Remember When

Remember when it was all so new? Holding hands, our first kiss, crawling into bed together after the wedding. We were eager, excited, and expectant for everything in store.

We knew to expect hardship and challenges, but we didn’t know what shape or form they would take.

We never imagined a tragic death would claim my brother and forever alter our family.

Nothing could have prepared us for a child with a disability, and a life marked by Down syndrome.

We had no idea we would lose two of our babies before they ever took a breath.

We didn’t know how often you would travel for work, the number of times we’d have to call 911, or the amount of hospitalizations our kids would face.

But do you remember when God sustained us? Do you remember the way he brought people to care for us in our need? Do you remember his strength when we felt like we couldn’t go on? Can you remember his presence when it felt like the darkness would never lift? Do you remember the way he carried us in grief, sorrow, loss, and fear? Do you remember the joy he surprised us with, and keeps restoring?

I do.

It seems strange to say, because I would never ask for suffering, certainly not in the ways God has allowed. But I’m confident none of it is wasted, and I’m forever grateful.

God enabled the challenges of life to usher us into deeper communion with him. He used hardship to grow our faith and increase our dependency upon him. And by his grace, he’s drawn us closer to one another, too.

We don’t know what tomorrow holds. But we do know the One who holds us. So, we remember our God. We remember his faithfulness, goodness, and love. And when life feels too difficult to handle, we remember he’s using all of this momentary affliction to prepare us for an eternal weight of glory far beyond anything we could hope or imagine.

This is Day 16 in a series: A Diligent Wife

Photo by Laurentiu Iordache on Unsplash