clear teaching about sexuality?
God Makes No Discoveries
A few weeks ago I heard that there had been a discovery of something with the ability to go faster than the speed of light. They are called neutrinos, and the world's largest physics lab made the discovery. Apparently they move pretty fast. Fast enough to question a theory that has been around for a very long time. I don't know a whole lot about physics. In fact, I had to ask my husband what Einstein's theory even meant. But I find it fascinating that even when we have the greatest scientific research capabilities our world has ever known, we are still not finished in the discovery of our universe.
Friday is for Food: Baked Potato Soup
I haven't posted a recipe in a while primarily because I haven't been cooking as much since we've been out of town a lot recently. But when we were with some friends and family a couple of weeks ago they mentioned that they actually used some of the recipes I have posted! It gave me new inspiration to keep sharing thoughts from my little kitchen.
"God Said It. I Believe It."
Last week I talked about my tendency towards doubting good news and struggling with believing what I cannot see. The story of Abraham has ministered to me greatly in the past few weeks. He had to wrestle hard with what it means to believe God and take him at his word (and, like me, he didn't always do that well). This morning I read about God's covenant with Abraham in Genesis 15 and how Abraham believed God's promise to make him into a great nation.
Doubting Good News
Sarah was 90 years old when she was told she would give birth to a son. Zechariah was well passed the age when a normal person becomes a father when he was promised a child. Both had spent years praying, longing, hoping, and grieving over the desire for children. So you can imagine their amazement (and shock) when they are told that they will soon receive the desire of their heart. But their reaction is more than just shock.
Trusting What You Cannot See
"Between the death of Lazarus and his resurrection four days later, his family could not see how God would be glorified in it. That would be revealed at his resurrection. Therefore, if that is where you stand today—and all of us do, in some sense, not seeing clearly how God is glorified in the death of our beloved—do not judge before the resurrection. God is doing more than you can know. And the resurrection will bring it all to light. In the mean time, trust him, and treasure him above all things." - John Piper, This Illness Is for the Glory of God (sermon)
While We Wait
Carolyn McCulley has recently written a couple of posts (here and here) about praying for a husband and living with the desire for marriage when it's not necessarily being fulfilled immediately. While the posts don't apply to my specific situation right now, I found her insights about waiting on God to provide something you strongly desire extremely helpful for myself in this season of infertility. Waiting is waiting. The specifics are different, but often the helplessness of the waiting is the same regardless of the thing we are waiting for.
The Crisis of Pregnancy Reduction
This has haunted me since I read it over a month ago. The quote came from an article in The New York Times Magazine on August 10. The article chronicled the troubling trend of pregnancy reduction in twin pregnancies. Pregnancy reduction, a sterilized euphemism for abortion, is not uncommon in multiple pregnancies, but when a couple decides to reduce from a twin to a singleton some in the medical community begin to draw the line.